Fans Praise Rosie O’Donnell’s Return to Stand-Up Amid Rumors of Comedy Special
Before she was a queen of daytime talk or a cohost of The View, Rosie O’Donnell was a stand-up comedian — as you can see in her 1984 Star Search performance. At lately, O’Donnell has been returning to her roots, performing stand-up in what may be rehearsals for a rumored comedy special.
On Instagram on Friday, May 23, O’Donnell shared a photo of herself on stage. “I can’t believe this is me now,” she wrote, adding the hashtags #mounjaro (a brand-name weight loss medication), #weightloss, and “#bodydismorphia” [sic].
In the comments, supporters — including famous folks — praised O’Donnell for picking up the mic again.
“I LOVE THAT YOU’RE DOING STAND-UP,” Kathy Griffin wrote in one comment, a sentiment echoed by Instagram user @lindalmay5345.
Comedian Dana Goldberg wrote, “I was just saying how damn lucky they are over there to witness you doing stand-up again!”
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The “over there” is Ireland, where O’Donnell moved earlier this year along with Clay, her 12-year-old child. She later told Instagram followers she’d only consider moving back to the United States “when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights.”
And while across the pond, O’Donnell has been busy with stand-up. She performed at Dublin’s Craic Den Comedy Club on Tuesday, May 20, and at the nearby International Bar the following day, according to her Instagram feed.
O’Donnell will return to the International Bar stage for a series of shows between May 28 and July 23 as she performs what’s billed as a “work-in progress” routine in support of the Irish autism charity As I Am.
And that “work in progress” may come before a comedy special that all O’Donnell’s fans can see. This February, In Touch reported that O’Donnell was secretly finalizing a deal for a comedy special based on a new hour-long stand-up set that she’d written and tested. “Rosie still has a swagger and still has real comedy chops, and thankfully, in her new material, she doesn’t come across as bitter or defensive,” a source told the tabloid. “She’s just trying to make people laugh, and she’s doing it by being herself.”
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