FUNNY GIRL
I worked in Boots & it was the worst job ever, I was bullied so badly I ended up stealing toothpaste I didn’t even need
Scroll down for more on Fern Brady
FERN Brady has revealed that during her teenage years she worked at Boots, which she described as ‘the worst job ever’.
Before her time as a comedian and award-winning writer, Fern Brady, 38, did a lot of weird jobs.
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Not only did she make flower potions at a psychic fair, she also worked in a sex shop that sold hilariously titled pornography films.
And as well as this, she also had a Saturday job, working as a Shop Assistant at Boots.
But unfortunately for Fern, working for the high-street chain wasn’t as smooth sailing as she had hoped.
Speaking recently on the Joe Marler Things People Did podcast, the celeb, who is from Bathgate, Scotland, and achieved fame as a stand-up comedian at competitions such as the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, opened up on how bullying at work led her to shoplift from the store.
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She confessed: “That was the worst job ever.
“All the women that were working there were horrible b****s.
“I was the geeky kid in my town, just like a total weirdo, and I worked in Boots and it was these rough as a******s women.
“They saw me for what I was on day one and bullied me and bullied me and bullied me.”
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As a result of the workplace bullying, Fern admitted that she turned to shoplifting items such as toothpaste to get her revenge, although she didn’t even need it.
She added: “To comfort myself, I started shoplifting stuff, but there’s not very much you can shoplift from there when you’re 16.
Best buys at Boots
“I ran out of things to steal eventually and by the time I got caught, I think I was stealing toothpaste, which I didn’t even need.
“It was awful. They did not stop taking the p**s out of me.
More on Fern Brady
Fern Brady, born May 26, 1968, is a Scottish comedian, podcast host and writer.
The comedian shot to fame thanks to competitions such as at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
At the same time as performing, Fern was also working as a journalist.
As a result of her stand-up success, Fern has gone on to star on comedy panel shows such as 8 Out of 10 Cats, as well as appearing on Channel 4's series 14 of Taskmaster and Radio 4's The News Quiz - and now she's set to return to screens once more.
In addition to her stints on screen, the star also co-hosts a podcast called Wheel of Misfortune and in 2023 she released her memoir, Strong Female Character.
In February 2023, Fern Brady's book 'Strong Female Character' hit shelves.
According to a synopsis provided by Waterstones, the book is about ''class, mental health, societal pressures and individual ambition.
''Strong Female Character is a candid and ground-breaking memoir of neurodiversity, sexism and defying expectations.''
The book also has a strong focus on Autism - an incurable, lifelong developmental condition that affects how people perceive the world and interact with others.
The star was diagnosed with Autism in 2021 and while writing her book 'Strong Female Character', Fern considered how her autism diagnosis might affect her comedy career.
She explained: ''I kept thinking, ‘This is probably going to ruin things for me’.
''But then I reassured myself that the people I’m most worried about are probably not going to read it, although quite a few comedians I’ve sent it to have read it.
''I had a lot to say about autism and didn’t feel like it was stuff that I could say in stand-up, because not everyone is interested in autism stuff.''
Following the publication of her book, Fern won the Nero Award for non-fiction - one of the most prestigious prizes in publishing.
Judges praised the book as ''raw, honest and moving''.
“I got in trouble in that shop every week and I didn’t know why, obviously I knew stealing from the shop was bad, but all the other stuff I got in trouble for, I didn’t understand why I was getting in trouble.”
Not only did she shoplift from the major chain, but she also wound up her manager when talking to customers too.
Where has Boots closed stores?
BOOTS has never given a full list of the 300 stores closing.
Here's what we know so far about some of the locations where branches that have gone for good.
- Pool, Cornwall
- Cambrone, Cornwall
- Redruth, Cornwall
- Wood Street, Swindon, Wiltshire
- Clifton, Yorkshire
- Cliftonville, Kent
- Pemberton, Wigan
- Littlehampton, West Sussex
- Hough Lane, Layland, Lancashire
- Front Street, Prudhoe
- Rhos on Sea, Wales
- Colwyn Bay, Wales
- Portland Walk, Barrow
- Gestridge Road, Teignbridge
- Caerleon Road, Newport
- Chepstow Road, Newport
- Carlyon Road, St Austell, Cornwall
- St Blazey, Cornwall
- Lurgan
- Chard Road, Plymouth
- Mannamead Road, Plymouth
- Claremont Street, Plymouth
- Heathside Road, Woking
- UEA campus
- Hamlet Court Road, Westcliff
- Holywell, Flintshire (Wales)
- Windhill Road, Wakefield
- Upper Warrengate, Wakefield
- Glastonbury
- Uppingham Road, Leicester
- Guildford Road, Woking
- Kings Square, York
- Warminster
- Gorleston, Great Yarmouth
- High Row, Darlington
- Mudge Way, Plymouth
- Mount Pleasant, Exeter
- Kirkby Ashfield
Instead of trying to sell the chain's latest and special buys, Fern opened up on her rebellious and cheeky attitude.
She continued: “They would get me to wear a badge that said ‘Ask me about the new No7 mascara’.
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“People would be like ‘what’s the new No7 mascara like?’ and I’d say ‘it’s awful, it’s so bad, buy this one from Rimmel instead’.
"Straight away I’d get told off by the manager.”
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