Caroline Reid is an Australian-born comedienne who is better known as her abrasive and glitzy alter ego, "Pam Ann," a stewardess who does NOT deal with economy class, does not take kindly to passenger’s requests, and would simply be a better stewardess overall if the patrons did not exist. Pam's over-the-top attitude and flashy style have turned the character into a worldwide success with millions of followers across social media.
Caroline Reid grew up in Australia, moved to London, and now resides in New York. Her move to America has resulted in many outrageous adventures, and she is now going to share those experiences with the world in a brand-new stand-up show called "TINDER, COKE, F#CK…REPEAT!" Caroline has openly admitted to having lived a fast, sometimes hard, life and she has indulged in many risky sexual encounters and illicit drugs.
She will use her flamboyant style of comedy and distinct acting skills to reflect on these shocking, harrowing, and oddly-amusing-now-that-they-are-over situations starting on Thursday, September 28, at the Triad Theater.
In a recent and exclusive interview, Caroline discussed the character of Pam Ann, her experiences as an entertainer, and more.
Acting, characters, and airlines
Meagan Meehan (MM): How did you discover your love of comedy and acting and which came first?
Caroline Reid (CR): Acting came first. However, I never seemed to be that successful in auditions since they petrified me. I was always cast as the chorus or a mute role. I was playing a mute revolving door in a play called “Prometheus Bound and Sisyphus 2” when I discovered I was funny.
Some of the characters would have to walk through my mute revolving door, and when they would go through, I would find little, comical, ways to upstage them. The reviews were awful however they all said the highlight of the play was the mute revolving door played by Caroline Reid. That was the beginning of my life in comedy.
MM: You have stated that you started the character of Pam Ann while musing on ways to escape the island of Australia. So, how did you get Pam so popular with the public?
CR: Growing up in Australia in the 1970s was bloody great. Pursuing certain careers in Australia, like comedy or acting can be very limiting as there isn’t much industry out there.
I knew I had to leave Oz and luckily Pam Ann bought me a one-way ticket to London and the rest is history, as they say. I don’t think you ever know if something will resonate or become popular with an audience. I just winged it, and I still feel like I am winging it today. A journalist once called Pam Ann a one trick pony. I laugh now because twenty-one years later and that pony is still galloping!
MM: How did you develop Pam's wonderfully brash demeanor? Have you ever had terrible experiences with flight hostesses?
CR: Working in dirty old gay bars in the middle of a wintery night in the East End of London will do it! I first touched down in London in 1999 and, for the following ten years, I was getting acting work in these gay bars where sometimes it was just ‘men only’ and, trust me, they were not there to watch an air hostess talk about flying!
Pam Ann had to become brash in order to survive. To heck with nice! I haven’t had any really bad experiences with flight attendants, and if I have it’s not because of Pam Ann, it’s because they were tired and over it and who can blame them?
MM: How much of a backstory, if any, did you give Pam? Why is she the way that she is and is she at all like you?
CR: She does have a tiny backstory, mostly about her life growing up in Essendon, which is the site of the first international airport in Victoria. There’s also her love of planes, fashion, and trying to get the heck out of Australia. I try to not over-think Pam too much. She has become so much a part of my DNA that I feel like we could be sisters, with her, of course, in the spotlight.
I am so protective of her. It’s a bit like the author P.L Travers was of her character, Mary Poppins. I only realized this recently when a big Hollywood producer tried to steal Pam and have someone else play her. I got so upset and emotional over it; I shocked myself. Pam Ann is an extension of me, but I am not at all like her in real life. I am much less showy and much more low-key…I think!
MM: How did you get airlines to agree to let you film in airports and on planes? Overall, how many places has Pam traveled to?
CR: Back in the 1990s, you just had to make a call to the airport in Australia, and they were thrilled to have you out on the tarmac shooting photos dressed as a sixties air hostess.
How times have changed! Airlines hired Pam Ann for campaigns and advertising so they would have access to everything from terminal 4 Heathrow to 747-400 mock training ups. These shoots were and are always thrilling for me. Pam Ann has traveled the world over and over to places I would never have dreamed possible.
Fashion, theater, and comedy
MM: Why have you been so influenced by drag shows and fashion and do these interests impact how you dress even off camera/stage?
CR: I’ve worked along so many drag queens in my life, I feel like I went to the school of Dragatic Arts! I love how big and bold they are and how filthy their mouths are. What’s not to love? I never wear much makeup, just a red lipstick and I am done!
I’ll leave the drag fashion for Pam Ann.
MM: Are you excited to be on stage for your new theater show or do you prefer working on camera?
CR: I prefer a stage and a live audience. You can’t beat the adrenaline rush; it’s like a drug. I guess that’s why performers keep doing it. We’re chasing the high
MM: How do you envision your career evolving over the next ten years? For instance, do you have any crazy new characters in the works?
CR: I would like to do a Pam Ann movie and develop a television show. As for other characters, they come organically so, who knows? For now, I am focused on my stand-up comedy as myself. Will the real Caroline Reid please stand up? Yes, happily! Oh my, now I’ve lost it...I’m asking and answering my questions!
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Caroline Reid stars in “TINDER, COKE, F#CK…REPEAT!” which will be performed Thursday, September 28th, and Friday, September 29th in New York City’s Triad Theatre. Tickets available now at 212-279-4200 or by Googling and visiting the official “Triad NYC” website.
