The iconic Ruby Wax has been on stage and screen for decades. An advocate for mental health, she is best known for her comedy - contributing to and starring in Absolutely Fabulous - and being an author.
After starting out at the Royal Shakespeare Company and gaining a master's degree in Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy, she founded her own charity, Frazzled, to help people suffering mental health challenges, and even mentors people at her London home.
Almost a year since her stint on I'm a Celebrity, Ruby catches us up on her latest tour, her charity work, and the very famous friend who helped her find her inimitable style.
Seeing Ruby in action, one might think it came naturally. But she revealed it was the help of a few celebrity friends - hint, Love, Actually and Harry Potter icon Alan Rickman - who really helped her when she was starting out.
She revealed, "Alan wasn't famous when I met him. We were in the Royal Shakespeare Company, and he said, ‘You suck as an actress, but you could be funny – write the way you think.'
"He went through my pages, picked out my great lines, then did my shows for the next 30 years. He directed everything. My parents would go, ‘This is ridiculous. She's making a fool of herself,' and Alan would say, ‘No, she's very talented.'"
"My dear parents never believed it. But he would stand by me. I really was not good at anything, so I reinvented. Alan said, ‘Do documentaries, write and be funny.'"
Another of Ruby's supporters and friends turned lifetime collaborator is Absolutely Fabulous legend Jennifer Saunders.
Ruby shared, "Jennifer is a genius, she's hilarious. We wrote together [Ruby was a script editor on Absolutely Fabulous] and she'd say, make it funnier, especially for Patsy.
"I wrote Patsy as Joanna [Lumley] – that was a joy, not many beautiful women are funny... If you're really beautiful, you don't bother."
With all the celebrities she's encountered in her life, it's no surprise she's had some... memorable encounters. She revealed that one of the weirdest questions she's ever been asked was "'What does Madonna smell like?' That's a good one. I put her underpants on my head – the interview was going so badly."
Still working, Ruby is currently touring a new show, Absolutely Famous. Sharing what to expect from the show, she said, "We're showing clips [from When Ruby Wax Met…] – Trump, Pamela Anderson, OJ Simpson, Tom Hanks and Jim Carrey, and giving you the story of what was going on.
"We talk about the nature of fame – how it affects people. It's interesting to see an A-lister talking from the heart again. I always had 10 minutes with them, but I'd get in there and tap-dance like f**k.
"Because as long as I was entertaining, they could tell their PR to get lost. Five minutes turned into [more] – I was with Hugh Hefner for two weeks, living with the Bunnies – after 10 minutes, they get interested. Now, with Instagram you're never gonna see the truth – ever. People are too scared of being cancelled, these people didn't give a s**t. They said anything."
And that's not Ruby's only issue with social media.
"Social media isn't helpful at all. Social media doesn't give you depression, but you can get pulled into envy. To me, social media shows you everybody has got more going than you do. It says, ‘If you get this, you'll be happy.'"
"It's getting our weakness. It knows us more than we know ourselves and how to make you hungry for things to buy. That's really the motive of social media. It started off with really good intentions – you'd meet people, now you ain't meeting the real thing, you're meeting a fake."
It's not just her work on stage that's keeping Ruby busy - her charity work has become paramount. She explained all about her own charity, Frazzled.
"Frazzled is a neurobiological word that means stressed about stress – you sabotage yourself with your own thinking. We're our worst enemy. But depression is not to do with sadness, your brain is sick. It sneaks up on you like a demon. You leave town, you're gone..
"In cafes up and down the country, people meet after hours. You see people coming in terrified, then they leave like this compassionate charm bracelet, all holding hands.
"If you feel you need to speak to somebody, we're not therapy – just a chance to get it off your chest. Once you do, compassion oozes around. We're open every day. Go on frazzledcafe.org. It's free."
This feature first appeared in Woman magazine. Subscribe now and get your first 6 issues for £1.