Liz Truss parodist Nerine Skinner debuts show at Edinburgh Festival

A comedian whose parody of Liz Truss attracted millions of views online has created a show about trying to move on from the former prime minister.

Nerine Skinner, from High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, created the character Liv Struss after friends pointed out her resemblance to the former South West Norfolk MP.

In her debut show, The Exorcism of Liz Truss, which is playing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this month, Ms Skinner tries to separate herself and her career from the politician.

The BBC contacted Ms Truss’s office for comment but it said it would not be commenting.

Despite the resemblance, Ms Skinner said she was not aware of Ms Truss until the politician came to national prominence.

“I was jealous of Liz [Truss] in the first place because we look quite like each other, I thought she was doing a better job at comedy than I was… it was a real shock when I realised she was actually a politician,” she said.

Ms Skinner began posting her Liv Struss videos on social media in August 2022 when Ms Truss made her bid for the Tory leadership – and said she became a political parodist “overnight”.

She has also parodied other politicians including Boris Johnson and Nadine Dorries.

“Quite often I get people say ‘I get my news from you’… I like the idea that people might watch it and then watch the real thing and form their opinions,” she said.

However, she admitted she previously found politics “intimidating”.

“At the beginning of all this I felt a bit like an impostor – not only had I not done impressions before, I didn’t know much about politics,” she said.

“I’ve always shied away from it in my comedy or my work, I always worried that I didn’t know enough about it.”

Ms Skinner’s debut show explores the co-dependency she created with Ms Truss through her parody character.

“The show is about me just trying to get away from Liz Truss,” she said.

“She only lasted the 49 days [as prime minister] so my career started and finished quite quickly.”

Ms Truss resigned as prime minister in October 2022 and lost the South West Norfolk seat she had held for 14 years at the general election.

“She was the shortest serving prime minister, there’s an intrigue and fascination around her,” said Ms Skinner.

However, the comedian said the Liv Struss character meant she remained “one step removed” from the real politician.

“I’ve always been really aware of the fact that there is another person on the other end,” she said.

“I have created a character that is running parallel to her – not her. People are enjoying it and there’s no malice.”