QX meets the creative minds behind Looking for fun?

Conor O’Cuinn’s Looking for fun? is a ‘punchy, provocative and bold’ (Close-up Culture) one-man show which began three years ago at the Edinburgh Fringe and is back in London this January. The show runs for three nights only, January 22 – 24, at Theatre503 in Battersea, and is directed by Tazy Harrison-Moore.  

Moving seamlessly between moments of sharp humour and striking vulnerability, Looking for fun? lays bare the complexities of online hookup culture, an exploration of love and loneliness in an age of instant gratification. Set against the pulsating glow of Grindr notifications and neon-lit club nights, we follow Looking4Fun from visits to the barber to moments of tender intimacy. Each interaction—from a barber’s chair to a promising first date—peels back another layer of his experience, revealing the scars left by shame, the hunger for love, and the hope for belonging. As the cycle of casual connections deepens his self-doubt, Looking4fun faces a poignant question: in a world of endless options, what does it truly mean to find something—or someone—real.

What inspired you to write Looking for fun?

Looking for fun? was born out of my own journey as a young queer person searching for connection and community. Like many, my first point of contact with the queer world was through hookup apps like Grindr. The play emerged as both a personal exploration and a cry for something deeper—one that, to my joy, found resonance with the wonderful audiences who have supported us.

My love for plays like Angels in America and The Inheritance has profoundly shaped my work. These stories connect me to the “queer ghosts” of the lost AIDS generation—figures whose presence I feel haunting my identity as a theatre-maker and a queer person. Initially, I set out to create a play that addressed the contemporary landscape of HIV/AIDS: celebrating advancements like PrEP while also confronting the stigma and prejudice that persist, even within the queer community.

One of my favorite scenes is when the protagonist, Looking4fun (a nod to his Grindr username), visits a barber shop. For many queer people, barbershops often feel like hyper-masculine, heteronormative spaces. Writing this scene allowed me to explore the dissonance of wearing a “mask” to fit in—a feeling many of us know all too well.

Ultimately, Looking for fun? is a love letter to those who have ever worn masks, hidden parts of themselves, or felt pressure to conform. It’s a celebration of queer identity, spirituality, and the power of sharing our stories to foster connection and self-discovery.

What can the audience expect from the show?

Audiences can expect to be thrust into a world where the imaginary, the digital, and the real world assimilate. As Looking4fun slips in and out of his online identity in his search for connection, so too does the world of the play, an embodiment of what it feels like to live and love in the digital age. At times both gut-wrenching and warm, audiences can expect an experience as hilarious as it is thought-provoking. We hope to invite our audiences to join us in a space to consider together the complexities of humanity, and to feel that shared yearning for something genuine in a chaotic and often isolating modern landscape.

Finally, do you have any plans for the future that you would like to share with us?

Everywhere we have taken this play so far we have been met with the biggest hearts and encountered incredible communities of people. Seeing the story resonate as it does only inspires us to keep on going, to continue bringing Looking for fun? to further audiences. We would love to return to the Fringe where all our fun began and we also have ambitions of producing a UK tour of the show. Collaborating with new creatives in the run up to Theatre503 has been so fulfilling and pushed the boundaries of the show in ways we could never have imagined, so that too is something we are keen to continue exploring in the play’s future. Experimentation with new ways of representing the digital world on stage is also on our agenda. We’re always looking for more fun, and hope to see you down the yellow brick road. 

Looking for fun? runs from 22 – 24 January 2025, at Theatre503, 503 Battersea Park Road, London SW11 3BW, United Kingdom.

Written by Conor O’Cuinn

Directed by Tazy Harrison-Moore

Running time: 65 minutes (no interval)

All images supplied.