Francesca Martinez

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For the Italian model with the same name, see Francesca Martinez (Italian model)

Francesca Martinez (b. 1979) is an English stand-up comedian.

1 Stand-up comedy
2 Television
3 Olympics in China
4 External links

[edit] Stand-up comedy

The majority of her set deals with her disability, cerebral palsy. Her jokes typically consist of a setup regarding her doing an activity that you would not usually associate with someone who has cerebral palsy, for example, cutting a volunteer's hair live on stage.

In 2003, she was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy.

She has organised charity shows featuring comedians such as Jo Brand, Johnny Vegas and Al Murray.

[edit] Television

Before becoming a stand-up, Martinez appeared in the BBC children's drama serial Grange Hill for several years, and has acted in other drama series such as Casualty.

She has also appeared as a guest on Frank Skinner's chat show, as a talking-head pundit, and in Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant's comedy series Extras.

[edit] Olympics in China

Martinez was asked in February 2008 to become a flag-bearer during the parade of the Olympic Torch through London in April 2008. Despite revealing how she was proud to represent the disabled community, live on Channel 4 News on April 3rd she officially turned the opportunity down, citing the Chinese occupation of Tibet and human rights abuses.