As a founding member of the legendary sketch comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall, Bruce McCulloch is widely considered to be one of this country’s most celebrated comedic performers. Though his career has evolved over the years to working more behind the camera as a director, he’s currently preparing to take the stage once again with a new one-man theatre show. It’s called Dark Purple Slice and it uses music, stand-up and storytelling to journey into the darker side of life. Ahead of the show, Bruce drops by the Q studio to tell guest host Talia Schlanger where the title came from, why it’s important to laugh about the darkness, and why he says dark humour is the most human thing you can embrace.

Phoenix and Mercedes Arn-Horn are the twin siblings behind the Juno-nominated shoegaze duo Softcult. While Softcult has been celebrated all over North America, opening for bands like Muse and Incubus, they’re only just releasing their debut album today. It’s called When A Flower Doesn't Grow and it’s a record that’s been years in the making. Phoenix and Mercedes join guest host Talia Schlanger to discuss life outside the major label model, why they decided to call out the abuse they faced in their life and in the music industry, and how they see their role in supporting abused and marginalized people.

James Acaster is one of Britain’s top comedy exports right now. But for many years, he had a problem that just wouldn’t go away — his audience. James would get so frustrated and enraged by some of the people who came to see him, he almost quit comedy (plot spoiler: he didn’t). In the middle of his North American tour, James dropped by our studio to tell guest host Talia Schlanger why he used to get so angry with his audience, and the journey he took when he realised maybe they weren’t the problem.