Being a feminist in our world isn’t always easy to get right.

Just ask Deborah Frances-White who started popular podcast The Guilty Feminist with fellow comic Sofie Hagen, which has become a comedy phenomenon with more than 50 million downloads since it launched in late 2016.

She says: “It’s really easy, as a woman, to say to your female best friend ‘you’re better than that, don’t accept that from him, he’s treating you badly and you have to move on,’ and then go and sext your horrible ex. You know the answer, but you don’t always do it. This doesn’t make you not a feminist.”

Feminism has been central to Deborah’s comedy from the get-go.

She studied English literature at Oxford University and after finishing her degree in 2000, she began to pursue comedy.

“Audiences are hoping to see a man," Deborah reveals. "Bookers will often only put one woman on a bill. Panel shows put one woman on, if any. We female comedians were made to feel like we had to complete a task to earn our stripes. The assumption was that you had to be as good as male comedians at the things they did best. The environment was unyielding and hostile to women.”

So she decided to create her own comedy model.

After gaining experience in Edinburgh away from the main comedy circuit, Deborah began to do storytelling shows. As well as attracting a growing audience, these shows were a cathartic way of dealing with life experiences.

She and Sofie Hagen recorded the first live episode of The Guilty Feminist in late 2015 with guest Shappi Khorsandi and it has been growing ever since.

With Sofie over at the Colchester Arts Centre on Saturday, May 11, Deborah Frances-White's touring version of The Guilty Feminist is at the town's Charter Hall this Friday, May 10, from 7.30pm.

She'll be joined by, among others, Edinburgh Award Winner Bridget Christie, soul folk artist Mr For Queen, and fellow stand-up Rosie Jones.

For tickets go to colchester-events.co.uk