Eddie Izzard embraces she/her pronouns, receives an outpouring of support

You love to see it.

Accomplished comedian, The Riches star, and international treasure Eddie Izzard has brought some light into the end of a dark 2020. During a recent stint as a model for Sky Arts’ Portrait Artist of the Year, Izzard opened up about embracing the use of she/her pronouns, describing herself as “gender fluid.”

The topic came up in relation to a question asking her to explain “why you’ve done this,” referring to the Portrait Artist appearance. And Izzard readily explained: “Well, I try to do things that I think are interesting, and this is the first program I’ve asked if I can be ‘she’ and ‘her.’ This is a little transition period.”

She then goes on to assert her gender fluidity, offering the explanation for people “who know me from before.” She continues: “I just want to be based in ‘girl mode’ from now on.”

For fans of a certain age, Izzard is perhaps best known for her 1998 comedy special, Dress to Kill. It was a massively successful stand-up show (and part of a larger tour) that was recognized widely enough to earn a Primetime Emmy. I remember watching it on HBO way back when and, after being initially thrown by Izzard’s style of dress — it was 1998 and I was a still-maturing 20-year-old — I fell hard for the big laughs she delivered and have been a fan ever since.

Izzard has been on this journey for a long time. She opened up about her relationship with sex and gender back in 2016, referring to herself at the time as a “transgender guy,” and adding: “I came out 31 years ago.”

“The confidence it has given me, coming out 31 years ago in 1985, is immense,” she said at a later point. “But it was a very hard journey. Very hard. But I thought it was right to be honest about it, to tell my family, friends and then the world.”

As word of Izzard’s Portrait Artist appearance made the rounds on Sunday, fans from all over chimed in to express their support. (Yes, plenty of assholes are trying to have their say as well. But we’re ignoring them and you’d benefit from doing the same.)

There is unfortunately no easy way to watch the Dress to Kill special in the United States, as it’s not available on any of the common streaming services. The shorter, audio-only version of that special is relatively easy to find, though, and I highly recommend giving it a listen if you haven’t.

Here’s a clip that should be more than enough to sell you, from Izzard’s own YouTube channel.