In his Adelaide Fringe 2025 show "When It Raynes It Pours," UK comedian and playwright Josh Rayne delivers an honest and funny exploration of life with Borderline Personality Disorder that feels both chaotic and meticulously crafted.
Rayne navigates the complexities of his identity, mental health, and family secrets with an energy that takes audiences through misadventures and sexual encounters with a dash of mania.
Rather than following the usual stand up structure, Rayne presents three buckets labeled "Secrets," "BPD & DBT," and "Fun," inviting audience members to select cards that prompt his stories. Tellingly, our audience emptied the BPD and Secrets buckets first, creating an unpredictable yet intimate evening that felt like a shared journey.
Some of the most memorable moments emerged from the BPD bucket, where Rayne demonstrates various therapeutic techniques he's learned along the way. In one particularly odd segment, he submerges his face in a bowl of ice water live on stage to demonstrate how to stimulate the vagus nerve and induce calm—a moment that earned him an extra half-star in my book. Another technique has him smiling with open hands, showcasing the sometimes strange yet effective coping mechanisms for emotional regulation.
With refreshing candor, Rayne tells us upfront that "we've peaked with depression and ADHD shows," positioning BPD as the new frontier in mental health comedy. He doesn't shy away from difficult subjects, openly discussing his polyamorous relationships with the quip that it allows him to "spread the trauma of his mental illness around."
While the narrative jumps between stories everything ties back to core themes of sex, family, and diagnosis. This intentional structural chaos mirrors the subject matter perfectly, creating a show that feels authentic rather than disjointed.
What makes "When It Raynes It Pours" truly special is how it breaks down the stigma surrounding BPD by literally breaking down the wall between performer and audience. Rayne's lived experience comes through as honest, comedic, and raw—a masterclass in turning personal chaos into art.
As promised, this is indeed a four-star show that goes beyond the now-familiar territory of depression and ADHD to explore the less-understood realm of BPD with intelligence, wit, and surprising warmth. Rayne proves that embracing life's messiest moments can create not just healing, but also compelling theatre.