Podcast Summary: "Disgraceful with Grace O’Malley"

Episode: Fiona Cauley: Kill Tony, Comment Sections, & Cooler Thieves
Release Date: October 9, 2025
Host: Grace O’Malley
Guest: Fiona Cauley
Special Segments: Listener Voicemails, Disgraceful Receipts
Additional Participants: Liz Miller, Matt (Fiona’s fiancé), Announcer(s)

Overview

In this vibrant episode, host Grace O’Malley welcomes comic Fiona Cauley for an hour-plus of candid, irreverent comedy banter, palpable “redhead energy,” and mutual ribbing. The two delve into Fiona’s fast rise in standup (including opening for comics like Theo Von and Nikki Glaser and her wild Madison Square Garden debut), her roots as a “recovering Catholic,” life with disability, and her penchant for finding the humor in every corner—even purple feet and sketchy sorority rules. Interwoven are lightning-quick bits, commentary on the comedy industry, and listener-submitted stories about “things too good to be true,” with both hosts applying their signature, no-holds-barred takes.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Catholic Upbringings & Disability Humor

• Grace and Fiona bond over being “recovering Catholics.”

  • “I bring it up once an episode, maybe five times. Are you Catholic as well?” — Grace (01:55)
  • Both joke about the psychological baggage and school stories.

• Fiona’s humor about her disability is upfront and playful:

  • “Who moves right before their wedding? Disabled people. Because I don’t actually have to do anything. It’s on Matt.” — Fiona (02:59)
  • Discuss sitting back and ‘directing’ during moves, leveraging the perks (“It’s also a good cop out, because then you never have to help your friends move either.” — Grace, 03:19).

2. Listener Voicemails: "Too Good to Be True" Stories

Segment Starts: [05:30]

• Cooler Thief Confession (07:57):

  • Mikey Nim admits to stealing Grace’s family cooler at her graduation party, a mystery for years (“This is a big deal. This is my uncle’s cooler.” — Grace, 09:07).
  • “He sounded like his name is Mikey.” — Fiona (09:49)

• COVID as a Work Excuse (11:56):

  • Listener calls in about using COVID to get out of work.
  • “She also sounds like Mikey.” — Grace (12:28)
  • “I got COVID and I got off work.” — Fiona, parodying (12:35)

• “Dictimized” by a Comic (Liz Miller, 12:49):

  • Liz shares she’s been strung along by a standup comedian and lied to about “watching Dancing with the Stars.”
  • “Every time it’s men, it’s straight men. If you think you got a good one, you didn’t.” — Liz (13:11)
  • “Hot take: don’t date comedians, you fucking psycho.” — Fiona (14:17)
  • “You’re getting married to one.” — Grace (14:22)

• Luke Combs Seat Upgrade Gone Wrong (16:32):

  • Listener’s sister wins a seat upgrade at a concert, only for her and mom to get left behind.
  • Grace and Fiona debate the morality/family politics (“Being the favorite daughter pays off more than…” — Fiona, 18:08).

• Morgan Wallen Ticket Scam (20:16):

  • Listener and friend scammed buying tickets on Facebook—a slow-motion disaster.
  • Grace parodies the scripted style (“That was MLA format.” — Grace, 21:57)
  • “You're not getting scammed by bots, baby. You the bot.” — Fiona (22:24)

3. Comedy Scenes, Kill Tony & Audience Demographics

• Fiona’s Standup Experiences:
  • Talks up her love for non-NYC crowds (“My two favorite cities I’ve done comedy in are Portland, Oregon… and Sacramento. Random, I know.” — Fiona, 15:34)
  • Both riff on the energy of different rooms, the “cult” of Kill Tony.
  • Female fans are precious: “I have a ton of girlfriends of these guys coming… they're like ‘we fucking hate Kill Tony but my boyfriend made me watch you and we’re obsessed.’" — Fiona (19:13)

4. Personal Histories: Videos, Family, School

“Disgraceful Receipts” Segment Starts: [49:22]

• Grace shares “Capable” YouTube series impressions:
  “It tells such a large part of your life in a story in just… two minutes. I think it's fantastic.” — Grace (24:53)
• Fiona reflects on early ambitions, disability diagnosis, and switch from dreams of law to art/design:
  • “I started walking weird at 15 and I didn’t know why... so I was like, fuck that, I’m going to be an artist.” — Fiona (27:36)
  • “Comedy: it’s an addiction.” — Fiona (28:38)
• Getting into Standup:
  • “Everyone starts comedy when they’re supposed to start…” — Grace quoting Liam Dalton (28:56)

5. Industry and Accessibility Realities

• First MSG Experience ([36:00]):

  • Fiona recalls learning about the MSG gig only days before, dealing with logistics, DIY disability accommodations, and the stress of big venues.
  • “The plan I guess was always for me to be on. No one told me.” — Fiona (39:15)
  • On accessibility: “Historic venue of all time is not accessible.” — Grace (41:12)
  • “They were like, the lift is like four grand… Fuck it. Just have someone carry me.” — Fiona (41:36)
  • On the absurdities of low-communication and rich companies cheapskating accessibility.

• Spanx and Backstage Realities:

  • “Have you ever tried to pee in Spanx?… I peed on myself.” — Fiona (36:41)
  • Grace adds, “You should just have a catheter.” (36:48)

6. Comedy Community: Opening for Theo Von and Nikki Glaser

• On Theo Von:
  • “He’s so fucking funny… he’s goofy. Like, Matt was with me and he kept being like… ‘I can’t take a picture with this guy’s wife.’” — Fiona (48:00)
• On Nikki Glaser:
  • “One of the best people I’ve ever met… Every time I went on stage, she’d run down from her dressing room to watch me side stage… give me compliments, give me tags. Like she’s listening and writing notes.” — Fiona (43:22)
  • “It just proves that, like, there’s no reason to be a dick or, like, half ass, you know?” — Grace (44:41)

7. Sorority Life, Exit & Disability Advocacy

• Fiona recounts sorority experience, exclusion due to accessibility:
  • “I was like, hey, I can’t stand for more than like 5 minutes at a time. Can I have, like, a chair?... ‘No, that’s not part of our code.’” — Fiona (61:01)
  • “Once you go, everyone gets on a bus to go to the event, you’re not allowed to leave. And people would, like, jump the fence trying to leave, and they catch them…” (62:53)
  • Her workaround: faking a need for “medication” so friends could leave events (63:23).
  • Both hosts voice extreme distaste for exclusionary sororities.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Accessibility in Big Venues:

  • “Rich people are cheap. And that’s how they stay rich.” — Fiona (41:53)

• On the Comedy Journey:

  • “Everyone always thinks like, oh, I wish I started earlier, or oh, I wish I waited… and whenever you started, it’s exactly when you were supposed to start.” — Grace (28:56 quoting Liam Dalton)

• Nikki Glaser’s Generosity:

  • “She'd run down from her dressing room to watch me side stage... give me compliments, give me tags. Like she's listening and writing notes.” — Fiona (43:22)
  • “She really rocks… She’ll even tag the photographer on Getty Images.” — Grace (44:13)

• On Online Comment Sections:

  • “Leaving it to be, like… anything, and no one ever thinks they're gonna play it. And then you do, and you're like, I told you.” — Fiona (06:51)

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |----------------------------------------------|-------------| | Catholic upbringings & setting the tone | 01:55–03:32 | | Voicemails Round 1 (“Cooler Thief”) | 07:57–10:07 | | COVID as Excuse, Dictimized, Concert Story | 11:56–17:45 | | Comedy crowd discussions, demographics | 14:57–19:49 | | Ticket scam voicemail | 20:16–22:27 | | Fiona’s “Capable” series, early years | 23:44–28:28 | | Comedy beginnings, pandemic, relatability | 28:47–34:43 | | Madison Square Garden/Netflix stories | 36:00–42:07 | | Nikki Glaser & Theo Von | 42:48–48:27 | | Disgraceful Receipts (explaining old posts) | 49:22–62:50 | | Sorority exclusion and activism | 60:13–65:07 | | Shout outs, plugs, wrap-up | 66:00–67:55 |

Tone & Style

Consistently sardonic, self-deprecating, and riff-heavy, with plenty of detours into comic bits and “inside the scene” chatter. Both Grace and Fiona blend vulnerability about their backgrounds and challenges with punchy humor, keeping a quickfire pace punctuated by callback jokes and sharp observational asides. Their willingness to admit cringe (childhood photos, scams, sorority drama, and peeing in Spanx) invites listeners into the folds of both their histories and their comedic processes.

Conclusion

This episode of DisGRACEful is a whirlwind snapshot of female comics on the rise: irreverent, raw, and all about finding wit in both adversity and the everyday absurdities of life and showbiz. With a focus on authenticity, accessibility, and the weird magic of comedy connections, it’s both a celebration and a send-up of everything from high-stakes gigs to the humiliations of youth. Fiona Cauley stands out as a grounded, candid comic with plenty to say—and laugh at—about the business, her background, and the ongoing “bit quota” of a life well-lived.