Why Aussie-Greek goddess Effie Stephanidis is ‘all mask, no filter ‘ in Hello Good Thanks — Better Out Than In

Falling pregnant at 49 after 23 rounds of IVF, Mary Coustas knows what it means to push through. Now the actor behind comedy icon Effie Stephanidis is mining Victoria’s ‘frightening, shocking’ lockdowns for laughs.

Mary Coustas as her Greek-Australian comedy alter ego Effie. Picture: Supplied

Your show, Hello Good Thanks – Better Out Than In, explores Effie’s lockdown experience in Victoria. At one point, she toyed with writing a Covid-19 memoir called Eat Pray Eat? Correct — we all thought about writing one at some point. The old Covid kilos for many were an issue. There was also a lot of heaviness and a lot of shock and a lot of fear — there were some comical bits too. This show touches on all of it. For me, Effie is the character I would have been had I not moved to the middle class, having had a great education. So it’s a love letter to that. She’s a survivor, unapologetic about what she might lack in terms of what the public or media might think is success.

Effie sprang to life in the sitcom Acropolis Now (1989-92). Does she still go by the title Her Hairess?

She’ll go by that title. She’ll go by Greek goddess, national icon, cultural legend. Any of that she’ll take. In the beginning her hair was just the typical ladies tease the hell out of it, spray it until it’s rock solid. That is her visual signature, so I’ve kept it large but much more glamorous.

How has Effie’s narrative as a stage character evolved?

Effie’s narrative of the last 10 years has been — she was single forever. She was picky forever. And then overnight she became desperate and panicked that she’d missed the boat. In A Date with Effie she was looking for love and the audience had to pick who she should go on a date with. Effie – The Virgin Bride was the biggest stage show I’ve done. I played Effie, her immaculately-conceived daughter Aphrodite and her uncle who flew out from Greece for the wedding.

Coustas underwent 23 rounds of IVF before having her first child at 49. Picture: Supplied

You’ve spoken publicly about how you underwent 23 rounds of IVF before you had your daughter at 49. Was that 10-year IVF journey the hardest thing you’ve done?

Definitely. It was relentless. It just went for years and years. I had a stillborn birth on my 17th attempt and it’s every parent’s worst nightmare. I didn’t think I could go on, but obviously I did. I went another six times after that. It was an epic effort and a devastating result at times and I didn’t know other than with blind faith that I would ever get there, and thankfully I did. All I know is that my husband (George Betsis) and I have a child (Jamie, aged seven) who feels very loved and wanted and is strong and secure as a result.

How much of your life is in your shows?

I pull from everywhere but it’s not autobiographical; thematically it’s the things I’m very interested in: How do you get the life you want without falling under the influence of the majority, or what social media or the media are telling us?

Is our politically correct climate a problem for comedians?

It’s such a big part of our conversation now among anyone in the public eye and certainly comedy is built on outing the elephants in the room. Certain people have to be really careful, particularly if they’re an edgy comedian. I would certainly hate it if expression became mundane and vanilla because there’s no freedom of speech any more. But it’s not been an issue for me, thankfully.

Did Effie’s Logie, snaffled in 1993 for most popular comedy personality, go to her head?

Totally. Everything went to her head before she got the Logie, let alone after.

Hello Good Thanks – Better Out Than In plays at The Juniors Kingsford, Sydney, on June 11 before touring to other NSW venues and the Melbourne and Brisbane Comedy festivals