Deaf comedian 'personally understands how life-changing the work is'

Comedian Samantha Baines has been appointed patron of Stagetext, a charity that provides captioning for deaf theatregoers.

Baines, who is deaf and wears hearing aids, said captions had been ‘vital’ for her since getting her first hearing aid at 29. ‘Without Stagetext captions I would have lost access to this key aspect of my life,’ she said.

The charity says one in three people in the UK could benefit from captions to enjoy arts and culture, with 18 million adults who are deaf, deafened or hard of hearing.

Research commissioned by Stagetext found 77 per cent of people want venues to offer more captioned performances. The study also revealed that most people using subtitles for TV and online content are under 25.

Melanie Sharpe, chief executive of Stagetext, said Baines ‘personally understands how life-changing our work is, both as someone who is deaf as well as neurodivergent’.

The charity is marking its 25th anniversary with new software giving audiences more choice over how they access captions.

Published: 20 Jan 2026