Work and Offensive Comedy and Giant Enormous Elections
I haven't been posting much here recently - mostly I've been ejaculating in little bursts on twitter or bacefook.
Anyway, I've got a job now - back at JB AGAIN, this time I'm off to Epping Plaza, which, while quite far away, shouldn't take as long to get to on public transport, which is good. Technically, I will be employed as a part-timer, but will have full time hours for at least 6-8 weeks, while their full time music guy recovers from a broken leg.
In other news, comedian Christina Martin has written a blog on how to be acceptably offensive in comedy (as opposed to unacceptably offensive). She wrote it in response to a recent show by popular comedian Frankie Boyle, in which a member of the audience had the following experience:
He spent a considerable amount of time making fun of people with Down’s Syndrome. She [the audience member] became unsettled. Her husband leaned in to check she was ok, at which point Frankie Boyle spotted them talking (they were in the front row) and asked them what they were talking about. When Sharon said that she had a daughter with Down’s Syndrome and had been upset by his jokes, Boyle became agitated and eventually ended up telling her he didn’t give a fuck.
Nice.
Hardly surprising though, given that the working title for his Channel 4 show is ‘Deal With it Retards!’
Christina then gives a very simple formula on how to be offensive correctly:
Anyway, the usual debate has been kicking off, both on Twitter and on the comments section of Sharon’s blog.
“But what is offensive material?” “How do you define offensive?” “Everything is offensive to someone surely?”
You know, the usual missing of the entire point.
For anyone who is still struggling with this idea, let me walk you through.
Offensive material has value when it has a point.
Offensive material can actually be quite brave and meritorious when someone is using it to explore an idea, explode myths or shock people to their senses.
In his latest show ‘Hitler Moustache’, Richard Herring took on the stance of a racist to explode racism. Something he did to great effect.
And his old comedy partner Stewart Lee can boast one of the most offensive lines of all time - “I vomited into the gaping anus of Christ”
However, it was said in the context of an incredibly sophisticated stand-up show, that intended to show up the hypocrisy of some people’s use of their religion to censor others. Thereby, and ironically, forcing people to test the limits of that censorship and perhaps go too far...
So to conclude. Offensive + a point = merit
Offensive on its own = just plain offensive
And finally - the UK elections are fast approaching (May the 6th be with you), and I am trying to figure out what I need to do to be able to vote. Is anyone reading this a British Citizen living in Melbourne? I need your signature!
As a British citizen living overseas, I would be voting in the constituency in which I was last registered to vote: Finchley and Golders Green - which, because of recent boundary changes, is the most marginal seat in the country! (and Margaret Thatcher's old seat). I've been having fun doing some research here and here.
I was quite pleased to see that the candidates for the three main parties consist of two women and an openly gay man (although all of them are thoroughly white).
OK, that'll do for now.
Anyway, I've got a job now - back at JB AGAIN, this time I'm off to Epping Plaza, which, while quite far away, shouldn't take as long to get to on public transport, which is good. Technically, I will be employed as a part-timer, but will have full time hours for at least 6-8 weeks, while their full time music guy recovers from a broken leg.
In other news, comedian Christina Martin has written a blog on how to be acceptably offensive in comedy (as opposed to unacceptably offensive). She wrote it in response to a recent show by popular comedian Frankie Boyle, in which a member of the audience had the following experience:
He spent a considerable amount of time making fun of people with Down’s Syndrome. She [the audience member] became unsettled. Her husband leaned in to check she was ok, at which point Frankie Boyle spotted them talking (they were in the front row) and asked them what they were talking about. When Sharon said that she had a daughter with Down’s Syndrome and had been upset by his jokes, Boyle became agitated and eventually ended up telling her he didn’t give a fuck.
Nice.
Hardly surprising though, given that the working title for his Channel 4 show is ‘Deal With it Retards!’
Christina then gives a very simple formula on how to be offensive correctly:
Anyway, the usual debate has been kicking off, both on Twitter and on the comments section of Sharon’s blog.
“But what is offensive material?” “How do you define offensive?” “Everything is offensive to someone surely?”
You know, the usual missing of the entire point.
For anyone who is still struggling with this idea, let me walk you through.
Offensive material has value when it has a point.
Offensive material can actually be quite brave and meritorious when someone is using it to explore an idea, explode myths or shock people to their senses.
In his latest show ‘Hitler Moustache’, Richard Herring took on the stance of a racist to explode racism. Something he did to great effect.
And his old comedy partner Stewart Lee can boast one of the most offensive lines of all time - “I vomited into the gaping anus of Christ”
However, it was said in the context of an incredibly sophisticated stand-up show, that intended to show up the hypocrisy of some people’s use of their religion to censor others. Thereby, and ironically, forcing people to test the limits of that censorship and perhaps go too far...
So to conclude. Offensive + a point = merit
Offensive on its own = just plain offensive
And finally - the UK elections are fast approaching (May the 6th be with you), and I am trying to figure out what I need to do to be able to vote. Is anyone reading this a British Citizen living in Melbourne? I need your signature!
As a British citizen living overseas, I would be voting in the constituency in which I was last registered to vote: Finchley and Golders Green - which, because of recent boundary changes, is the most marginal seat in the country! (and Margaret Thatcher's old seat). I've been having fun doing some research here and here.
I was quite pleased to see that the candidates for the three main parties consist of two women and an openly gay man (although all of them are thoroughly white).
OK, that'll do for now.