In the earliest part of my (for lack of a better word) career, I made some dreadful mistakes. I used shock-tactics and topics to try and get some kind of laughter. And, well, it worked to be honest.Despite the fact it worked, I've realised that there is more of an audience than the students in the venues I played. People got offended, people were disgusted and people have changed their opinions of me and of the closest people to me.
You'd think I'd be upset and dwelling on this. But I'm not. Because I know that I don't and won't ever entertain everyone, I know that what I (or Rob and I on the radio) do is not every one's cup of tea. I can take that not everyone will find me (or us) funny. I'm not trying to entertain everyone, I'm trying to entertain someone. And, well, I do to be perfectly honest.
My writing has progressed from those starting months, I've learnt to not be stupid and use the easy gags to get a cheap laugh.
I've just written a 10-minute set for "Sir Richard Smythe", a character I've written who I'm going to use to mock;
A. The class system - which is definitely ever present.
B. The ideas which people have about the upper classes and the stereotypes around (mostly because it's dear to me) Oxford-ians.
C. The upper classes themselves.
D. Dim Wits.
E. The ideology of far-right politics and its followers.
F. People who are rich and famous for nothing (celebrity culture)
I'm really happy with it so far, it's different. You laugh at the character and what he represents.
I'm also writing two radio scripts, about two very different topics.
One about a group of men going to "The Planet of the Rats". Which is a parody of the film with a similar name but about apes, and a mixture of a theory from Richard Dawkins regarding where he thinks the future species will go post-nuclear-Apocalypse (from his book "The Ancestor's Tale" [I honestly think it should have been called "The Ancestor's Tail, for comic effect], I recommend it. Speaks alot about evolution up to now, and where leading scientists predict future species will go).
And the another one about a man just trying to survive. Inspired by the naturalism of The Office, but not quite as in your face as Gervais (I like Gervais in the Podcasts with Merchant and Pilkington, but on his own he's a twat). I'm just trying to write something that shows how funny the real world is already.
Some people are offended by our Radio Show, which really is very understandable. We're Risqué Radio for a reason though so Get over it. We warn you from the offset that it's Risky.
Rob & I talk about/ question things and discuss topics which aren't normally mentioned in polite society.
And? The Taboos are there, arguably, to be broken. People talk about stupid things everyday, the only difference with us is that people hear our (bloody funny) conversations about; why we think Lady Gaga is so weird, what we think happens at the end of the Tom and Jerry films, whether or not Scotland is an independent state, Japanese bug fights, and whether or not Bovril goes well with Mustard.
We don't go about trying to insult people (most of the time). It just happens. We're not really politically incorrect, we just talk about everything which comes to mind.
Instead of having a go at me about something I've said, why don't you save your energy to picket those people in power who are genuinely bad.
Would I go back and change everything I did in the past?
No. It taught me a valuable lesson.
It doesn't mean I don't deeply regret every person that was offended. But if you were, tell me about it. I'll be happy to take your criticism. Because that's the position I've put myself into.
What's most annoying, is that the people who have been offended by me probably won't read this. Which is a shame, because I'd obviously prefer for those people to talk to me and not others.
