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All My Clothes Need Burning
Simon Donald: The Legacy of Viz and the Power of Swearing
Season 3, Ep. 24
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Simon Donald started Viz in a Newcastle bedroom in 1979, created some of British comedy's most enduring characters, and spent years watching people fail to understand why it was funny — including some of the people who tried to put it on television.
Simon Donald is a British comedian and co-founder of Viz, the satirical comic magazine that became a cultural phenomenon in the late 1980s and 90s. His creations include Sid the Sexist and Roger's Profanasaurus. After leaving Viz in 2003, he transitioned to stand-up, performing at the Edinburgh Fringe and comedy clubs across the country.
- What starting an underground comic in a Newcastle bedroom in 1979 actually looked like — and how it became what it became
- The challenges of bringing Viz to the screen — and why translation from page to television is never as simple as it sounds
- How the magazine's irreverent humour did and didn't survive contact with the film and television industry
- What stand-up teaches you about timing that comic strip work never quite does
Connect with Simon here:
Find us on social media — links on the About page.
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