Author Archives: Tom
19 – Sara Pascoe
Super-dooper brainy (and very funny) comedian Sara Pascoe was in Australia for a bunch of festivals and kindly gave me some of her time to talk about sperm and hymen in a hotel lobby. Her work is whip-smart and politically active and has recently focussed on the fascinating world of sexual biology and its implications.
Here we cover her early political awakening, the difficulty of being a good person, kamikaze sperm, pornography, incest, hymens, paedophilia – you know, all the good stuff.
Prepare to do a lot of LEARNING.
Article: Scott McIntyre sues SBS for discrimination over “political” sacking for ANZAC Day tweets
Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer
Article: Should I tell my fiancee that I’m bisexual and I used to have sex with her dad?
The Great Porn Experiment: A TED Talk by Gary Wilson
Cause of the Week: Eaves For Women (eavesforwomen.org.uk)
Interview with Student Edge
18 – Father Bob Maguire
After my little rant about this nonsense, sit back and enjoy my wide-ranging discussion with Melbourne’s one-and-only “larrikin priest”, dear Father Bob Maguire.
A humanitarian, broadcaster, philosopher and community leader who makes me laugh and think, Bob was an absolute joy a to talk to. We discussed his history with the Vietnam War, ideology, the problems in the Middle East, the idea of heaven, “doctrinal constipation”, his “wife” and much more besides.
At one point he exclaimed “Bugger Rome!” and that made me laugh quite a bit.
Article: What ISIS Really Wants
In Bob We Trust – a documentary
My show Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at the Perth Comedy Festival
My show Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at the Edinburgh Fringe
Cause of the Week: The Father Bob Maguire Foundation (fatherbobsfoundation.com.au)
17 – BONUS! Deathboat – Bloody Borders
Here’s a special little treat because I love youse so much: my piece for Fan Fiction Comedy at this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
Based on this actual news story about the federal government spending $4 million on a telemovie designed to deter asylum seekers to come to Australia by boat, Deathboat – Bloody Borders is a gritty, action-packed drama that is sure to be a ratings winner.
Episode 9 – The Welcome Centre
My show Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at the Perth International Comedy Festival
16 – Helen Razer (Part Two)
My chat with Helen Razer continues and by now she’s really in her groove.
Here we cover our obsession with gestures as opposed to real action, why we should tear down the catwalk, the evils of iPhones, the overuse of personal anecdotes, how “the world is just fucked” and much more.
A Short History of Stupid by Helen Razer & Bernard Keane
Simulacra and Simulation by Jean Baudrillard
My show Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at the Perth Comedy Festival
Tommy Dassalo’s Cutie Pie at the Sydney Comedy Festival
Cause of the Week: The Indigenous Literacy Foundation (indigenousliteracyfoundation.org.au), the Indigenous Marathon Project (imp.org.au)
IMAX Review
My mates at Two Thousand asked me to review an IMAX moofie so I chose Hidden Universe 3D and I think it’s safe to say that what I have to say about it is mind-blowing.
You can read my thoughts here.
Dum Dum Listening
Always such fun to be with such dickheads talking such nonsense. Listen here.
Schuuuuuumes!
15 – Helen Razer (Part One)
Helen Razer is a writer, a broadcaster and a gardener who doesn’t fuck around. Presenting alongside Mikey Robbins on breakfast and Judith Lucy on drive, she was a defining voice on triple j throughout the 1990s thanks to her wit, her vocabulary and her distaste for bullshit.
Since her time on the radio, Helen has forged a reputation as a ruthless and incisive opinion writer, appearing in The Big Issue, The Saturday Paper, Crikey, The Guardian and elsewhere. She very kindly had me over to her place for lunch and to talk about her latest book on the quality of public debate and the spectre of “Stupid”.
In this first part of our chat, we discuss comedy, the value and purpose of university learning, feminism, killing liberalism, capitalism, marriage equality and the “banality of good”.
A Short History of Stupid by Helen Razer & Bernard Keane
Details for my show Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at the Sydney & Perth Comedy Festivals
Cause of the Week: The ABC’s Appeal for the Nepalese Earthquake (abc.net.au/appeals)