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Tom Ballard: Solastalgia

Stand-Up Specials

The world is on fire and we’re all going to die lol.

Recorded in his hometown of Melbourne, Solastalgia is the first Radio 4 stand-up special from award-winning Millennial Australian comedian Tom Ballard. It’s his terrified, emotional and hilarious response to the climate crisis – what it means, how it makes us feel, what if anything we can do about it, and whether any of it is funny.

He’ll even tell you what Solastalgia means.

Tom was nominated for the Edinburgh Comedy Award for Best Newcomer in 2015 and for the main prize in 2016, and hosted his own daily late-night comedy show for ABC, Tonightly with Tom Ballard. He can be heard regularly on the smash-hit satirical podcast The Bugle, and his work is “unrelenting and uproarious” (Chortle), “brave, biting, ballsy and ultimately, brilliant” (Time Out), “multi-dimensional and multi-layered, adding twist upon twist and full of little parcels of surprises” (Beyond The Joke), and “engaged, conscientious and consistently, archly funny, Ballard is precisely the sort of political commentator the world needs” (The Scotsman).

Written and performed by Tom Ballard

Recorded by Kristina Miltiadou

Post production by Rich Evans

Produced by Ed Morrish

Recorded at Comedy Republic, Narrm/Melbourne – on the lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation.

A Lead Mojo production for BBC Radio 4

I am not going to drink FOR A WHOLE MONTH to raise money for a good cause.

If you support such a heroic move and have some cash, please feel to chip in some cash, thank you I love you.

Support Me Here

Stoked to be part of this new scripted comedy feminist noir murder mystery show Deadloch, from the kinds of Kates McLennan & McCartney.

Production has begun in Tasmania, Australia on “Deadloch,” a noir comedy that will be an Amazon original series.

The story is set in the once sleepy seaside hamlet of Deadloch and begins after a man’s dead body is found on the beach. Two female detectives are thrown together to solve the case, one fastidious, the other a more rough and ready type from out of town. Along with an over-eager junior they have to pool forces to solve the case while the town is putting on its annual crafts, culture and cooking festival.

The eight-part show was conceived by comedy duo Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan and will star Kate Box (“Fires,” “Wentworth”), Madeleine Sami “The Breaker Upperers”), Alicia Gardiner (“Wakefield”) and Nina Oyama (“Utopia”), as well as an ensemble cast.

“Deadloch” is to be directed between February and May by acclaimed Australian directors Ben Chessell (“The Great,” “Giri/Haji”), Gracie Otto (“The Moth Effect,” “Seriously Red”) and Beck Cole (“Black Comedy,” “Wentworth”). Production is by Andy Walker (“Rosehaven,” “The Kettering Incident”) for Prime Video, Guesswork Television and OK Great Productions.

It was written by McCartney and McLennan along with Kim Wilson, Christian White, Anchuli Felicia King, Kristy Fisher and Sami. McCartney and McLennan are also set as showrunner-producers. Fiona McConaghy is co-producer. While executive producer credits go to McCartney, McLennan, Kevin Whyte and Tanya Phegan.

The “Deadloch” cast is fleshed out by Tom Ballard, Susie Youssef (“Rosehaven”), Pamela Rabe (“Wentworth”), Kris McQuade (“Rosehaven”), Duncan Fellows (“The Letdown”), Harvey Zielinski (“Don’t Look Deeper”), Shaun Martindale (“The Tailings”), Katie Robertson (“Five Bedrooms”), Nick Simpson-Deeks (“Winners & Losers”), Mia Morrissey (“Home and Away”), Leonie Whyman (“Dark Place”) and Mick Davies (“Rosehaven”) with Holly Austin, Kartanya Maynard and Naarah.

You can read the full story on Variety here.