Oliver Double
{{Short description|British comedian}}
{{Infobox academic
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| name = Oliver Double
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| image = Oliverdouble ©mistereb.jpg
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| caption = Oliver Double in 2022
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| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1965|05|22}}
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| discipline = Arts
| sub_discipline = Comedy and Popular Performance
| workplaces = University of Kent
| notable_works = Stand-Up! On Being a Comedian (1997), Alternative Comedy: 1979 and the Reinvention of British Stand-Up. (2020)
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}}
Oliver Double (born 22 April 1965){{Citation needed|date=October 2022}} is a British stand-up comedian, author and academic. Since 1999, he has taught comic and popular performance at the University of Kent.{{Cite web|url=http://www.theguardian.com/education/1999/aug/10/highereducation.theguardian|title=King of comedy|author=Guardian Staff|date=August 10, 1999|website=the Guardian}} His current roles at the university are Reader in Drama and Theatre, and Head of Comedy and Popular Performance.{{Cite web|url=https://www.kent.ac.uk/|title=Oliver Double|website=School of Arts - University of Kent}}{{Cite web|url=https://tedxlondonbusinessschool.co.uk/oliver-double/|title=Oliver Double|date=November 4, 2021|website=TEDx London Business School}}
Career
Double worked as a circuit comedian and founded the Last Laugh comedy club in Sheffield.{{Cite web|url=https://www.city.ac.uk/news-and-events/events/2021/03/citylis-workplace-forum-this-stand-up-comedian-walks-into-an-archive-oliver-double|title=CityLIS Workplace Forum|date=March 17, 2021|website=www.city.ac.uk}} He continues to perform in his one-person shows Saint Pancreas{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reI7wNujQkQ|title=Oliver Double - Break a Leg|date=19 April 2016 |via=www.youtube.com}} and Break a Leg and in a monthly comedy club called Funny Rabbit.{{Cite web|url=https://www.instagram.com/funnyrabbitcomedy/|title=Funny Rabbit Comedy Club (@funnyrabbitcomedy) • Instagram photos and videos|website=www.instagram.com}}
He has written books on the subject including 1997's Stand Up!{{Cite journal|url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/new-theatre-quarterly/article/abs/oliver-double-standup-on-being-a-comedianlondon-methuen-1997-pbk-999-isbn-0413703207/83E2F444667EB5E1A6656021196A7F8D|title=Oliver Double Stand-Up! On Being a ComedianLondon: Methuen, 1997. Pbk., £9.99. ISBN 0-413-70320-7.|first=Steve|last=Nallon|date=August 6, 1999|journal=New Theatre Quarterly|volume=15|issue=3|pages=286|via=Cambridge University Press|doi=10.1017/S0266464X00013142|s2cid=190740827 |url-access=subscription}} and 2012's Britain Had Talent{{Cite web|url=https://www.chortle.co.uk/books/2012/11/06/16483/britain_had_talent:_a_history_of_variety_theatre_by_oliver_double|title=Britain Had Talent: A History Of Variety Theatre by Oliver Double : Book reviews 2012 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide|website=www.chortle.co.uk}} as well as book chapters and articles about stand-up comedy, alternative comedy,{{Cite web|url=https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2019/05/07/42968/%E2%80%98the_comedy_store_was_not_an_alternative_comedy_venue%E2%80%99|title='The Comedy Store was not an alternative comedy venue' : News 2019 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide|first=Steve|last=Bennett|website=www.chortle.co.uk}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.chortle.co.uk/books/2020/05/19/46138/alternative_comedy,_by_oliver_double|title=Alternative Comedy, by Oliver Double : Book reviews 2020 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide|website=www.chortle.co.uk}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2022/jun/29/beyond-the-comic-strip-what-does-alternative-comedy-mean-in-2022|title=Beyond The Comic Strip: what does 'alternative comedy' mean in 2022?|date=June 29, 2022|website=the Guardian}} variety theatre and vaudeville{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2022/sep/19/laura-lexx-i-did-10-gigs-for-a-masters-in-standup-comedy-then-never-stopped|title=Laura Lexx: 'I did 10 gigs for a master's in standup comedy – then never stopped'|date=September 19, 2022|website=the Guardian}}
Double contributed to the creation of the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive (BSUCA) at Kent University's Templeman Library{{Cite web|url=https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2022/07/16/51177/mark_thomas_savages_boris_johnson_as_he_collects_degree|title=Mark Thomas savages Boris Johnson as he collects degree : News 2022 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide|first=Steve|last=Bennett|website=www.chortle.co.uk}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.comedy.co.uk/shop/news/6494/leicester-comedy-festival-joke-book/|title=Leicester Comedy Festival to publish All Puns Blazing joke book|first=British Comedy|last=Guide|date=August 16, 2021|website=British Comedy Guide}} and he produced a monthly podcast about BSUCA called A History of Comedy in Several Objects.{{Cite web|url=https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/a-history-of-comedy-in-several-objects/id1210414720|title=A History Of Comedy In Several Objects on Apple Podcasts|website=Apple Podcasts}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.matthosscomedy.com/a-history-of-comedy-in-several-objects|title=A History Of Comedy In Several Objects|website=Matt Hoss Comedy}}
He has appeared on TV programmes and documentaries discussing stand-up comedy, including BBC's Imagine and Horizon.{{Cite web|url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2605412/|title=Oliver Double|website=IMDb}} He has also appeared on numerous comedy podcasts including The Alexei Sayle Podcast where he discussed Bertolt Brecht{{Cite web|url=https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/tingle-tangles-bertolt-brecht-special-with-dr-oliver/id1540500007?i=1000564854980|title=The Alexei Sayle Podcast: Tingle Tangles (Bertolt Brecht special with Dr. Oliver Double) on Apple Podcasts|website=Apple Podcasts}} and Book Shambles where he discussed the history alternative comedy with Josie Long and Robin Ince.
Double teaches practical performance{{Cite web|url=https://www.ft.com/content/1934b77c-a94e-11e9-984c-fac8325aaa04|title=Calling Boris Johnson a clown is unfair to clowns|work=Financial Times |date=July 19, 2019 |last1=Beattie |first1=Alan }} including stand-up comedy{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-11167459|title=The most famous comedian you've never heard of|work=BBC News |date=September 4, 2010}} based on research and many of his students have become professional comedians.
Books
- Stand-Up! On Being a Comedian (1997, Methuen Drama) {{isbn|9780413703200}}
- Getting the Joke: The Inner Workings of Stand-Up Comedy (2004, Bloomsbury) {{isbn|978-0413774767}}
- Britain Had Talent: A History of Variety Theatre (2012, Palgrave Macmillan) {{isbn|978-0230284609}}
- Alternative Comedy: 1979 and the Reinvention of British Stand-Up (2020, Bloomsbury) {{isbn|9781350052819}}
Collections
In 2014 Double helped to establish the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive (BSUCA) at the University of Kent.{{Cite web |title=About the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive |url=https://www.kent.ac.uk/library-it/special-collections/british-stand-up-comedy-archive/about-british-stand-up-comedy-archive |access-date=2024-05-15 |website=Special Collections and Archives - University of Kent |language=en-GB}} The archive's founding collection was the archive of comedian Linda Smith. BSUCA has been actively acquiring material ever since, and now holds a wide variety of collections including material from Mark Thomas, Andy de la Tour, Josie Long, Funny Women, Harry Hill, and Jeremy Hardy.
Double also deposited his own material into the archive; the Oliver Double Collection includes extensive audio-visual material (featuring interviews with many comedians), live recordings and show notes.{{Cite web |last=University of Kent Special Collections & Archives |title=Oliver Double Collection |url=https://archive.kent.ac.uk/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=BSUCA/OD |access-date=2024-05-15 |website=University of Kent Special Collections & Archives Catalogue}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.kent.ac.uk/arts/people/544/double-oliver Oliver Double at University of Kent]
- [https://www.kent.ac.uk/library-it/special-collections/british-stand-up-comedy-archive British Standup Comedy Archive (BSUCA)]
- [https://archive.kent.ac.uk/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=BSUCA%2fOD Oliver Double Collection] at University of Kent
- {{Twitter | OliverDouble }}
- {{IMDb name|id=2605412|name=Oliver Double}}
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