Freelance Pod

Alex Farrow on how stand-up comedy and teaching inform each other

This episode is all about how to put together a live solo one-hour show and other comedy things as comedian, director and teacher Alex Farrow joins me on the podcast. Teaching is a performance and lot of former teachers find their way into comedy. Alex had to figure out how both teaching and comedy work over Zoom during lockdown, as he continued to work in both capacities. Between writing and performing his newest Fringe hour, 'Philosophy Pig' and organising the Mind Oxford Gala through his main comedy home, Jericho Comedy in Oxford, Alex has amassed loads of great advice on how to get started in comedy, and how to write that all-important first show. Plus, he knows why creatures like birds and bats can spread the flu and Covid, but don't get sick themselves. And he also knows that laughter helps us learn. You'll be a much more learned creature yourself, after listening to this episode... Alex's links Twitter - @Alex_Farrow [https://twitter.com/alex_farrow?lang=en] Insta - @alexfarrowcomedy [https://twitter.com/alex_farrow?lang=en] alexfarrow.com [http://www.alexfarrow.com/] jerichocomedy.com [https://www.jerichocomedy.com/] - Alex has a new one-hour show, 'Philosophy Pig': find the details on his social media - You can book him to do a Bat Chat [https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2021/03/25/48086/is_this_the_years_first_live_stand-up_gig%3f] near you, which is an hilarious talk about bats in an outdoor space. - Alex can direct your show or coach your first comedy set; contact him via his website or social media -- Here's where to find Suchandrika's fringe show 'I Miss Amy Winehouse': Brighton: https://www.brightonfringe.org/whats-on/i-miss-amy-winehouse-wip-153490/ [https://www.brightonfringe.org/whats-on/i-miss-amy-winehouse-wip-153490/] Camden: https://camden.ssboxoffice.com/events/i-miss-amy-winehouse-wip/ [https://camden.ssboxoffice.com/events/i-miss-amy-winehouse-wip/] On each episode of Freelance Pod [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_], creative guests tell host Suchandrika Chakrabarti [https://twitter.com/SuchandrikaC] how the internet has revolutionised their work. Newsletter: https://buttondown.email/suchandrika/ [https://buttondown.email/suchandrika/] Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/ [https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/] Twitter:https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_ [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_] Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/] YouTube:https://goo.gl/chfccD [https://goo.gl/chfccD]

"I've found a lot of positives from being on Twitter" - comedian and PR Vix Leyton on how her two careers work together in a digital age

Freelance Pod is back with some comedy-focussed episodes! I've made a little entry into the comedy industry during lockdown, and the pod is following me into this wild new world... Please note the new url for the newsletter, Writing by Moonlight, which is now on Buttondown: https://buttondown.email/suchandrika/ [https://buttondown.email/suchandrika/] If you were already a newsletter subscriber, you'll have moved over to the new newsletter with me - if you're not and love reading it, why not subscribe now? Now, onto this episode... PR, comedian, comedy promoter and podcaster Vix Leyton [https://twitter.com/PRVix] is the guest on this episode. She's got brilliant advice from her own experience of working on two careers, PR by day and comedy by night. Listen out for the time that Vix refused to be turned down for a job, it's inspirational! Take a tip from her and ask for that pay rise! Make the request that scares you, because "no never kills anybody." Vix hosts the Comedy Arcade podcast [https://twitter.com/comedy_arcade], which probably features your favourite comedian one at least one episode, taking part in the hilarious anecdote competition across three rounds. When we refer to "The Cavs," on this episode, we are talking about The Cavendish Arms pub in Stockwell, which runs the comedy night Comedy Virgins. You can find out more about the Cambridge Comedy Festival competition here [https://twitter.com/ComedyVirgins/status/1385252762561175557], but unfortunately it's too late for any new entrants. You can see Vix's work-in-progress 'I Feel P(r)etty' at Brighton Fringe and The Cavendish Arms this summer, while you can catch a live recording of Comedy Arcade at the Camden Fringe. -- Here's where to find Suchandrika's fringe show 'I Miss Amy Winehouse': Brighton: https://www.brightonfringe.org/whats-on/i-miss-amy-winehouse-wip-153490/ [https://www.brightonfringe.org/whats-on/i-miss-amy-winehouse-wip-153490/] Camden: 3rd-7th August at the Etcetera Theatre [https://twitter.com/EtceteraTheatre], ticket link TBC On each episode of Freelance Pod [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_], creative guests tell host Suchandrika Chakrabarti [https://twitter.com/SuchandrikaC] how the internet has revolutionised their work. Newsletter: https://buttondown.email/suchandrika/ [https://buttondown.email/suchandrika/] Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/ [https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/] Twitter:https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_ [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_] Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/] YouTube:https://goo.gl/chfccD [https://goo.gl/chfccD]

Critiquing the media in a digital age, with Mic Wright and his newsletter, Conquest of the Useless

Journalist, poet and publisher / writer of media criticism newsletter Conquest of the Useless [https://brokenbottleboy.substack.com], Mic Wright [https://twitter.com/brokenbottleboy] guests on this episode. This is the last one of the current second season. Don't worry though, I'll be back with more great guests later in the year! Mic both works within the media, and makes a living critiquing it, through his newsletter and Twitter feed. Digital platforms have allowed all kinds voices to be heard, and fair criticism of our media industry is vital. On this episode, Mic tells me how he does it, how it impacts upon him and what advice he'd give to a new journalist. Find Mic on social media: Twitter: @brokenbottleboy [https://twitter.com/brokenbottleboy] Instagram: @brokenbottleboy [https://www.instagram.com/brokenbottleboy/] Mic mentions the journalist Henry Dyer on the episode, find him on Twitter here: @Direthoughts [https://twitter.com/Direthoughts] If you would like 50% off a subscription to  Conquest of the Useless, use this link: https://brokenbottleboy.substack.com/freelancepod [https://brokenbottleboy.substack.com/freelancepod] It expires on 31 July 2020, so you've got until the end of the week from launch day! And here's the Alana Levinson episode [https://podfollow.com/freelance-pod/episode/59fa1921c9d9ca211506107f3642ae8dff0c2c17/view] that Mic mentions -- Here are the links to my August masterclasses: - Personal essays [https://www.eventbrite.com/e/masterclass-using-personal-essays-to-break-into-a-new-publication-or-niche-tickets-113520591144] - Podcasting [https://www.eventbrite.com/e/masterclass-how-to-get-your-indie-podcast-to-10000-downloads-on-a-budget-tickets-114408392582] -- On each episode of Freelance Pod [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_], creative guests tell host Suchandrika Chakrabarti [https://twitter.com/SuchandrikaC] how the internet has revolutionised their work. Newsletter: https://suchandrika.substack.com/ [https://suchandrika.substack.com/] Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/ [https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/] Twitter:https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_ [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_] Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/] YouTube:https://goo.gl/chfccD [https://goo.gl/chfccD]

The future of work is everyone using their influence, with writer Lauren Razavi

Lauren Razavi joins me on this episode to talk about the future of work, how writers can use influencer tools to benefit their careers and what the digital nomad lifestyle might look like post-COVID-19. At a tricky moment when we're gingerly leaving lockdown and wondering how our offices are going to work (or, if you're freelance like me, if you'll ever get to work anywhere other than home, help!) it's helpful to speak to Lauren, who's spent a lot of her career writing and speaking about what work could look like in the years to come. Having worked on content for Google and on the future of work for The Guardian, Lauren has seen how the internet can amplify what we do offline, and how technology has given us the chance to work and live in a location-independent way. Lauren herself has been a digital nomad, and she's been thinking about how that lifestyle will have to adapt to a wary, post-pandemic world. We refer to the great Study Hall piece, The Writer as Influencer: https://www.patreon.com/posts/writer-as-30653019 [https://www.patreon.com/posts/writer-as-30653019] Lauren mentions this piece by Tiago Forte: https://fortelabs.co/blog/the-rise-of-the-full-stack-freelancer/ [https://fortelabs.co/blog/the-rise-of-the-full-stack-freelancer/] And here are some useful links on the filmmaker Ondie Timoner: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0498329/?ref_=nm_flmg_prd_14 [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0498329/?ref_=nm_flmg_prd_14] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3798628/?ref_=nm_flmg_prd_8 [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3798628/?ref_=nm_flmg_prd_8] You can sign up to Lauren's newsletter Counterflows here: https://laurenrazavi.substack.com/ [https://laurenrazavi.substack.com/] You can find Lauren on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/LaurenRazavi [https://twitter.com/LaurenRazavi] And on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/laurenrazavi/ [https://www.instagram.com/laurenrazavi/] -- On each episode of Freelance Pod [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_], creative guests tell host Suchandrika Chakrabarti [https://twitter.com/SuchandrikaC] how the internet has revolutionised their work. Newsletter: https://suchandrika.substack.com/ [https://suchandrika.substack.com/] Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/ [https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/] Twitter:https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_ [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_] Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/] YouTube:https://goo.gl/chfccD [https://goo.gl/chfccD]

From the Egyptian revolution to pandemic lockdown, with Kim Fox of The American University in Cairo

In 2011, two years after American radio producer and reporter Kim Fox [https://twitter.com/KimFoxWOSU] had moved to Cairo to take up a teaching role at The American University of Cairo, the Egyptian Revolution happened, in response to increasing police brutality on what would turn out to be the dying days of President Hosni Mubarak's presidency. Kim spent time at the demonstrations in Tahrir Square, which involved up to 2 million people. Over a decade later, the scenes she witnessed in Cairo are being repeated in Minneapolis after George Floyd's death, and around the world. Kim also tells me about how her students use social media, in a country that has faced internet censorship both before and after Mubarak's fall, and how podcasting is growing - Cairo's now got its own podcast festival! You can find Kim on Twitter @ohradiogirl [https://twitter.com/KimFoxWOSU] (https://twitter.com/KimFoxWOSU [https://twitter.com/KimFoxWOSU]), and you can listen to the Ehky Ya Masr podcast [https://soundcloud.com/ehkyyamasr] (from Kim’s students). -- On each episode of Freelance Pod [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_], creative guests tell host Suchandrika Chakrabarti [https://twitter.com/SuchandrikaC] how the internet has revolutionised their work. Newsletter: https://suchandrika.substack.com/ [https://suchandrika.substack.com/] Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/ [https://www.instagram.com/freelancepod/] Twitter:https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_ [https://twitter.com/freelance_pod_] Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/ [https://www.facebook.com/groups/FreelancePod/] YouTube:https://goo.gl/chfccD [https://goo.gl/chfccD]