Jonathan Pie Explained

Jonathan Pie
First:21 September 2015
Last:Ongoing
Creator:Tom Walker
Portrayer:Tom Walker
Gender:Male
Occupation:Political correspondent

Jonathan Pie is a fictional character portrayed by British comedian Tom Walker. Pie is a liberal political correspondent who rants angrily about British, American, and Australian politics,[1] [2] giving his true personal opinions before or after filming a scripted news segment.

History

The first spoof news report featuring Pie, released just after the election of Jeremy Corbyn as leader of the Labour Party in September 2015, was responding to mainstream media reports that gave particular weight to Corbyn's past relationship with Diane Abbott.[3] Walker was soon approached by several media companies, including RT UK. He worked with RT for several months before leaving in July 2016, just before his appearance at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August.[4]

The character received international coverage after the 2016 American presidential election, when his comments on Donald Trump's victory went viral and became a YouTube trending video.[5] As of 2022 the video had more than 4.5 million views, double that of the second-most popular.

Pie has occasionally appeared as the London correspondent for the Australian satirical news and current events programme The Weekly with Charlie Pickering.[6]

Pie went on his second tour in 2018 with Back to the Studio. He performed 45 dates in the UK, five dates in Australia, and six dates in the US.[7] In January 2020, a collaboration with environmental filmmaker Franny Armstrong led to a 13-minute mockumentary called Pie Net Zero.[8] Some episodes, including the post-US election episode, were co-written with Irish comedian Andrew Doyle, who contributed to the character's early portrayals,[9] [10] beginning when the live show started;[11] however, in a 2023 interview with Mark Steel, Walker stated that he has not worked with Doyle since 2019.[12]

In February 2022, Pie made his first of several appearances on The New York Times website and YouTube channel as part of their "opinion" section. These videos comment on UK politics for an American audience. Topics have included Boris Johnson,[13] the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the influence of Russian oligarchs' investments and political donations,[14] as well as the UK energy crisis, rising inflation, and labour strikes during the Conservative Party leadership election of Prime Minister Liz Truss.[15]

In 2023 a BBC radio series called Call Jonathan Pie[16] featured the same character, unwillingly co-opted as the host of a phone-in radio show. Pie responds to fictional callers' opinions, sometimes agreeing but often not. He also engages with his production team who usually counter his own views. A range of views on complex subjects are thus encapsulated. Its ten episodes are: The BBC; Money; Brexit; Race; Online; Women; Comedy; Drugs; NHS; The Environment. Each episode begins with a warning about "very strong language".

Appearances

Live tours

YearTitleNotes
2016–2017Jonathan Pie Live51 UK dates
2018Back to the Studio55 UK dates & 6 Australian shows
2019Fake News24 UK dates
2020Fake News: Australia7 dates
2021The Corona Remix44 dates. Extended & rescheduled dates from previous tour due to COVID-19 pandemic[17]
2024Heroes and Villains(Scheduled) 41 UK dates [18]

Filmography

YearTitleNotes
2019Jonathan Pie's American PieBBC Three
2021Jonathan Pie: The World's EndSpanner films
2023Call Jonathan PieRadio 4 sitcom[19]

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Everything You Need To Know About Jonathan Pie. The Debrief. 2 October 2016. 3 October 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161003054020/http://www.thedebrief.co.uk/news/politics/jonathan-pie-who-is-he-20160764102. live.
  2. Web site: Spoof News Reporter Jonathan Pie Is Very Angry About The Brexit Aftermath. 4 July 2016. en-GB. 2 October 2016. 2 October 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161002192651/http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/jonathan-pie-brexit_uk_577a5ea1e4b073366f0f6a28. live. Huff Post Comedy. Ryan Barrell.
  3. Web site: Q&A with Jonathan Pie, the 'reporter' furiously delivering the real news. Bienaimé. Pierre. 5 November 2015. Konbini. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20151108034748/http://www.konbini.com/en/entertainment-2/talked-jonathan-pie-reporter-furiously-delivering-real-news/. 8 November 2015. 18 November 2015.
  4. News: Mr Angry of TV comedy severs links with Putin network on way to Edinburgh fringe. Thorpe. Vanessa. 17 July 2016. The Guardian. 18 July 2016. 18 July 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160718143412/https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2016/jul/17/jonathan-pie-switches-channels-edinburgh-fringe. live.
  5. News: Jonathan Pie Blames The Left For Trump, Tories And Brexit. York. Chris. 11 November 2016. The Huffington Post Comedy. en-GB. 13 November 2016. 22 November 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161122024522/http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/jonathon-pie_uk_5825cb47e4b09ac74c52316b. live.
  6. Web site: Jonathan Pie explains why politics has lost the plot. Quinn. Belinda. 3 May 2018. The Brag. 1 June 2018. 25 February 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210225134224/https://thebrag.com/jonathan-pie-explains-why-politics-has-lost-the-plot/. live.
  7. Web site: Jonathan Pie Premieres New Show in U.S. This Fall, Back to the Studio in Select Cities. BWW News Desk. BroadwayWorld.com. 13 December 2018. 15 December 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181215224247/https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/Jonathan-Pie-Premieres-New-Show-in-US-This-Fall-BACK-TO-THE-STUDIO-in-Select-Cities-20180912. live.
  8. Web site: Pie Net Zero . 13 February 2020 . 24 January 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200124220547/https://pienetzero.com/ . live .
  9. Web site: Doyle . Andrew . Jonathan Pie Said The Left Was Wrong, Not The Right Was Right . Huffington Post: The Blog. 13 February 2020 . 25 November 2016 . 25 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210225025931/https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/andrew-doyle/jonathan-pie-said-the-lef_b_13181278.html . live .
  10. Web site: Andrew Doyle . Top Secret Comedy Club . 24 April 2023 . en.
  11. Web site: The Comedian's Comedian Podcast with Stuart Goldsmith: Episode 233 – Jonathan Pie (Tom Walker and Andrew Doyle) . . 13 February 2020 . 7 February 2018 . 13 February 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200213232524/https://www.comedy.co.uk/podcasts/comedians_comedian_podcast/episode_233_jonathan_pie/ . live .
  12. https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/What-The-F-Is-Going-On-with-Mark-Steel-Ep-95-Podcast/B0CGNDYJTQ What The F*** Is Going On? with Mark Steel – Ep 95
  13. News: Pie. Jonathan . 'The First Thing You Need to Know About Boris Johnson Is He's a Liar' . 4 February 2022 . The New York Times Opinion . 4 February 2022 . 4 February 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220204101947/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/04/opinion/boris-johnson-party-scandal.html . live .
  14. News: Pie . Jonathan . Westbrook . Adam . 11 March 2022 . Opinion Welcome to Londongrad, Where Kleptocrats Wash Their Money Clean . en-US . The New York Times . 12 March 2022 . 0362-4331 . 12 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220312235148/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/11/opinion/london-oligarchs-sanctions-putin.html . live .
  15. Web site: Opinion The Conservatives Made Everything in Britain Worse (Yes, Even the Weather). Pie, Jonathan. Adam Westbrook. The New York Times. 5 September 2022. 6 September 2022. 6 September 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220906003744/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/05/opinion/liz-truss-prime-minister-inflation.html. live.
  16. Web site: Call Jonathan Pie. BBC Sounds. 9 June 2023. 11 June 2023.
  17. Web site: Jonathan Pie Tickets. viagogo.com/au. 7 December 2019. 25 October 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201025045954/https://www.viagogo.com/au/Theatre-Tickets/Comedy/Jonathan-Pie-Tickets. live.
  18. https://www.jonathanpie.com/
  19. Web site: Call Jonathan Pie. BBC Sounds. 9 June 2023. 11 June 2023.

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