Kate Smurthwaite Explained

Kate Smurthwaite
Nationality:British
Medium:Stand-up, television, radio
Active:2004–present
Genre:Satire, political satire, news satire, observational comedy

Kate Smurthwaite is a British comedian[1] and political activist.[2] She has appeared on British television and radio as a pundit, offering opinion and comment on subjects ranging from politics to religion.

She performs stand-up around the UK and overseas including an annual comedy show at the Edinburgh Fringe and is a patron of Humanists UK, formerly known as the British Humanist Association, and vice chair of Abortion Rights UK.[3]

Early life

Smurthwaite studied mathematics at Lincoln College, Oxford, from 1994 to 1997. After leaving university, she worked in London and Japan as an investment banker, specifically within convertible bond research for UBS Warburg.[4]

Comedy

Smurthwaite began performing comedy in early 2004.[5] In 2008, she was a finalist in the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year competition.[6]

Smurthwaite has toured internationally, appearing in Stockholm, Sweden,[7] and Tampere, Finland, and has appeared several times at the Malmö Comedy Festival in Sweden.[8]

In 2011, Smurthwaite toured as support for Shazia Mirza[9] and also returned to the town she grew up in and opened the Bury St Edmunds Fringe festival.[10] She performs at many charitable benefit shows such as the No More Page Three show at the Harold Pinter Theatre,[11] and appears at regular benefits for Sex Appeal at the Bloomsbury Theatre[12] [13] and for Eaves Housing at Soho Theatre and Bloomsbury Theatre.[14] [15] She also regularly performs at the Humanists UK annual convention.[16] [17]

Smurthwaite also teaches stand-up comedy through the City Academy in London.[18]

Television and radio appearances

Smurthwaite was a morning show presenter on Radio Jackie in 2006,[19] and co-presented a show on Leith FM during the 2011 Edinburgh Fringe.[20] She appears regularly with Jason Mohammad on BBC Radio Wales's lunchtime phone-in show and as part of BBC London's Lady Lounge with Kath Melandri. In May 2012, Smurthwaite recorded a 15-minute programme for the BBC Radio 4 series Four Thought about sexism in comedy.[21]

On 25 October 2013, Smurthwaite took part in the 100 Women event hosted by the BBC. The day featured debate and discussion on radio, television and online, in which the participants were asked to give their opinion on the position of women in the 21st century.[22] And in the end of the year, she was recognized as one of the BBC's 100 women.[23]

Smurthwaite was a credited writer on the second series of The Revolution Will Be Televised, which was first broadcast on BBC Three on 10 November 2013.[24]

Smurthwaite appeared as a panellist on Question Time on 30 January 2014,[25] which was broadcast from St. Andrew's Hall in Norwich. The other panellists on the show were Ken Clarke, Emily Thornberry, Lord Oakeshott, and Mark Littlewood.

On 26 October 2014, she was included again in the BBC's 100 women.[26]

She also appeared on an episode of the Couples edition of Come Dine with Me in 2016 with her partner James. [27]

Edinburgh Festival Fringe shows

Since 2005, Smurthwaite has performed comedy shows annually at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

In 2013, Smurthwaite was awarded a ThreeWeeks Editors' Award for her News at Kate shows, citing them as a "Fringe Institution".[31] In 2014, her science show The Evolution Will be Televised was nominated for a Creative Carbon Scotland Fringe Sustainable Practice Award.[32] Other Edinburgh Fringe shows Smurthwaite has appeared in include Spank!,[33] which she has hosted as well as being a guest performer, Political Animal, Nicholas Parsons' Happy Hour, and SetList.[34]

Activism and journalism

Smurthwaite is the vice-chair and media spokesperson for British NGO Abortion Rights UK,[35] and a member of London Feminist Network and the National Secular Society. She is also on the board of the Edinburgh Fringe Society.[36] She is also patron of Humanists UK, formerly known as the British Humanist Association.In October 2009, Smurthwaite took a place on Trafalgar Square's fourth plinth as part of Antony Gormley's One & Other project, impersonating with permission the Irish pro-choice campaigner Goretti Horgan who was unable to attend. She used the platform to highlight the disparity between abortion access in England, Scotland and Wales and Northern Ireland.[37] [38]

In July 2010, Smurthwaite protested at the lavish funeral of writer Sebastian Horsley with a sign reading "Where are the horse-drawn carriages for the VICTIMS of prostitution?",[39] attracting both praise and criticism.[40] Smurthwaite has spoken at numerous rallies including the Rally for Free Expression,[41] the rally against Tory MP Nadine Dorries abstinence only sex education bill[42] and the abortion rights rally in London following the death of Savita Halappanavar.[43]

Smurthwaite performed at the five-year anniversary party for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain,[44] and has hosted and spoken at a number of conferences including Feminism in London in 2008, 2009 and 2010[45] [46] [47] and Intersect in Bristol in 2012.[48] Recently she has given talks about sex and about the intersection between atheism and feminism for student groups and branches of Sceptics in the Pub.[49] [50] In June 2014 she was a guest speaker at the 50th anniversary of the Birmingham Humanists.

In 2014, Smurthwaite was interviewed by the No More Page 3 campaign describing herself as a "passionate atheist", and not prudish in any way. She went on to talk about her battle with anorexia in her teens, "a part of me, almost consciously, made that decision that said, "I don't want to look like an adult woman because of the way that adult women are treated, as sex objects, I'm just going to starve myself, and if I don't ever grow boobs then nobody will ever be able to treat me like that and if I just stay looking like a young girl, by being stick thin, I'll be protected from that.", and I remember thinking that very consciously... A few years later I was down to under seven stone, and I'm quite tall and I was very ill, I didn't have periods for about 18 months, yeah I was very, very sick."[51]

On 2 February 2015, Smurthwaite's show Leftie Cock Womble at Goldsmiths College was cancelled.[52] The college's Feminist Society, who co-organised the appearance, complained about her views on decriminalising prostitution.[53] Ultimately, the show was pulled because of a lack of ticket sales.[54]

Smurthwaite has written for The Guardian,[55] Cosmopolitan,[56] The Independent,[57] Stylist, The Scotsman, The Huffington Post,[58] New Internationalist, The F-Word,[59] Liberal conspiracy, Progressive Women, Big Smoke and London Is Funny . She also has a regular column in the National Union of Teachers' official magazine, The Teacher, as well as making regular posts to her own blog, Cruella blog.[60] Her writing for The Independent has included articles about her grassroots work teaching English to female asylum seekers with the group Women Asylum Seekers Together, supported by Women for Refugee Women.[61] [62]

Awards

Notes and References

  1. News: A cure for trolling is surely staring us in the face . Simon Kelner . . 18 December 2015 . 3 April 2016.
  2. News: Kate Smurthwaite: the comedian who confused no interest with no platform . Rupert Myers . The Daily Telegraph . 3 February 2015 . 18 December 2016.
  3. Web site: Kate Smurthwaite. Humanists UK. 9 June 2017.
  4. Nibayashi . Maki . Life in Japan . . Japan Partnership Inc. . 22 January 2016.
  5. Web site: Kate Smurthwaite: The News at Kate 2013 My Professional Opinion . Steve Bennett . . 5 August 2013 . 22 January 2016.
  6. Web site: Hackney Empire New Act Final 2008 . Christian Steel . Chortle . February 2008 . 22 January 2016.
  7. Web site: Edge Comedy . Allt Om Stockholm . 25 September 2013 . 3 April 2016.
  8. News: Let's celebrate a rare victory for safe sex among teenagers . Kate Smurthwaite . The Guardian . 27 March 2014 . 3 April 2016.
  9. http://www.comedy.co.uk/fringe/2011/kate_smurthwaite/ The British Comedy Guide
  10. http://www.eadt.co.uk/entertainment/festival_of_arts_kicks_off_with_comedy_acts_1_880681?ot=archant.PrintFriendlyPageLayout.ot East Anglian Daily Times
  11. http://notallwhowonderarelost.wordpress.com/2012/11/19/stand-up-to-sexism-and-no-more-page-3-how-one-night-of-comedy-proved-sexism-is-still-no-laughing-matter/ Not All Who Wonder Are Lost
  12. http://www.looktothestars.org/news/7654-al-murray-has-sex-appeal-for-charity Look To The Stars
  13. Web site: Sex Appeal Five. Ian Dickerson.
  14. http://www.eavesforwomen.org.uk/news-events/news/eaves-and-comedian-james-mulliger-to-host-comedy-night Eaves Charity
  15. http://www.eavesforwomen.org.uk/news-events/news/comedy-night-raises-over-3-500-for-eaves Eaves Charity
  16. Web site: Humanists UK convention 2017. Humanists UK. 9 June 2017.
  17. Web site: BHA Annual conference 2015 Bristol. Humanists UK. 9 June 2017.
  18. http://www.city-academy.com/kate-smurthwaite City Academy
  19. Web site: Radio Jackie Photos :: General Photos :: 1087.
  20. http://www.chortle.co.uk/features/2011/08/30/13892/laugh_tracks_2011%3A_the_playlist Chortle
  21. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01hxmx5 BBC
  22. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-24579511 BBC News
  23. News: 2013-10-20 . 100 Women: Who took part? . en-GB . BBC News . 2022-12-18.
  24. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01k4g3d/broadcasts BBC
  25. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03t7f4n BBC
  26. News: Who are the 100 Women 2014?. 26 October 2014. BBC News. 5 January 2018.
  27. Web site: Couples Come Dine with Me Season 2.
  28. http://www.chortle.co.uk/comics/k/3128/kate_smurthwaite Chortle
  29. Web site: Kate Smurthwaite: The Wrong Sort of Feminist . Chortle . 2015 . 22 January 2016.
  30. News: 45 Liverpool Comedy Festival shows for a fiver . Catherine Jones . . 21 August 2015 . 22 January 2016.
  31. http://www.threeweeks.co.uk/article/threeweeks-editors-awards-presented ThreeWeeks
  32. https://www.edfringe.com/participants/awards#FringeSustainable EdFringe
  33. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZS4344zojc YouTube
  34. Web site: The News at Kate. Cruella.
  35. http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/kate-smurthwaite The Huffington Post
  36. http://www.edfringe.com/about-us/board-of-directors#smurthwaite The Edinburgh Fringe Society
  37. http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/radiofoyle/bestbits/best_forgery_7oct9.shtml BBC
  38. http://www.thefword.org.uk/blog/2009/10/kate_on_fourth The F-Word
  39. http://toomuchtosayformyself.com/2010/07/01/1-misogynist-down-but-so-many-more-to-go/ Too Much To Say For Myself
  40. http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/999004-Kate-Smurthwaite-of-Cruella-Blog-pickets-Sebastian-Horsley-39-s/AllOnOnePage Mumsnet
  41. https://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=GB&hl=en-GB&client=mv-google&v=YaJQN66L4Tw&nomobile=1 YouTube
  42. https://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=GB&hl=en-GB&client=mv-google&v=2uHiwLQ1BnE&nomobile=1 YouTube
  43. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/1115/1224326607999.html Irish Times
  44. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqYh6dtH-5o YouTube
  45. http://www.feminisminlondon.org.uk/feminism-in-london-2008/speakers/ Feminism in London
  46. http://www.feminisminlondon.org.uk/feminism-in-london-2008/speakers/ Feminism in London
  47. http://www.feminisminlondon.org.uk/feminism-in-london-2010/speakers-and-facilitators/ Feminism in London
  48. Web site: Kate Smurthwaite.
  49. http://tunbridgewells.skepticsinthepub.org/Event.aspx/1277/Why-Good-Sex-Matters-and-How-We-Can-All-Have-It- Tunbridge Wells SitP
  50. http://www.wherevent.com/detail/cambridge-university-atheist-kate-smurthwaite-why-atheism-needs-feminism-and-feminism-needs-atheism Wherevent
  51. Tina Edwards (host) and Kate Smurthwaite (guest) . 12 May 2014 . 17 April 2016 . No More Page 3 interview Kate Smurthwaite . Video . Tina Edwards (for No More Page 3) via YouTube .
  52. News: Why did Goldsmiths comedy society cancel Kate Smurthwaite's gig? . Barbara Speed . New Statesman . 2 February 2015 . 18 December 2016.
  53. News: Goldsmiths cancels free speech show by comedian Kate Smurthwaite . Karen McVeigh . The Guardian . 2 February 2015 . 18 December 2016.
  54. News: 'Feminist' comedian claims uni gig pulled over 'feminist threat' . Amelia Butterly . BBC Newsbeat . 2 February 2015 . 18 December 2016.
  55. Web site: Kate Smurthwaite . 2022-01-09. The Guardian. en.
  56. Web site: Cowood. Fiona. 2012-02-22. Meet the Cosmo team. 2022-01-09. Cosmopolitan. en-GB.
  57. Web site: Kate Smurthwaite. 2022-01-09. The Independent. en.
  58. Web site: Kate Smurthwaite HuffPost. 2022-01-09. www.huffingtonpost.co.uk. en.
  59. Web site: Kate Smurthwaite, Author at The F-Word. 2022-01-09. The F-Word. 11 June 2009 . en-GB.
  60. Web site: Cruella-blog.
  61. http://www.progressivewomen.org.uk/women-for-refugee-women/ Progressive Women
  62. http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2012/05/29/asylum-seekers-when-the-questions-tell-us-so-much-more-than-the-answers/ The Independent
  63. http://www.platform51.org/news/woman_of_the_week_-_kate_smurthwaite Platform 51

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