PODCAST · comedy
Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire
by Talk About Satire
An award winning* podcast in which Drs Adam J Smith and Jo Waugh talk about the form, function and future of satire. They also talk about the history of satire, but that doesn’t alliterate. Adam and Jo are joined by a series of special guests who will also talk about satire.* 'Best Pedagogical Project', The YSJSU Awards 2019
Episodes
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EP91. We Understood the Satire: The Generation Game Pops Off, Mrs Merton to Bad Apples & the AI Apocalypse
Jo and Adam explore satire across the generations in a new instalment that certainly isn't a belated grab bag episode. We begin with Gen Z slang and BBC Radio 4’s attempts to make sense of it, before turning to Bad Apples, the new satirical film about a teacher who kidnaps one of her Gen Alpha...
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EP90. The Odyssey Isn't Satire, But Robots Can Be: Ann Droid & Androids
What makes a robot funny? And, more importantly, are they satire? Jo and Adam ask why robots seem to lend themselves so readily to satirical comedy. They look at the BBC sitcom ANN DROID, Apple TV's SUNNY and Channel 4's prank show BAD ROBOTS, alongside various satirical machines including Kryten...
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EP89. Binface Girl Summer: Clacton By-Election, Burnham, France & Satire
Jo and Adam unpack the extraordinary Clacton by-election, where Count Binface takes on Nigel Farage after the Reform leader resigns and re-contests his own seat, calling the election a referendum on his political credibility. As the campaign descends into surreal farce, we ask whether Count…
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EP88. "Send Help!": Bad Bosses, Andy Burnham & Satire
Jo and Adam discuss Send Help!, Sam Raimi's new satirical horror in which a woman escapes her toxic workplace only to find herself stranded on a desert island with her awful boss. From there, they explore the long history of satirical workplaces, from The Office and The Office to Generation X:...
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EP87. Satire Inside The Manosphere & Yesteryear
Jo and Adam discuss Louis Theroux's latest feature-length Netflix documentary, 'Inside the Manosphere'. exploring the role of humour in his filmmaking. From awkward timing and fourth-wall breaks to defamiliarisation and deadpan observation, they discuss what Theroux's distinctive (and often...
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EP86. Satire & Slopaganda: Vladimir, The Drama & Geopolitical Meme Warfare
This month, Jo and Adam unpack a hellish grab-bag of take on satire, ranging from campus culture wars to actual global wars. We begin with the Netflix adaptation of Vladimir, exploring the enduring appeal of the campus novel and the uneasy position of satire within the contemporary university.…
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EP85. HeathSMITH & WAUGHthering Heights Talk About Emily Brontë, Emerald Fennell & Satire
The episode our listeners demanded. This March, Jo and Adam turn to the film everyone is arguing about: Wuthering Heights. From casting discourse to meme culture, the adaptation has generated an extraordinary wave of online reaction... and a surprising amount of satire. Drawing on Jo’s expertise…
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EP84. "Zombie" "Satire": 28YL The Bone Temple (+ Bonus Boning Up on "Wuthering Heights")
In this episode, Jo and Adam trace the long, shuffling history of the satirical zombie, from the consumer cannibalism of Dawn of the Dead to the suburban self-recognition of Shaun of the Dead, and the bleak media mirror held up by Dead Set. Along the way, they consider the evolving satirical...
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EP83. Sidney Sweeney Has Bad Satire: The Housemaid, The Traitors & Stranger Things on Toast
Jo and Adam ease themselves into the new year by asking some deceptively simple questions about contemporary culture. They discuss Paul Feig’s latest film The Housemaid, and try to pin down why so many viewers are describing it as satire (and what, exactly, they mean by that). Along the way, they...
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EP82. The Grinch who Stole Satire: A Christmas Feast of Partridge, Plur1bus, Dead Man & Toast
Jo and Adam are back with their annual festive sketch, this year titled “The Grinch Who Stole Satire”: a cheerfully mischievous look at irony, earnestness, and why people keep declaring satire dead. Along the way, they explore the extraordinary new sci-fi satire Plur1bus, which imagines the…
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EP81. [Sat]Ire, ink & Enmity: The Art of Literary Feuding
Join us for an episode filled with spectacular spats, bruised egos, and top-tier literary shade. This month, Adam introduces a riotous tour through Britain’s greatest writerly bust-ups: from Lady Mary Wortley Montagu shredding Swift in more ways than one, to Pope’s poisonously personal vendettas,...
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EP80. Happy HaLEIGHween! A Spooky Satire Special with Leigh Stein
It's all treat and no trick this SpoOooky Season, as Jo and Adam welcome back Best Friend of the Pod, acclaimed novelist Leigh Stein, for a bumper Halloween special (rustle rustle). Together they discuss the origins and development of Leigh's new novel, IF YOU'RE SEEING THIS IT IS MEANT FOR YOU…
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EP79. Smith & Waugh Are Not Helping: Sketchy Sketch Show Satire
Inspired by the return of sketch show comedy to British television in the form of the surprisingly satirical Mitchell and Webb Are Not Helping, Jo and Adam go on a whistle-stop tour of British sketch show comedy and even have an argument (live on air!) about whether there is something…
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EP78. Cartoon Comebacks: Animated Satire in King of the Hill & South Park
In this episode, Jo and Adam turn their attention to American animated satire, revisiting their own memories of cartoon-watching while asking what makes animation such a distinctive vehicle for social and political critique. From King of the Hill’s return in the Trump era to South Park’s take on...
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EP77. 28 Grab-bags Later: A Satirical Summer Dilly-Dally
This episode isn't a grab-bag in the sense of an oversized packet of Monster Munch, but it is a kind of mystery bag of miscellaneous treats that you might grab from a caravan site kiosk during the summer holidays as a child in the 1980s or 90s. What's inside? Stickers? Sherbet? A colourful…
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EP76. Satire & The Brontë 2: Charlotte Bronte is in YOU
Could You be Satire? Jo and Adam discuss the weird Netflix show about putting women in cages and quoting literature at them. Along the way, they chat about academia in popular culture, the dangers of quoting out of context, and the representation of Charlotte Brontë in memes and quotations. Then...
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EP75. Brit Comedy Abroad & Satire In Song
Inspired by Adam's recent adventures in Santiago de Comepstela, Spain, where he talked about satire at the second Conference on Feminisms and Humour: Humour-Sofías, and a new BBC Report which determined that comedy is a premium British export, Jo and Adam investigate the reception of British…
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EP74. Satire is Risen: Eggxtra Special Easter Eggstravaganza
Jo and Adam warmly welcome you to their Eggztra Special Easter Eggstravaganza, which they hope will make you hoppy and not (hot)cross. It's (hotcross) bun a funny old couple of weeks for satire, so leave it to our Eggsperts to pick out a few Eggstremely interesting Eggxamples to discuss. In this...
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EP73. Satire in Suburbia (and Amandaland)
Why is it that so many classic British sitcoms (such as Keeping Up Appearances , The Good Life and One Foot In the Grave) are set in the suburbs? The recent smash hit Amandaland seems to be drawing satirical inspiration from these shows. Similarly, musicians (such as Pulp and The Pet Shop Boys),...
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EP72. "Nightbitch, please": Musk, Motherhood, Modernism & Satire
"Motherhood is a bitch." So reads the tagline of the Amy Adams film 'Nightbitch', which recently arrived on Disney+. Adapted from Rachel Yonder's 2021 novel of the same name, the film has been widely reviewed as a work of satire... but a satire of what, exactly? Jo and Adam are here to ask the...
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EP71. Traitors, Haters & Vampire Maters with Satire & Potatoes
At the time of recording, Traitors UK is on TV, Nosferatu is dominating at cinemas, Donald Trump is one day into his second presidency, leaving Jo and Adam with many memes to discuss as they try to determine what will be their 2025 energy. Charged by a listener to determine whether or not Robert...
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EP70. Satire Actually: Christmas with Stella Gibbons & The Grossmiths
Come in, and know my satire, man! It is that time of year once again, when satire is all around you and you are cordially invited to the Smith & Waugh Festival Satirical Party! This year Jo and Adam take a look at the Christmassy satire of Stella Gibbons' Christmas at Cold Comfort Farm, the…
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EP69. The Satirical Body & The Horrors of Age: Generation Z & The Substance
Jo and Adam reflect on their recent experience of venturing to a special screening at York Picture House Cinema on Halloween night to watch a film so disgusting viewers have been reported to have left the cinema to be sick. The film is The Substance, and Adam and Jo are here to analyse its…
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EP68. Satire VS Horror: A SpoOoky Halloween Special
Is there something strange [rustling and leaving faeces] in your neighbourhood? Who you gonna call? Smith & Waugh, of course! SpoOoky season is upon us once again and, as the veil between worlds draws thin, we invite you on a perilous journey into the liminal spaces that exist, sometimes, (for...
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EP67. Back2School: Satire & Horrible Histories with Dave Cohen
As a new term begins, Jo and Adam get back in the mood for another year of learning and teaching by having a wonderful conversation with comedian, broadcaster, BBC writer, novelist an 8 time BAFTA winner Dave Cohen; best known, of course, for writing songs for the TV version of Horrible…
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EP66. my brat summer of satire: american things, olympics, feminist dystopian satire & taking back greggs
Don’t you even know what a brat summer is? Well, It can go that way, like, quite luxury, but it can also be so, like, trashy. Just, like, a pack of cigs, and, like, a Bic lighter, and, like, a strappy white top. With no bra. That’s, like, kind of all you need. And it is in full flow, big time. Jo...
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EP65. A Bridgerton, Bovary Breakfast for #PoshGirls: Post-GenyLex Grab Bag of Satire
Pour yourself a spenny natty wine, pump up the aux and get yourself gassed for a snappy genylex afters that is hundy p dank vibes. And if that makes no sense to you whatsoever, fear not, Jo and Adam are here to help. [Translation: Pour yourself an expensive glass of natural wine, turn up your…
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EP64. Snappy GenyLex: The 2024 General Election Eras of Satire Tour
Jo and Adam are back sooner than expected with an episode so topical it'll almost certainly by out of date by the time you finish reading this sentence! Rishi Sunak has called a general election, but something seems different this time... At the time of writing, there seems little expectation…
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EP63. We Need To Talk About Satire: Lionel Shriver's "Mania" and "American Fiction"
We need to talk about campus satire, again. Jo and Adam take a deep dive into two recent cultural takes which wear their satirical ambitions very much on their sleeves: the movie American Fiction, written and directed by Cord Jefferson, starring Jeffrey Wright and based on the novel by Percival...
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EP62. Small Beer & Small Potatoes: A Comprehensive History of “Feminine Humour” in 64 minutes
Hot on the heels of their recent foray into the Brontë “Potatoverse” (see Ep61), Jo and Adam stumble upon what alleges to be a complete history of English Humour which manages to condense women’s contribution to the comic canon into just 7 pages, badging what it terms the distinct humour of the...
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EP61. Satire Is Not A Potato: Brontës, Babies & Kate Middleton Memes
Hot on the heels of their sell-out live show at the York Literature Festival (which only saw a slight drop off on the day in terms of the expected number of visitors), Jo and Adam return to investigate a series of urgent satirical questions. Was Anne Brontë the most satirical Brontë? Did…
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EP60. Satire Lads, Lads, Lads: Gregg, Gulliver & The Grossmiths (& A.I.)
Jo and Adam celebrate their 60th episode by each taking a deep dive into a work of satire very deep to them but that they've never discussed at length on the podcast before. For Jo, it's the funniest book of all time, George and Weedon Grossmith's The Diary of a Nobody (1892), which unleashed…
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EP59. January Grab-Bag Episode: Barbies, Traitors, Poor Things & Character Comedy
For the lucky ones who presented this podcast to Episode 59, they have the chance of winning a life-changing amount of low-key kudos. But if a Traitor remains undetected, they’ll steal all their credibility... So, Adam and Jo, are you Faithful, or are you Traitorish Behaviour? Smith & Waugh…
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EP58. Saltburn and "The Satire Man": A Good-Humoured Christmas Episode
One magical winter's night, a Satireman comes to life and a magical adventure begins... That's right! They'll be satire tonight, and you'll soon be walking in a winter hinterland, because it's time again for the most festive of all festive traditions: the annual Smith and Waugh Talk About Satire...
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EP57. Snark Academia: Satire on Campus
Universities are home to reality warping bureaucracy, towering moral hubris, endemic charlatanism and rampant neoliberalism... according to the campus satire Jo and Adam discuss in this episode. Inspired by the new Nic Cage movie Dream Scenario and the return of Frasier Crane (this time returning...
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EP56. SpoOoky Halloween Special: Comedy, Cannibalism & the Horror of Satire
Jo and Adam dish up a meaty treat for you to get your teeth into this spoOoky season, with a bumper Halloween investigation into satire's long-standing fascination with cannibalism. From Jonathan Swift's A Modest Proposal of 1729 (that the best way to solve the Irish famine would be for absent...
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EP55. Yellowface & Other Tales: Race, Representation & Satire
Jo & Adam draw this year's "Smith & Waugh Big Satirical Summer Read" to a close with a deep dive into the novel everyone is reading, Rebecca F. Kuang's Yellowface. What is it actually a satire of? How is the satire working? And to what extent is satire an appropriate tool for interrogating...
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EP54. This Barbie is Satirical
Jo and Adam take a deep dive into the film everyone is [being compelled to keep] talking about: Greta Gerwig's Barbie. Is it a satire, and if so, what are the its targets? Can you really critique the relationship between systemic capitalist patriarchy, gender stereotypes and artificial...
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EP53. Satire & Charlatanism, from Quacky Hacky Doctors to Winnie the Pooh
In a desperate bid to amass quantifiable impact for their research... Adam and Jo talk about the satire they've identified in their recent projects, both of which involve the relationship between literature and medicine. From 'living barometers' to 'fits of apoplectic rage', it seems when it…
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EP52. Through a Black Mirror Darkly: Streaming Satire & Satirical Podcasts
Right, deep breath. Firstly, are you OK? After checking in with Holly & Phil (stalwart re-occurring secondary characters on their podcast since at least 2020), Jo and Adam turn their attention to the latest season of Black Mirror before discussing the increasingly popular genre of "satirical...
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EP51. Coronation Satire: Charles III, Themes and Memes
Horatian, Juvenalian, Menippean? Jo and Adam examine some of the big satirical moments of the coronation of Charles III to work out what kind of satire they were, what they were targeting and, more importantly, whether or not they were funny. From "Poundland" Penny Mordant's big sword, to the…
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EP50. Satire & Privilege: Moshfegh, Monarchy, Menus & Motor Yachts
Jo and Adam prepare to celebrate the momentous, landmark, historic event everyone is talking about... that's right: their 50th episode! This time they're talking about satire and privilege, as seen in Otessa Moshfegh's stratospherically popular novel My Year of Rest and Relaxation (2018) and the...
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EP49. "Where are all the gals?": Sex, Gender & The Redefinition of Satire
Jo and Adam speak to Drs Jasmine Jagger and Heather Hind, curators of 'Comic Women's Poetry of the 19th Century': an ever-growing, open access digital archive which, at the time of writing, holds over 1000 comic poems written by more than 200 19th-century women. After talking about the enormous...
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EP48. What Has Satire Ever Done For Us? (Live in Leeds!)
In a very special episode, join Jo and Adam as they perform a set at the Farsely Constitutional in Leeds in late October 2022. And the question Adam and Jo decide to tackle, unscripted, in front of a live, public audience is: What has satire ever done for us? Satire is great at calling things…
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EP47. Harry & M3GAN: Truth, Todgers, Artificial Intelligence & [Spare] Satire
Satirists ricochet, take their aim, and fire away, fire away at Harry, Prince Andrew, MFA students and horror writers. This month, Adam and Jo discuss Spare and M3GAN, and discover a surprising amount of parallels with two other satirical novels: Garth Marenghi's "Terrortome" and Mona Awad's...
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EP.46. Christmas Special: The Crown, I'm A Celeb, Elf(ish) Behavior & Satire.
Would you like to hear a (satirical) Christmas story? Then wrap yourselves up warm, settle down, and listen as Mama Satyre tells a heart-warming festive tale that has to be heard to be believed... That's right! It's that most magical time of year: time for the annual Smith & Waugh Christmas...
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EP.45. Satire & The Brontës
Forty-five episodes into the podcast, the focus finally turns to Jo’s specialist trivia subject: the life, work and legend of the Brontë sisters. Best known for their novels, poetry, their tragic and untimely deaths and for inspiring a song by Kate Bush, Jo reveals that the Brontës also have a...
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EP44. Satire & Irony on TikTok (with Leigh Stein)
Jo and Adam take on the big questions: what is TikTok? What is irony? Is rain on your wedding day more ironic than ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife, or not as ironic as that? Once this is sorted, they chat to novelist, poet, and regular SAWTAS guest, Leigh Stein, about her recent...
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EP43. Satire & The First Days of Liz Truss
From the moment Joe Lycett appeared on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg on 4 Sept and (ironically) offered the incoming Prime Minister a ringing endorsement, a veritable Tsunami of satire was unleashed across the UK. Wave after wave of satire swept through the internet. From the bin bag stuck on a…
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EP42. Comedy, Controversy & Cancelling
This was going to be the Smith & Waugh Satirical Summer Reading Challenge episode, but after the summer news cycle was flooded with comedy headlines – almost all in someway dealing with controversy or cancellation – Jo and Adam have put their satirical fun in the sun on hold to think about one of...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
An award winning* podcast in which Drs Adam J Smith and Jo Waugh talk about the form, function and future of satire. They also talk about the history of satire, but that doesn’t alliterate. Adam and Jo are joined by a series of special guests who will also talk about satire.* 'Best Pedagogical Project', The YSJSU Awards 2019
HOSTED BY
Talk About Satire
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire have?
Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire currently has 100 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire about?
An award winning* podcast in which Drs Adam J Smith and Jo Waugh talk about the form, function and future of satire. They also talk about the history of satire, but that doesn’t alliterate. Adam and Jo are joined by a series of special guests who will also talk about satire.* 'Best Pedagogical...
How often does Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire release new episodes?
Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire has 100 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
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You can listen to Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire?
Smith & Waugh Talk About Satire is created and hosted by Talk About Satire.
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