Russell Kane: How To Build Confidence & Stay Young | E79

russell kane he's known as a. multi-award-winning comedian. presenter actor author and scriptwriter. but man. this guy is so much more i started doing. all this biohacking and to. survive on less sleep to not lose your. hair or. to slow down the aging process. it [ __ ] my life in the proper sense. everything fell apart. like a junkie how can i get more of that. my relationship with my girlfriend fell. apart. my bill started to not be paid i started.

to look thin. it's the closest thing to a drug. addiction i've ever experienced. [Music]. russell kane he's known as a. multi-award-winning comedian. presenter actor author and scriptwriter. but man this guy is so much more he's. genuinely deeply intellectually curious. something that honestly surprised me.

and this sounds like it might be a. offensive or a weird thing to say but. i'm going to say it anyway. i didn't realize how smart this guy is. remarkably self-aware and on to top it. all off. brutally honest he says that how it is. he has an ability to point out things. that i think most of us muggles miss. and he's also genuinely just a really. nice and hilarious human being. today you won't hear many jokes this is. the more serious side of russell cain. and a side of him that i did not know.

and would not have guessed. before speaking to him so without. further ado i'm stephen bartlett. and this is the diary of a ceo i hope. nobody's listening but if you are. then please keep this to yourself. [Music]. russell hello one of the things i read. when i was um reading about your story. was a quote um and i'm gonna read the. quote to you.

you said i remained a boy while he was. alive. even when i was 18 and i needed to be a. man to tell these stories. what were you talking about when you. said that um well i don't think that's. true of just me i think any. boy or probably girl who has a. reasonably overbearing and dominant. father you sort of remain. a child now that i'm a father myself i. can see that's true so when my daughter. mina is. 40 she's still gonna be my my baby so.

that's the positive side of it. the negative side of it is if it's quite. an overbearing masculine. energy you saw i felt sometimes a bit. like a bonsai like i kept nearly growing. and then the roots were trimmed so i was. fully grown but small. so if my dad was in the room you know i. was instantly. a child like i would say inside so it's. just a very dominating figure and i. think that would have been the same. had my dad not dropped down dead from a. heart attack years ago. i think that would have been the same. when i'd been 40 50 60 if my dad had.

been. 90 year old shouting in the corner. probably still would have been like that. even if he wasn't in the room. no no when as soon as what in his. presence i think but so far as this. that i think that quote might be talking. about stand up yeah. i wouldn't have dared to tell the funny. stories about him while he was alive i. don't think just on the risk. he he was offended or you know there'd. be consequences. what was he like for anybody that hasn't. read you about your story. um steroid taking shaven headed.

silverback doorman right wing angry. council estate working class barbell. curl. semi-professional bodybuilder lifeguard. sheet metal worker lager. nutter by lager i don't mean someone who. gets on it i mean someone who puts. the insulation on the outside of pipes. the hardest job you can imagine crawling. in boilers. ripping out asbestos fiberglass cut. hands white transit van gaal it away. just massive shirts tail this is when. he's taking steroids that was.

before i was born shirts tailored. trousers splitting hulk like at the. thigh just a force. of meat called dave that was my dad. actually call dave. dave actually called dave from essex. um so yeah he was just very old school. so even though. he's like more like someone who was born. in about 1920 he had sort of the. politics and the attitude very. unreconstructed masculinity. quite knuckle draggy but.

just would just worked himself to death. to provide. barely raised his voice at me and. certainly never laid a finger on me but. didn't didn't need to. i find the truly terrifying cockney can. just give you summer you [ __ ] get in. near. now and you're you're done i i i i. actually pissed came out of my body once. when he spoke to me like that. really i literally pissed myself i was. i'd thrown my brother on the bed and he. was crying. and there's nothing scarier than hearing. though on the stairs if you've done. something to your brother or sister. and you know your dad's coming up the.

stairs and he's like what happened what. have you done your brother had to piss. myself. and that guy never laid a finger on me. that's power my mom definitely laid her. finger. i don't think i would have been scared. of her if she didn't but i was [ __ ]. terrified of my mum. like but she she would beat me like but. my but i couldn't imagine. how she could have achieved that same. objective without. hitting me with something it's it's it. would be analogous of the nuclear. deterrent threat. if you know i've got nuclear weapons i.

don't need to fire them for you not to. attack me so i know. i knew my dad had whereas i just sounds. incredibly sexist but the reality is. once you're a 14 15 year old lad. you're the same size as your mum there. are no you know. wearing the nuclear weapon she's got to. put her money where her mouth is but. haven't you got to know how nuclear. weapons work. to to know that they're i just. to be honest with you my dad's giving me. so many positive things it's just that. the negative things are funny. so that's why i talk about them. disproportionately but to teach someone.

i'm five foot ten like a pepper army. with hair on but when i stand on. stage i don't need to hit people or. shout they. they sit in their seats and some of them. in the front row [ __ ] themselves if i. even look at them. so who have i learned that from it's. partly my craft. but it's partly also what a good teacher. has. uh what a good dad has like my dad and. what a good stand-up has. male or female that authority to stand. there and hold a room. with a reasonable tone in the voice pin.

drop. is powerful it's harder for a mum to do. that particularly where i grabs a lot of. single mums. um when you've got teenage lads that are. sort of thinking what you're going to do. it becomes like an arms race where the. mum starts hitting the legs and hitting. the face. and it's needed because that's what the. mum's got to work with i suppose that's. why that's why i do believe this is so. sexist and old school. but i do believe if not a man. two parental figures in in place one who. can play the badass doesn't matter if.

it's two women two. men whatever i think if you've got two. it's double the force raising a child. takes a village you i remember you know. the way you've described your dad is. um is quite different from who you are. today and who you are over the last. 10 years i mean yeah and almost the. antithesis and i remember. reading about the fact that you took a. dna test at some point. i took a dna test just out of curiosity. because i'm big into. science i wanted to know what diseases i. was carrying.

i've always been fascinated about my. ethnic makeup because my family history. starts in living memory i'm obviously a. little bit. darker than i should be to be a brit you. know i thought i. wanted i was interested to know what was. in there but. part of me did go what if this is the. moment i discover my dad's not my. my dad it did cross my mind which is. totally absurd sorry mum if you're. watching. um because he was blonde hair. blond curly hair blue eyes very.

wide um it's just that which is not. nothing in common my brother is the. spirit of my dad. but i'm like i'm not my mum just. energetic pepper army with hair on. running around. bouncing out of bed stick first thing in. the morning and like. in terms of like generational cycles. where did. your dad get it from so he always used. to say to me i never had a dad. so why about okay so then my mum would. my mum would say so you've got to. understand your dad didn't. get taught how to be at my mum's game. man your mom didn't get talked.

your mum did your dad didn't get taught. how to be a dad so he just know what he. didn't know how to be around babies he's. never learned that sort of thing he. never. he didn't have anyone to guide him so. quite a rough childhood. his dad walked out on him when he was. about i think he was about two. and my dad's mom's hard as nails he's. eastenders well his essex back then. barking. and it was just a tough childhood you. know tough east london. essex childhood where you you just. survived basically.

and uh he he had a lot of. dreams i think he would have liked to. have gone the same way i did he was. quite a good-looking bloke so he got. scouted for modeling and things like. that he pursued that for a bit he'd. pursued the professional bodybuilding. even tried to stand up i think like a. pontins or a butlins he tried a little. bit of acting. only for a couple of years and then he. went into the hardest. i think of all the manual labour you can. do which is. sheet metal and insulation so that like. i say crawling along pipes and all that. so there's a lot of bitterness a lot of.

unrealized dreams a lot of abandoned by. your dad a lot of. hardness and negativity there from the. childhood and that plagued him his whole. life. so if we were on a beautiful four-star. holiday to minorco and the sun shining. part of him would be thinking about the. five-star holiday he could have. i'm not like that at all how did you. know how did you know he was thinking. that. well he would voice it half the time how. what would he say. uh yeah it's all right imagine if i get. the big job imagine if we would come. back he'd be quite positive on holiday. actually.

but he was like just imagine julie if we. if we had more math my mom of course. julian dave. if we had more money that house we could. have and my mom would be like dave we. bought our own council house thanks. thatcher it's a big. house the biggest house in the street. we've got pillars out the front yes it's. a former council house we've got pillars. we've got a swimming pool in the garden. three beautiful bedrooms lovely bathroom. massive house dining room front room. two healthy sons at the point my brother. was very unwell by the time he was 17. but at that point. what was there to be negative about my.

it's hard job my dad did but. good money but he couldn't see that he. could just see his mate who started a. glass company and now his son drove a. lambo and he lived in chickwell and. i don't and when my dad passed away we. were going through the shed at the. bottom of the garden and i found his. diary. and it was lit it was honestly it was. one of the few things that made me cry. when he died because i sort of toughened. up to help with the funeral all that. because my brother was ill by then. and uh it's just rained today didn't get. the job. [ __ ] day james being a can i swear yeah.

james being a [ __ ] and that's my brother. [ __ ] day. [ __ ] curry it was like the diary of. someone. in prison that's what it was like it was. it's so weird that someone could be rich. and not know it. i love making money don't get me wrong. but i'm really good. at enjoying what i've got so i've. enjoyed every level of my comedy journey. and i've never been bothered about. whether i go further or not because i. feel like if you can have two banging. holidays a year. and you love the house you're living in. and your family is healthy done.

he was engaging in upward social. comparisons right the whole time and if. you do that you're never going to be. happy absolutely and you see that with. people. in in my profession that are earning a. million pounds a year two million a year. when they're in debt. because they're buying an ap watch every. week and they're going to the maldives. four times a year and they've got. they're in a 10 million pound house so. they should be in a 5 million pound it's. ridiculous. that's consumerism but it worked on a. more micro level. so we would if we're going to stanton. airport to fly to menorca. traffic's probably going to be [ __ ] on.

the way to the airport i bet you the. traffic will be [ __ ] so we're already. he's pre-imagining the traffic jam will. be in. if we hit a traffic jam [ __ ] knew it. holiday we'll probably miss the flight. holidays [ __ ] julie i [ __ ] told you. we should have gone for. i [ __ ] told you he didn't shout maybe. he would shout to himself sort of thing. did you ever figure out where he learnt. that behavior where that came from no. idea like i said it was just. all the bitterness and negativity and. expecting things to go wrong. that was his tape his script so if we. were in a restaurant and.

i'd be seven years old and i'd spill a. glass of water not coke or anything so. he's not gonna get sticky legs. he'd be like water everywhere a [ __ ]. meal ruin i've got to sit here like i. pissed myself for the entire movie. it'll be like the worst thing in the. world has happened like someone at that. moment's probably found. a lump on their body but to my dad the. worst thing that can happen. so he i felt sorry looking back now. you've got you've got to feel compassion. and love. because it was just a constant tide of. self-hate and negativity basically and.

imagining. if we go and buy um something from ikea. that needs putting up. you know a screw will be missing and. it's because i'm me because i'm. cursed the [ __ ] screw will be missing. you can guarantee it. [ __ ] that all the time so for a. little boy growing up you've got to work. really hard. not to absorb that i i see hints of that. in my dad especially as he got older a. little bit more negative about. everything. moods you know seem to be irritable at a. lot of things and one of the things that. crossed my mind was. i hope this isn't genetic like how do i.

avoid. becoming this guy when i get to that age. has that crossed your mind that. the generational cycle might. continue to some degree without you. noticing. obviously yeah i mean see him so my. brother i don't i can't really go into. my brother's illness because he's. literally not well enough to consent for. me to talk about it. otherwise i would happily discuss it. because it's an important subject to. talk about but he's got. some severe mental health issues let's. just leave it there so my brother's. really sort of. unrefreshingly unaware of his mannerisms.

and gestures and postures if you like. and it's just like my he's like my old. man. so how can your like the way. your voice and the cadence of a sentence. and the glances and the way you. you say no i mean and stuff like that it. is my old man. so i mean on some genetic level there. are copies of. how we express ourselves there must be. but. apart from maybe your height. i can't think of anything you can't.

change with. loads of loads of ways education. cognitive behavioral therapy if you need. it i never have but you can. um you can work on the way you eat your. diet your lifestyle all of those. you know genetics is not destiny one of. the most fascinating things you can look. up is identical twin studies over and. over again. you'll get one twin that's two inches. taller than the other. where he's had a more successful not two. inches but it might be an inch taller. where he's had a more successful life. eating better food so you can literally. grow taller. they're they're genetically identi.

identical so you can't tell me i'm. destined. to suddenly be negative about traffic. jams if two identical twins can. be different in height you must be able. to push against behavior. you see that film through identical. strangers yes fantastic yeah amazing. absolutely fantastic yeah yeah made me. upset. yeah it's inspired chris you know the. ending is obviously tragic but uh. yeah really powerful film and i think. that shines a light on how it does. it gives hope for all of us that you're. not you're only 50. of your dad and 50 of your mum and uh.

although you're actually slightly more. of your your mom i've learned how anyway. but um so you don't you're not if you're. only 50. if twins aren't destined to be the same. you're not destined to be the same as a. parent it's it's. it's bad it's a bad way to think. particularly if it's a negative it's a. good way to think if there's something. you want to copy tell yourself it chant. it. you want to be more like my mom she's. such a cool cat or whatever. we we have also grown up in a slightly. different culture especially in the last. sort of 10 20 years where we're much. more aware of our psychology right.

and our and our and how trauma and. childhood experiences have shaped us as. adults. whereas i think my dad probably didn't. know so it was like. someone back there in the control room. running the show without him and he was. just a puppet to the [ __ ] he'd been. through whereas we are kind of a bit. more open as a society now so. yeah that that's my biggest learning. men's mental. health comes on the spectrum it doesn't. mean mentally if we have mental health. everyone has men if we have physical. health we have mental health. even if you have no issues that's good. you are mental health. so mental health runs on on a spectrum.

to people that. are cooking on for hobbs like me and you. hopefully. all the way down to people like my. brother who are severely severely ill. with cognition issues. and people who are severely ill or. people who are trapped in time. like our dads before an awakening they. don't have. insight into their current state if you. do not have. insight into your condition you are. screwed because if you're let's say for. example schizophrenic. without insight into the fact you have.

schizophrenia you will not take the. medicine. you just won't take it you'll look at. the pill and go well i don't. i'm not healed so you'll you'll be in. assisted accommodation your entire life. if you're schizophrenic but know you. have schizophrenia chances are you can. have a relatively normal life because. you know. i'm i need to take my medicine and that. but you can translate that thinking. to any aspect of business or commerce to. stand-ups to entrepreneurs. because i've noticed i call it black box. thinking from the matthew syed book.

the moment you can have insight into a. stand-up routine. or into a business proposition in a. proper way where you can look it and go. that doesn't work. you're going to be successful people. that don't have insight into themselves. in their personal lives they end up. single they end up in unhappy. relationships. because they can't see their own. thoughts they can't insight into. themselves and go this. quick one starting from the minute the. lockdown is lifted we're going to start. bringing in some of our subscribers to. watch how this podcast is produced. behind the scenes.

means you get to meet the guests meet. myself and see how we put all of this. together. if you want that to be you all you've. got to do hit the subscribe button. i mean this is just an impossibly tough. question yeah because we're talking. about self-awareness really right so. like how does and people. people have asked me this question for. the last five years and i really don't. have a great answer still. how does one become more self-aware well. i it was literally part of my degree. i'm very lucky here we go i started. doing english literature because i. wanted to do the most show-off on. council estate posh subject possible way.

i mean i was going to get a first or i. was i don't know what was going to. happen so i told myself i'm going to get. a first amount what. that was pre-ordained. so i did two years of showing off about. you know roland bartz and jane austen. and all that and there was an. opportunity in the last year. to cross over into creative writing and. the reason i did that. is again goes back to my dad it's not. very practical to be absolutely badass. on jane austen unless you're going to. want to be a lecturer or an academic. whereas creative writing um is a.

practical profession. you can go into advertising you can go. into journalism you can try and write. books you can as it turns out go into. stand-up i didn't know that yet. there's loads of places where you can go. look i've not just got a first in. english. i've got a first in in writing i can. take body copy and make your. brand pop so par. how do you do a dissertation in creative. writing there's only one way. you have to submit ten thousand words. normal academic pouncing about and you. have to submit ten thousand word short.

story play. but you have to run through your own. work and criticize it and say what you. got right and what you got wrong. once you've been through that and done. it loads of times. it just becomes natural to bring it to. your life a copywriter in an advertising. agency has to be able to. really hate his own work he just created. and. find the faults in it because that will. lift it above. ogilvy's copywriter and you'll win the. pitch. it's as simple as that the person the.

man who cannot realize he's domineering. or jealous and work on that. will not have a fruitful relationship. woman or a man indeed in order to do. that with your life or with your copy or. with your work or whatever in marketing. you have to have a certain level of. self-esteem and personal security to be. to allow yourself to rise above your. work and look back down on it in a. critical way a lot of people's. self-esteem are so fragile. yeah that the prospect of being critical. is uh it's just unthinkable.

like you know this is why people get to. from my experience where people get so. defensive and. because they're because they're so if. you one shot to their self-esteem will. take the whole house down. so that they immediately go like this. hat likes so you could look at it that. way. so i would say that person needs to. learn not. self-esteem because self-esteem's a. totally different conversation. they need to learn objectivity a piece. of writing is a thing. a relationship is a thing that you've. built with someone.

a comedy routine is a thing a poem is a. thing the things over there that's not. you. you have to practice being able to take. the piss out of the thing. criticize the thing no someone's not. coming up to you and going you're ugly. um you're unlovable uh you've got a big. nose you're not tall enough stuff like. that. is gonna hurt and there's no way of. getting objective but if you can't look. at a poem you've written and someone. goes i really love the meter but the. adjective there's a bit obvious. then you should be able to thank that. person they're giving you a gift.

if they know their [ __ ] but you're the. one that should be saying that first. eminem style eight mile seize the bars. and turn them on yourself first. hard to do because everything is better. it makes better work it makes better. humans. yeah i completely agree it's just really. tough to do like. practice it's practice i get a lot of um. i this is the message i get most often. sent to me by my agent or an instagram. and it drives me [ __ ] nuts i had one. the other week. oh my god i love what you do i'm i'm a.

really funny person this is how it was. phrased the other week. how how many gigs would i have to do. before i. could like open for you on tour can you. have a look at some stuff i filmed on my. phone. and i'm i'll give them an answer that. norm i never get a reply to this answer. i say okay it's quite simple lucky for. you there is a really simple model to. follow you need to work. unpaid for three years in the clubs. three times a week. i wouldn't recommend a relationship and. just warn your friends you're not gonna. see them. i started to earn about two three.

hundred pounds a week after five years. at that point you're ready to give up. your day job on about the eighth or. ninth year. you're going to be ready to do a support. slot i never go. yeah people don't want to hear it but. you if you went up to the guy in the gym. who's 16 stone and five percent body fat. and can you tell me how i can get like. that you'd say the machines are over. there [ __ ] just get going. yeah the machines are there you cannot. skip the machine you cannot skip the. tricep. station if you want triceps you can't.

just go but it's going to hurt. uh it's too much work to get attracted. then just don't get triceps don't but. don't moan if you don't have triceps. head to the dip station and see you in. four years. i completely yeah i now i've wrote about. this my book came out last week and i. wrote about it in my book i remember. someone turning to me was actually the. ceo of my company now. company i've just left and he said to me. steve you know this personal brand stuff. and this like speaking you do on stage. was like how long did it like how did. what he was like how do i. how do i do it and your brain. immediately scrambles around looking for. like three tips. right three tips to describe like a deck.

i remember my first. talk in school at 14 years old my hand's. shaking absolutely the truth is like. someone's seen you with a sharp sword. and they've said how do i get a short. sword that sharp. i said well start sharpening it now and. then ten years time but. people don't work no one wants to hear. the answer is. boring repetitive practice for most most. people that are absolutely. [ __ ] excellent at something have done. a lot of boring. repetitive practice that would be boring. to the person asking the question not to. us. i loved every [ __ ] gig i did and that's. the difference that's what kept you.

doing it for 10 years or. two decades whatever is that you. genuinely intrinsically loved it for its. and people want the rewards right but. when they if they started and genuinely. wanted they too would discover that love. if you if you say i want to be an. identity i'd be a dentist you start. dental training and you're finding it. boring in a slog. news flash you don't actually want to be. a dentist you'll be rich. yeah so find something else find. something where you love the journey. that is a secret so that's what my dad. never found he did he didn't find a job. he took pleasure in he's got nothing to. do with coin although i'm into it.

but if you love the outdoors you're. going to love landscaping whether you're. on 17 grand a year or 17 million a year. you're gonna love it because that's what. you were born to do it's such a. counter narrative to the narrative that. sells which is like short investment big. so it's like seven days six pack abs. that's everyone [ __ ] signs up for. that. imagine imagine that the like. 10 years maybe maybe that's true. and that's and the problem is a lot of. the t the tv. we make i make sells that x factor spot.

do one song. live the pimp lifestyle and of course. that is what in the. all of the x factor that's ever been on. and all of pop star the rivals. how many of those people are now. platinum selling artists living in. mansions. what harry styles try and name some. one direction that's it that's out of. every. single little mixed doomer that's out of. every single one. in a show that's designed to push people. to the front in an artificial way. so if you think that's going to happen.

if you're russell from. essex you're deluded it's. but any business if you're passionate. mixed with a little bit of luck people. this is the other thing people like us. don't like putting out there but i'm. afraid. there is a bit of luck involved. and it sort of causes like we always sat. here again i've worked so hard oh look. at me with my work hard badge but at. some point we had some luck as well. which is we're in the right place right. time. mixed with the hard work so some people. are more lucky than others luck. is a thing and what lucky.

not luck as in lottery number luck but. luck is in oh my god you've met that. you've met the perfect partner you. you've been the business oh you you were. looking for a friend a french bulldog. breeder and you found exactly the right. one at the right time when you were. looking for a puppy why are you so lucky. where's my life so [ __ ]. so they tested this they got a bunch of. people together. half people who say my life [ __ ] i'm so. unlucky and half people like me who like. i've gotta admit i'm a bit. hashtag blessed i do have a lot of luck. and they run tests on them. and the test they run was very simple.

the the psychologist i come here is the. british jewish guy really funny brings. loads of books out richard something or. other he's written a book about it about. luck look it up. they gave them newspaper each and they. went in there. go into your separate rooms and on a. page is a picture you're looking for. whoever finds that picture. comes in first gets a hundred pounds. cash that was the game. so everyone went in like that on page. two your massive headlines was it's a. trick. stop turning if you've read this. headline go and collect the money that. was on page two.

all the unlucky people missed that all. the lucky people found it you know why. because lucky people. eyes are open the hustlers. so it turns out you can make luck you. can practice that you can hone it. that's something you can hone next time. you walk into a meeting. just think right what's that guy do for. it for a living who's that is that a. contact. that's not luck if i sit down next to. someone and he happens to be doing a. comedy streaming. service start up and he signs me up. that's me being a bit bold and striking. up a conversation and looking at what.

he's wearing and having to think. you can learn these skills people don't. like that because that. sharp puts the mirror on me and creates. personal responsibility where i. yeah you know what i mean and i feel. like in our society at the moment this. is just an observation i've had. personal responsibility is people. [ __ ] hate that. yeah i did i remember doing a tweet. about um. because okay this was me playing a bit. of [ __ ] but i don't care right so. the left of society which i probably. consider myself to be on. are really in support of the nhs so i. did a tweet saying.

the biggest cost to the nhs is like. smoking eating bad etc so if you really. care about the nhs. take care of yourself people like no. steve this is. literally the replies like this is not. it because i'm basically saying if you. genuinely care about the. health service here is all the data the. biggest burden on the nhs is people that. are overweight and. people that are smoking or whatever um. well the obesity one's particularly. controversial because there's two. movements at the same time. there's personal responsibility in the. science we're learning about obesity.

particularly during covid. i mean if you if you want to do one. thing other than social distancing. obviously get a vaccine. most of us are too young to have a. vaccine so if you have another vaccine. and you don't and you don't want to live. life like a prisoner the best thing you. can do is get in shape. quick you're better off you're literally. better off being. i think a thin smoker literally yeah. but it's a controversial conversation. because quite rightly we're. re-evaluating beauty. standards and a lot of people end up. with eating disorders and fat shaming. and all that needs to go away.

and as as soon as we associate. personal responsibility longevity in. health with a body type. we're in a difficult area where we. create. shame for people based on how they look. which is something you want to get rid. of so. for someone like me who's on on the left. my head just goes pop yeah. smoking is is a slam dunk don't smoke. your rebellion yeah. yeah end off [ __ ] don't smoke stop. costing me money on the nhs. but someone that might be overweight. it's.

very very complex to understand why. someone's overweight. it's something i studied a lot not. because i've been overweight but because. i'm fascinated with biohacking and body. and all of that. and i think the most. most illuminating thing i can tell. anyone about being overweight. is that eating too much. does not make you overweight. this is no one understands this i'm. going to blow your mind here.

being overweight causes you to eat. too much once you have the metabolic. condition. of being overweight that [ __ ] your. circuitry which drives you to eat. more obesity causes. calorie surplus so shaming people for. eating too much is a waste of time. because most people with busy lives and. kids and no money. are in a condition that's compelling. them to eat more might be. emotionally compounded might be. psychologically compounded they might be.

recovering from abuse they might be. recovering from a bad relationship they. might just be skin and can only afford. [ __ ] nuggets and they're just tired. and not getting enough sleep. and unfortunately until you get into um. a low-fat state like us where it's easy. to regulate your calorie your. every part of your body is telling you. to feed this obesity. no one understands that i've gone deep. into the sign i'm not a scientist so. look up for yourself before everyone. starts trolling me saying literature. degree boy. but as far as i understand the science. layman's cards and table.

obesity causes overeating now that is. just. boom but it helps us to be more as much. as i agree with what you're saying. it just it levens more compassion into. people's weight loss journey although. you're absolutely correct if you don't. want to die of covid. and you don't want to cost the nhs money. getting in shape's one of the best ways. to do it but of course it's not easy and. i've i've had moments in my life where. i've been most stressed. and it's a downward cycle yeah like you. know what i mean so you eat and then. you require sugar more and sugar becomes. this addictive thing in your life. and it only happens to me when i'm.

stressed so i'll have my little moments. of downward cycle. in my health when there's a lot on my. mind. and so yeah i mean compassion is. certainly incredibly important in that. regard what about more broadly so. outside of health the topic of personal. responsibility i like it because it's. controversial mm-hmm. um and i discuss the new trying to get. us in the daily mail here. in fact people should pay for themselves. no i know just generally in your life. and success in like. um what you can accomplish the fortunate.

position i'm in which is what i talked. about in my last podcast was. because i came from like a very broke. family where my mum can't read or write. and i i was born in africa. and i we didn't have anything no. christmas birthdays or holidays my. journey in life people don't discredit. it they don't point at me and say oh. you know silver spoon you can't [ __ ]. talk yep so. i feel like i can have the conversation. a little bit more about personal. responsibility of course i'm [ __ ]. incredibly lucky. like i didn't choose to be me you know. what i mean i didn't choose my parents. or the. good and bad things that shaped me yeah.

but i but i wanna. i wanna have a conversation about. personal responsibility as it relates to. career success and let's let's start. with hard work. because in our society right now there's. two counter narratives one is that. don't work like incredibly hard you're. gonna burn out and you're gonna have. mental health problems and the other is. i've never met someone that sat here. in front of me that doesn't work really. [ __ ] hard and i i did. i don't know how i would have sat here. without hard work and tremendous. sacrifice well first of all we sort of. already made the point. a lot of people are working hard at.

things they hate yeah. so working hard at things you dislike. hate or find stressful. will bring success and money but at a. cost. working hard at things you love i'm i. finished filming at midnight last night. in madison i got in at half one i had my. dinner at two. and i fell asleep at three and i bounced. out of bed this morning to come here to. do. a podcast for the price of a car why. because. i love what i do now if i was. had got in at three from working as a.

hospital porter. and had to get up to do another job. which was quite well paid this morning. but i hated it. i wouldn't be buzzing and that's what. releases the cortisol and the stress. hormone into your body. so you can't compare you're not. comparing like and like even though both. people are working hard you've even got. people. that might be barristers or doctors. really well paid professions but find it. stressful when they're burnt out and. stuff. it's unlikely you and i will burn out. because i'm like what's next.

and you're intrinsically motivated by. you've got a sense of control. exactly so that's that's what i think. that. i think we can we can differentiate. there on hard work. straight away so if i i'm more. interested in the first thing you said. about the. the join between people's origin story. and how much stick they get for the. success they've got because i'm. i have to phrase mine a lot more than. you. because i get put in with the silver. spoon guys because i'm a. just a white man yeah so i'm not going.

to use real names here and i'm not going. to use real jobs because i respect. my profession is so hard i don't give a. [ __ ] whether you're. prince charles doing stand up anyone who. does stand up. i just it's so hard to stand up. and i don't think an elite background. helps you in stand up might help you in. telly and production. won't help you on stage with a bucket of. piss coming through. but i've been told on more than one. occasion uh we'd love we'd love to. we'll book you for the x show but we've.

already got ollie um and so we got ollie. we can't have two. and i'm like how how is how me do me and. ollie represent the same thing. i sometimes think well i've got more in. common with. i could phone up i don't know if you. know who judy love is i could phone up. judy now and we could speak for an. hour about we both grew up same similar. part of london. similar age similar family yes she's got. jamaican stories but i've got six. stories. and that's the only difference in our. conversation we come from the same. place economically we come with fighting.

the same fight we're punching up from. when we never no one would ever say that. i'll probably be in trouble for even. saying that. that's the controversial thing for me to. say and it shouldn't be. because if corbyn and people like that. have got it right. everyone who starts with what i call. lower entitlement points. i've got a lot more entitlement points. than a woman of color. undoubtedly i've got less less. entitlement points. probably than a ghanaian prince right so.

all the people that have got. [ __ ] all uh i'll start should link arms. don't matter what gender you are. what color you are that would be. powerful i'm a bit nervous when we get. carved up and we're people who started. life in a tower block should that tower. block should be united you know what i. mean. so that's the first point but i do i do. think you we get off. we do get off lightly if we've got money. if we had a more council estate. background it's like a license. to be okay with having money like i can.

wear my rolly by the pool when i'm in. ibiza. because i sound common yeah if i sounded. posh. i probably would keep the breitling on. yeah. it's so true i one of one of my guests. that i had on the podcast. um went to a very good school and. um is white and blonde and very pretty. and she basically can't give advice. to anybody without the papers smashing. her. or social media in fact there was a meme.

before before she came on the podcast. there was a meme that went viral i think. it did 250 000 retweets. when she the day she released her book. and it was this someone. pinned someone up against the wall with. a big trumpet and it was like white. privilege telling you how to. how to become rich like she is not. allowed to give advice to anybody. because she's white and went to a good. oxford and with how much good insight. and business knowledge and whatever. like so many people went to oxford and. didn't build multi multi-million. pound two multi-million pound companies. i still want to hear this from this.

person if someone's offering you. knowledge. she's not it's not like she's telling. you about her struggles earlier. there was a queue in waitress and i just. couldn't keep that that would be the. trumpet. right she's trying to tell you how to. build a business it doesn't matter if. you come from space. if you can make me money tell me how if. you can tell me how to start the next. comedy streaming platform service where. i own. 40 of the shares yeah i don't give a. [ __ ] if you've got a double first from. cambridge. or whether you're one of the mandem i. don't care show me where to. show me how to do it you've got you've.

got to have an open. knowledge is is once it's out there is. democratic the path to acquiring it is. not. um but there's no doubt about trying to. stay on topic what you're saying about. personal responsibility. is i'm really split on this because i. don't believe it's true. that anyone with enough will and luck. can make it i think we're probably. outliers and freaks and. just wired a bit different and i've got. what it takes to push through. i think if enough blocks are in place. you're a single child of a drug using.

mum in a towel block. and i am built of stronger stuff so i've. bounced through my childhood. and i've come out the other side but a. lot of people aren't if we were all born. the same. then why aren't i playing basketball why. am i not sprinting why am i not. a math scholar you know some of us are. born. genetically more equipped in other. departments i'm clearly a highly. energetic person. who's good at motivating themselves some. part of that is inborn i was like. i would like it as a baby before i could.

speak you know the other toddlers are. like. dribbling on their blocks and i'm like. where the blood set. so it's unfair for us to go if only. uh neil at the top of the tower could. have been like us he too could have. been an entrepreneur because maybe he. just being a single mom. being of color or being transgender or. being. not everyone has the strength to push. through those. things not everyone does and it's unfair. to go up to a wheelchair and go just. stand mate i'm using willpower with my.

legs why can't you. because some people that that is a. wheelchair their social background and. they don't have the strength and then. they start using drugs and they just. sink too low. not everyone can pull themselves out so. that's why we do need more equality. yeah i agree i'm definitely pro-quality. i i there's a sense of helplessness i. get. if i like if i go all the way and say. you know successful people well they. were born with something yeah it creates. a sense of like well then you're we're. all just stuck in our lanes forever and. if i believe that when i was shoplifting.

pizzas in manchester. but then again what i do understand i. actually when i re the harder i reflect. i basically give myself credit for. nothing because i was born into a. situation in a country. i actually think my bad experiences are. why i'm here like the fact that my. parents. weren't around at 10 years old created. this big gap of independence et cetera. et cetera i've told this story a million. times. but it's the bad [ __ ] that is the reason. that i became an outlier i think. i became very obsessive obsessed with. money my book that's why it's called. happy sexy millionaire because it's the. first page of my diary when i was like a. kid.

i want to be a happy why did i want to. be happy sexy because we were [ __ ]. broke have you got siblings though yeah. i've got. so are they happy 60 millionaires not. one of them none of them are like me. and they don't understand me either they. look at me and like scratch their heads. but what does that tell you it's almost. like you've run a controlled experiment. exactly so tuning out um genetics versus. willpower i the the difference between. my childhood experience and theirs was. they were raised by parents and i. basically wasn't. so by i was the youngest so by the age i. was 10 my parents were like oh we've. done parenting now.

we will work all the time and we will be. out of the house when steve comes home. and will be at the house when he wakes. up. so i was the only one where the the. experiment was. total independence so thought experiment. for you if you'd have been born a. fraternal twin. another boy yeah so as much your brother. brothers your other brothers but happy. boy at the same time. same conditions same school everything. happens so do you believe you would have. another happy sexy millionaire living in. the flat opposite. or do you think depends what that. brother's personality was like.

because we both know that that brother's. personality is what would have decided. whether he sat at this table with us. today or not and. personality does come into it we are. born with different. personalities to an extent so i'm not. saying we're all stuck in our lanes. but i'm saying we need more social. mechanisms because. some einsteins don't have energy some. einsteins might might be a bit. emotionally weaker so we're saying my. example of neil at. the tower block he might be really. [ __ ] amazing we will never harvest.

that talent because our society is set. up with too many blocks in place. to scoop it out we had one thing in. place for about 40 years. called grammar schools very. controversial. very unfair dumping a load of 11 year. olds in the thick bin. my mum went to a secondary modern my dad. went to a secondary modern. my wife my brother-in-law my. mother-in-law and father-in-law. all went secondary moderns so i know. people who were told you're no good at. 11. so i don't say this lightly and i. know how horrific that is.

but the data does suggest that. there was a short period where we. scooped off some. bright poorer children not necessarily. neil in the tower block. but at least the poorer children whose. parents. meant well but were too poor we got them. we got more einsteins. when you watch question time switch it. on and you know i went to a state school. and they're giving it all that will. always be a grammar school. always is very rarely i went to the. local comprehensive and now i'm an mp. it's always.

i went to state which state school it's. gramsci you went to an elite education. then state but elite selective. so we need some more stuff like that. what can we do in our communities what. can our youth workers do what. what can we set up in in in council. estates. headhunters that look for talent. particularly boys. i'm going to say that because i was a. boy once but there's a real problem with. teenage boys all this testosterone kicks. in and it goes the wrong. way for most of us you when i came in. your podcast you ask. very controversial questions i think you.

like those questions those are the ones. that are most interesting to you aren't. they yeah well. as long as it gets in trouble well it's. hard to tell. hindsight's a wonderful thing um so i. guess my i was just thinking then this. is a controversial question but he asked. me controversial questions so i can. answer it. is there no hope for some people well. give me con so zoom out context got a. friend. tried really hard to help them change. their life or do something for. themselves. 10 years of effort made all the offers. in the world to this person.

still job seekers allowance you know. somewhat depressed can't seem to have. any impact we grew up in the same street. we were best friends my whole childhood. i went off he stayed there. i've got tons of examples like that so i. have to speak very euphemistically now. i'll be cancelled not by the internet. but by my. friends and family stroke associate. stroke i don't even want to say which. group these people are. uh i've all of this i've had female. friends who i'm like. stop dating bastards and the next guy. he's nice he's a coke dealer and he's. like he's gonna [ __ ] he's clear he's.

gonna shaggy mate. and some of these women are getting to. 35 you know like with the final. egg in the goblet like in indiana jones. waiting to be fertilized. and um this the next guy he's called. we've got three kids by three different. women he has. he's got an electronic tag but it's. great because we can spend some time. just bang a boring guy or a guy that. likes dungeons and dragons or an. accountant. what they call there's a sexual. attraction there. to bastard men that some women. particularly from high school background. working class women.

find hard to get over would be one. example but you can. get over it it is possible to do it the. mistake people like you and i. make is we try to help. and say you've got a friend who's. unmotivated depressed. leaves every job after three months it's. always someone else's fault. it's always the system it's always if. only corbyn was in power. it's uh my dad did this my mum did that. always putting it on someone else and. then you're making it worse by putting. it on you let me help.

you're just a positive version of that. the solution is with them. they have to switch the light bulb on in. themselves. they may not get there but the moment. they wake up and go today's the day i'm. gonna try and change my life. they should that the first step it might. be. speaking to a therapist it might be. changing your career it might be. enrolling in a levels that you do at. night time like i did. that was what lucky enough my revelation. came up when i was. you're on job seekers allowance at one. point i was yeah i did my a-levels late.

because i had this. spark moment but it's got to come from. within them it's not something. as yet although science might get there. one day but we can give to you in a pill. or an injection you've got to suddenly. have in right back to the beginning of. the chat. insight and baby like boom chest out i'm. going to see a therapist. i'm not going to use negative language. i'm going to get this self-help book. which. which gives me some cb cognitive. behavioral therapy tools i always hung. up with cannabis. um so yeah it's it's gonna come from.

them but for you and i. fixes how can we solve it how can i. redraft the copy what's the solution. unfortunately the solution is trying to. get them. to have some insight so if you have got. a friend like that maybe have that sort. of conversation with them that spurs. self-reflection. because giving them a million pound a. year job is just going to make them. worse because that muscle that's. atrophied. will stay atrophied that sort of. standing up. making your own strength muscle i've. been on my heel journey for a couple of. years now but in the case of some of my.

best friends who i've talked about on. this podcast before. one particular friend called ashley. jones who knows that i talk about him in. his transformation story. he did have a problem eating certain. foods. and so he transitioned to making huel a. greater part of his diet and the guy. went from being and i'm sorry ash if. you're listening. the guy went from being like slightly. overweight constantly. um having health issues that are. unrelated to like you know being. slightly overweight. to being to literally having a six-pack. posting his six-pack on instagram but.

more importantly. being high-energy and feeling amazing so. when i'm like. you know talking to you guys about huel. i do so with such a level of passion. because i believe. that it can really help change your. lives in a significant way. i believe it can make you mentally. better i know it can make you physically. better. and so yeah what a joy it is to have a. sponsor that you believe in that much. um yeah and they're also just really. good people. one of the most um probably. scary things from my perspective that. you ever did.

was walking out on stage for the first. time for your first gig ever. like what the [ __ ] were you thinking hmm. going out and walking in front of people. and telling [ __ ] jokes are you sure. like. with me it's even more complex because i. don't know if you've had any stand-ups. on here before. never but the majority of them and quite. rightly so. will be like from a young age i used to. watch blah blah on tv. i used to watch all these american. comics so i used to watch chris rock. bill burr. bill hicks i knew that's what i wanted. to do man.

i was like you know i was like the young. boxer in the alleyway i knew i was to. box. none of that nothing there is zero. in my cv that shows an affinity for the. craft of stand up. always been the joker i'm not being. funny today i don't know why you got me. on one. but normally i'm always asking around. not this is not a thing i do on stage. i'm just i'm not like. the clown person why just just my again. i've just always been. i just love making people laugh i've. always been a joker. there's some data that suggests um.

youngest children have it and i'm not. the youngest child the oldest or. people born in august and july purely. because. if you're smaller than everyone else. you've got to develop your personality. quick. so you if you look at the premiership. you won't find many footballers. born in august i'll explain why i never. made it. august august 26th so you won't find me. sixth as well you won't find. many sportsmen or anyone that requires. size or physical prowess those. professions. so even if you turn out to be a very.

tall teenager. you're less likely to become a. basketball player than a. a teenager one inch shorter than you who. was born in october. the reason being you'd have been pushed. by the coach and taught and everything. early doors at six seven eight years old. so and there is some data to suggest. that people who work with their. personalities for a living people that. have to solve entrepreneurs and find. little. rat runs in alleyways develop that based. on being smaller or more vulnerable but. i could take lots of forms i've got an.

overbearing dad as well. so i'm an august baby overvaling dad and. some of you will be genetic. my mum's very funny you talked a little. bit about i was reading some some of. your. um previous interviews you talked a. little bit about how it was a bit of a. defense mechanism maybe in school if. that's. you found your name yes by being a yeah. i wasn't but but i don't know how i. wasn't bullied. but i wasn't the smallest no girlfriend. um wasn't him with the in crowd at all i. was sort of like an ex. in a sort of external group that had.

diplomatic immunity. definitely a virgin definitely no cool. friends. definitely one of the idiots but we. don't punch him because he's sort of all. right. obviously i did get as a working class. school i did get punched a lot but not. as much as. i was in that league you probably won't. even remember them just above the bullet. the boring grey league no point. yeah which is the place to be at school. because if you're popular at school we. all know. you're gonna have a [ __ ] life.

so anyway so because of where i grew up. it's not people like well how can you. have no contact with stand up so you. gotta remember my age i know i look. young. young for my age i'm 45. so. what was my dad watching on tv jim. davison bernard manning. jimmy jones it's like bruce forsyth and. jimmy tarbuck. like you know live at the palladium and. all that it's not obviously they're all. talented comedians and i do i do mean. that. but it just didn't resonate with what. it's not it's not about my life so.

i'd like i'd laugh because my dad was. laughing but i was like what's this. crazy art form i've got to learn more. me and my friends mostly either smoking. it's all about getting high. or we'd watch old young ones or whatever. the funny sitcom of the day was maybe. even badly whatever it was. that's what i thought comedy was no we. didn't go to the theater of the weekend. we didn't know which cultural pursuit. should we do this weekend family it was. like dad works all week he's tired we. have a curry. nan looks after you and then when you. get to 15 16 you get stoned over the.

park. get someone pregnant work in a shop die. that's it that's the finish line. so i managed to like i say have this. weird entrepreneur turn my life around. get my first class degree. moment but just by sheer bad luck i. ended up at a university that did not. have a stand-up night most of them do. so again i went those three years. without any exposure to. in the student bar stand up it was all. music there was some theater. no one talked about stand up we didn't. have this sort of slightly fashionable. thing now being obsessed with american.

stand-ups i like to say to my british. colleagues just remember. if you start having this sort of slick. quality to your stand up it can look a. bit mannered. um that's just a side point so i went. all the way to the office to my dream. job as an advertising copywriter with no. content we stand up just being funny as. [ __ ] the clown. you know legend on a night out first one. up dancing but i didn't know that. something you could do for a living and. i ended up doing a job i loved. branding copywriting headlines i still. love it you can tell by. the way i'm describing it then the.

creative planner was like you're always. the one up at the pitch issue. i would do like if we're pitching to a. big client i would do like the funny bit. with interaction to get them on the side. when i'm presenting the creative he said. why don't you try stand up. stephen workman if you're watching thank. you uh why do you use chase stand up. with your mind's glass region. and i thought you know what do it once. like doing a bungee jump or a skydive. or karaoke it's just that's as far as my. thinking went. something to tell the kids so i wrote a. few ideas down in a book. booked an open spot in and i went and.

did it it was very scary i think i did a. pack of imodium before i went on. and my hand was shaking and i got that. it wasn't obviously wasn't great but i. did wear. ish well-ish first laugh was like. someone stuck. cocaine heroin ketamine everything in my. but not that i've done those drugs. but everything in my veins and i was. hooked you know in the proper sense of. that. it [ __ ] my life everything fell apart. like a junkie how can i get more of that.

i want a gig three night i want to give. five nights a week for no money. i've got a creative director we're. talking about multi multi-million pound. accounts. advertising is you work till 8 pm you. have pizza on your birthday under your. table you sleep at the office. i'm running off to do unpaid gigs in. manchester my relationship with my. girlfriend fell apart. my bill started to not be paid i started. to look thin because i. suffered with my nerves in the beginning. i'm throwing up [ __ ] like both ends. it's the closest thing to a drug. addiction that i've ever experienced.

i would have not seen my mum for a year. to chase this. dream it was i was hooked with on that. laugh. i'm like this is what i'm born to do i. just [ __ ] know it how can i. monetize it basically how why were you. hooked on the laugh why did the laugh. matter so much to you it's a rush. it's a rush anyone is i've not taken any. serious drugs but anyone that's taken. any recreational drugs which is a bad. analogy because they're not actually. addictive. but coffee for example i can't live my.

life without. without it why are you addicted this is. as absurd as asking me why i'm addicted. to coffee. because i go i wake up i feel alive and. i have an amazing day. the same laugh goes in buzz uh. serotonin pupils dilated afterwards i. want to tell everyone about the gig i. was taking. [ __ ] footage into work and showing it to. people and playing it in the office look. at me. that's me look look come and look at me. in this grainy footage i mean that's so. embarrassing that i did that. i just i couldn't i just couldn't.

believe it i couldn't believe. i was getting laughs from strangers it. was straight to the ego. straight to the cortex everyone has that. but do you. have you ever considered that you might. have that might have mattered more to. you. maybe because of your childhood or. whatever than other people that that. sense of like. that validation and that yeah i mean. maybe i mean i'd had plenty of. validation at work i'd had the whole. office cheer. i've rung the bell when we've won big. pitches i've got the rush in the meeting. but it nothing it it's the difference.

i'm trying not to talk about drugs all. the time it's the difference between. going from a beer. to mdma right i don't. recommend any hard drugs obviously. particularly people that work with their. brains you're a fool if you mess with. the equipment. but you can't compare them when you say. everyone has that. not everyone stood on stage to a. thousand people. and seen people standing and clapping. that is different. it's of a different category of ego.

rush very dangerous what problems does. it give you. well initially all has come with it. initially that my life felt. my life fell apart like a junkies i was. down to 10 stone at one point um. so it come to the point where i had to. say this needs to not be a drug this. needs to be a food. and i left the agency and then i was you. know. off still today though right so all all. things come with their. their costs what is the cost today of. that that career and that rush and that.

i suppose the worst thing is the travel. that is a genuine negative one. since min has been born my daughter um i. actually quite. like traveling i like being in the back. of a car i love watching movies i love. reading. and i love eating on the move so all the. things that most people hate i just. happen to quite enjoy. just pure i don't know why because i'm. always on the go i like being forced to. sit still. and watch a movie so i love flights for. example the longer the better.

um you still [ __ ] yourself now when you. get when you're about yes big time but. so far as so far as missing part of your. child growing. massive negative doing a is there's a. there's a guilt. thing in your gut and you know you do. cry a bit after facetiming that. particularly when it's a baby. so that's the biggest negative i can. think of but once you're with a woman or. a man. that gets it there's no negative in your. relationship i was with a couple of. girls before who would make me feel bad. about being away whereas lindsay's. kicking me out the door she's focused on. the business we're. a team that's well paid [ __ ] off see you.

later. don't call home if you're stressed i'm. cool with it that's what you need man. you need someone who gets it. i do [ __ ] myself though still yes do you. know when you know the. the um a modium scale goes up depending. on how much of my show it is. so if you booked a show for me today. where you're going to introduce me and. i'm going to do 20 minutes stand up. and you've got 2 000 people in the room. there would be nerves there. a fair bit of nerves but mostly i'm. ready to. knock the gig the [ __ ] out with my first. punch if you've put an event on.

and michael mcintyre is closing and. you're hosting it. and you to me at the last minute i said. russ i've decided to do two halves can. you do 20 minutes at the top i chip. myself. because they're not there for me they're. there for you and him and i've got a. conversion job to do. right and the risk is massive and then. michael's fans are your fans. and that's when the nerves kick in when. i'm doing royal variety show or live at. the apollo where people have responded. to a tv ticket not me that's when the. nerves go back to old school style. nerves. how how do you uh what's the battle you.

have with those nerves and in terms of. your cognition and before you go on. stage what are the tips. you can give people a lot of people. there's two there's two ways to to. to work on that um the first thing is. the actual practical thing on the night. i would say. um just work with breathing and. mindfulness and all the stuff. you've probably read a thousand times. the other thing to do is if you can. find a way to do it it depends which. stage your career you're at if you're at. the stage of the career like me and you. a lot i'm not trying to be offensive a. lot of people are sucking addicts a lot.

of the time. so we're constantly walking into the. rooms where people think we're legends. it's never going to be a difficult gig. now and again something comes up well. you're the tadpole and you. you don't have the hardware in place and. [ __ ] bill gates is speaking before. you oprah's hosting it and all of a. sudden you're who's this guy. you're having a day of who's this guy. we're all we can all have a who's this. guy dave. and the only way to practice that is to. put yourself. in more who's this guy moments regularly. so how i do that as soon as my tour.

finishes i book. the smallest hardest weirdest. they might have bad lighting they might. have no microphone they might be half. sold. and i'm unlisted unlisted unannounced. unexpected and i walk on to tiny clubs. full of drunk. men 50 year old ukip dads. all of those places i put myself in. those all the time because the risk is. high the nerves are the same. but the consequence is zero so i'm.

constantly training the muscle of. convert the people who don't know who i. am keeping it sharp the whole time. so whatever business you're in you'll be. able to think of an equivalent way of. doing that. so set up smaller situations where. you're having to keep that muscle. because the danger is the more. successful you get. you lose the muscle of walking into a. room full of skeptics and if you lose. that muscle that's the money making. muscle. so practice it i keep mine tight at all. times i constantly put myself. in unbilled unlisted unideal situations.

when you walk onto a stage when you're. at my level which i would call myself. quite recognizable you can't say i'm. like michael mcintyre or chris rock or. someone. but i'm sort of known as a stand-up so. what that means is when i walk on stage. at the comedy store. late show 400 people drunk off their. tits work dues hindus. i'm unbilled unexpected unlisted the. room splits into three. straight away it splits into oh my god.

it's him [ __ ] what a treat we've got. him for 20 quid. to the middle who's that am i supposed. to know that is is he good i don't know. i think i've seen him and the final. group. can't stand this [ __ ] that's the only. group i'm playing to win a little bit in. the middle group. they're the only people i'm interested. in because that's where the muscle. building. exercises and then when you go on stage. to your audience they get you like that. yeah yeah but if you come with that. conversion energy to your own audience. you must be. you don't need it that's the problem all.

you got to do is put your foot out and. they're like it's his foot he's amazing. that's the problem yeah that's the. problem you get flabby. easy in all businesses. so you talked about your relationships. there in your current partner i um. i heard you got married for nine months. yes yeah sorry i realized what you mean. yeah no i did i was i was married bef i. was married but i'm currently. i'm trying to enjoy my middle marriage. that's what i say today.

okay no i was uh so we were just we. realized we were just. mates there was a romance there we had a. lot in common we were both into this. same world. and we were sort of living together and. we got married and we were like that was. a mistake and then we just weren't. married. and it was totally amicable no no. fighting no problems at all. but you talked about the understanding. that your current. partner has current wife yeah so my. former partner. the one who was married for nine months. had that as well which is why so we. thought we should probably get married. but we realize. marriage needs more than that um so yeah.

so lindsay is more. lindsay doesn't get jealous unless i do. something [ __ ] like. follow a glamour model in the instant. and like a bikini pic in which i get my. ass kicked. but still do because i'm neanderthal and. uh. um so unless i do something stupid like. that which i rightly get in trouble for. or like change my flight in ibiza and go. to a boat party which i also tried to do. and got my ass kicked for. um so but if i'm on the road.

and doing autographs afterwards and. there's all girls in the picture or. something i've never ever like lindsay's. just not even a flicker she gets it. that's the job is. you're everyone's friend if the girls. fancier in the audience. even better that means another maldives. holiday type thing that's the way she's. in business mode. she isn't on a bit of an entrepreneur. lindsay she's got two businesses and. she sees my business as a business and. she. never ever guilt me i've been i might be.

away for four nights. i won't some days i've gone [ __ ] i. didn't phone home i didn't text. i didn't even now and again all i have. to do is do a good night. and she knows that my head might be full. there's never any fallout. never and that just makes the trust and. the bonds it's just of course i then do. call home. it just works because of that you're. someone that will get a lot of attention. because it's i mean it's your job right. it's like holding you literally to seek. attention as much yeah. and women they love funny guys right so.

god. you know probably i don't know if it's. gonna get in trouble but you know that. you could. have a lot of different partners if you. wanted to i could be harvesting 24. 7. that's what i mean i probably would. have fractured pelvis by now if i hadn't. got married. people are going to hate this question. because they think i'm encouraging it. but i'm here to play devil's advocate. okay why aren't you well. um i fell deeply in love and got married. and. i'm just again you get back to the. childhood undivorced parents it's just. what i modeled on this.

i've never had a problem with saying to. a girl. um the relationship's done my head's. starting to be turned let's move on. and as much as it breaks my heart if i. ever felt that way i would. obviously with a marriage in a child i. would sit down to li. to lindsay and say this an issue here. i've started to have these thoughts how. can we work on it. and we'd work something out so that's. just my way i operate. hardly any men do sorry girls for my sex. if only men did i mean.

but they don't so i'm trying to a man. should go. i haven't done anything but i'm having. these thoughts what does it mean does it. mean we're not in love does it mean. sexually. our relationship's not exciting is there. something we can do that. some games we can play to mimic that i. don't know whatever couples need to just. have that conversation. because if you pretend men and women. aren't having those thoughts. you're naive so you need to keep the. relationship alive that's the way to do. to do it why why am i married well a. 45 remember and b.

i i'd been i'm more serial monogamist so. i've gone from age 16. to 30 odd baby the girl for three years. break up get straight with another girl. literally the next week. break up on anywhere between nine months. to three year relationships. never had a one night stand i'd never. been single. i'd never been on a lad's holiday so. when i split up a bit weird but my mum. was like you are not gonna find a. sustainable relationship because of all. these reasons you said you're gonna get. a lot of female attention.

you're always gonna wonder what it's. like she went i was you i'd have a year. on your own. so i set the clock and i was like panani. master in action. and we're not cynically not cynically. shagging that's going to be the promo. clip. but not cynically shagging but being. sing. it's more to more to it than just. shagging it was like just being enough. living in a flat on your own. i bought that's banging flat in london. i've still got i use it as my london. residence and i just thought you still. got it yeah it's your wife now.

well we stayed there all the time and uh. she's a and i'm like i can i. can come on live i've never lived on my. own before i'd always live with a woman. always live with a girl and uh it was. just nice i'd just be in my pajamas and. have a career and then i could i could. or i would i would just think. i'm gonna go out on the pool after the. gig and that gets boring. quick unless you've got some sort of um. issue like sex edition issue and you're. addicted to. lots of different women i'm not that. type of like dominant guy that needs to. [ __ ] a thousand women to prove i've.

walked the earth. um i moy without getting too personal i. do enjoy i'm a highly sexed individual. very unfortunately for lindy incredibly. high sex drive like a 19 year old lad. but it's sex i enjoy not conquering. women so i can quench that first with. one woman over and over again but i did. want to know. what it was like to you know to be. single to be free and part of that. i'm sure it's the same for a woman for a.

man is to go what's it like to have. a one night stand or to be to be a have. this rock star lifestyle and sleep with. loads of women. the difference i did it was if i was. going out after a gig or if a girl would. dm'd me and we were going out or. whatever. just missed tinder um i would say this. is where i'm at. this is what i do for a living i'm. single. i i do love making love and i love going. out but there is no relationship here i. would never. went to bed with a woman dangling any. fake carrots. ever i think it's a form of i don't want.

to use. language too strongly there's a sort of. con a consent tweak in there. if you're lying if you're in a power. position like me and saying go let's see. where it goes but you just want to [ __ ]. i think that's wrong i think it's. morally wrong i think you should say. this is what it is i want to party with. you can you handle it and news flash. most women are looking for that too so i. had a wicked time for for a year and. then. one of those girls was lindsay and. that's just something different happened. and we saw. we saw each other again and again and. again and then boom married i i asked.

this question because i was i was having. a conversation with a friend of mine. last night who's an entrepreneur. and he's continually failed in marriage. and we were going back and forward. about whether about the importance of. meaningful relationships and i was. making the case that they're incredibly. important i sent him a ted talk. about which shows that they did a study. on men over i think about 100 years and. showed that the men that were in. committed relationships. lived longer had way better health were. way happier they studied men for 100. years i think it's the only 100 year. study they've done of this type. and he was basically saying well you.

know women that you know. they just don't understand that i'm. ambitious and stuff well is he wrong is. he right. how is he true he's statistically true. and also people that believe in god live. longer i'm not a god. i'm total atheist for you i mean that. would be the curve but you won't expect. to know right. tell me about jesus stephen there are. it's people that believe in god. live longer and so i think it's not the. case that. um faith keeps you alive or that. a relationship keeps you alive as far as. i understand the science.

there's a neuro-protective and. cardiovascular benefit. of literally doing what we're doing. today just hanging out basically. and the most reliable way to hang out. and check in with someone on a really. regular basis is to have someone you're. married to are you okay. take your stress levels down or even. better get together every sunday with a. bunch of people who actually give a [ __ ]. about whether your skin whether you've. got cancer with your wife's left you. who are going to look out for you and. sadly in our society religion is the. only thing that forces people on a. friday saturday or sunday to get.

together. if you're going mosque every friday is. it if you're a mosque if you're going. mosque once a week. and you're you're praying next to that. man next year he's probably going to. notice if you're down. it's as simple as that there's nothing. magic about marriage. but the homo sapiens i believe that our. cortisol. levels drop and our dopamine levels rise. when someone gives a [ __ ] about us it. would make sense on an evolutionary. level. if you look at the way chimps are that. when one of them gets excluded from the. group because they have a fight and.

they're going you know you see them on. the documentary. yeah yeah they never live long because. why would you. where is the evolutionary drive of your. genes to past. seeds and eggs on if you're the type of. person who can't bring the pack forward. so there would be a strong evolutionary. argument. for single people to die before attached. to people for non-religious people. to die before atheists so atheists like. us. have to make sure we really have strong. friendship groups. and i wish wish wish we could get. humanism.

off the ground every sunday there's. readings. there's your local richard dawkins is. doing a science reading we all have a. bit of tea and cake our kids all play. together. and then we all go home wouldn't that be. amazing and why doesn't it exist. it's solved a lot of problems because if. you were depressed i would pick up on it. if i'm seeing you every week. everything you've said is backed by. everything i've studied and i've read a. chapter in my book called the journey. back to human which describes this it. was. inspired a lot by johanna hari you wrote. lost connections yes. and um about getting back to our tribes.

and. when you look at the way we're living. our lives today it's it's just. the antithesis of human and religion and. relationship. is the only way you can keep those human. elements in. so far as your your friends who keep. having failed marriages. marriages fail for lots of different. reasons so you. so for for men who keep getting. three-year relationships and splitting. up. if if it's the same reason every time if. the eye is roving. and he just wants to [ __ ] other women i.

mean we need to speak about this in real. language that men use. sorry if you find it offensive switch. off but a lot of the time a man gets two. three years in the novel he wears off. and he's like. i just what's it going to be like a. different woman. so the cost as well the resistance or. the uncomfortable parts of the. relationship remain. yeah but the upside decreases if it's. sex a lot for a lot of men like. so i feel so sorry for girls that but. why did why did my man she what was it i. wasn't doing. it's hard to face the fact that some men. maybe 60 70.

of men who split up with you just want. to shag someone else. it's let's just put on so i'm sure many. women but i don't speak for women so i'm. not being sexist. i'm just not speaking for women let get. a woman on here ask her why she splits. up with someone every three year. so you need to if you're a man that has. those urges. you need to find a woman that you can. work with that can keep you sexually. excited and do whatever you need to do. just you've got to do it and and you've. you need a woman you can talk about.

those things with and a lot of it can be. role playing verb dirty talk verbal. fantasies whatever these are practical. tips a lot of couples never cross these. boundaries because they're too shy. so you split up with someone because you. wanted to get dressed up as a policeman. and potentially with someone else and. you were too cringe to tell her but that. could have been the thing that. converted it it could be as simple as as. going to a club separately dancing with. uh with other people then going home. together in the night have you tried. until you have that conversation as a. couple and admit you're having those. thoughts you will split up or worse.

cheat and ruin that woman's life and. ruin her faith in men. or if you're any what i'm sure it's. exactly the same if you're a gay gay man. as well. you'll ruin that boy you've spelled if. you're in his life so far as what why. women. are with men who knows and that's not. for me to say but i do think a lot of. the times. we're reluctant to admit it's such a. basic sexual reason. i bet i i suspect it is the case and. we'll make any i just felt bored. we've grown apart you know i just wasn't.

it would say any old [ __ ]. just to not admit i like looking at. girls on instagram i want to go on. holiday on my own. tough conversation to have right because. it feels like an attack on. but you build it in as fun yeah you'd be. like three years in i'm gonna be. straight with you i. really really love you as long as you. love if you don't love a girl just tell. her you. you definitely need to split up but if. you love her but i have sexual urges. that is resolvable guys i think quite. often hoochie and this is a presumption. i don't know the truth. they will take the path of least. resistance so they look over at their.

partner and they think. if i have this conversation this is. going to blow up and she's going to. scream in my face. i think i can just go and grab that. apple without exactly without resistance. so they just reach out for the apple. because that conversation feels like. more psychological discomfort then yeah. i don't i just don't don't go shagging. other people to end your. your relationship we all do that they. literally cheat to end the relationship. we've all had moments i have in past. relationships where i've found myself. in a bar contemplating it talking to a. girl and as soon as that happens.

i know either i don't love this girl. or something's going wrong in the. bedroom it's normally one of those. things. can you love someone and she. is the type of question you'd ask me. probably yes. yeah you think so probably in the same. in the same way i would i can adore my. daughter and would die for her but would. i go and work on a project for a month. with no phone contact at a pivotal d. vet point of her life yes i could.

because i can compartmentalize. i imagine women are exactly the same i. in fact i. suspect a woman can be profoundly in. love with a man. who's not giving her attention or making. her feel special or sexually exciting. her. and she can have sex with someone else. feel awful and still profoundly love her. husband. one of the things you said is you said. you uh you're 45. 46 when in august yeah yeah of course. maybe almost baby. not long you look about 31. like if you. told me you were 31 32 i'd probably. believe you.

yeah um how have you done that so first. of all. it's got me into trouble um because what. happened was when i started doing all. this biohacking and stuff like that. what's biohacking. it's where your work you're using the. current science. available to try and hack your own. biology to. survive on less sleep in a way that. doesn't damage your health for example. i've not cracked that one. to not lose your hair working on that. one. or to slow down the aging process.

so not so that you can live to 120 not. that. it's a common misconception but that so. you can have the bit of your life. between 30 and 70 in a more sustained. younger state that's what you're trying. to do. you're trying to have better middle-aged. years. not be 120 year old what you'd like to. be is 120 year old that's like an 80. year old now. what you're trying to do is stretch. particularly i did my first gig at 28. so i quickly realized i need to find. some solutions here because i'm high.

energy lee evans act. i talk about my mum my dad i'm a late. bloomer i've got what i'm gonna. i would end up having a wife much. younger than me i need to have. the body of a 30 year old man quick so i. started. studying i mean i was 30 at the time you. know what i mean i need to keep it here. um so the trouble it got me into is when. stuff started to work dramatically work. i would sit down in interviews like this. with journalists and people will go how. old are you russell when i was they were. guests trying to get a compliment and. they would.

they started to guess four years younger. five years younger than 10 years younger. than 15 years younger like you have. today. and i thought this is showbiz [ __ ] that. i'm gonna knock a few years off. because the one prejudice people are. still allowed to have not book you cause. you're old can't wait till. old life matters starts because i'm. going to be [ __ ] behind no but. seriously. why can we why is it okay to make. redundant and underpay and exclude. people. based on their chronological age. but that prejudice alive and well um so. i i thought i lied i lied my ass off and.

of course i was really unsophisticated. about it i was like celebrating my real. birthday with comedians and friends. and then lying to the observer or the. mirror how much did you lie by five. years oh not bad. i forgive you um but so that was a story. that was a tabloid story. in two newspapers and i and a lot of. jokes were made on tv. a comedy awards ceremony so i was quite. mocked for it so as a comedian. eminem style i took that wrote a show.

about it called right man wrong age. took it on tour owned it no one said a. word since and now i talk about it all. the time i think it's quite funny really. it's quite human i mean what the [ __ ] if. so if i don't know what whatever the. thing is in your profession maybe. it's age as well it's been aged for me. when i was 18 everyone wrote about me. because i would like. i'd made a hundred pounds when i was 18. and i realized that in my industry. your age and the achievement are the. most important things so when if i was. 18 i've made a hundred quid. they had me on bbc this 18 year old's.

made a hundred quid right and i realized. that by. when i get to 25 i actually need to have. made about 100 million for them to. consider me the same way yeah. so i'm like super slowly changing my. birthday every year i'm like oh 27. i'm. like i need to be a billionaire. right so but from a business sense it. might be exaggerating turnover to seek. investment then revealing real turnover. afterwards but say okay we were winning. this anyway that type thing so i was. exaggerating. turnover to attract investment um. but i didn't realize it was a massive. issue because people come to stand up.

comedians for authenticity and realness. particularly my type of stand-up so. anyway i. owned that chucked it back that's all. good. how i've done it is just there's loads. of places you can go to. i started with dave asprey and. bulletproof and all of those things. although i do think drinking butter is. way over the top. but it's moving towards a lower. carb not keto nothing extreme i don't. believe in anything extreme that's hard.

to stick to but certainly i don't. believe we're supposed to eat. white bread and cereal and [ __ ] like. that working with what we build to do. would be the most basic way without. spending money anyone that's watching. this can start. we woke up on the savannah this morning. you and i it's time to go hunting. there ain't going to be food there we. probably would have eaten at 2 p.m. no doubt about it human beings are built. to have. anywhere between 16 hour to 2 day. fasting gaps. no doubt about it. and sure enough now we look at this on a.

cellular level we can see what happens. so i ate at um last night i went very. late so i didn't eat till nearly 11 p.m. by now as i'm speaking to you not only. do i have an intense [ __ ] focused. high. from only having had coffee and water. which has got to be a good thing. there's um autophagy going on in my. cells. so the cells are eating up their own. bits of dead. protein and [ __ ] just out of sheer. desperation for something to eat. that's the first thing that happens. apoptosis is the proper name for it. the cells that the [ __ ] ones just die.

and burn off. like the crust at the edge if you pour. food on the edge of that situation as. far as i understand the science i'm sure. people will. refine what i'm saying i'm trying to. distill what i've learned for the layman. you you keep all that crap in so. unfortunately we're pro. fasting is brilliant i don't buy into. many fads but the science here you can. see under a microscope. so intermittent fasting and eating lower. carb is something anyone can do someone. on 10 grand a year can do that tomorrow. so eat more like leafy green vegetables.

i think if you're on 10 grand. you are probably into yeah exactly but. eat more leafy green vegetables. breakfast is. i think the easiest one to skip because. you produce a hormone in the night that. suppresses appetite anyway otherwise. you'd wake up hungry all night. if you are waking up hungry or diets. [ __ ] change it so you don't i. won't wake up hungry so we're brought up. to wake up not hungry and eat a bowl of. cocoa pops and then boom the insulin. goes up. insulins you don't want your insulin. high and the only way to do that is. sugar and carbohydrate. so lower your carbohydrate 120 gram net.

a day anyone can do that still rice if. you like bread eat bread but eat. wholemeal bread. that's the two most basic things you can. do. now so far as the more intense. chemicals i can tell you what i'm on i. would take phytation in the morning. which is a synalytic activator. something that's that stops cell. um decrease and senescence like aging in. cells. once a week i will probably also take. another synalytic activator.

a chloroquine is called i take pqq every. morning that's the little pink one. i do take nmn which is really expensive. but. the the life force in the cells that. keep us going is called nats nad. and that's what causes aging aging is. not inevitable. it's your cells we're a combination of. digital and analog information so every. time you rewrite a cell it gets. rewritten a little bit less well and. then you get wrinkles and gray hair and. you start forgetting and you die. so if you can help the cells be more. accurate in writing.

you can stay younger not just in how you. look but generally. so i do take nmn every day that's the. big one. and that that is a precursor to creating. nad. in the body and i've i mean i have no. botox i have no filler. in my face i do use stuff from boots and. moisturizer and i do go for like a posh. facial now and again. but there's nothing artificial in my. skin um. this is a great point moment to cut to. my podcast sponsor nmn.

loads of people make it okay um if. you're looking for a good one. in the uk go on amazon i think it's. double wood he's good. it's expensive though man you're looking. at six pounds a day. for a substantive yeah five six pounds a. day but if you think if you're spending. if you're lucky enough to be spending. that on on a coffee take a flask. buy an mn instead i bought my own coffee. today. so what i will do is my pet hate is. watching. a video like this listen to podcasters.

and people not listing. grams and brands afterwards and all the. top guys. david sinclair's the guy you want to. read by the way if you read one book it. will change your life it's. why we age and why we don't have to. david sinclair he does all the science. but he always refuses. to give like geeky levels of endorsement. what i take because his. inbox always crashes so what i will do. is i will. i will send you exactly what i take on a. daily basis. you need to check with your physician. and you need to make sure everything's. right for you. obviously but nmn is definitely the one.

that. encourages nad production and helps the. cells copy themselves and slow down. aging. resveratrol very very very important so. i take a. um 750 milligrams of nmm and i take a. gram of resveratrol every morning. don't go on amazon and buy resveratrol. the brown stuff you need. trans resveratrol the ultra refined. stuff. you need a gram of it a day vita fair is. is a good brand. what about hair hair they've still not. starting to get grazed. yeah they're still not solved why we go.

gray or. because baldness is a genetic program. that's running. like your height it's harder to hack. it's to do with the testosterone hormone. dhd that kicks in. dht that kicks in um so your body. after a while and the way it synthesizes. testosterone in the scalp. causes the follicles to die and fall off. the only way to do that is to block. dht but if you're a man it's a too. it's a double-edged sword because if you.

start messing with your testosterone you. can lower your sex drive. lower your aggression i need lots of. aggression in what i do when i go on. stage and for exercise and things. so i don't take things like um. finisteride which we know works. because i'd rather be jason statham. like bald and horny than have loads of. hair in a eunuch. that said um i am losing my hair at the. crown i have been for about two years. the reason you can't see it today as. much as you could two years ago i am.

using a derma roller. um you can buy these cheaply on amazon. make sure you buy. one with individual titanium spikes if. it's boasting. hundreds of titanium spikes it's a shite. one it means they've got a rolled out. bit of titanium. you want one if it's plastic it'll be. about 190 200 spikes. titanium and you'll be able to see each. individual spike 0.5 millimeter. once a day roll roll roll it's a little. bit painful roll roll and roll. at the temples here and then you would.

put on. minoxidil 15 ideally duoden's a good one. again very expensive you're looking at. 340 quid a month. um but it works what does it do you. start to get first of all little pubi. gray hairs and it just holds the wolf. so you're not bald you don't have like. 17 year old hair. but as you can see i am no i am not bald. and that's all i do the roller is the. roll is about.

oh no the roll is about a tenner. the minoxidil is expensive but you can. get like a get it down to about 30. pounds a month but don't go below 15. and if you really want to do belt on. braces how you shampoo is important get. a really good. caffeine shampoo like alpacin and you. want um. a brush like it's like a round. really cheap round plastic brush with. the plastic bristles like boys would. have gelled their hair with back in the. day. one of those and when the shower really. scrubbed that shampoo in.

and leave it for five minutes so if you. shave or you brush your teeth don't have. your toothbrush and shave while the. foam's there. and then shower it out how did you get. into all of this was it that book. no no that's i've just researched myself. the optimal methods for hair regrowth. but for biohacking. i've used david perlmutter the doctor a. cardiovascular doctor about heart health. and. cholesterol and make trying to learn the. safety of going higher fat. i use dave asprey for a lot of the. supplements your pqq. and things like that and all the. knowledge about high fat and biohacking.

and sleep and all that. and i use david sinclair for the real. real. hardcore science on life extension. it's a brilliant book it's just about. accessible for the main reader but if. you get into it you love it there's. loads of stuff in there i don't do like. the cold showers and things like that. cold showers tell me about that i've uh. i've heard about this but i just don't. have the guts. every day it just feels like it will. ruin my day the most controversial thing. about what i've said. is i'm not recommending people go low. carb i'm just saying it's what i do.

you might come from australasia. and you might have different genetics. that mean you if you eat a high fat diet. it's incredibly dangerous. check what your doctor recommends go and. do your own research. go to atlas biomed where you can get. your own biome sequence by sending a bit. of poo through the post it's fascinating. and they send back your whole internal. microbiome. get your cholesterol tested three months. in six months in. see what it's doing my cholesterol of.

course is off the [ __ ] charts. but so is my hdl cholesterol meaning my. cholesterol ratio is good. do i have plaques in my arteries. yes i do i've run a ct scan. so you need to take your own call on. that. i mean if you're a student and you get. hit by a car and you're 18 years old and. we do an autopsy. you will have plaque in your arteries. babies have plaque in their arteries we. all have blackener arteries. i remain to be convinced that the fact i. have cholesterol running around my blood.

actually is the thing that makes the. plaque cholesterol. that i'm in a minority i'm not medically. trained. i could be talking [ __ ] and i could be. in the coffin when i'm 60. but i'm fascinated by it i'm a layman. i'm on a journey. you do your own reading the nhs. recommendation certainly isn't. eat high fat but i just don't buy the. science. it stinks to me so and plus i just. i'm going on how i feel sure yeah. probably the most important way.

um your podcast you have a podcast which. um. talks a lot about cancer culture yes. what's um what's going on our society at. the moment in terms of cancer culture it. seems to be getting much more. uh maybe because of algorithms and we're. we're separate you know we're creating. these echo chambers and we're defining. you know this side is you know left and. this is right and there's nothing in the. middle but what's going on within. society and uh. i guess the question i'm going to come. to eventually is how how do we fix it. and can we fix it mm-hmm where are we. [ __ ]. i think we're probably a little bit. [ __ ] for the time being because.

after loads of historic injustice and. inequality and. i hate the word woke i don't i almost. don't want to be woke because it's such. a [ __ ] word. um i just think waking up to things. you've not seen before. the word wokes become politicized so i. reject it as a term. but we we need to swing the barometer a. little bit this way. until everyone's being represented. properly then it will settle probably in. our children's generation it will settle. to stop. panicking gary davely and everyone with. a union jack profile. it will it will settle um.

what i find frustrating and toxic. is we're living in a culture where you. can be canceled overnight. at middleton cancelled overnight sharon. i was born cancelled overnight. it doesn't matter who you are what your. background is what color or gender you. are you are at risk. no one is safe trust me especially white. men. well anyone really i remember um i don't. even know if i want to put it back out. there but. no reggie eights of it and he said.

something about jewish music producers. yeah i remember. just about survived that so i i i don't. think anyone i think any. in fact i think it's probably worse if. you're of color because the right will. be ready they'll be [ __ ] receive. [ __ ] c so i would actually say no i. would say. i think everyone's at risk from this. it's a rabid. oh we got one of them particularly a. lefty and cancelled him. how can we live in a culture of instant. black tradition say black and white. after what is there but instant black.

and white cancelling. where you can wake up in the morning and. be gone that at the same time. exists alongside how dare you use a. label nothing has meaning. we're in a post-modern world of. amorphous fog where we don't even have. pronouns. nothing's real history is not real the. things you've learned aren't real. literature isn't literature. nothing has a label no you're cancelled. and i'm sure what. yeah well which is it oh are we in a. post-modern nothing means anything. everything's up for grabs shifting.

meaning. diverse culture which sounds quite. exciting to me as a comedian. or are we in a nazi germany executed the. next morning. both of those two together head [ __ ]. i have this tweet saved in my drafts on. twitter and it says and i didn't tweet. it because i didn't have the nuts right. because i was being i was like loki. being canceled for something i said at. the time so i thought i'll just. stagger this one out but it says the. left will allow you to be non-binary in. everything but your opinion. right and it's kind of what you're. saying there it's like we've got to the. point where we understand things aren't. binary. right in sexuality and other points but.

my opinion has to be. like if the stance i take on black lives. matter doesn't perfectly. i don't look like i'm wearing like as i. said in the last podcast with anne. the football kit shoes socks shirt. then i am definitely of the right and i. should be treated as such yeah. and i i had it quite recently with the. um dia sarah everett. every tragedy because i made the point. that the narrative and this is this key. sentence that i just.

social media just didn't allow me to. express then which. narrative is most helpful. and productive in creating the shift we. need to see. in male behavior which narrative is it. the narrative. that um which i saw a lot of which is. it's it. all men all men are the are the the. problem. is that the narrative which is most. helpful and productive. and so the the conversation i was trying. to have is real politic what works in. the real world yeah i'm not saying.

there's not a [ __ ] problem with men. or they're not pigs or there's not like. the patriarchy or there's not misogyny. the stats say that i'm not the stats the. stats say 97. of young women have experienced some. form of sexual abuse or harassment. my my point is about that which. narrative is most productive. and helpful you're a businessman you're. like which model can we employ to get. the best profit yeah because i i reflect. i said well when tommy. when tommy robertson ran around saying. okay it's not all muslims. but it's always muslims that are blowing. up buildings whatever we would run them. out of town because that's a deeply. toxic.

way to think right and it's the same. with black people like we get you know. locked up more. so asserting that you know it's not all. black people but. it's some black people therefore the. fear is all black people the way that i. got to my logic i was like. i have two nieces who are gonna go into. the world who i love dearly. what would i say to them they're four. years old and three years old. what advice would i say to them to help. them a. guard against predatory male behavior. but also to help them in their life be. productive and to work with 50 percent. of the population it definitely wouldn't. be.

lse right sit down you're gonna have to. fear all men. some of them the threat alessi is my. niece is. all men that's not for me wouldn't be a. imagine the damage i would do to. my niece i mean i don't know what to say. you. put it brilliantly i i i got finished. off i got finished so badly. on instagram i was [ __ ] are they. finished me it's because. part of the problem is having a. discussion like this when a girl has. just died. if you and i to have this at university.

in two years time. it's quite an interesting it's a very. interesting conversation that needs to. be had. so i did do a stand-up response to it i. did a one-minute thing but i waited 10. days. smart i waited 10 days and then i did a. rant about. um why do we teach sex education so late. why do we teach consent so late and. i just made fun of the british education. system not speaking to teenagers about. sex enough because i think that's what. the issue is. um we don't teach our but at all boys. whether they're whether they're. predatory boys or not.

men aren't all about sex early enough. from angels. to sex offenders they should be taught. in primary school not from porn. no exactly that's where the problem is. um but yeah. so i think sometimes having trying to. have a con i i do actually just disagree. slightly with one thing she said. right at the top which was when you said. oh um. i need to have a binary opinion but but. not have. a binary sexuality because i i do think. no you can have a non-binary opinion i.

we could be talking about jane austen. and literature and we can say. yeah but i can't think of a subject you. and i can can have a conversation on. where fashionable post-modernism nothing. means anything doesn't apply. on a major issue black lives matter yeah. we could we could we could talk. we could talk about now we're not we're. not going to say whether black lives. matter or not. but we could have a discussion about. rape does race exist on a genetic level. we prove that it doesn't so what is race. does. we could we could chat and everyone. could leave the electoral going i don't. know what to think.

in a lecture or face to face or we could. broadcast it now. talk talk about race 100 talk about does. race exist and this is why i love. podcasts because you get context and. nuance. 180 characters in the middle of the. black lives matter. russell why haven't you posted the black. tile you can't go well does racing exist. people go racist. silence is violence but you can still. but what i mean is we can be post-modern. fluffy and not say anything almost about. anything. but we still be canceled at the same. time now those two things are both quite. extreme yeah.

i mean they're opposites and that's. making class cloak can close down debate. and. hamstrung people i like my. um offensive people. where i can hear them i don't like them. on whatsapp groups hidden. i was never against um nick griffin of. the bnp going on question time i don't. mind putting that out there. a lot of people say you put him on there. you legitimize his views what actually. happened. he looked like a total [ __ ] and now he's. disappeared.

have the courage to know like i do think. there is good and bad. i don't think right-wing people are bad. left-wing people are good in fact i. think it's just as many [ __ ] across the. spectrum. i do think violence and hatred is bad. full stop sorry i do. it's a moral absolute moral category i. would rather see the people who think it. have their arguments exposed the biggest. experiment we've ever seen of that is. donald trump yeah. where his [ __ ] just fell apart. because most people saw he was a [ __ ]. regardless of what he'll tell you. and then you probably won't see someone.

like him for a long while now. he was right and that sort of right-wing. sentiment rose around the world at the. same time like bolsonaro. yeah even here in europe all at the same. time and it almost feels like now it's. falling. a little bit away i don't like chastity. belts and and gagging and things and. that. the when they were like donald trump's. coming we won't give him a state visit. nonsense i want. red carpet i want streets lined and let. him hear. what we think let him see the way. british people show they're unhappy. don't sort of all mutter into your tea. poses and send memes.

like in shoreditch [ __ ] let's go out. there let's let's. let's let's where's our pranksters. where's simon brodkin doing a stunt on. him. that you know have the courage of your. of your arguments. the goodies always winning films and. they will win on the earth i believe. that i'm an optimist. should anybody be cancelled d platformed. chucked off immediately thrown out. not in haste that's why i make evil. genius. it's a slow weighing up over the hour. we take the good and the bad we have an.

intellectual discussion and it's very. tongue-in-cheek and funny. but it's a long discussion about the. people's merits. it's interesting as well the elitism of. it as well why are picasso's paintings. still hanging. why the guy was a grade a nonce and. misogynist. why are his painting still up because. it's so lofty and important we can't. quite bring ourselves to cancel it. i mean i don't know if do we go here i. mean i don't know what i think of that. michael jackson documentary anyway.

but it's almost like michael jackson's. so powerful and musically important. that we dare not go there so there comes. to a stage where. we're not willing you know someone sort. of cancel proof. i mean if you're really really. controversial look at the old testament. he did some vile [ __ ] things stoning. people. like flooding people with fire. burning gaze how has he not been. cancelled old school god.

too powerful that's interesting i've. never actually considered that some. people are too michael jackson's a very. good example because. i don't want to give it my spotify is. going to be empty i might just go over. bump and grind being deleted. all right do you know it's funny because. i was actually thinking about michael. jackson this week because i just. absolutely adore the art. yeah and have it the thought of having. to separate. mike the the artist from the art and. that the artist could have been. such a horrible predator it re.

something that helped you know the. useful rule of thumb i've found is. the closer the art is to the predation. and the nature of the predation the more. problematic it is so i find picasso very. problematic because everything i'm. looking at in the studio is. in a gallery it's possibly a teenage. girl's body. i find michael jackson problematic. because when he's talking about love and. i want to be close to you and i want to. touch this and that what's he singing. about. what am i dancing to yeah if someone. writes beautiful romantic novels.

but they like harming animals in private. less problematic. because when i'm reading the novel i'm. not absorbing animal harm sure am i. absorbing pedophilia if the song is. who's r kelly singing about bumble grind. with whom an underage do you see what i. mean yeah. so what's what's next for you what are. you working on what's um what's the next. chapter of your life all about and as. far as you're. concerned well uh as well as just doing. tv all the time. whoring it up on any show that will have. me which i've been doing since i started. it's about the theater's reopening um. for now.

outdoor social distance performance so. i'll be finding as many spaces where i. can put a marquee over vented at the. side. just to get back out there and stay. sharp i am working on a novel i always. um. i'm working on a sitcom i always am and. i'm developing formats i always am i'm. always hustling. always trying i'm yet to get that format. away where i own it and it's my ip. i have with evil genius i have i have. made a tv pilot of that with bbc studios. i would love to sell that because i. think that would work globally as a. format. very timely as well i have got my eye on.

things like that as well but mostly it's. how can i get in front of people and. make them laugh because that's what i. want to do. well uh you certainly are very good at. that um. it's it's a talent that you have that. i'm like positively jealous of like just. your natural ability to make people. feel comfortable and to laugh it's a. real i feel the same with you. multi-million pound businesses. i wish i had that i feel like i would. have been more successful if i had that. i told you for one year. we both keep revenue no no no. thank you for coming today no thank you.

so much it's been a real pleasure and i. don't think people realize how much of a. [ __ ] intellectual you are. my first clue was all those books you. had behind you in your zoom background. when i did your. podcast but i dug my way out the ghetto. with books like that. you're so [ __ ] smart and i don't. think people realize that i think they. think you're a comedian you're much more. than a comedian you're. [ __ ] genius at the same time it. doesn't pay to look too smart when. you're a comic. true i'm ready to i love radio 4 but i. want to be on itv one as well i. disrespect us. listen thank you so much for your time. today and um people people know where. they can find you but your podcast evil. genius is immense. and it's very timely and needed in our.

society so thank you for doing that and. i am. trying to squeeze out stand up on. channel four during the day so if you're. ever. at home or you've got a day off steph's. packed lunch twice a week i'm on there. doing that i never thought i'd do dates. i'm telling you i [ __ ] i love it and. i do stand up at 1pm. world needs that too right now yeah. thank you so much russell appreciate it. thank you. [Music].

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