Comedian Stuart Goldsmith Leverages Humor to Address Climate Change

A comedian has stated his intention to discuss climate change through his comedy, aiming to inform the public about the crisis in a “positive and funny way”. Stuart Goldsmith, a resident of Totterdown, Bristol, has been active as a comedian for 20 years, having received training as a street performer at Circomedia. He has developed a performance specifically focused on climate change, designed to encourage public engagement with the climate crisis and to confront his personal anxieties regarding the issue. Goldsmith commented: “I started to feel like I have a responsibility to talk about this. I have a responsibility to say to people, that this is a frightening thing.” He further noted that certain individuals are “bored” by discussions of climate change, prompting him to seek a “new way” to interact with them on the subject. “What we do in comedy is we talk about the problems,” he informed BBC Radio Bristol. He recounted: “During the pandemic, I became pretty glued to the news and I stopped letting myself off the hook with the climate crisis.” He continued: “I stopped letting myself think ‘oh someone else will deal with that I’m sure’ and I got really scared.” Goldsmith stated that addressing the issue also serves as a method for him to “tackle” his personal fear. He added: “There is a value of talking about the elephant in the room.” These considerations were central to him when he authored the show Spoilers, which was presented at the Edinburgh Fringe. The audience is engaged through requests to share their “climate confessions,” and the performance received the “Best Show” award in 2023. Additionally, he established Chops Comedy on North Street, a venue that features both secret and local acts on Tuesday evenings. He declared: “This is my job now, to try and use comedy to help direct people to just find out more about it.”