DMU politics academic joins the debate at Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival


It’s the source of jokes for comedians around the world – but the role of politics and comedy will be debated this weekend as part of Dave’s Leicester Comedy Festival.

De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) principal lecturer Alistair Jones of the Department of Politics and Public Policy is joining a panel of experts as part of the Beyond the Joke series at the festival, which is the biggest so far in the history of the event.

alistair inset

Alistair was invited to take part following the success of the inaugural debate with Dr Sharon Lockyer, of Brunel University’s Centre for Comedy Studies Research and former Labour Party campaign strategist turned comedian Matt Forde.

Mr Jones, who is also a DMU Teacher Fellow – an honour given to the university's best educators – said: “Comedy has always had a history of pushing boundaries.  But are there any limits?  Should comedians be allowed to say whatever they like, or should there be a degree of self-censorship?  How much free speech can we tolerate?  Or will we let it descend into some form of incitement?  There is no answer here but the panel may start to point out the boundaries, beyond those of taste.”

This year’s event will take place at Peter’s Pizzeria on Sunday at 1pm. Doors open at 12.30pm.

A spokesman for the comedy festival said the event would cover ranging topics like freedom of speech, whether comedy can go ‘too far’ and whether comedians should think about the ethics of their material.

“These questions and more will be hotly debated by a panel of comedians, public figures and academics. This is one lively debate not to be missed!”

The event is presented by the CCSR and the Magna Carta Institute at Brunel University, London.

Posted on Friday 12 February 2016

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