Trevor Noah on TDS

[MrDibble]

@iiandyiiii

I assume this guy was already somewhat well known in SA,

Yes, he’s one of our best stand-ups (other good ones include - Riaad Moosa and Nik Rabinowitz).

[Moe]

@WordMan

Who is Sandi Toksvig? Also, I didn’t know of the Britishism “you’ve just about got me turned” - clearly she means that she found his ability to speak and sing in Xhosa sexy and exotic…just hadn’t heard it summed up that way…

Actually she’s a lesbian, and so I believe she was referring to that (i.e. turning hetero). (ETA: beaten to it)

I’m American, but I’m a total QI addict, and probably 90% of what I know about British comedians comes from seeing them on that show… so, interesting fact in response to your question: IIRC, despite that intensely British accent, I believe Sandi Toksvig grew up in NYC, and had to actually work on her changing her accent.

[ZipperJJ]

@Moe

Wow I just watched that QI episode with Trevor Noah like less than 2 weeks ago and I completely didn’t make the connection that it was the same guy on TDS.

Yeah me too. I totally remember now that I saw the clip.

[MrDibble]

@Moe

I’m American, but I’m a total QI addict, and probably 90% of what I know about British comedians comes from seeing them on that show

Run, don’t walk, to a youtube connection, and check out Mock The Week, a show compered by QI regular Dara Ó Briain that often features a lot more…shall we say hardcore?..comedy (it was best when Frankie Boyle was still on) It helps if you are familiar with some British politics and celebrities, but not essential. It’s not as cerebral as QI but does cover the standup side a bit better.

Interesting trivia - QI regular Rich Hall is part of the inspiration for Moe Szyslak on the Simpsons, apparently.

[Exapno_Mapcase]

I posted this last year:

@Exapno_Mapcase

I’ve just come back from the Montreal Just for Laughs festival.

Trevor Noah - I hate to push him because he’s going back to South Africa after spending two years touring the U.S. He’s the anti-Burnam, a quiet gentleman who is all personality and connects with the audience throughout an act that is otherwise just as precisely honed. (His best local line was that Montreal calls itself bilingual, but is really French with English subtitles. Perfect.) The whole hour is essentially one long story about his boyhood under apartheid and how he came to the U.S. so that he would have an identity: as black. The show’s called “Born a Crime” because he has a black mother and white father and interracial babies had no legal identity. And he does it all from a perspective of how happy his childhood was. The audience, more racially-diverse than at any other show, loved him, rightfully so. If the suits ever figure out what to do with him, he will be a gigantic global star, Will Smith before everybody started hating him.

Never occurred to me that he might become a Daily Show correspondent. This might become his stepping stone to huge American success. His upside is unlimited.