Amanda Palmer Interviews British Comedian Sir Lenny Henry

Sir Lenny Henry is, of course, one of the most successful British comedians of all time - a brilliant comic, actor, and creative force whose remarkable four-decade career spans sketch comedy to Shakespeare to his role as co-founder and frontman behind the hugely successful British charity, Comic Relief. In this episode of THE ART OF ASKING EVERYTHING, Palmer and Henry talk about the paradoxes of celebrity and social media, using humor as armor against racism, the history of minstrelsy in the UK, giving your loved ones fair warning when you publish a memoir, the power of masks and fiction, why giving advice to younger artists is so important, and making your work the structure of your life.

"The work is the structure that gets you through this," Henry tells Palmer. "You know, you could get through emotional hangovers, you can get through your mum dying, your dad dying, you can get through moments of not being able to have a kid, suddenly having a kid, because what happens is the world balances out. For most, the work is structure."

"I did an interview on Melbourne's ABC Radio the other day," Palmer says, "and the radio host told me that he loved this particular episode, and that he'd never heard anyone get quite into Lenny's heart and story as I had. That really meant the world to me. That's the idea. I don't want these to be 'interviews'.... I want them to be conversations. I want you all to be flies on the wall as I talk real human talk. I am so happy that I get to do this."

THE ART OF ASKING EVERYTHING premiered last week with "Bulls Is Everywhere," featuring an in-depth discussion with author and activist Elizabeth Lesser, co-founder of the world renowned Omega Institute for Holistic Studies. Additional episodes will see Palmer joined by an array of equally engaging guests, including Tim Minchin, Laura Jane Grace, Tim Ferriss, Dan Savage, Susan Cain, KT Tunstall, Tim Flannery, Nadya Tolokonnikova, and many more. In this series, Palmer talks to her colleagues and heroes to find out how they create art, love difficult people, work for change, and survive the worst moments of their lives. From porn stars to empathy researchers, cartoonists to climate scientists, no topic is out of bounds.

THE ART OF ASKING EVERYTHING is available now via iTunes and all leading podcast providers, with new episodes premiering weekly; the podcast is 100% fan supported and powered by 15,000 patrons via Palmer's official Patreon, with no corporate sponsors or restrictions on speech. Exclusive additional content - including live follow-up chats with Palmer and her guests - will be available to Patrons only; fans are invited to join the community HERE.

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