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Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris

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Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris are a British comedy writing duo. Their work includes a collection of parody Ladybird books, and they have written scripts for many British comedy series and films, including That Mitchell and Webb Look, Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe and the Paddington films.

Early lives

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Hazeley (then known as Jason Smith) and Morris met at King Edward VI Grammar School in Chelmsford, Essex.[1][2] Whilst at school they produced a parody newsletter, and at sixth form received their first paid work after selling a joke to the The Russ Abbot Show.[3]

Career

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Television and film

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Hazeley and Morris have written for a number of British TV shows and films. These include That Mitchell and Webb Look, A Touch of Cloth, Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe, Electionwipe and Newswipe with Charlie Brooker programmes, and several Philomena Cunk series. The pair are regular contributors to the British adult comic Viz. The 2016 Electionwipe won the BAFTA award for Best Comedy and Entertainment Programme.[4]

The pair also wrote for Paddington[5] and Paddington 2.[6]

Books

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Hazeley and Morris have co-written books including Bollocks to Alton Towers,[7] and a series of parody Ladybird Books which re-caption original illustrations from the Ladybird series with jokes aimed at an adult audience.[8] Topics have included Donald Trump,[9] hipsters and hangovers[10] and Brexit.[11] The books were so successful that in 2015 only J. K. Rowling, David Walliams and Julia Donaldson sold more copies in the UK.[12]

In October 2015, it was announced that Morris had co-written a series of Ladybird Books for adults with Jason Hazeley. The books, which parody the style of the company's classic books for children, re-caption original illustrations from the Ladybird series with new text, offering sardonic commentary on many areas of modern life. The initial run included titles such as The Hangover, Mindfulness, Dating and The Hipster and were published on 18 November 2015.[8][13] The series was later expanded to include public figures such as Donald Trump.[9]

The pair were writers on The Framley Examiner, a local news parody website which later became a book, with Robin Halstead and Alex Morris.

Podcast

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Hazeley and Morris hosted the comedy podcast Rule of Three until 2020.[14] Rule of Three was named in the best podcasts of 2018 by The Guardian.[15] On the show they invite a comedy performer on to discuss their career and a comedy performance or programme, a TV show, a film, a book, an album or a comic that means a lot to them.[16] Guests have included Eddie Izzard, John Finnemore, Danielle Ward, Jon Holmes,[17] and Aisling Bea[18] Topics have included Bill Hicks, films such as Trading Places and Time Bandits, and the LP version of The Album of the Soundtrack of the Trailer of the Film of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.[19] The podcast has branched out into live shows with special guests such as Sue Perkins.[20] Hazeley has also appeared as a guest on the Griefcast podcast with Cariad Lloyd.[21] At the 2020 British Podcast Awards it was named best Arts and Culture Podcast.[22]

Music

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From 1998 to 2003 Hazeley was part of the folk-pop duo Ben & Jason.[23] In 2024, he toured the UK as part of Beth Gibbons' live band, and appeared with her on Later..._with_Jools_Holland.

Morris is lead singer in the band Candidate[24][25] who released their fourth album in 2004.[26] His harmonies with his brother were compared in The Guardian to Simon & Garfunkel.[27]

Publications

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  • Halstead, Robin; Hazeley, Jason A.; Morris, Alex; Morris, Joel (2005). Bollocks to Alton Towers: Uncommonly British Days Out. Michael Joseph Ltd. ISBN 0-14-102120-9.
  • Halstead, Robin; Hazeley, Jason A.; Morris, Alex; Morris, Joel (3 April 2008). More Bollocks to Alton Towers: More Uncommonly British Days Out. Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-102785-2.
  • Hazeley, Jason A.; Morris, Joel P. (29 October 2015). How it Works: The Husband. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8356-1.
  • ——; —— (29 October 2015). How it Works: The Wife. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8354-7.
  • ——; —— (29 October 2015). The Ladybird Book of Dating. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8357-8.
  • ——; —— (29 October 2015). The Ladybird Book of Mindfulness. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8352-3.
  • ——; —— (29 October 2015). The Ladybird Book of The Hangover. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8351-6.
  • ——; —— (29 October 2015). The Ladybird Book of The Hipster. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8359-2.
  • ——; —— (29 October 2015). The Ladybird Book of The Mid-Life Crisis. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8353-0.
  • ——; —— (29 October 2015). The Ladybird Book of The Shed. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8358-5.
  • ——; —— (11 February 2016). How it Works: The Mum. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8421-6.
  • ——; —— (19 May 2016). How it Works: The Dad. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8426-1.
  • ——; —— (25 August 2016). How it Works: The Student. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8428-5.
  • ——; —— (20 October 2016). How it Works: The Cat. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8433-9.
  • ——; —— (20 October 2016). How it Works: The Dog. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8435-3.
  • ——; —— (20 October 2016). How it Works: The Grandparent. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8430-8.
  • ——; —— (20 October 2016). The Ladybird Book of Red Tape. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8439-1.
  • ——; —— (20 October 2016). The Ladybird Book of The Meeting. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8437-7.
  • ——; —— (20 October 2016). The Ladybird Book of The People Next Door. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8441-4.
  • ——; —— (20 October 2016). The Ladybird Book of The Sickie. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8443-8.
  • ——; —— (20 October 2016). The Ladybird Book of The Zombie Apocalypse. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8445-2.
  • ——; —— (1 December 2016). The Ladybird Book of Boxing Day. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8486-5.
  • ——; —— (23 February 2017). The Ladybird Book of The Do-Gooder. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8447-6.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). How it Works: The Baby. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8863-4.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). How it Works: The Brother. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8869-6.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). How it Works: The Sister. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8870-2.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). People at Work: The Rock Star. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8865-8.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). The Ladybird Book of Balls. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8871-9.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). The Ladybird Book of The Big Night Out. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8867-2.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). The Ladybird Book of The Ex. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8866-5.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). The Ladybird Book of The Nerd. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8864-1.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). The Ladybird Book of The New You. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8885-6.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). The Ladybird Book of The Quiet Night In. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8868-9.
  • ——; —— (5 October 2017). A Ladybird First Grown-Up Picture Book. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-7181-8884-9.
  • ——; —— (25 October 2018). The Story of Brexit. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-241-38656-9.
  • ——; —— (15 November 2018). The Wonderful World of Ladybird Books for Grown-Ups. London: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-241-36404-8.
  • ——; —— (3 October 2019). A Ladybird Book about Donald Trump. Loughborough: Ladybird Books. ISBN 978-0-241-42272-4.

References

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  1. ^ "Notable Alumni". wKegs.org.uk.
  2. ^ "Meet the men who revived Ladybird and reinvented the toilet book". Inews.co.uk. 6 January 2018. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  3. ^ "Ladybird Book duo Joel Morris and Jason Hazeley are now spoofing Scandi noir on Radio 4". Radio Times.
  4. ^ "Comedy & Comedy Entertainment Programme - CHARLIE BROOKer's 2016 WIPE". Bafta.org. 11 April 2017.
  5. ^ "BBC Radio 2 - Jo Whiley & Simon Mayo, Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris, Ladybird Book Confession, The link between Ladybird, Paddington and Bins!". BBC. 20 November 2018.
  6. ^ "Joel Morris and Jason Hazeley | United Agents". Unitedagents.co.uk.
  7. ^ Hazeley, Jason; Halstead, Robin; Morris, Alex; Morris, Joel (March 2, 2006). Bollocks to Alton Towers: Uncommonly British Days Out. Penguin Adult. ISBN 9780141021201 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ a b "Spoof Ladybird books target adult market". BBC News Online. 12 October 2015. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  9. ^ a b "Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris on writing A Ladybird Book About Trump". Inews.co.uk. 30 September 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  10. ^ "Ladybird Books' mid-life crisis: New books take on hangovers and hipsters". Irishtimes.com.
  11. ^ "Ladybird book authors make light work of Brexit". The Guardian. 25 October 2018.
  12. ^ "Meet the Ladybird authors knocking everyone off the best-sellers list - including me". Telegraph.co.uk.
  13. ^ "Are You Alright in There? - Radio 4 Documentary". Comedy.co.uk.
  14. ^ Sawyer, Miranda (23 June 2019). "The week in radio and podcasts: Football Daily; Giant; Athletico Mince". The Observer. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  15. ^ Davies, Hannah J.; Verdier, Hannah; Gibsone, Harriet; Haynes, Gavin (June 30, 2018). "The 50 best podcasts of 2018". Theguardian.com.
  16. ^ [1] [dead link]
  17. ^ Gent, James (June 8, 2018). "Podcast of the Week: Rule Of Three » We Are Cult". Wearecult.rocks.
  18. ^ Bea, Aisling. "AISLING BEA - Actor, Writer, Stand-Up, MC. People have woken up to worse. Rule Of Three – Father Ted". Aislingbea.com.
  19. ^ "Dissecting comedy classics: Rule of Three". Rnz.co.nz. August 31, 2018.
  20. ^ "Rule of Three with special guest Sue Perkins • Comedy • Kings Place". Kingsplace.co.uk. June 2023.
  21. ^ "Ep. 56 Jason Hazeley - Griefcast (podcast)". Listennotes.com. 23 October 2018.
  22. ^ "Winners 2020". Britishpodcastawards.com. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  23. ^ "Ben & Jason - New Songs, Playlists & Latest News - BBC Music". BBC.
  24. ^ allmusic ((( Taking on the Enemy's Sound > Overview )))
  25. ^ "Joel Morris | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  26. ^ "BBC - Radio 2 - Folk and Acoustic". Bbc.co.uk.
  27. ^ Clarke, Betty (12 January 2002). "Candidate, London". The Guardian.
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