Go Faster Stripe is an independent
film production
Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, casti ...
and
distribution Distribution may refer to:
Mathematics
*Distribution (mathematics), generalized functions used to formulate solutions of partial differential equations
* Probability distribution, the probability of a particular value or value range of a vari ...
company that operates out of the
Chapter Arts Centre, in
Cardiff,
Wales. The company specialises in the recording of live shows by
stand-up comedian
Stand-up comedy is a comedy, comedic performance to a live audience in which the performer addresses the audience directly from the stage. The performer is known as a comedian, a comic or a stand-up.
Stand-up comedy consists of One-line joke ...
s who, while in the public eye, may not normally be able to get a DVD released through a major label, or who want to avoid forms of censorship that they feel may come with mainstream releases.
Initially a baby
clothes
Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the human body, body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials ...
retailer, the company used its internet presence to diversify into comedy releases in 2005.
Go Faster Stripe are closely associated with
Stewart Lee and
Richard Herring, who first became famous as the
Lee and Herring double act
A double act (also known as a comedy duo) is a form of comedy originating in the British music hall tradition, and American vaudeville, in which two comedians perform together as a single act. Pairings are typically long-term, in some cases f ...
in the 1990s, and whose work they have often published. In addition to Herring and Lee, the company has produced media for acts such as
Simon Munnery,
Lucy Porter and
Robin Ince
Robin Ince (born 20 February 1969) is an English comedian, actor and writer, known for presenting the BBC radio show ''The Infinite Monkey Cage'' with physicist Brian Cox (physicist), Brian Cox, and his stand-up comedy career.
Education
After ...
.
As well as
CDs and
DVDs, they have also released a 10"
vinyl and a number of books.
History
When comedy fan Chris Evans wished to purchase a DVD of comedian Stewart Lee's (co-writer of
Jerry Springer: The Opera) latest live show (90s Comedian) he learned there would not be one: the comic's previous release (''Stewart Lee - Stand Up Comedian'', released by
2 Entertain
2 Entertain (stylized as 2 , entertain) is a British video and music publisher founded in September 2004 by the merger of BBC Video and Video Collection International in 2004. Under CEO Richard Green, the company operated as a joint venture b ...
) had sold insufficient copies for a major label to consider a future release profitable. Furthermore, the comedy website
Chortle claimed that the show's controversial content dissuaded major distribution companies because of fear of retribution from the fundamentalist Christian movement.
However, Evans felt that the critically acclaimed show should be recorded. He used the name of his existing clothes retail company, Go Faster Stripe, to produce a CD of the show.
The CD sold well enough to generate a profit, and Evans quickly shifted the business towards comedy material. Initially specialising in the work of Lee and Herring, Go Faster Stripe has since diversified into a broader range of comedians.
In 2014, Chris Evans won the
Chortle Award for best offstage contribution.
Censorship and Policy
Go Faster Stripe claim to only release material by comedians whose work they enjoy. Recently, this has involved returning to previously unreleased work, such as Lee and Herring's television show
Fist of Fun.
So far around 50% of the comedians that have been approached by Go Faster Stripe have had their work recorded. The company does not ask artists to change their show, and does not censor material. For example, in
Richard Herring's ''ménage à un'', he talks explicitly about being masturbated via the hole in the hand of Jesus Christ, which Herring claims would most likely have been edited for a mainstream
DVD release.
[ In an interview with ]Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
n comedy listings guide The Groggy Squirrel, Richard Herring said of Go Faster Stripe:
Go Faster don't tell us what we can or can't say and are happy to give faithful representations of the material.
See also
* List of British comedians
* Production companies
References
External links
Go Faster Stripe
{{Authority control
DVD companies of the United Kingdom
2005 establishments in the United Kingdom
Mass media companies established in 2005