About
Dr. Oliver Double is a Senior Lecturer in Comic and Popular Performance at the University of Kent, where he has taught since 1999. He specializes in stand-up comedy, alternative comedy, and variety theatre, with a focus on first-person audience engagement and historical analysis. As Deputy Head of School, he contributes to academic leadership while maintaining an active research profile.
- Established the British Stand-Up Comedy Archive (BSUCA) at Templeman Library, Canterbury
- Interviews Editor of Comedy Studies journal
His research explores direct performer-audience dynamics, including works on Karl Valentin, Brechtian cabaret, and punk rock's theatrical dimensions. Key themes include comedy's sociocultural impact, performance authenticity, and the transformation of personal experiences into material.
Recent publications analyze Laura Lexx's mental health narratives, tracing terminology origins of stand-up, and examining rehearsal processes. His teaching integrates archival resources and performance theory, preparing students for careers in comedy and related fields.
Active in public scholarship, he contributes to documentaries and maintains an ongoing creative practice through the Funny Rabbit comedy club and solo performances like Break a Leg (2015) and Saint Pancreas (2006).
