Glenn Wool is a Canadian stand-up comedian now living in England. He has released six albums, including 2020's ''Viva Forever'', produced by

Dan Schlissel Dan Schlissel is an American record producer from Minneapolis, Minnesota, and founder of the record labels Stand Up! Records, which specializes in comedy, and -ismist Recordings, which focused on punk and alternative rock from Nebraska and nearb ...

for

Stand Up! Records Stand Up! Records is an American independent comedy record label founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota, by Grammy-winning producer Dan Schlissel. It has been called "the country's most respected indie comedy label." Stand Up! has released more than 20 ...

Early life

His father, who was Estonian, escaped a concentration camp in Sweden after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

by helping steal a minesweeper and sailing it to Ireland. The family eventually emigrated to Canada, changing its name from the Estonian "Vool" to "Wool." Wool's father became a policeman in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, where his investigation of a fraud case involving novelist

Jeffrey Archer Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940) is an English novelist, life peer, convicted criminal, and former politician. Before becoming an author, Archer was a Member of Parliament (1969–1974), but did not ...

led Archer to base a character on Wool's father in his first book, ''

Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less ''Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less'' was Jeffrey Archer's first novel, first published in 1976. It was said to have been inspired by Archer's real-life experience of near- bankruptcy. Synopsis Harvey Metcalfe, a Polish immigrant to the Unite ...

''. Wool grew up in various Canadian cities including

and

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, as well as the

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

cities of

Langley Langley may refer to: People * Langley (surname), a common English surname, including a list of notable people with the name * Dawn Langley Simmons (1922–2000), English author and biographer * Elizabeth Langley (born 1933), Canadian perfor ...

and White Rock, where he went to

Earl Marriott Secondary School Earl Marriott Secondary (EMS) is a public high school in the Vancouver suburb of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada and is part of School District 36 Surrey. It is referred to as the 'Home of the Mariners'. It is located on the edge of city limits, ...

. He discovered comedy at age 12 after seeing a

Bill Cosby William Henry Cosby Jr. ( ; born July 12, 1937) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and media personality. He made significant contributions to American and African-American culture, and is well known in the United States for his eccentric ...

live stand-up appearance.

Career

Stand-up comedy

Wool's combination of intelligent political comedy and burly Canadian demeanour has been described as "hoser savant." He began his comedy career in Vancouver in 1995, at age 19. He moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

at age 22, where he quickly established himself in the city's comedy scene. He has appeared on many British comedy and panel shows, including ''

8 Out of 10 Cats ''8 Out of 10 Cats'' is a British comedy panel show broadcast on Channel 4 and its sister networks, airing since 3 June 2005. The show is hosted by Jimmy Carr; the current team captains are Rob Beckett and Katherine Ryan. The show is based on ...

'', ''

Russell Howard's Good News ''Russell Howard's Good News'' was a British comedy and topical news television show which was broadcast on BBC Three between 2009 and 2014, and on BBC Two between 2014 and 2015. Hosted by comedian Russell Howard, it offered his commentary on ...

'', ''

The John Bishop Show ''The Christmas Show'', formerly known as ''The John Bishop Show'', is a British comedy-variety show presented by stand-up comedian John Bishop at the Hackney Empire Theatre. The show has aired on BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air ...

'', ''

Never Mind The Buzzcocks ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' is a British comedy panel game show with a pop music theme. It has aired on Sky Max since September 2021, having originally aired between November 1996 and January 2015 on BBC Two. The original series was first hoste ...

'', '' 28 Acts in 28 Minutes'', ''

Comedy Cuts ''Comedy Cuts'' is a comedy programme on the British TV channel ITV2 that aims to provide an opportunity for new comedy performers to present their talents. Featuring 40 performers demonstrating a mix of stand up and sketches, the series is shot ...

'',

Comedy Central UK Comedy Central is a British pay television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated. This channel is specific to audiences within the United Kingdom and Ireland. The channel is aligned with the original US versi ...

's "

The Alternative Comedy Experience ''The Alternative Comedy Experience'' is a stand-up comedy show that premiered on 5 February 2013 on the Comedy Central channel in the UK. It features live comedy shows, filmed in July 2012 at The Stand Comedy Club in Edinburgh, and behind-the-sc ...

", and radio programs such as '' Political Animal'' as well as ''

Live at Gotham ''Live at Gotham'' is a standup comedy television show airing on Comedy Central in the United States. The show features up and coming stand up comedians performing live at the Gotham Comedy Club in New York City Ne ...

'' and ''

John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show ''John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show'' is a stand-up comedy television series that aired on Comedy Central in the United States. Hosted by British-American comedian John Oliver John William Oliver (born 23 April 1977) is a British-Americ ...

'' on

Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Global through its network division's MTV Entertainment Group unit, based in Manhattan. The channel is geared towards young adults aged 18–34 and carries comedy programming ...

and Showtime's '' The Green Room with Paul Provenza''. He is a frequent performer at large music festivals such as

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury ...

. He has also performed more than 17 times at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

, where his shows have typically been well-reviewed. Gareth Newnham of the Weston & Somerset Mercury, reviewing Wool's ''Wools Gold II: The Iron Pirate'', praised his "perfect comic-timing and delivery, a combination of stoner drawl and fire-brand Southern preacher which snaps back and forth at almost a drop of a hat," and Wool's "ability to take a joke and then push it to the darkest place he possibly can." Wool also hosted the 2016 show ''Before the Morning After'', featuring comics filmed in a diner at the 2015 Edinburgh Fringe, for the NBC streaming service Seeso. Wool has toured the world extensively, telling one interviewer that he once circled the globe three times in two weeks, becoming so jet-lagged that he forgot what city he was in. In 2014, Wool was part of a team of comics that planned to set a world record for the world's highest stand-up concert by climbing

Mount Everest Mount Everest (; Tibetan: ''Chomolungma'' ; ) is Earth's highest mountain above sea level, located in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas. The China–Nepal border runs across its summit point. Its elevation (snow heig ...

, but was forced to pull out after delays. He has toured with

Doug Stanhope Doug Stanhope (born March 25, 1967) is an American stand-up comedian, author, political activist and podcast host. His stand-up material favors caustic and often obscene observations of life in the style of Bill Hicks and Bill Burr, which he del ...

, and appeared on Stanhope's 2017 group album/video ''Comedians' Comedian's Comedians'', which reached No. 12 on the Billboard Comedy chart. He has been a member of Canadian musical comedy group The Lumberjacks with Stuart Francis and Craig Campbell. Wool is the voice of the title character in the

Cartoon Hangover Cartoon Hangover is a Frederator internet television channel and adult animation division, part of the YouTube Original Channel Initiative, launched in February 2012. Frederator produced two animated series exclusively for the Internet: ''Bravest ...

2018 miniseries ''Slug Riot''. He also voiced the character Hunter in the animated

Disney XD Disney XD is an American pay television channel owned by the Disney Branded Television and Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution units of The Walt Disney Company. The channel is aimed primarily at older children ages six to eleven years ...

short ''Lottie Bearshout: Good as Goaled'', which won a BAFTA Children's Award in 2016. In 2004, he wrote and starred in ''What’s The Story?”, an episode of

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

's experimental series ''

Comedy Lab ''Comedy Lab'' is a British television series which showcases pilots of experimental comedy shows. Series have been aired irregularly on Channel 4 and E4 since 1998. Several pilots first shown on ''Comedy Lab'' have gone on to spawn full serie ...

''. Wool co-hosts the podcast ''Freestyle'' with comedian

Frankie Boyle Francis Martin Patrick Boyle (born 16 August 1972) is a Scottish comedian and writer. He is known for his cynical, surreal, graphic and often controversial sense of humour. A stand-up comedian since 1995, Boyle first gained widespread recognit ...

Albums

Wool has released five albums on

, all produced by Grammy winner

Derek Riggs Derek Riggs (born 13 February 1958) is a contemporary British artist best known for creating the band Iron Maiden's mascot, " Eddie". Career Born in Portsmouth, England, Riggs is a self-taught artist, both in his traditional painting and in hi ...

, who designed

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

's albums, did the cover for Wool's ''No Land's Man''. Befitting Wool's wide-traveling career, several albums were recorded in far-flung locations: ''I'll Ask Her'' was recorded in

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

, with a title that puns on the state's name, and ''Creator, I Am But a Pawn'' was recorded in

Tallinn, Estonia Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

Awards and nominations

Wool won the Best of Fest award for his 2010 appearance at the

Sydney Comedy Festival The Sydney Comedy Festival is an annual comedy festival held in Sydney. Launched in 2005 as The Cracker Sydney Comedy Festival at a number of inner city venues, the Festival has grown quickly and now attracts 111,000 patrons every year at venue ...

. He was nominated in the Best Headliner category at the

Chortle Awards The Chortle Awards were set up in 2002 by the comedy website Chortle to honour the best of established stand-up comics currently working in the UK. A panel of reviewers draw up a shortlist, which is presented for public vote at the Chortle websit ...

in 2008, and Best International Stand Up at the 2003 New Zealand Comedy Awards.

Discography

*''Let Your Hands Go'' (

, 2010) *''I’ll Ask Her'' (

, 2012) *''No Lands Man'' (

, 2014) *''This Road Has Tolls'' (

, 2017) *''Creator, I Am But a Pawn'' (

, 2019) *''Viva Forever'' (

, 2020)

Personal life

Wool is divorced and remarried. Wool and his wife live in England and have a son.

References

External links

Official Glenn Wool websiteGlenn Wool at Stand Up! Records website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wool, Glenn Canadian stand-up comedians Living people 1974 births Canadian emigrants to England Comedians from Vancouver Stand Up! Records artists Canadian podcasters