Robert Kirby (26 April 1936 – 10 February 2007) was a famous South African satirist, playwright, comedian, novelist, columnist and musician who died in 2007 following complications from a heart operation, four months prior.
Career
Kirby started his career in the early ’60s as a broadcaster at the
SABC where he presented ''The Early Morning Programme''. He became well known for his brand of satirical humour and his sharp wit—both of which were demonstrated in his later column in the South African newspaper, ''
Mail & Guardian''. Kirby is particularly remembered for his plays and reviews which were highly monitored due to his
liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
attitude to
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
.
Kirby also wrote specialist essays on
fly fishing
Fly fishing is an angling method that uses a light-weight lure—called an artificial fly—to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. The light weight requires casting techniques significantly diffe ...
and on
Aviation
Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot air ...
, whilst putting in many hours flying for the
Red Cross
The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...
.
Awards
Kirby was twice awarded the English Academy of Southern Africa’s
Thomas Pringle Award for journalism, in 1996 and 2002, for his reviews and for an educational article respectively.
Quotes
*“You can’t have humour without offending somebody. Every joke offends somebody down the line. Humour that didn’t plunge the knife into somebody’s ribs would be terribly pale, vapid, weak.”
*“I believe that we can do without censorship. I do not believe that censorship saves us from anarchy. It serves very little apart from itself. There has been no noticeable decline in pornography as a result of censorship.”
*“I don't think much about the
SABC - after all - they don't think that much about me... But I do think their graphics on the news are marvellous. We're doing a thing on them in the show. You know what I mean. The hunger strikes are symbolised by a load of bread crossed out... that sort of thing.”
Bibliography
Reviews
* ''Finger Trouble''
* ''Finger Trouble 2''
* ''Eight Beasts''
* ''Eight Birds''
* ''Heliotrope Bouquet''
* ''Quodlibet''
* ''Brave New Pretoria''
* ''How Now Sacred Cow''
* ''Separate Development''
Plays
* ''Gentlemen''
* ''It’s a Boy!''
* ''Panics''
* ''Weedkillers''
* ''Wrong Time of Year''
* ''The Bijers Sunbird''
* ''The Secret Letters of Jan Van Riebeek''
TV Sitcoms
* ''Louis Motors''
Columns
* Channel Vision
''The Star Tonight''Loose Cannon''
The Mail and Guardian
The ''Mail & Guardian'' is a South African weekly newspaper and website, published by M&G Media in Johannesburg, South Africa. It focuses on political analysis, investigative reporting, Southern African news, local arts, music and popular cultu ...
''
* The Agony Aunt
''The Sunday Independent''* ???
''The Financial Mail''
Books
''Trebor Ybrik Versus the Rest''* ''It’s a Boy!''
''The Secret Letters of Jan Van Riebeeck''* ''Rude Shelters''
''Songs of the Cockroach''''Fly-Fishing in Southern Africa''
References
Sources
M&G biography''Sunday Times''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirby, Robert
1936 births
2007 deaths
Writers from Durban
South African writers
South African male comedians
20th-century comedians