BBC 6 Minute English — What makes us laugh?

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Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English. I'm Alice and I'm Neil OK Alice I've got something for you here a question Yeah. Ready What is the Mexican version of One Direction Um No idea. Juan Direction. Get it? Very good Juan Direction... You know? Yes, yes, I get it. Never mind Can you guess what the subject of today's show is instead Is it bad jokes? Come on That was a good little gag Yes The subject of today's show is what makes us laugh And in this context to get something for example a gag or joke means to understand it We all like to laugh well not you apparently but most of us do It's good for our health it reduces stress and releases feel-good hormones in the body OK thank you Neil But how about answering today's quiz question Which Greek word means the study of laughter and its effects on the body Is it a risology a gelotology or a comology That's difficult and I'm going to say a comology because it's got the word 'comedy' in it you see Oh very good OK Well we'll find out later if you're right Now did you know we rarely laugh when we're on our own Laughter is a social thing that we generally like to share with other people Really I laugh when I'm watching cartoons on my own don't you Alice No Neil I don't Anyway some researchers believe that the purpose of laughter is related to the way we bond with each other And the more we laugh the more we bond as a group Interesting idea It could explain why stand-up comedy where a comedian performs in front of and talks directly to their audience is very popular entertainment But what does it take to keep your audience laughing Let's listen to Steve Byrne a successful US comedian talking about this The one single thing an aspiring comedian should do is to write write write and talk about the things that make them laugh Selfishness time to be selfish time to be a little narcissistic What is it that makes you laugh Because that will get you closer to finding your voice Because ultimately that's why people come see you So comedians need to be selfish and narcissistic that sounds pretty negative Yes it does Narcissistic means being too interested in yourself for example your appearance or other personal qualities And aspiring means wanting to be successful in your chosen career And what does Steve mean when he says comedians need to find their voice Well he means they need to talk about what they think in a way that's unique meaning unusual or special to them OK Let's listen to Steve again talking about turning 40 and what he finds funny about that When you turn 40 you will hear this in your life and hopefully you'll hear this the rest of your life ‘You look good for 40 You look good for 52 You look great for 63 ' You never hear that when you're young You never hear: ‘You look good for 19 ' You think there's going to be some magic potion some magic shortcut to it all It's writing and getting up on stage It takes a lot of perseverance and it's such a competitive occupation You know you've just got to outwork everybody Well we heard Steve making his audience laugh there And by the way Alice you look fantastic for 40 That's not funny Neil I'm only 39 and you know it Anyway moving on Steve says there's no magic potion or shortcut to success You have to work hard it doesn't happen by itself And perseverance means to keep on trying to achieve something even when it's difficult He says you have to outwork everybody which means to work harder than everybody else Steve certainly doesn't make comedy sound much fun does he No In fact some people say there's a connection between depression and comedy that comedians can be introverted and depressive Is that right Introverts are generally quiet people who are more interested in their own thoughts and feelings than in spending time with other people Yes you'd think that most comedians would be extroverts people who are lively and enjoy the company of others OK I think it's time for the answer to our quiz question Neil I asked: Which Greek word means the study of laughter and its effects on the body Is it a risology a gelotology or a comology Yes I said a comology which I think I'm beginning to regret now Yes well indeed Sorry I'm afraid that's the wrong answer It's actually a gelotology which comes from the Greek word gelos meaning laughter OK You can stop sniggering now Alice and just tell us today's words once again Alright then Here they are: get something (e g a joke) gag stand-up comedy narcissistic aspiring unique perseverance outwork introverts extroverts Well that just about brings us to the end of today's 6 Minute English See you next time. Bye.