Australian comedian and all-round legend Hannah Gadsby will release her memoir, Ten Steps to Nanette, on March 29, 2022.
The Hollywood Reporter first broke the news of the release, confirming that the funny woman’s book will be published by Allen & Unwin in Australia and published in translations throughout the world later next year.
It was first announced that Gadsby would be writing a memoir back in 2018, with the project intended to cover her trajectory from performing at open mic nights to becoming one of the world’s most successful, and acclaimed, comedians. The tome will also explore the defining moments of her life on both the personal and professional front and her experience as a Queer person in Tasmania to her struggles with autism and ADHD diagnoses and more.
Nanette, which debuted on Netflix in June 2018, has become a huge critical success, being praised for perfectly balancing the line of heartfelt and hilarious. During the stand-up special, Gadsby riffs about the evolution of her voice as a comedian and also relays details about her experiences with homophobia and even sexual assault.
In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, Gadsby explained “I started writing this book before I wrote Nanette, before I was diagnosed with autism, before the global pandemic; and before I knew how to use a semicolon. It has been a long and winding road between the first and last chapter and nothing looks the same as it did before, and it makes even less sense. This book isn’t just my life, it’s my life’s work.”
Gadsby recently shared her thoughts on the controversy which has enveloped Dave Chappelle’s latest Netflix special The Closer, after the CEO of the streamer, Ted Sarandos, cited her as an example of the company giving a voice to marginalised people.
Chappelle came under fire for making jokes that diminish the transgender experience, causing widespread protests and even a Netflix employee walk-out.
In defence of his decision not to remove the content from the platform, Sarandos argued, “We are working hard to ensure marginalised communities aren’t defined by a single story. So we have Sex Education, Orange Is the New Black, Control Z, Hannah Gadsby and Dave Chappelle all on Netflix.”
“Hey Ted Sarandos! Just a quick note to let you know that I would prefer if you didn’t drag my name into your mess. Now I have to deal with even more of the hate and anger that Dave Chappelle’s fans like to unleash on me every time Dave gets 20 million dollars to process his emotionally stunted partial world view,” Gadsby, whose comedy special Douglas also lives on the streamer, replied on Instagram.
“You didn’t pay me nearly enough to deal with the real world consequences of the hate speech dog whistling you refuse to acknowledge, Ted. Fuck you and your amoral algorithm cult … I do shits with more back bone than you. That’s just a joke! I definitely didn’t cross a line because you just told the world there isn’t one.”
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