Guzzy Bear

Guzzy Bear
Pseudonym Guz Khan
Birth name Ghulam Khan
Born January 1986 (age 31)
Coventry, West Midlands, England
Medium Stand-up, Web series
Nationality British
Years active 2014–present
Genres Observational humour, Satire
Subject(s) Islamic humour

Ghulam Khan (born January 1986), also known as Guz Khan and best known by his stage name Guzzy Bear, is an English comedian and actor of Pakistani descent.

Early life

Khan is of Pakistani descent.[1] He attended Stoke Park School and Community College in Coventry. He used to teach Humanities at Grace Academy in Coventry.[2]

Comedy career

In 2014, Khan uploaded his first video on Facebook. In June 2014, Khan first performed on stage was opening for Aamer Rahman at Birmingham Repertory Theatre. His second time on stage was at a comedy evening at the Library of Birmingham BBC Asian Network organised for Comic Relief, with Citizen Khan.[3]

In June 2015, Khan whilst performing as his character Mobeen, a Muslim living in Small Heath, Birmingham,[3] made a video expressing mock outrage at the apparent use of Paki, a racial slur for people of Pakistani descent,[4] and called for boycott of the film when a lead character[5][6] Vivian, played by Lauren Lapkus.[1] shouted "the Pachys are out of containment", (an abbreviation of[5] the North American pachycephalosaurus).[7] In the video, Khan recounts a recent trip he and his friend took to the cinema to watch the film,[4] described some awkward incidents in the cinema whilst watching the film[7] and raises the point that the phrase could sound exceptionally racist to the untrained ear.[7] In six days, the video was watched over 340,000 times on YouTube and has received over 700,000 views on Facebook.[4] Khan's hashtag on Twitter, #BoycottJurassicWorld has gained attention[8] and viewers also took to Twitter to voice their shock at the use of the derogatory term.[1][9][10] After the Birmingham Mail publicised the story, Khan was interviewed by radio stations in the United States and Indonesia.[3]

In June 2015, Khan made a short film Roadman Ramadan as part of the British Muslim Comedy series, five short films by Muslim comedians commissioned by BBC to released on BBC iPlayer.[11][12][13] Khan's sketch was a guide to Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting during daylight hours, which sees Khan's character Mobeen guide his newly converted friend Trev through his first Ramadan. In July, Khan gave up his job as a school teacher to pursue a career in comedy after his YouTube clips went viral.[3] In November, he featured in an episode of comedy web series Corner Shop Show.

In December 2015, Khan performed at BBC Asian Network's Big Comedy Night in Birmingham, a special comedy night celebrating 50 years of Asian programmes on the BBC.[14][15]

Khan is due to film a pilot for a BBC series with his character Mobeen.[2] In 2017, Khan will appear as Rocky in romantic comedy film Finding Fatimah.[16]

Khan's agent is Debbie Allen who also represents Stewart Lee.[3]

Comedy style

Khan uses characters to satirise situations.[17]

Personal life

Khan lives in Holbrooks, Coventry with his wife and three children.[3]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Awford, Jenny (18 June 2015). "This Comedian Is Calling For People To Boycott “Jurassic World” Over Its Dinosaur “Racism". Mail Online. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  2. 1 2 Rodger, James (7 December 2015). "Coventry teacher turned comedian Guz Khan gets TV pilot and soap cameo". Coventry: Coventry Telegraph. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Laws, Roz (13 July 2015). "Comedian Guzzy Bear gives up teaching job after Jurassic World stunt went viral". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 James, Richard (19 June 2015). "This Comedian Is Calling For People To Boycott “Jurassic World” Over Its Dinosaur “Racism". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  5. 1 2 Cannon, Matt (18 June 2015). "Jurassic World blasted by Small Heath comedy character after dinosaur abbreviation slip". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  6. ↑ Lebeau, Jordan (18 June 2015). "British comic accuses ‘Jurassic World’ of racism, wins at word bingo". Boston: Boston.com. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  7. 1 2 3 Lindsay, Duncan (20 June 2015). "Comedian leads Jurassic World boycott over ‘racist’ dinosaur name". Metro. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  8. ↑ Farooq, Aisha (22 June 2015). "#Pakisaurus trends for Jurassic World boycott". Desi Blitz. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  9. ↑ Ragan, Nitya (17 June 2015). "Jurassic World Boycott Plans In Motion As Comedian Discovers Accidental Racism". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  10. ↑ Haysom, Sam (18 June 2015). "British comedian accuses 'Jurassic World' of prehistoric racism in hilarious rant". Mashable. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  11. ↑ Jones, Alice (25 June 2015). "Ramadan films and HaLOL: the rise of British Muslim Comedy". The Independent. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
  12. ↑ Badat, Hafeeza (19 June 2015). "British Muslim Comedy Takes Over BBC iPlayer". Asian Image. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  13. ↑ "Guz Khan: Roadman Ramadan". BBC iPlayer. 18 June 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  14. ↑ "Special comedy night to feature Tez Ilyas, Guz Khan, Shaista Aziz and Aditi Mittal". Asian Image. 21 November 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  15. ↑ "Guz Khan". BBC Asian Network. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  16. ↑ "Finding Fatimah official website". Retrieved 3 Feb 2017.
  17. ↑ Choudhury, Imran (15 January 2015). "Stand-up comic stands up for freedom of expression, but with responsibility". Eastern Eye. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
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