Pete “the Temp”  and I begin our conversation talking about laughter and the role of laughter in our lives: as a healing modality, as a way to release tension, the giggles and the practice of laughter yoga and meditation. We delve into the culture that gave birth to the modern work environment and one that suppresses creativity and art in the name of profit and efficiency. Pete shares how he came to dedicate his life to the spoken word. We talk about the involvement of our bodies in speech and how class, gender and power all play a role in how we interact. And we discuss the differences between the spoken word and the written word. 

Pete “the Temp” Bearder  is an award-winning spoken word poet, author, comic and laughter yoga instructor. He has toured around the world as a performer, delivered workshops with organisations such as The British Council and featured on BBC national and international radio and television. Pete has worked extensively as a spoken word educator through the Spoken Word Education Programme in collaboration with Goldsmiths University and cultural institutions. In 2019 he released a book about performance poetry called Stage Invasion: Poetry, Renewal and the Spoken Word Renaissance.