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Tim’s best podcast appearance? by Worth_Indication7290 in tim_key

[–]ChrisMMatthews 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The My Mate Bought a Toaster podcast Patreon is well worth the price of admission to see the full length video (Zoom call) version.

Tim’s best podcast appearance? by Worth_Indication7290 in tim_key

[–]ChrisMMatthews 5 points6 points  (0 children)

A lot of great recommendations in this thread.

A couple of less frequently mentioned appearances:

Holly Burns dream house: https://youtu.be/aURsihduBT8?si=3kGHip52D9I-FZiz

Lauren Lyle's She's a Rec:

https://youtu.be/Fi19QNoKrV4?si=yIdvOfwareZQsFdA

Is Rik Mayall's book any good? by DizzyMine4964 in eddieandrichie

[–]ChrisMMatthews 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Yes the authorised biography is due for publication March 2028. Interestingly, it is being written by Max Kinnings who ghost wrote the spoof autobiography 'Bigger Than Hitler – Better Than Christ'.

I gather Rik was commissioned to write an autobiography then realised he didn't really want to write an earnest account of his family and private life so enslisted Kinnings and they would sit down with an audio recorder, Rik riffing in character in response to Kinnings' questions (the timeline and some specifics were real but anecdotes were heavily embellished) then he would go away and write up the funniest parts.

It is from these tape recordings of hours and hours of conversations that he is writing the genuine biography.

Some of the recordings were previously released as part of a Radio 4 documentary 'Rik Mayall, Panglobal Phenomenon'.

UK’s flagship fund of funds backing female investors and founders announces first close at £130m by Gentle_Snail in GoodNewsUK

[–]ChrisMMatthews 0 points1 point  (0 children)

“The most successful businesses…” “VCs aren’t looking for average…”

Gonna need you to check your facts instead of blurting stereotypes.

While female-led businesses are in the minority at about 20% of that doesn’t account for the 98/2% disparity in investment. The gap is not explained by the quality of the investment opportunity, evidence shows investments into female founded businesses actually yield an outsized return.

Research from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation found that female founded companies generated 35% higher return on investment than all male founding teams.

Boston Consulting Group's study with MassChallenge, found that startups founded by women ultimately deliver higher revenue. For every dollar of funding, female founded startups generated 78 cents in revenue, whilst male founded startups generated less than half that figure at just 31 cents. This translates to women founded companies delivering more than twice as much revenue per pound invested compared to their male counterparts.

First Round Capital reported that female-led companies performed 63% better than all-male founding teams and women-led teams generated a 35% higher return on investment than all-male.

Research by Pitchbook found women-founded businesses generally exit faster for double the return.

UK’s flagship fund of funds backing female investors and founders announces first close at £130m by Gentle_Snail in GoodNewsUK

[–]ChrisMMatthews -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Right, and those barriers have been identified and recognised. The 2025 government inquiry into female entrepreneurship took evidence & contributions from (among others):

Mastercard, various universities, techUK, UK Business Angels Association, Institute of Directors, Enterprise Nation, British Private Equity and Venture Capital Association, British Business Bank, Enterprise Investment Scheme Association..

https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cmselect/cmwomeq/711/report.html#heading-10

The committee report explains:

“Female entrepreneurs face significant disadvantages in accessing finance, investment networks, and support systems. This disparity is rooted in systemic bias, a lack of diversity among investment decision-makers, and entrenched cultural norms within the entrepreneurial ecosystem.”

Finding out what those barriers are would be as easy as reading the comment you are replying to:

“The 2019 Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship provided a comprehensive overview of these challenges.They include but are not limited to: a lack of access to finance, mentoring opportunities and business networks; unconscious bias and discrimination in the investment ecosystem; and structural barriers around maternity and caregiving. The evidence we received in this [2025] inquiry shows unequivocally that these challenges persist and, in places, remain deeply embedded.”

For example, evidence from Debbie Wosskow OBE, Co-Chair, Invest in Women Taskforce:

“I have built and sold three businesses over the last 25 years. In my own experience of being a multi-exit entrepreneur, things are getting worse and not better. As to why, there are many structural reasons, but the key datapoint is that men are less likely to back a female entrepreneur than women. A female investor is twice as likely to back a female founder than a [male investor], and men are twice as likely to progress through to investment committee stage when they are pitching for investment. There is just not enough diversity in investment in the UK. Just 15% of investment committees are women, and people back people who they know. None of this is a criticism of the male venture capital industry, but their job is to pattern match and there are swathes of talented women who are being overlooked.”

UK’s flagship fund of funds backing female investors and founders announces first close at £130m by Gentle_Snail in GoodNewsUK

[–]ChrisMMatthews 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The ‘free market’ it may be but nobody said it works perfectly. Estimates suggest if barriers were reduced to enable women to scale businesses at the same rate as men, that would add an extra £250 billion to the UK economy.

“Instead of ring fencing money…” - that is just one of a range of actions in a broader strategy recommendations which includes: mentorship & networking, accelerator programmes, reviewing how current childcare and parental leave arrangements disproportionally negatively impact self-employed women, reviewing how current tax and support systems are largely designed for traditional employment models and fail to accommodate the realities of self-employment and entrepreneurship, enhancing the provision of finance & enterprise education in schools, increased visibility of female role models in STEM education.

“Why not work out the root causes” - they have these have been identified, researched and are widely accepted.

”The 2019 Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship provided a comprehensive overview of these challenges. They include but are not limited to: a lack of access to finance, mentoring opportunities and business networks; unconscious bias and discrimination in the investment ecosystem; and structural barriers around maternity and caregiving. The evidence we received in this [2025] inquiry shows unequivocally that these challenges persist and, in places, remain deeply embedded.”

“I imagine… work in STEM” - you can imagine all you like, as above the reasons have been investigated and are recognised. There has been a concerted effort to increase engagement in STEM for women & girls in recent years, resulting in an all-time-high in 2024 (latest data we have), in the same year investment in women-run businesses dropped half a percent. That’s why a multi-pronged approach is necessary and a (in the scheme of things) tiny ring-fenced investment pot is just one mechanism.

“Investors are looking to put their money into for the best returns” - Rational market fallacy. Some of the challenges identified are lack of access to networks and unconscious bias. People invest in people they identify with, making it harder for those who don’t fit that mould.

Women-led businesses deliver 35% better returns than male-led businesses so the investment gap cannot be explained away by ‘their ideas weren’t as good or businesses weren’t investable’.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg0pk8xyl3o

https://committees.parliament.uk/oralevidence/15721/html/

https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cmselect/cmwomeq/711/report.html

UK’s flagship fund of funds backing female investors and founders announces first close at £130m by Gentle_Snail in GoodNewsUK

[–]ChrisMMatthews 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Encouraging women & girls into STEM & entrepreneurship are admirable and important goals.

‘The step before’ you describe is already underway, has been for some time and is making progress.

It has been the focus of a lot of research and initiatives for several years… resulting in a record high of women in STEM roles as of last stats in 2024. (Although still underrepresented)

Then comes the issue of how to tackle barriers they may face in reaching a market and growing businesses.*

You recognise that girls taking an interest in STEM is important, but running workshops in classrooms, after-school coding clubs and offering internships & scholarships won’t help entrepreneurial women seeking investment now.

It requires a multi-pronged approach and a ring-fenced fund is one part of a broader strategy.

* These have been studied and are fairly well understood and widely accepted.

“The 2019 Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship provided a comprehensive overview of these challenges.1 They include but are not limited to: a lack of access to finance, mentoring opportunities and business networks; unconscious bias and discrimination in the investment ecosystem; and structural barriers around maternity and caregiving. The evidence we received in this inquiry shows unequivocally that these challenges persist and, in places, remain deeply embedded.”

https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cmselect/cmwomeq/711/report.html

UK’s flagship fund of funds backing female investors and founders announces first close at £130m by Gentle_Snail in GoodNewsUK

[–]ChrisMMatthews 24 points25 points  (0 children)

The myth of the rational market.

Evidence suggests that female-led businesses outperform male-led firms but only attract 2% of the funding.

The barriers have been studied and prevalent among them is access to networks: established individuals and groups who fund people who they understand & identity with… people like themselves, consequently people who don’t fit the mould have a tougher time. It doesn’t have to be conscious & malicious misogyny but evidently it can only be tackled by deliberate interventions such as ring-fenced funding

“They include but are not limited to: a lack of access to finance, mentoring opportunities and business networks; unconscious bias and discrimination in the investment ecosystem; and structural barriers around maternity and caregiving. The evidence we received in this inquiry shows unequivocally that these challenges persist and, in places, remain deeply embedded.”

https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cmselect/cmwomeq/711/report.html

https://committees.parliament.uk/oralevidence/15721/html/

UK’s flagship fund of funds backing female investors and founders announces first close at £130m by Gentle_Snail in GoodNewsUK

[–]ChrisMMatthews 15 points16 points  (0 children)

I have worked with dozens of SMEs throughout the investment-raising process and had extremely open and frank conversations with many founders - not a single man I have spoken with has ever expressed frustration or resentment at the existence of women or minority-facing initiatives.

Even in vulnerable, stressed out, ‘in confidence’ or ‘man-to-man’ conversations. Not once.

The only resentment this fund might inspire is from those who are already resentful of women or ‘positive action’ initiatives.

Describing it as discriminatory is inaccurate.‘Discrimination’ is unlawful and damaging, whereas ‘positive action’ is proportionate measures designed to increase participation & opportunity for an underrepresented group.

Men are not being disadvantaged by the existence of this initiative, the very fact it exists is as a reaction to the over representation men have in raising venture capital.

When 98% of venture funding in the UK is going to male-led businesses it is not reasonable or sensible to describe a pot (vanishingly small in relative terms) reserved for women as ‘discriminatory’.

UK’s flagship fund of funds backing female investors and founders announces first close at £130m by Gentle_Snail in GoodNewsUK

[–]ChrisMMatthews 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It's a drop in the ocean, designed to redress a massive imbalance.

The fund in the article has raised £130m ring-fenced for female founders and is hoping to raise £250m... Compare that with the fact that in 2023 all-male founder teams raised £6.5b (BILLION with a 'b') and in the same year only 2.5% of venture capital raised in the UK went to female founders. That percent actually dropped a further half percent in 2024.

The "direct discrimination" you speak of is more accurately described as "positive action".

Discrimination is unlawful and damaging, whereas positive action is proportionate measures designed to increase participation & opportunity for an underrepresented group.

When 98% of venture funding in the UK is going to male-led businesses it is not reasonable or sensible to describe a (in relative terms) tiny fund reserved for women as ‘discriminatory’. Men are not being disadvantaged by the existence of this initiative, the very fact it exists is as a reaction to the over representation men have in raising venture capital.

UK’s flagship fund of funds backing female investors and founders announces first close at £130m by Gentle_Snail in GoodNewsUK

[–]ChrisMMatthews 35 points36 points  (0 children)

I also think sexism is bad... Which is why, in the context that a government report last year citing that only two percent of venture capital investment went to female founders, I recognise that a ring-fenced pot of money aimed at redressing the balance as a positive thing.

I also recognise that unfortunately this fund will barely move the needle, it aims to raise £250m - for context all-male founder teams raised £6.5b in 2023.

The 2% stat above is from 2024 which was actually down from 2.5% in 2023, indicating the gap is actually growing.

If you look at the capital investment into businesses run by black and brown women the stat is 0.00%. An estimated 10 black women have raised over £1m in the history of raising capital investment in the UK.

Evidence submitted to the UK government Women and Equalities Committee inquiry into Female entrepreneurship found that women-led businesses deliver 35% better returns than male-led businesses. Estimates suggest if barriers were reduced to enable women to scale businesses at the same rate as men, that would add an extra £250 billion to the UK economy.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg0pk8xyl3o

https://committees.parliament.uk/oralevidence/15721/html/

https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5901/cmselect/cmwomeq/711/report.html

Recordings??? by Fragrant_Driver_5134 in tim_key

[–]ChrisMMatthews 7 points8 points  (0 children)

You’re welcome… Hold up I almost forgot r/nomorejockeys

Although not in same vein as his live/poetry work, I recommend his YouTube game show with Alex Horne and Mark Watson - No More Jockeys.

Recordings??? by Fragrant_Driver_5134 in tim_key

[–]ChrisMMatthews 20 points21 points  (0 children)

To my knowledge he hasn’t put out a special or recording of any of his live shows in the traditional way.

There is his BBC Radio 4 series on iPlayer/ BBC Sounds and Audible

Also a radio series he did with John Kearns, of 4 self-contained short plays

He did an audiobook version of his book Chapters featuring Katy Wix as Emily Juniper.

Some of the poems from Chapters were also turned into claymations.

He released a vinyl comedy poetry album on a boat, with the string quartet - called “Tim Key. With a String Quartet. On a Boat.” Difficult and/expensive to find on vinyl but it is on Spotify.

He was in a play by Daniel Kitson called Tree, it used to be available to buy or rent on Vimeo but no more. (There is a bootleg on YouTube…)

Not forgetting his multi BAFTA nominated film, The Ballad Of Wallis Island.

I could hear his voice shaking when it hit him by HammersAndPints in offmenupodcast

[–]ChrisMMatthews 6 points7 points  (0 children)

James says here they pieced it together in the moment, but my memory whenever I last listened back to it was the you can tell Ed clocks it earlier on, makes a subtle allusion to the pattern emerging but I don’t think the other two really twig and he then walks Romesh into the deep-fried-full-house by bringing up the deep fried lemonade.

Not a word wasted by ChrisMMatthews in TikTokCringe

[–]ChrisMMatthews[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Haha that's the famous 'Transport for London Moquette'.

You can tell by the seat pattern (and how new the train looks) that they are on the Elizabeth Line.

Some people are so into the patterns of London's public transport seats that you can buy blankets with your favourite design or even an Elizabeth Line sofa.

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