@voices
Voices of Swell
@voicesย ยทย 2:33

The Voice of Stephen Fry

article image placeholderStephen Fry On Swell
And that's kind of true and kind of perfect. And it really brings meaning to the work I do and definitely to the work you do. So for our talk over the next few days, I want to offer you this set up. So imagine we're sitting and there's a table between us, and it's in a really great vibe. Good room. And the table has this beautiful flower arrangement on it really exquisitely done. All kinds of different kinds of flowers in it

https://s.swell.life/SSSGleRpixVFRDB @stephenfry Welcome! ๐ŸŒฑ #swellinterview #celeb #DBPconvo

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@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 4:58

2020 - the First Flower โ€ฆ

But freedom is often constrained in order to impose taxation, to direct economies, to be more, as the French say, more directivist in the way you live, which in America is regarded as socialism and in Europe is just regarded, I suppose, a social democracy. And I know in America freedom is probably the highest prize. It is that which America regards as sacred, if you like, whereas in Europe we don't think that so much
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@DBPardes
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardesย ยทย 1:52

The playbook of history... ( and Iโ€™m about to take a hike!)

I'm so happy we're in this new era, and I have a lot of hope. Okay. Here's the next flower I'm going to hand you. And this one is very Regal. And it seems very strong. And the colors are magnificent. And this flower is history. And I'd love for you to speak about what history means to you as an actor, as an activist, as a wonderful human being, the concept of history
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@DBPardes
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardesย ยทย 0:09

Many swells ๐ŸŽ‰

And just by the way, even though swells are five minutes each, you are welcome to have multiple swells if your mind is riffing and you want to continue, please, please
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@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 5:00

History Pt 1

But I'm just going by experience. I know so many men who, once they pass the age of about 20 or 30, and I count myself as one of these, become more interested in a certain kind of history than in almost any other form of intellectual transmission of ideas. So novels got the window for most men. By the time they're 20 or 30. Unless it's thrillers. But military history and the history of politics and so on seems to be such a popular subject
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@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 5:00

History Pt 2

But the fact that we can now use phrases like My truth and Her truth shows that we come from a very different place from that which was universally inhabited, really, at least by the chattering classes, by the elites, as they now be called to which we belong. Actually, it has to be said, those with College education, those with sort of historical sense and history a bit like science, for that reason now is suspected. As much as there is no history, there are only histories
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@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 0:18

History Pt 2 (a)!

I was just going to say, I don't think there's anything we can do in our cataclysmic present that won't have a parallel in the past. That's that's how I leave it. But as I say, we can change history, but we can't change the future. All right
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@DBPardes
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardesย ยทย 1:43

Well being

Well, that was the perfect master class, really. You know, there's there's a few things I wanted to say in reflection to listening to you. One is I feel like this is the age of cognitive dissonance, because you talk about some of there are mutable facts of history. But there's also this organicness of history, like you said. And I don't know if my brain can always hold those two things in the same space
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@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 5:00

Well-being

But also, as I say, it's this anxiety we're now so anxious about our health all this extra time we have because we don't forage and our food comes in these enormous three acre warehouses where the goods of all the continents of the Earth are heaped together in a way that would have been unspeakable luxury to Charlemagne and Napoleon and Louis the 14th and Queen Victoria and any other great sort of leader or head of state at a time of abundance and a figure of power, they would be astonished by the individual power we all have
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@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 5:00

Mental health

They're encouraged to believe that they've got a real disorder that is in need of psychiatric attention or very serious attention when actually all they're dealing with is sort of unhappiness or a bit of nervousness and anxiety. It's very hard to say, because all of us like to imagine that there is such a thing as human will which can overcome some elements or endure some elements of unhappiness
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@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 1:57

Blimpfulness

But in the meantime, I'm happy to say that I am pretty well both in the mind and the body. In as much as I've got nothing to complain about and nothing to be aware of, I'm in a blissful state of blindfolded
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@Swell
Swell Team
@Swellย ยทย 0:15

Welcome to Swell!

@DBPardes
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardesย ยทย 3:19

Hugh Laurie, friendship, love! https://s.swell.life/SSSOwXE2Eg2Apyl

Maybe this is a flower that's so complex and beautiful that it holds the topic of Hugh Lori friendship and, of course, love. I'm such a fan of connection and love, and it's the only true oxygen that fills my lungs and my soul. And when I think about the relationship you have with you, it really just fills me up so much. I'm a big fan of Fry and Lori
@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 5:00

Hugh & I

My first two years at Cambridge University were mostly spent with me throwing myself into the drama. One of the huge advantages of the universities like Cambridge is that they don't teach drama, so there are no drama teachers. It's not a course you don't get points for it. It's entirely extra curricular
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@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 4:14

Hugh & I Pt 2

Whereas with the romance with a deep kind of erotic and lyrical relationship, there's so much more at stake. There's so much more intensity. There's so much more narcissism. Friendship doesn't allow for narcissism. I think that's one of the things I love about it. Narcissists can't make friends friends. They can have lovers. And that's often difficult, of course. But I really do think it's. Yeah. Friendship is the one. Sorry
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@DBPardes
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardesย ยทย 1:45

Giving ...๐ŸŒน

Sentimental is a good place to be. I was just thinking, as I was listening to you how special this interview is and has been, and I feel so grateful that we've had almost an hour of dialogue back and forth worth. And I have this one flower I'd like to pick from this metaphorical arrangement between us, which has to do with sort of the gift of giving and what you've given us
@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 5:00

The Soul of Manโ€ฆ.

However, it is a Liberal position, which is why Liberals are so despised. And I count myself as one. And I know we are despised by the left and the right and always have been. Stalin and Hitler were United in their loathing of Liberal intelligentsia and their books and their questions and their uncertainty and their constant drive to be sort of honest and Truthful. It's called virtue signaling these days, isn't it? Or it's bleeding hearts and taking the high moral ground
@stephenfry
Stephen Fry
@stephenfryย ยทย 5:00

Givingโ€ฆ

Look up Pete Singer, the Australian philosopher and bioethicist and animal liberation as well, amongst many other things, hugely influential figure. And he has a site that he's set up, which is about effective giving, where you audit the charities that you give to in terms of their effectiveness. You see how much they actually do and it seems a very good idea. It has its downsides. Possibly
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@DBPardes
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardesย ยทย 0:38

๐ŸŒน๐ŸŒน๐Ÿ™ thank you @stephenfry

You have given us so much to think about. Thank you so much for this last set of swells and for your presence here and for this conversation. It was so wonderful for me to just be able to prompt you with topics and hear hear your thoughts here's to 2021, being just a wonderful, connected year for all of us. I look forward to hearing your voice more on your own personal swellcast
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@ILY135
Bailey Biagi
@ILY135ย ยทย 0:15
I am sorry, Miss Deborah, but you are definitely Ms. Judith Holden Reid. I would know that voice anywhere. I don't know why you said your name was Deborah, but I'm pretty like I would bet money on you being Judith Holden Reid
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