Swazzle
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A swazzle is a device used to produce the distinctive shrill voice of Punch in a Punch and Judy show. It consists of a cotton tape "reed" kept taut between two curved strips of metal, held in the mout
A traditional Punch and Judy booth. A swazzle was generally used by the Punch 'professor' in order to speak in Punch's characteristic voice.
Stephen Fry
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Sir Stephen John Fry is an English actor, comedian, writer, and broadcaster. He began his career on the sketch comedy series Alfresco and the sitcom Blackadder, before gaining recognition as part of t
Swazzle
…their swazzle so that it can be pulled back if it slips into the throat. In series C, episode 11 ("Carnival") of the British panel show QI, presenter Stephen Fry said that a Punch and Judy performer must accidentally swallow a swazzle at least twice before they can be considered a "professor". Eunuch flute…
Fry in 2024
Fry at rehearsals for a student production of A Midsummer Night's Dream at Norfolk College of Arts and Technology, 1975
Fry called Oscar Wilde (pictured) in the 1997 film Wilde, a role he was "born to play".
Fry signing autographs at the Apple Store, Regent Street, London in 2009