Justine Smith Fought Back Against NZ Comedy's Predatory Side

Justine Smith is one of the most familiar faces in New Zealand comedy - a Seven Days regular who's been working the circuit for more than 30 years. Justine doesn't dance around what it actually took to last three decades in a male-dominated industry. She talks openly about the environment younger women were up against, the treatment she swallowed to keep going when others walked away, and how she turned that into being the person the next generation of female comics can come to. She also gets into the things that made her - the grandfather who first put comedy in her blood, the night watching Bill Bailey when the penny dropped, and being adopted alongside her sister. Timestamps: 00:00 Trailer & Introduction 05:06 Puppetry of the P***s & wrestling Hayley Sproull 10:19 The Chris Hipkins "hot chip" moment 14:13 Adopted, and the phone call that reunited her with her sister 22:53 Grandad Bill, the comedian who skipped a generation 39:58 Watching Bill Bailey, and catching the bug 49:39 Surviving as one of the only women in comedy 1:00:29 Why she never quit 1:09:02 Her friendship with Dai Henwood 1:28:04 7 Days, resentment, and letting it go