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Abortion-related comedy as a political ‘weapon’ on the rise in UK and US

An article on the BBC makes the case that abortion related comedy is on the rise and can be used as a means to advance pro-abortion politics.

The author suggests that the growth in abortion related comedy arises from the increase in abortion related political activity. This year, for example, the Parliament in Westminster voted to impose abortion on Northern Ireland, and abortion has exploded as one of the principle dividing lines in American politics.

As the abortion debate goes on the across the Western world, the author argues that “comedy is being used as a weapon.”

Making her case, the author says that the subject of the abortion jokes is not abortion itself but those “who don’t respect the rights of the individual [to have an abortion],” and goes on to document the growth in abortion related comedy both in the UK and US, through theatre, television and film.

At the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for example, a number of comedians, both from the US and the UK, make jokes about abortion or even centre comedy sketches around the topic. This year, one comedian, Jena Friedman performed the show called ‘Miscarriage of Justice’ at the Festival which contains a satire on the Roe vs Wade decision which made abortion legal throughout the US.

“I could do a whole show about abortion… I’m trying to find humour in stuff that I don’t find funny” Friedman said.

Another comedian at the Festival, Tiff Stevenson, performs a show which opens with her “origin story” of having an abortion at 17. At the same time, in A Womb of One’s Own, a comic play by Claire Rammelkamp, four identically dressed women act (and dance) out her experience of having an abortion as a student.

As abortion-related comedy is on the rise in theatre, it is also growing on Netflix and television.

American stand-up, Michelle Wolf, performed a ‘salute to abortion’ in her Netflix show ‘The Break’, in which – dressed up in a stars-and-stripes leotard – she throws handfuls of glitter into the air and yells “God bless abortions and God bless America!” The Break was not renewed for a second season.

Netflix’s ‘Sex Education’ also contains a string of off-the-cuff jokes about abortion. Abortion as a subject of humour is also found in film, most notably in the 2014 comedy-drama, Obvious Child.

Spokesperson for Right To Life UK Catherine Robinson said:

“ONS and Department of Health figures show that almost 1 in 4 pregnancies ends in abortion. This is clearly not a funny matter but deeply distressing and sad. The growth of abortion-related ‘comedy’ is a naked attempt to normalise a procedure which so many women find deeply traumatic.”

“Despite the growth in this kind of ‘comedy’, it is far from mainstream, as most people recognise, whether pro-life or pro-abortion, that there is nothing funny about abortion. That the BBC would publish such an article, is itself revealing of their priorities.”

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Only hours left of the appeal to stop three major anti-life threats.

Only hours left of the appeal to stop three major anti-life threats.

Dear reader,

Thanks to the hard work and dedication of people like you across the UK, the McArthur assisted suicide Bill in Scotland was defeated in March by 69 votes to 57.

Then, in April, the Leadbeater assisted suicide Bill fell in the House of Lords.

Many commentators thought both Bills would become law.

If that had happened, governments in England, Scotland and Wales would now be preparing to roll out assisted suicide services.

Over the coming decades, this would have led to the deaths of many thousands of vulnerable people.

But that is not what happened.

Because supporters like you acted, those Bills were stopped.

Because of you, many vulnerable lives have been saved.

These were two very significant victories. But sadly, they are not the last battles we face this year.

The new Parliamentary session began on Wednesday. We now face three major threats.

  1. Attempts to bring back the Leadbeater assisted suicide Bill and bypass the House of Lords

    The assisted suicide lobby, led by Dignity in Dying, a multi-million-pound pressure group, has made it clear that it is going to attempt to bring back the Leadbeater assisted suicide Bill in the next parliamentary session.

    It then plans to use the Parliament Acts to bypass the House of Lords and force the Bill into law.

  2. Labour Government plans for a major expansion of abortion provision, including financial incentives for ‘lunch-hour’ abortions

    Under these plans, the Government would financially incentivise major abortion providers, BPAS and MSI Reproductive Choices, to provide ‘lunch-hour’ or ‘same-day’ abortions.

    ‘Lunch-hour’ abortion services are walk-in abortion services designed to fit into a woman’s lunch hour.

    Women facing an unplanned pregnancy need time, care and support, not a system that gives abortion clinics a financial incentive to rush them through consultations, scans and abortions on the same day.

    If these plans go ahead, many more lives are likely to be ended by abortion here in the UK.

  3. Extreme abortion up to birth proposals in Scotland

    In Scotland, plans are moving forward to introduce an extreme abortion up to birth law. This would go far beyond the abortion law change recently backed by the Lords for England and Wales.

    A review of abortion law in Scotland, commissioned by Humza Yousaf when he was Scottish First Minister, recommended that the Scottish Government scrap the current 24-week time limit – and abortion be available on social grounds, including for sex-selective purposes, right up to birth.

    The final plans are expected to be brought forward as a Government Bill in the new Scottish Parliament, which began on Thursday.

If these three major threats succeed, thousands of vulnerable lives will be lost.

We cannot allow this to happen.

We can only defeat these three major threats with your help.

We ran our biggest campaigns ever to help defeat the assisted suicide Bills at Westminster and in Scotland.

That work has made a serious dent in our limited resources.

To cover this gap and ensure we can effectively defeat these three major threats in the coming months, we are aiming to raise at least £199,250 by midnight this Sunday (17 May 2026).

We are, therefore, appealing to you to please give as generously as you can.

Every donation, large or small, will make a crucial difference in saving the lives of the unborn and many others. Plus, if you are a UK taxpayer, £1 becomes £1.25 with Gift Aid at no extra cost to you.

By stopping these threats, YOU can save lives during this new Parliamentary session.

Will you donate now to help protect vulnerable lives from these three major threats?

EMERGENCY
APPEAL
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Only hours left of the appeal to stop three major anti-life threats.

Only hours left of the appeal to stop three major anti-life threats.