Welcome

…to Stiff Upper Quip, the home for the writing of James Harris since autumn 2021.

I’m a writer and comedian. In the past, I’ve written for The Spectator, CapX, The Critic, The New European, politics.co.uk and lots of other places.

I was also a stand-up comedian for twenty years, enjoying my greatest successes in Germany, where I lived for a decade, before a fascinating and vaguely soul-destroying five years trying to make it as a comedian in the UK.

If I were forced to say what I’m interested in, it’s the place where politics and culture meet, meaning the politics of culture and the culture of politics. I have few fixed political convictions other than a distaste for utopianism and those who seek easy acclaim by preaching it.

Why subscribe for free?

You get three free columns a month, which hit your inbox at, all being well, 9AM on Thursday mornings. Sometimes ten minutes later.

Why pay for the newsletter?

Anyone who converts gets the full Stiff Upper Quip experience of five full posts a month. They also get full access to the archive and a copy of my novel (e-book only for monthly subscriptions) and the ability to comment on posts.

A longer-term ambition is to start a Stiff Upper Quip podcast; when I reach the milestone of 100 paying subscribers, I will take that as the signal to initiate this project.

I’m very grateful to everyone who has supported the newsletter so far.

‘Midlands’

In July 2022 I self-published my first novel ‘Midlands’, illustrated by Ke Zuo, and it is available here. Buying the book is a great additional way to support this newsletter.

Elsewhere

You can read some of my other writing here. You also find me on Twitter, where you will find the jokes and observations I consider good enough to give away for free.