Robert Wringham (born 28 November 1982) is a British humorist, best known as the editor of New Escapologist magazine and for his role in Melt It! The Film of the Iceman (2026). His first essay collection, A Loose Egg, was shortlisted for the Stephen Leacock Medal. He has also written two histories of alternative comedy and two comic novels.

Early life

Wringham was born in EnglandA Loose Egg but moved to Scotland in 2004, where he worked as a librarian. His creative career began in stand-up comedy while posting short stories based on his material to Geocities and Livejournal.The Author's Indulgent Afterword. Escape Everything! Tenth Anniversary Edition. (2026)Stuckist in the Middle with You. New Escapologist Issue 19.

Work

Wringham is a humorist.Robert Wringham: 'The highest form of activity is the shenanigan' British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 01 August 2023.Bunch of Five: Robert Wringham Outside Left. In an article for the one-hundredth edition of Canadian Notes and Queries, he expressed a desire to be known as "the waster humorist." He also conveyed a belief in the social value of comic literature and an admiration for the work of Eric Nicol, Susan Juby, Paul Quarrington and Stuart McLean.Journey to Orillia. Canadian Notes and Queries, No. 100. 2017. He has cited Fran Lebowitz as an inspiration, saying "she's been so successful with so little work."https://outsideleft.com/main.php?updateID=2505

Wringham is the founder of New Escapologist, a lifestyle magazine. The magazine advocates the abolition of conventional employment. Some notable contributors have been Alain de Botton, Will Self, Richard Herring, Ewan Morrison, Tom Hodgkinson, Luke Rhinehart and Caitlin Doughty.

In 2012, Go Faster Stripe published Wringham's first non-fiction book You Are Nothing, which told the story of comedy troupe Cluub Zarathustra, whose members included Stewart Lee, Simon Munnery, Kevin Eldon, Julian Barratt, Graham Linehan, Sally Phillips and Johnny Vegas. The book is written from Wringham's outsider perspective and draws on conflicting interviews with cast and audience members.You Are Nothing by Robert Wringham: book review by Steve Bennett Chortle. 29 May 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2016.Robert Wringham – You Are Nothing The List. 25 June 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2016.Cluub Zarathustra: where British comedy was reborn Telegraph. 5 July 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2016.Episode 8: Stewart Lee Richard Herring's Leicester Square Theatre Podcast

2014 saw the publication of A Loose Egg, a collection of short pieces about Wringham's childhood, bachelorhood and early married life. In 2015, it was longlisted and finally shortlisted for the Leacock Medal.2015 Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour shortlist revealed CBC. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2016.Terry Fallis Wins 2015 Leacock Humour Award Toronto Star. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2016.Author wins Leacock Medal for Humour for second time Orillia Packet and Times. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2016.Leacock humour shortlist unveiled in Orillia Simco.com. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2016.

In 2015, Wringham crowdfunded a New Escapologist book with publisher UnboundEscape Everything! Retrieved 21 January 2016. and the resulting Escape Everything! was released in 2016. A German edition called Ich Bin Raus was published the same year and attracted considerable media attention.Weniger Arbeit, Mehr Sex Sueddeutsche Zeitung. 23 September 2016. Retrieved 25 September 2016.Robert Wringham verrät: So sprengen Sie die Fesseln der Arbeitswelt Focus. 31 August 2016. Retrieved 25 September 2016.Raus aus der Falle Wie man der Arbeit und dem Konsum entkommt Berliner Zeitung. 27 August 2016. Retrieved 25 September 2016."Putzen ist vergnüglich, wenn man es richtig sieht" Der Standard. 23 August 2016. Retrieved 25 September 2016. A follow-up title was commissioned called The Good Life for Wage Slaves, published by Heyne Verlag in Germany and independently in the UK. When Unbound republished Escape Everything! as a paperback, it was retitled I'm Out: How to Make an Exit.I’m Out: How to Make an Exit by Robert Wringham Writing.ie

Returning to Go Faster Stripe in 2021, he wrote a second humour collection called Stern Plastic Owl.Michael Legge to publish his first book: one of three new titles from indie label Go Faster Stripe Chortle. Retrieved 11 June 2021. The following year, Go Faster Stripe published Wringham's second volume of comedy history with a book about the Iceman.The Iceman Gets Exposure Chortle Retrieved 01 August 20231980s alternative comedy star The Iceman reveals all in new book British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 01 August 2023Iceman Book StewartLee.co.uk. Retrieved 01 August 2023

His first novel, Rub-A-Dub-Dub, was published in 2023.Chamberlain-King, R. (19 September 2023)Two Men in a Tub PopMatters.Robert Wringham Takes an Early Bath Outside Left. Retrieved 01 August 2023Rub-A-Dub-Dub by Robert Wringham Writing.ie. Retrieved 09 August 2023 It won a Saltire Award for Best Cover Design.https://www.creativeboom.com/news/scottish-artist-thomas-macgregor-scoops-book-cover-design-of-the-year-2023/ Wringham's second novel, Tether, was published first as an untitled yellow hardback in 2025, followed by a more conventional paperback in 2026.https://outsideleft.com/main.php?story=tether-the-tale-of-an-inconvenience

In 2026, Wringham featured alongside Anthony Irvine in Melt It! The Film of the Iceman. He was also co-producer of the film.https://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2026/06/08/60748/the_iceman_cometh..._soon_to_a_cinema_near_you Wringham and the film's director, Mark Cartwright, took the film on a national tour, following each screening with a live Q&A.

Wringham writes for Joshua Glenn's pop culture website HiLobrow,Posts by Robert Wringham HiLoBrow. Retrieved 21 January 2016. and for the Idler magazine where he had a column between 2016 and 2020.Idler 48-70Office Nightmares Idler. 11 November 2020.

Pseudonym

His pen name comes from James Hogg's Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner.About Wringham.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2016.

In The Good Life for Wage Slaves, Wringham explains that he'd been blogging under his original name since his early twenties but became self-conscious and in need of creative freedom when googling people became a common practice: "I didn't mind exposing my soul to a few strange nerds on the other side of the planet, but a certain dishonesty is required among friends, isn't it?"The Good Life for Wage Slaves (2020)

Personal life

While British, he is also a resident of Canada.I'm not an employee by nature. Nobody is New Escapologist. 10 April 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2016.Avoiding Modern Life Mongrel p22. 2012. Retrieved 21 January 2016. In 2014 he married his long-term partner Samara, who appears as a foil in some of his writing.Day of the Coconut Wringham.co.uk. 2 August 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2016.

Bibliography

You Are Nothing (2012) A Loose Egg (2014) Escape Everything! (2016) I'm Out: How to Make an Exit (retitled paperback edition) (2021) Escape Everything! Tenth Anniversary Edition (2026) The Good Life for Wage Slaves (2020) Stern Plastic Owl (2021) Melt It! The Book of the Iceman (2022) Rub-A-Dub-Dub (2023) Tether (2025/2026)

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes2026Melt It! The Film of the IcemanHimself, co-producerDocumentary

References

External links

Interview at the British Comedy Guide Interview (audio) at Monocle Radio