This article may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may only interest a specific audience. Please help relocate any relevant information, and remove excessive detail that may be against Wikipedia inclusion policy. (May 2012)

Google Street View is a technology featured in Google Maps and Google Earth that provides panoramic views from positions along many streets in the world. It was launched on May 25, 2007, in several cities in the United States, and has since expanded to include cities and rural areas worldwide.

Where available, Street View images appear after zooming in beyond the highest zooming level in maps and satellite images, and also by dragging a "pegman" icon onto a location on a map. When dragging the pegman icon, blue lines on the map showing Street View imagery will appear. Using the keyboard or mouse, the horizontal and vertical viewing direction and zoom level can be selected. A solid or broken line in the photo shows the approximate path followed by the camera car, and arrows link to the next photo in each direction. At junctions and crossings of camera car routes, more arrows are shown. By using Google Maps, users can turn on steroscopic 3D mode by right-clicking in Street View to get an anaglyph version of any Street View images. However, this mode requires users to wear red cyan glasses to see the 3D effects.^[2]

On November 21, 2008, Street View was added to the Maps application installed on the Apple iPhone. On December 10, 2008, Street View was added to the Maps application for S60 3rd Edition. Street View has now also been added to the BlackBerry and Windows Mobile versions of Google Maps. All versions of Google Maps for the Android operating system feature Street View, and the digital compass can be used to look around the locations.

Google Street View displays panoramas of stitched images taken from a fleet of specially adapted cars. Areas not accessible by car, like pedestrian areas, narrow streets, alleys and ski resorts, are sometimes covered by Google Trikes (tricycles) or snowmobiles.^[3][4] On each of these vehicles there are nine directional cameras for 360° views at a height of about 8.2 feet, or 2.5 meters, GPS units for positioning and three laser range scanners from Sick AG for the measuring of up to 50 meters 180° in the front of the vehicle.^[5] These are used for recording a rough 3D model of the surroundings, enabling faux-3D transitions between distinct panoramas where the environment images are momentarily mapped onto this 3D model while being crossfaded to create an animated perspective change as the user travels from one panorama to another. There are also 3G/GSM/Wi-Fi antennas for scanning 3G/GSM and Wi-Fi hotspots.^[6] More recently, high quality images have been based on open source hardware cameras from Elphel.^[7]

Development[link]

Google Street View was introduced in the United States on May 25, 2007 and, until November 26, 2008, featured camera icon markers, each representing at least one major city or area (such as a park), and usually the other nearby cities, towns, suburbs, and parks. Many areas that had coverage were not represented by icons.

• On May 12, 2008, Google announced that it was testing face-blurring technology on its photos of the busy streets of Manhattan.^[8] The technology uses a computer algorithm to search Google's image database for faces and blurs them, according to John Hanke, director of Google Earth and Google Maps.^[9]
• On April 16, 2008, Street View was fully integrated into Google Earth 4.3.
• On July 2, 2008, Street View was introduced in France and Italy, providing the first service outside the United States and the debut of Google's new 4th Generation Cameras. On this day, 19 camera icons were added, mostly showing small towns and areas along the Tour de France route and part of north western Italy
• On August 4, 2008, 28 icons of major metropolitan areas of both Australia and Japan were added. Included in the update were approximately 40 new U.S. hub cities.
• On December 1, 2008, New Zealand was added to Google Street View. Faces were blurred upon recommendation by the New Zealand Privacy Commission, but vehicle registration plates were not obscured.
• Two other features included in the June 10, 2008, update were a mask of the "Google Car" and the application of face-blurring technology on all photos, which effectively lowered the resolution across all photos, even the formerly impressive high resolution images of San Francisco. Also, many nearby metro areas were included, but they did not receive their own camera icons. Google initially used images from spherical video company Immersive Media as well as their own vehicles. Since December 2007, Google has used imagery that belongs exclusively to Google.
• On November 26, 2008, the Street View button and all the camera icons were deleted. Instead of clicking the "Street View" button, this is now accessed using the "pegman" button in the left hand corner. When the "pegman" icon is dragged over the map blue polylines appear where Street View is available and a small window will show the current Street View. If this is dropped on the map the Street View opens and takes over the whole map window.
• On April 9, 2009, Street View became available with a full-screen option.
• On June 5, 2009, Smart Navigation was introduced which allows users to navigate around the panoramas by double-clicking with their cursor on any place or object they want to see.^[10]
• In mid-June 2010, Google added blue dots to its maps that display user-submitted images in all locations around the world, including land areas where Street View is not available and bodies of water. These images can be pulled up on the screen in the same manner as a Street View image with the pegman by dragging it onto the blue dot.
• On January 14, 2012, users of versions lower than Google Earth 6.0 are blocked from seeing Street View content. This is done to promote version 6.^[11]

Timeline[link]

Coverage[link]

  Countries with full or partial coverage (47 countries and regions)

  Countries with full or partial coverage planned (official)

  Countries with full or partial coverage planned (unofficial)

  Countries with museum views only

  No coverage

Google Street View was introduced in the United States on May 25, 2007, and only covered areas of the United States until July 2, 2008. Images can now be seen in at least 40 countries (although parts of other countries can be seen from locations located near national borders; for example, large portions of Vatican City can be viewed from Rome's streetview). Introductions have generally occurred every 2 days to 100 days. Until November 26, 2008, major cities (and early on, the only cities) were marked by camera icons, more of which were added each time. Then, all camera icons were discontinued in favor simply of "blue" coverage, while other features have been added to make access to and use of the feature more user-friendly.

Table[link]

Below is a table showing the countries available on Street View and the year they were first added.

Country	Year added	Notes
Aland Islands	2010	First semi-autonomous region available on Street View.
Antarctica	2010	While in Antarctica, the Pegman is shown as a Chinstrap Penguin. Antarctica also has the southernmost place in the world accessible by Street View.
Australia	2008	Added on the same day as Japan; first country available in Oceania.
Austria	2012	Museum views only.
Belgium	2011
Brazil	2010	First country available in South America. Cities in Southern Brazil are available, along with views of the Amazon River near Manaus.
Canada	2009	Areas are available in every province and territory except Nunavut.
Czech Republic	2009	First Eastern European country available.
Denmark	2010
Estonia	2012	Most recent country added, along with Latvia.
France	2008	Added on the same day as Italy, one of the first two countries available in Europe.
Finland	2010
Germany	2010	Only some big cities ar available, such as Berlin, München, Hamburg, Düsseldorf, Hannover, Colonge and Essen.
Greece	2012	Museum views only.
Hong Kong	2010	First place with Street View in mainland Asia, along with Macau.
India	2012	Museum views only.
Iraq	2011	Museum views only.
Ireland	2010
Isle of Man	2011
Italy	2008	Added on the same day as France, one of the first two countries available in Europe.
Israel	2012	First country in the Middle East with Street View. Museum views had already been made available in Iraq by the time Street View in Israel was released.
Japan	2008	First country available in Asia. Added on the same day as Australia.
Jersey	2011
Latvia	2012	Most recent country added, along with Estonia.
Macau	2010	First place with Street View in mainland Asia, along with Hong Kong.
Mexico	2009	First Latin American country to be added to Google Street View.
Monaco	2011	Smallest country available on Google Street View.
Netherlands	2009	First fully covered country.
Norway	2010	Has the northern-most place in the world accessible by Street View.
New Zealand	2008
Poland	2012	Originally covered only a small area of Łódź, but now covers many cities in Poland.
Portugal	2009
Qatar	2012	Museum views only.
Romania	2010
Russia	2011	Museum view only until 2012, now has areas of Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, and other areas. First ex-Soviet country available.
Singapore	2009	First Southeast Asian country available.
South Africa	2010	First country available in Africa. South Africa and the Canary Islands are the only available territories in Africa, though coverage in Botswana is officially planned.
South Korea	2012	Areas in and around Seoul and Busan are available.
Spain	2008
Sweden	2010
Switzerland	2009
Thailand	2012	Currently available in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket.
Taiwan	2009	First non-United Nations country available.
Ukraine	2012	Added before starting of UEFA Euro 2012 and it is available in Kiev, Lviv, Donetsk, Odessa and Kharkiv.
United Kingdom	2009
United States	2007	First country available to view on Street View, as well as the only one available for over a year following Street View's initial release. Currently has more coverage than any other country available.

North America[link]

Taken in October 2010, a Google Maps Camera Car (Subaru Impreza) showcased on Google campus in Mountain View, California, USA.

United States[link]

The United States was the first country to have Street View images and was the only country with images for over a year following introduction. Early on, most locations had a limited number of views, usually constrained to the city limits and only including major streets, and they only showed the buildings up to a certain height. Few suburbs or other nearby cities were included.

After the first few sets of introductions, image collections from cities added were more detailed, often including every side street, especially in areas closer to the center of the city. More suburbs and other nearby cities were included.

The coverage of various cities has in many cases, subsequently been enlarged and improved, but not necessarily on the same date as new cities have been added. Improvements have included the additions of streets in neighborhoods where formerly only main roads had been covered, expansions to more suburbs, and views to the sky where formerly only views to a certain height were provided.

Initially when a group of cities were added, only those cities and their own suburbs would be a part of the image collection. However June 10, 2008 introductions also included cities in covered areas without camera icons and isolated from any other camera icons. Many more cities were added without icons on August 4, when the only U.S. city added with an icon was New Orleans.

On December 9, 2008, extensive coverage of the United States was added. This included full coverage of all large and most medium-sized urban areas and most major highways and connecting arteries throughout the 48 contiguous states.

On March 18, 2009, extensive coverage of the United States was added including most of the coverage of Delaware, North Dakota, Rhode Island, and South Dakota. For a period of time some coverage was deleted (such as in northern Minnesota.)

By January 21, 2010, more American landmarks appeared on Street View, including San Diego Zoo and Sesame Place.

On September 30, 2010, most of Alaska was replaced with high-resolution imagery, and more of Hawaiʻi was added.

On February 1, 2011, Street Views were added of the Smithsonian's Freer Gallery of Art in Washington and of the Museum of Modern Art and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, both in New York.^[12]

Canada[link]

Taken on June 5, 2009, a Google Maps Camera Car (Chevrolet Cobalt) in Chinatown, Toronto, Ontario

In Canada, Google Street View cars had been spotted as early as September 2007, in Montreal, though service for Canada was delayed while attempting to settle with the nation over its privacy laws. The first images of Canada were made available on October 7, 2009. Currently, most of Canada can be seen on Street View with the notable exceptions of Labrador, Nunavut, the Gaspé peninsula and Fort McMurray, Alberta.

On February 10, 2010, many more areas of Canada (barring extremely northern and rural areas) were added. Of note, ski runs on Whistler Blackcomb Resort were also covered in this update. Using Street View, it is now possible to "drive" almost to the shore of the Arctic Ocean in Alaska along the Dalton Highway; in Canada, the northernmost community currently imaged is Inuvik, Northwest Territories off the Dempster Highway.

Latin America[link]

Mexico[link]

In Mexico, first reports of sightings came in from Tijuana as early as July 2007 and now Google Street View cars are being spotted in many Mexican states. On November 9, 2009, Street View was made available in the main cities of Mexico, including Mexico City, Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Cancún and Puerto Vallarta.^[13]

Brazil[link]

Camera Car in Villa-Lobos Park in São Paulo on January 7, 2010.

On September 30, 2010, the first cities from Brazil were added.^[14] The service started with 51 cities, most from São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais and greater metropolitan areas. Historic cities such as Ouro Preto, Diamantina and Tiradentes were also included. On September 28, 2011 several towns in the states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul were added.^[15]

Europe[link]

In Europe, coverage is available in 22 countries. Coverage began in Europe on July 2, 2008, with the Tour de France route in parts of France and Italy, and other parts followed.

Google Street View Opel Astra Thurles North Tipperary Ireland

Asia[link]

In Asia, Google Street View is currently available in parts of Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Macau, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand.

Oceania[link]

On August 4, 2008, the image collection of Australia was introduced. Extensive mapping of New Zealand was included on December 1, 2008.

Africa[link]

Street View can be seen in South Africa and the Canary Islands of Spain. It has also been planned for Botswana.

Antarctica[link]

In September 2010, views of Half Moon Island in the South Shetland Islands were added.^[16]

Introductions by date, areas included[link]

Future[link]

In September 2011, Google announced plans to shoot photos of tourist attractions in Malaysia using the Street View trike.^[17][18]

On February 23, 2012 Google announced plans to incorporate 360 underwater views of Australia's Great Barrier Reef into its "Seaview" project.^[19][20]

A list of the places Street View vehicles are currently driving, or where Street View is officially planned:^[21]

Cameras[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2011)

Google has used three types of car-mounted cameras to take Street View photographs. Generations 1–3 were used to take photographs in the United States. The first generation was superseded and images were replaced with images taken with 2nd and 3rd generation cameras. Second generation cameras were used to take photographs in Australia. The shadows caused by the 1st, 2nd and 4th generation cameras are occasionally viewable in images taken in mornings and evenings. The new 4th generation cameras will be used to completely replace all images taken with earlier generation cameras. 4th generation cameras take near-HD images and deliver much better quality than earlier cameras.

In October 2008, Google introduced the Street View Trike, a pedal tricycle with a 4th generation camera mounted to take images where cars cannot reach. All streetview images taken now will be taken with the 4th Generation streetview cameras.

In February 2010, Google introduced the Street View Snowmobile, a snowmobile with a 4th generation camera mounted to take images on the Whistler Blackcomb Ski Slopes in preparation for the winter olympics in Vancouver, Canada.^[33]

Google plans to reshoot areas covered with pre-4th generation cameras, with 4th generation cameras.

• 

  Street View Camera showcased on campus.

Camera quality comparison[link]

The above shows a comparison of different generations of the Street View cameras. The first image was taken with the second generation Street View camera; and the second image was taken with the fourth generation Street View camera. Noticeably, the fourth generation camera provides clear, sharp, and vivid images. In most of Europe, for example, all images were taken with the fourth generation camera as these images were taken later, although some cities in France were not taken with the fourth generation camera. All older images where Street View was first made available, such as America, Australia, and Japan, will be phased out and replaced with newer imagery taken with the fourth generation Street View cameras.

Pegman[link]

For most areas on street view, the pegman is shown as a standard yellow figure. However, some areas have a modified version for specific areas. For example, in Legoland the pegman is shown as a Lego character, and in Antarctica the pegman is shown as a chinstrap penguin. In certain stadiums and sports facilities, the pegman appears with sportswear when dropped in the map, such as in Arthur Ashe Stadium in Corona Park, Queens, NY. When Quest mode is enabled and Maps GL is disabled, the pegman is shown in the style of a video game character.

Privacy issues[link]

Privacy advocates have objected to this Google feature, pointing to views found to show men leaving strip clubs, protesters at an abortion clinic, sunbathers in bikinis, and people engaging in activities visible from public property in which they do not wish to be seen publicly.^[34] The concerns have led to several temporary bans of Street View in countries around the world. Google maintains that the photos were taken from public property; however, an individual taking pictures of private property using a ladder to gain a view not normally available to a pedestrian would be prosecuted for invasion of privacy or harassment in many jurisdictions worldwide. Google has yet to address this concern. The service also allows users themselves to flag inappropriate or sensitive imagery for Google to review and remove.^[35]

In May 2010, it was revealed that Google had collected and stored payload data from unencrypted Wi-Fi connections as part of Street View.^[36] German authorities are considering legal action while the Foreign Minister said "I will do all I can to prevent it." Australian police have also been ordered to investigate.^[37][38]

Discontinued regions[link]

In October 2010, Google Street View ceased operations in Australia, following months of investigations from Australian authorities.^[39] However, this cessation has since ended, with Google announcing plans to continue production on May 4, 2011^[40] and subsequently releasing updated Street View imagery for Australian towns and cities on July 27, 2011.^[41]

In April 2011, Google decided to stop taking Street View images in Germany.^[42]

In June 2011, Google decided to temporarily stop taking street images in India, after receiving a letter from the local authorities.^[43]

Competing products[link]

Artistic uses of images[link]

Fine-art photographers including Mishka Henner, Nick Mason, Jon Rafman, Doug Rickard, and Michael Wolf have selected Google Street View images for use in their own work.^{[44][45][46][47][48][49]} Although the images may be pixelated, the colours "muddy", and the perspective "warped", the photographs have been published in book form and exhibited in art galleries.^[46][47][50] Wolf won an honourable mention in Daily Life in the 2011 World Press Photo competition for some of his work using Google Street View.^[51]

See also[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Google Street View

• Official website

Tim Minchin
Birth name	Timothy David Minchin
Born	(1975-10-07) 7 October 1975 (age 36) Northampton, England, UK[1]
Nationality	Australian, British
Years active	2002–present
Genres	Comedy music
Spouse	Sarah Minchin 2001–present (2 children)
Website	timminchin.com

Timothy David "Tim" Minchin^[2] (born 7 October 1975 in Northampton, England)^[1] is an Australian-British comedian, actor, and musician.

Tim Minchin is best known for his musical comedy, which has featured in six CDs, three DVDs and a number of live comedy shows which he has performed internationally. He has also appeared on television in Australia, Britain and the United States. After growing up in Perth, Western Australia, he attended the University of Western Australia and WAAPA before moving to Melbourne in 2002. His breakout show, "Dark Side", launched him into the public eye, achieving critical success at the 2005 Melbourne International Comedy Festival and the 2005 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.^[3]

Minchin has a background in theatre and has appeared in various stage productions, in addition to some small acting roles on Australian TV. A documentary film about Minchin, Rock N Roll Nerd (directed by Rhian Skirving), was released theatrically in 2008 ^[4] and broadcast by ABC1 in 2009.^[5] He is the co-writer of the Olivier Award winning hit musical Matilda the Musical, based on the Roald Dahl book Matilda.

Personal life[link]

Minchin was born in Northampton, UK, to Australian parents^[1] and raised in Perth, Western Australia.^[6] He was educated at the private Christ Church Grammar School and started learning piano at the age of eight, but gave it up after three years because he did not enjoy the discipline. He redeveloped an interest in the instrument after he started writing music with his brother Dan Minchin, a guitarist, but still describes himself as a "hack pianist... a 'more you practise, the better you get' kind of guy".^[7] Minchin graduated from the University of Western Australia in 1995 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and Theatre, and in 1998 completed an Advanced Diploma in Contemporary Music at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.^[8]

He currently lives in London with his wife, Sarah.^[9] They have two children: a daughter, Violet, and a son, Caspar.^[10] Minchin often refers to his relationships in his songs and stand-up routines.

Musical comedy[link]

Minchin playing the piano on stage

Minchin describes his act as a "funny cabaret show" and sees himself primarily as a musician and songwriter as opposed to a comedian; his songs, he says, "just happen to be funny."^[11] His reasoning for combining the disciplines of music and comedy was revealed in one interview when he said "I'm a good musician for a comedian and I'm a good comedian for a musician but if I had to do any of them in isolation I dunno."^[12]

He draws on his background in theatre for his distinctive onstage appearance and persona.^[6] In his performances, he typically goes barefoot with wild hair and heavy eye makeup, which is juxtaposed with a crisp suit and tails, and a grand piano. According to Minchin, he likes going barefoot in his shows because it makes him feel more comfortable. He considers the eye makeup important because while he is playing the piano he is not able to use his arms and relies on his face for expressions and gestures; the eyeliner makes his features more distinguishable for the audience.^[7] Much of his look and persona, he says, are about "treading that line between mocking yourself and wanting to be an iconic figure. Mocking the ridiculousness and completely unrealistic dream of being an iconic figure."^[13] The eccentric appearance removes Minchin from reality somewhat, allowing him to make outrageous statements onstage "without annoying (most) people." ^[14]

The shows consist largely of Minchin's comedic songs and poetry, with subjects ranging from social satire to inflatable dolls, sex fetishes, and his own failed rock star ambitions. In between songs, he performs short stand-up routines.^[11] Several of his songs deal with religion, a subject with which Minchin—an atheist and a fan of Richard Dawkins—says he is "a bit obsessed."^[15] He argues that as one of the most powerful and influential forces in the world, religion should never be off-limits to satirists. He says that his favourite song to perform is "Peace Anthem for Palestine", which reflects his feelings about religious conflict.^[16] In October 2010 he was made a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association. His comedy also deals with taboos more broadly.^[17] A prime example of this is the song "Prejudice" which parodies the power awarded to something as simple as a word.

Early career (1998–2007)[link]

After completing an Advanced Diploma in Contemporary Music in 1998, Minchin started out composing music for documentaries and theatre. In 2000 he wrote and starred in the musical Pop at the Blue Room Theatre in Perth.^[18] He released a CD titled Sit with his band Timmy the Dog in 2001, but achieved little success.^[19] In 2002, after only one professional acting job, he moved from Perth to Melbourne to pursue work.^[20] Minchin struggled initially; he could not get an agent for a year and had been unable to find any acting work.^[19] While several record companies gave him positive feedback, they were not sure how his music—a mixture of satirical songs and more serious pop songs—could be marketed. He decided to compile all of his humorous songs into a single live show to "get the comedy stuff off [his] chest" before going back to more serious music.^[21]

Minchin says he entered into comedy "naively", having never even attended a live comedy gig before performing one himself.^[15] His break-out show, Darkside (co-produced by Laughing Stock Productions), achieved critical success at the 2005 Melbourne International Comedy Festival, where it won the inaugural Festival Directors' Award and attracted the notice of Karen Koren, the manager of the well-known Gilded Balloon venues.^[22] Koren backed the show's run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where Minchin received the Perrier Comedy Award for Best Newcomer.^[6][23] His 2006 show, So Rock, was nominated for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival's top prize, the Barry Award, and in 2007 he was given the award for Best Alternative Comedian at the HBO US Comedy Arts Festival.^[11][24]

Live recordings of his 2005 and 2006 shows, Darkside and So Rock, have been released as CDs. In 2007, he released a DVD entitled So Live, featuring a live recording in the Sydney Opera House Studio with material from both of his previous shows.^[13] As this DVD was only released in Australia, he released a DVD in 2008 entitled So F**king Rock Live in the UK, containing largely the same material as So Live.

[edit] Ready for This? (2008–2010)

In August 2008 Minchin debuted his third solo show, Ready for This?, at the Edinburgh Fringe and subsequently took it on tour across the UK. During the Edinburgh run, he contributed to The Guardian newspaper's podcasts,^[25] despite his new show containing a song about a Guardian critic who once gave his show a negative review.^[26][27]

A recording of this show, recorded live at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London was released as an album for download via iTunes on 20 July 2009. An Australian recording was released on DVD, solely in Australia on 9 September 2009^[28] and a UK release in the second half of 2010.^[29]

In December 2009, the track "White Wine in the Sun" was released as a downloadable single online. Fans on Minchin's official forum launched a campaign to get this festive track into the UK Christmas charts by purchasing it from various online download retailers.^[30] A Facebook group was also launched to support the campaign^[31] as well as a drive on Twitter in which celebrities were contacted about the campaign and a succession of e-mails to radio DJs in a bid to get them to play the song. It was later announced that 50% of the December profits from the song would be donated to The National Autistic Society.^[32] The bid was ultimately unsuccessful.^[33]

It was announced at the end of 2009 that one of Minchin's beat poems, Storm, was to be made into a short animated movie to be released in 2010.^{[dated info][34]} A blog was launched to accompany the film-making process and a short trailer was released on 8 January 2010.^[35] The full movie was launched on YouTube on 7 April 2011.^[36]

He performed Ready for This? for what he envisages as the final time on 27 February 2010 in Sydney.^[37] He did however perform a set at The Big Libel Gig on 14 March 2010 in protest at Britain's libel laws, along with other performers including Dara Ó Briain, Marcus Brigstocke, Shappi Khorsandi, Robin Ince and Ed Byrne. As well as this, he performed at Camp Bestival as part of the Jestival Sessions in July 2010.^[38]

Minchin was the subject of the winning entry in the 2010 Archibald Prize, Australia's most important portraiture competition. The winning entry was painted by Sam Leach.^[39][40]

[edit] Tim Minchin and the Heritage Orchestra (2010–2011)

Minchin embarked on a new arena tour starting with Birmingham on Wednesday 8 December 2010. A departure from the structure of his previous live shows, his act has been scaled up to be performed with the Heritage Orchestra. It contains a mixture of material: there are new songs on the subject of prayer and of rationality — themes which often appear in his previous work. Minchin has stated that the aim of incorporating the orchestra into his act is to create a comedy show that would not be ruined by being performed in arenas, as stated in the special features of the DVD and Blu-ray. The show is touring the UK and Australia. It was filmed at the Royal Albert Hall in London for a Blu-ray and DVD that was released in November 2011.^[41]

Television and radio[link]

Tim Minchin has made appearances on Australian TV shows, including the ABC's Spicks and Specks,^[42] and The Sideshow,^[43]. He has also made appearances on Network Ten's panel shows Good News Week (February 2010)^[44] and Talkin' 'Bout Your Generation (March 2010).^[45]

Minchin has also appeared on various British radio and television shows, including the BBC's Never Mind the Buzzcocks (four times, once as guest host),^[46] BBC Radio 4's Mark Watson Makes the World Substantially Better^[47] and two specials on BBC Radio 2. He often performs on his TV appearances, such as his spots on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross in October 2009 and July 2010.^[48] He performed a specially-written song entitled "Five Poofs and Two Pianos", a parody of the show's house band, 4 Poofs and a Piano. Minchin also appeared as a special guest on the 2009 edition of The Big Fat Quiz of the Year performing a song written for the show ("It's Like 1984") in reference to a question regarding Google Street View.^[49] On Saturday 13 August 2011 Minchin hosted Prom 40: the first BBC Comedy Promenade Concert at the Royal Albert Hall. He appeared on Desert Island Discs on 6 May 2012.^[50]

A heavily cut-down version of the show released on DVD as So F**king Rock Live has aired several times on British TV channel E4, first on 23 July 2009.^[51] It aired at the turn of 2011, forming E4's New Year's coverage.^[52]

On 8 May 2010, Minchin's musical sitcom pilot Strings was broadcast on BBC Radio 2. Minchin plays the protagonist Jonny, who leaves Australia to live in the UK.^[53] Well received as it was by Radio 2, he decided against creating a full series. ^[54]

In January 2011, Minchin made his American television debut on TBS's Conan, where he performed "Inflatable You".^[55] On 12 May 2011, he performed "If I Didn't Have You" on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, and on 7 June 2011 Minchin made his second appearance on Conan, singing "Prejudice".^[56] Minchin made his third appearance on Conan on 9 April 2012, singing his "3-Minute Song".

In December 2011 Minchin performed a specially written song called "Woody Allen Jesus" ^[57] on The Jonathan Ross Show. However, despite the show's producers and ITV's lawyers approving the composition for broadcast it was removed at the last minute. Responding on his blog, Minchin stated:^[58] "[...] Someone got nervous and sent the tape to ITV's director of television, Peter Fincham. And Peter Fincham demanded that I be cut from the show. He did this because he's scared of the ranty, shit-stirring, right-wing press, and of the small minority of Brits who believe they have a right to go through life protected from anything that challenges them in any way."^[59]

Acting and theatre[link]

Minchin's background is in theatre and he has appeared in various stage productions. His most recent dramatic theatrical performance was in the title role for the 2006 Perth Theatre Company production of Amadeus, a fictional play about the downfall of Mozart at the hands of the reigning court composer.^[19] His other stage acting roles have included the title role in the 2004 Perth Theatre Company / Hoopla production of Hamlet, and The Writer in the original PTC production of Reg Cribb’s The Return. He has also acted for The Australian Shakespeare Company (Twelfth Night), the Black Swan Theatre Company (Cosi, One Destiny) and in various other plays, short films and TVC’s. Roles from his days in musical theatre include Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha and Pontius Pilate (and understudying Judas twice) in Jesus Christ Superstar. He has also appeared playing small parts on the ABC telemovie Loot and on the show Comedy Inc..^[60]

Minchin also plays the role of Tom, in the contemporary family drama Two Fists, One Heart,^[61] released 19 March 2009.^[62] He also wrote the song Drowned for the film's soundtrack.^[63]

He co-wrote an Olivier Award winning musical version of Roald Dahl's novel Matilda – entitled Matilda, A Musical – with Dennis Kelly and the Royal Shakespeare Company, which is produced by the RSC. It showed at The Courtyard Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon running from 9 November 2010 to 30 January 2011^[64] and began its West End run at the Cambridge Theatre on 25 October 2011 to great critical acclaim.^[65][66]

Minchin has been cast to play Judas in the Summer 2012 UK tour of the musical Jesus Christ Superstar.^[67]

Atheism and skepticism[link]

In an interview with IIG member John Rael, Minchin explains that what upsets him most about paranormal beliefs is "special pleading" by people who say vague things such as "there is no harm in it". Minchin states that there is very little harm in something like reiki, but asks "where do you draw the line?" when it comes to needing real evidence if a therapy works or not. He states that he is an atheist as well as a skeptic, and cannot understand how someone can call themself a skeptic and still be religious. "If you apply doubt to anything...the whole religion thing is obviously a fantasy." ^[68]

In his beat poem, Storm, which centres on Minchin having an argument with a "hippie" who believes in various New Age alternatives in lieu of pharmaceutical medicine, he states: "Science adjusts its views based on what's observed. Faith is the denial of observation, so that belief can be preserved." ^[69]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Sit (with band Timmy the Dog) (2001)
• Darkside (2005)
• So Rock (2006)
• Ready For This? (2009)
• Live at the O2 (2010)
• Tim Minchin and The Heritage Orchestra (2011)

Singles[link]

• "Drowned" (2008)
• "White Wine in the Sun" (2009)
• "The Pope Song" (2010) - As a free download from his website^[70]
• "The Fence" (2011)

Compilations[link]

• Laugh-a-poolooza (featured artist) (2005)

DVD[link]

• So Live (2007) Australian DVD
• So F**king Rock Live (also known as So Fucking Rock Live)^[71] (11 October 2008)
• So F**king Rock Live (Special Edition) (also known as So Fucking Rock Live (Special Edition)) (5 October 2009)
• Ready For This? (29 November 2010)
• Tim Minchin and the Heritage Orchestra (14 November 2011)

Filmography[link]

Actor[link]

• 2008 – Two Fists, One Heart – Tom^[72]
• 2010 – The Lost Thing – The Boy (Voice)^[73]
• 2013 - Californication - Coked-up Rock Star(Guest)^[74]

Awards[link]

• 2005 Melbourne International Comedy Festival Directors' Choice Award for Dark Side^[75]
• 2005 Edinburgh Festival Fringe Perrier Comedy Award, Best Newcomer^[23]
• 2005 Melbourne International Comedy Festival, The Groggy Squirrel Critics' Award^[76]
• 2007 U.S. Comedy Arts Festival, Best Alternative Act^[77]
• 2009 Helpmann Award for Best Comedy Performer ^[78]
• 2009 Green Room Awards, Cabaret: Best Original Songs^[79]
• 2009 Green Room Awards, Cabaret: Best Artiste^[79]
• 2010 Chortle Awards, Best Music or Variety Act ^[80]
• 2012 Olivier Awards: Best New Musical for Matilda The Musical ^[81]