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Hannah Gadsby

From small-town Tasmania, Hannah Gadsby began her stand-up career in 2006 when she was discovered at the Hobart Comedy Festival.

But in 2017 she announced her retirement from comedy with the show Nanette, which won both the Edinburgh Comedy Award (which she shared with John Robins), and the Barry award at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

Hannah Gadbsy is a Rolling Stone cover star

Comic graces the next issue down under

Hannah Gadbsy is to grace the cover of the next Rolling Stone magazine down under.

The groundbreaking comedian is the cover star of the March-May issue due out in Australia and New Zealand from Monday.

Gadsby, who is non-binary, recently curated a Netflix showcase of LGBTQ+ comedians and has also just launched their latest stand-up show Woof! in Australia.

In the magazine, the stand-up behind the Nanette special, speaks about their early life, as well as their strong dislike of gatekeepers in the comedy industry.

They said: ‘It was never my dream to be on Rolling Stone magazine, certainly not the cover. Because why would you bother dreaming about something that’s highly unlikely?’

Rolling Stone cover featuring a moody Gadsby

Gadsby is the first non-musician to appear on the antipodean magazine’s cover since it was relaunched in 2022, after a four-year absence.

Rolling Stone AU/NZ editor-in-chief, Poppy Reid, says the comic ‘truly captured a moment in culture’, adding: ‘Hannah has been one of the most impactful Australian comedians of recent years, thrilling audiences with their discordant take on stand-up both here and overseas.

‘We also wanted to show Hannah in a way that hadn’t been seen before, and our photographer and team did incredible work to cast them as the quintessential anti-hero in this amazing shoot.’

Photographer Charlie Ashfield said the image uses ‘lots of shadow and cool toned colours to exaggerate Hannah’s silhouette and add an almost villainous vibe’.

Journalist Jenny Valentish, who interviewed Gadsby for the magazine said: ‘To my delight, the Hannah I interviewed was every bit as fiery and nimble a commentator on the fly as they are on stage.

‘They were generous enough to take on any topic, no matter how controversial or – I’m sure, on occasion – deeply personal.’

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Published: 18 Mar 2024

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