Banned Camp: Banned Books, Comedy, and Free Speech vs. Censorship
If you think banning books is stupid, so do we.
Banned Camp is a comedy podcast where we read banned books and try to figure out why they were banned in the first place.
If you’re new here, don’t sweat it. You can start anywhere. We’ll get you oriented fast (and if you get confused, there’s a good chance we’re confused too).
Here’s what makes us different: we actually read the book out loud, every chapter, cover to cover, and we’ve never read it before. So you hear us stumble through the text, mispronounce names, miss obvious foreshadowing, and slowly piece together what freaks Moms for Liberty and the pudding-fingered politicians out.
Our listeners are called The Scary Book People. You’ll fit right in.
Past seasons: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut, and 1984 by George Orwell.
This season we’re reading Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. A dystopia built on pleasure instead of fear. People are engineered, drugged, and distracted into obedience, and taught to love the system that controls them. It’s funny, creepy, and way too familiar right now.
Book bans are at a 20-year high. The people doing the banning usually haven’t read the books… so we read them out loud together, and by the end you can honestly say you’ve read it too.
Nine seasons in. #1 ranked banned books comedy podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Hit follow. The book banners are idiots. Come help us prove it.
Banned Camp: Banned Books, Comedy, and Free Speech vs. Censorship
Brave New World Ch. 16.1: Why Ban Shakespeare? | Banned Books Podcast
The Controller finally steps into the room, and everything shifts. John speaks his mind, Bernard panics, and Mustafa Mond lays out the tradeoffs that built this so-called perfect world. Shakespeare, happiness, censorship, and the entire machinery of the World State collide.
Banned Camp is a comedy podcast where we read banned books chapter by chapter, we don't read ahead, so you're discovering the story with us.
Things To Listen For:
- Bernard choosing the most uncomfortable chair in the room out of pure fear
- John stumbling onto My Life and Work… basically the Ford Bible
- Jennifer and Dan’s riff comparing Ford worship to Trump’s fake FIFA peace prize clip (yes, the hands dragging the earth to hell one)
- Mustafa Mond admitting he bans Shakespeare because beauty is dangerous
- The reveal that tragedy can’t exist without instability
- Robot explaining why happiness looks “squalid” next to a dumpster fire, and how even a dumpster fire sometimes gets a soccer peace award
Why was Brave New World banned?
Huxley’s novel challenges ideas of state control, conformity, morality, sexuality, and the elimination of family and art. This chapter especially hits the nerve: a government that bans beauty and literature to preserve obedience.
New to Banned Camp? Start anywhere — each episode stands alone while building on the story.
Banworthy to Bingeworthy
If you’re looking for something new once you finish the chapter, here are the shows we spotlighted this episode:
- Rachel Maddow Presents: Burn Order
A gripping investigation into how state power can target entire communities… and then try to hide the evidence. - Dead Certain: The Martha Moxley Murder
A deep re-examination of a notorious case shaped by celebrity, privilege, and decades of questions. - The Baggage Podcast
Thoughtful, surprising interviews including a recent conversation with a librarian who outmaneuvered a book-banning group with pure librarian jujitsu.
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Featured Clips
This episode includes a short clip from Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update referencing Trump’s invented “soccer peace prize.” All rights belong to their respective owners and are used here under fair use for the purpose of cultural commentary and education.
Disclaimer
Banned Camp features readings and discussions of banned books for the purpose of criticism, commentary, education, and entertainment, in accordance with fair use guidelines.
The material used from the book Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is shared under these principles, with the intent of provoking thought and discussion about literature, censorship, and societal issues. The original work remains fully owned by its copyright holders, and we strongly encourage listeners to purchase a copy here to experience the book in its entirety.
This podcast is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to Aldous Huxley, his estate, or the publishers of Brave New World. Any monetization of the podcast is separate from the copyrighted material discussed.
Topics Covered:
Brave New World, Aldous Huxley, Chapter 16.1, John the Savage, Bernard Marx, Helmholtz Watson, Mustafa Mond, Ford, World State, caste system, Shakespeare, censorship, stability, happiness, fear of art, banned books, banned books podcast, book banning, censorship, literary analysis, comedy