This is a guest post from Beth Kelly, who is a freelance writer and blogger. Born and raised in Michigan, she moved to Chicago to attend DePaul University where she graduated in 2011. She lived in Krakow, Poland briefly before moving to South Korea to teach English. She writes most frequently on health and technology topics. You can follow her on Twitter @bkelly_88.
Best known to American audiences for his own HBO series Last Week Tonight with John Oliver and his earlier contributions to The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, John Oliver is an Englishman with equal flair for comedy and political punditry. Oliver’s claim to fame extends to popular podcasts and radio broadcasts as well, including Political Animal, The Department and The Bugle. He made his public debut at Edinburgh’s annual Festival Fringe – the world’s largest arts festival – in 2001 as part of a showcase of new comedy acts. Oliver’s infectious appeal is largely a result of his skillful comedic handling of “real world” issues – problems that normal people face on a daily basis, but rarely see depicted in mainstream news media.