CAMPAIGNING comedian Kate Smurthwaite has helped launch a new campaign to stop fellow performers making rape jokes as the Edinburgh Festival starts today.

Ms Smurthwaite, who recently performed at the People’s Assembly benefit gig, has joined a campaign to raise awareness of the damage “jokes” can do, along with comics such as Josie Long, Jenny Eclair and Peter Egan. 

She told the Star she was supporting the campaign because of the impact humour can have on society. 

“Over the last few decades we’ve made great progress in making racist humour less and less acceptable,” explained Ms Smurthwaite.

“Now the time has come to do the same for sexist humour.”

The #RapeIsNotFunny is being led by women’s groups Stand Up for Women, Object, Zero Tolerance and Rape Crisis Scotland.

Object chief executive Roz Hardie added: “A society that constantly jokes about rape, constantly refers to rape as if it was just ‘sex’ or ‘sexy’ plays a significant role in chipping away at those barriers.”