We Love Barry Hilton's Message About Being Bullied, You Might Too

Photo Credit: Barry Hilton

Barry Hilton was bullied in school, and now he’s one of the funniest cousins around.

South Africa (01 October 2025) – More than 3.2 million learners are bullied every year in South Africa. It’s a massive problem in schools, and it always has been. It’s ugly, and most of us remember what it felt like. Maybe you were on the receiving end. Maybe you stood by and laughed. Or maybe you were the one doing the bullying.

Most of us grow out of those ‘k*k gedagtes’ and some of us don’t.

Kids living through it right now might feel like there’s nowhere to turn. Stats suggest over 67% of learners won’t even tell a teacher if they’re being bullied, because they don’t think it’ll help…or worse, they’re afraid it’ll only make things harder. To cope, they bunk school, avoid people, or quietly carry the scars. Around 160,000 learners skip school every day just to avoid being bullied. And that doesn’t even touch on cyberbullying, which follows them home and hides behind screens.

So how does Barry Hilton fit into all of this? Well, he was bullied.

Barry really doesn’t need an introduction. He’s been making South Africans laugh since 1983. But long before he went up on stage, he was just a child in school, feeling out of place and pushed around.

He opened up about it recently, sharing that being a victim of bullying as a youngster made him feel like rubbish at the time, but it also turned out to be the reason he became so funny. Comedy became a defence mechanism and eventually, his life’s calling.

“I will forever be grateful for the fact that I was bullied at school. It made me feel like sh*t at the time, but it’s also the reason I became a funny guy,” he says.

We can’t speak for Barry, but when you’re young and you’re being picked on, you look for anything that might take the sting away. Cracking a joke could get people laughing with you instead of at you. It’s a way to have some sense of control in moments where you might otherwise feel powerless.

“It was a defence mechanism see…that’s what the therapist told me anyway. But it’s true, I started making jokes to hide the embarrassment and it just so happens that I was good at it,” says Barry.
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‘Funny’ softens the blow, hides the hurt, and helps you get through another day. Some of us carry that ‘shield’ or ‘superpower’ (however you want to look at it) into adulthood.

Barry would be the first to admit that bullying did take plenty away from him – he hated school, felt insecure, and didn’t have many friends. But he can also admit what he gained from it. A drive for success. The ability to laugh at himself. And most importantly, empathy.

“I made sure I took something back from it; my drive for success…the ability to laugh at myself…and maybe most importantly – empathy”

He’s clear about how it shaped him. It’s why he never mocks people in his shows (as comedians often do), because he knows how much words can hurt. That’s why we love him. He’s relatable and funny without putting others down. Kindness comes first.

“It’s also one of the reasons I never mock people in my shows, I know how it feels,” he says.

And here’s the point of sharing all of this. It’s not to say that we should embrace bullying or even accept it.

It’s maybe your reminder (or a loved one’s) that your story doesn’t have to end with pain. One day, it could become your greatest strength. We transform and alchemise those really difficult experiences over time, as we start to realise just how special we are. It’s often life’s most wonderfully unique sparks that go on to do incredible things, not the other way around. Bullies, if they don’t do the work, become boring, cookie-cutter people. Unlike Barry. Be like Barry.

“Life will always throw us some k*k situations, but the best solution is to find a reason to laugh and take as many lessons from it as you can,” he says.