Dan Howell's fear of butterflies

Dan shares the childhood incident that led to his fear of butterflies.

Source: 14 April 2013 Radio Show
Link: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwPOS... at 17:35

Transcript:

Phil: So Dan, before that song, you were telling me that you were terrified as a child of something small and girly.
Dan: Yes. I don’t know how— I don’t know if I’ve ever told this?
Phil: Oh.
Dan: I might have once to somebody somewhere. But I have a fear of butterflies. Okay, so, what traumatic incident do you think I had as a child that resulted in me being afraid of butterflies?
Phil: I can’t even imagine. But I really want to know.
Dan: What, no kind of like Freudian guesses you have?
Phil: Erm…
Dan: Psychological?
Phil: A butterfly flew into your mouth at P.E.?
Dan: Er, that— that would be traumatic enough, to be honest.
Phil: It would.
Dan: Okay. Let me set the scene, okay? Are you ready for me to set the scene?
Phil: I’m ready.
Dan: [starts playing music]
Phil: What is this?
Dan: I was at Longleat Safari Park in the nineteen-nineties. And they— they—
Phil: This is very Serengeti-like, I can feel it.
Dan: It’s not very Longleat. It is quite Longleat, isn’t it?
Phil: Yeah, yeah.
Dan: It’s not very butterflies. Okay. So they had just released a very new and exciting feature! A butterfly tunnel! So you can see where this is going as of right now.
Phil: I can see where this is going.
Dan: So I walked in and everyone was like, “Oh, butterflies, this’ll be exciting!” Er, you know, lots of little girls, running in, excited for the butterflies.
Phil: Yeah.
Dan: I went in and I was wearing a bright yellow t-shirt.
Phil: Oh, bad choice.
Dan: You know what butterflies love?
Phil: Yellow t-shirts?
Dan: Really really bright colors. So I went in. I got homed in on by butterflies. Okay? See the thing is with moths, they’re not that scary, ‘cause even though they flit about, and butterflies are a bit more graceful and predictable—
Phil: Yeah.
Dan: —moths are kinda gross. So— and you know, they’re just— they’re— they’re small and they’re compact. Whereas if you actually look at a butterfly, they have these long, like, spindly antenna eyes, and they— their— their weird, like, squiggly nose that’s—
Phil: You’re making me scared of them now.
Dan: They’re freaky creatures. I got attacked by butterflies, okay?
Phil: Okay.
Dan: And the worst thing was, I couldn’t do anything about it, ‘cause you can’t hurt the butterflies.
Phil: Oh no.
Dan: So, a woman came up to me, and she was like, “Don’t hurt the butterflies! Whatever you do, don’t move!” I was stood there, crying internally, while this fr— giant Amazon butterfly was stood on my face, okay?
Phil: Yeah.
Dan: And then people were taking pictures of me! They were like, “Oh, he’s having an intimate moment with the butterflies!” No! NO! It was horrible, okay?
Phil: If anyone listening actually took that picture, please send it in.
Dan: So ever since then, I have had the same reaction to butterflies that normal people have had to moths and wasps and spiders. And that is my butterfly story.
Phil: Can I just bring up the fact that you’re wearing a shirt entirely covered in butterflies right now?
Dan: Oh! I think— oh god, are they butterflies? Oh my word, I’m gonna have to strip off! No, okay, it’s— they’re moths, they’re moths! Someone said they’re moths.
Phil: They’re moths. Are you alright?
Dan: I was about to get so naked right then.
Someone on the set: Take it off!
Dan: Hey, control yourselves people! Right, so…