The musician (-comedian-actor-composer-director-Californication guest star) Tim Minchin is an aspirational figure. He brings an unmatched level of precision and thoughtfulness to conversations, whether he’s discussing word play or the Catholic church. And he extends that scrutiny to his concepts of success and failure, which I welcome. Tim and I sit down to talk about the intricacies of his work, from the satisfaction of composing the successful Matilda: The Musical, to the pain of working on a big Dreamworks film that got canned. He’s poetic — and prophetic — about what we stand to learn from what we lose, and if that makes you never want to win again, well, so it goes.

Tim’s new album “Time Machine” is out now! Find it at https://timminchin.lnk.to/TimeMachineLT

Fail Better is now on YouTube! Watch this episode here.

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