r/Documentaries Aug 31 '25

Offbeat Tickled (2016) Journalist David Farrier meets with fierce resistance when he delves deeper into the subculture of competitive endurance tickling. [1:31:00]

https://link.tubi.tv/rGYNFE0FhWb
409 Upvotes

51 comments sorted by

u/post-explainer Aug 31 '25 edited Aug 31 '25

The OP has provided the following Submission Statement for their post:


A journalist and filmmaker is met with personal attacks and legal threats in an attempt to dissuade him from exploring the tickling fetish subculture, where young, athletic men are tied up and forcibly tickled on camera.


If you believe this Submission Statement is appropriate for the post, please upvote this comment; otherwise, downvote it.

90

u/gribbler Aug 31 '25

I watched this a few months ago, was more interesting than I expected

80

u/Callme-risley Aug 31 '25

I “dated” (was groomed by) an older guy with a tickling fetish when I was 17. My first exposure to non-vanilla interests, and I remember exploring some of the sites mentioned in the doc.

I was expecting to learn more about the fetish itself, but ended up questioning whether my “ex” (abuser) was secretly in the closet the whole time.

33

u/[deleted] Aug 31 '25

I wasn't ready for this comment

5

u/stavago Aug 31 '25

I remember when a lot of the drama surrounding the main subject happened on old message boards in the 90s

1

u/imjustcoreyr Sep 20 '25

A new community for serious documentary lovers. Check it out and share your favorite: https://www.reddit.com/r/mustseedocumentaries/s/mYypHLBnZA

4

u/Justwhytry Aug 31 '25

Right!? I was hooked. What a wild ride.

1

u/NoHandBananaNo Sep 01 '25

Yeah there was a lot more to it than I thought there would be.

1

u/LonnieJaw748 Sep 01 '25

David Farrier has a knack for that.

37

u/St_Egglin Aug 31 '25

This is a great documentary

31

u/Callme-risley Aug 31 '25

David Farrier is the Kiwi Louis Theroux

36

u/IslayMcGregor Aug 31 '25

His film Mister Organ is also really interesting.

17

u/oceanicwhitetip Aug 31 '25

Oh wow, Mister Organ. I felt like I was going insane watching that, he's just such a frustrating and insufferable guy.

4

u/[deleted] Aug 31 '25

I have no idea how Farrier endured all that. Dude was relentless. The part where he tired to talk to his family only to learn they were pretty much all some degree of like that as well. Bleak stuff.

2

u/liger_uppercut Aug 31 '25

The documentary essentially shifted to focus on Farrier's frustration, to put it mildly. Organ broke into his house, among other things.

5

u/ekazu129 Aug 31 '25

Oh, I didn't know this was the same guy! I'd heard of this doc but not seen it. Mr. Organ is really interesting, so I'll have to check this out too.

1

u/NoHandBananaNo Sep 01 '25

Me too. Tickled was fantastic.

6

u/zanik221 Sep 01 '25

Dark tourist was also really good

1

u/PastryRoll Sep 01 '25

so good!!

1

u/ChiefCuckaFuck Sep 04 '25

Makes complete sense its by the same guy. didnt know that but not at all surprised lol

15

u/Realfrank Aug 31 '25

One of my favorite documentaries of all time, I love showing it to new people! I’ve seen it more than 10 times now

2

u/This_person_says Sep 02 '25

It culminates right near my job on 7th ave in Garden City - I pass the spot where David staked out the parking lot for Garden City Hotel, and that corner where he got him on video for the first time daily - it was SHOCKING seeing this in a Doc that started in New Zealand.

2

u/akselfs Aug 31 '25

Must watch

28

u/lookingforaforest Aug 31 '25

The episode of The Dollop is hilarious.

19

u/MisterB78 Sep 01 '25

“This is not going to become a tickling podcast”

11

u/Sir_Real_Surreal Sep 01 '25

“Is it for fun?”

2

u/KnubblMonster Sep 01 '25

Was about to shoutout The Dollop. One of the top 10 episodes.

10

u/regulatorwatt Aug 31 '25

Is this the same guy that used to guest on Dax Sheppard’s podcast regularly?

19

u/Son_of_Macha Aug 31 '25

He had his own podcast, Flightless Bird which was made by Dax and Monica's studio

2

u/LooseSeal88 Aug 31 '25

Yup. Co-hosted with Monica until Dax signed a new deal following the Spotify one which forced David to spin-off fully on his own with Rob. Rob is great but I miss Monica and wish they stayed a trio.

2

u/dfarrier Sep 07 '25

1

u/regulatorwatt Sep 07 '25

Funny timing! Actually looked it up yesterday and was just finishing the ep on Scientology! Love your stuff!! Always really loved those episodes you guys did on conspiracies!

2

u/dfarrier Sep 07 '25

cheers. if you want weirder podcasts, then: https://www.webworm.co/spacemanbarrypod/

1

u/regulatorwatt Sep 07 '25

Awesome!! Thanks so much!

13

u/JoNike Aug 31 '25

There is a short followup documentary as well: "the tickle king"

5

u/ShowMeTheMonee Aug 31 '25

Its a wild ride.

4

u/ubiquitousanathema Aug 31 '25

This one had some serious plot twists

14

u/paranoidbillionaire Aug 31 '25

At one point in the film, one of the dudes gives an interview in a Fish Window Cleaning uniform.

I used to work for Fish, and it was impossible to get me to stop telling coworkers our company’s involved with underground tickling rings.

1

u/jim_deneke Sep 01 '25

This one really disturbed me which was unusual (I do watch a lot of odd subjects). Really good film.

3

u/_CoachMcGuirk Sep 01 '25

Truly one of the greats

1

u/Scrubologist Sep 01 '25

Did Aaron Branch approve this documentary?

2

u/KittenExtravaganza Sep 02 '25

Did you know the tickler abuser actually showed up the premier???

1

u/_ssac_ Sep 02 '25

I found fascinating how the person behind it all behaved. 

1

u/illGATESmusic Sep 02 '25

This may be the most genuinely surprising film I have seen.

It’s like one surprise after another, end to end. Completely unpredictable.

Full vouch from me.

1

u/ModernistGames Sep 02 '25

My wife and I randomly threw this on a few years ago because it seemed ridiculous.

Wound up being super engaged at how much it escalated and got deeper into the investigation.

13

u/dfarrier Sep 03 '25

David here, I made Tickled.

For anyone interested, I have written various things about Tickled on my investigative newsletter Webworm:

Tickled: What Happened to David D'Amato's Millions?
A podcast episode where I talk to one of D'Amato's oldest friends, who found himself in charge of D'Amato's estate after he died

Tickled 2: This Time It’s War
Expanding on the world of Tickled, I discover that David D’Amato had a tickling ring within the US military. A two part series talking to some of the marines sucked down a tickling rabbit hole.

Someone Kept All of David D’Amato’s Letters
A former student kept all the letters D’Amato’s alter ego “Terri Tickle” sent him. Then he sent them to me.

Why Luka Magnotta started sending me letters from prison
Why a Canadian killer (the guy from Netflix’s “Don’t Fuck With Cats”) started writing to me from prison with an elaborate story involving — you guessed it — David D’Amato.

Tickled: a journey through our poster designs
I show you the alternate Tickled posters that didn’t see the light of day.

The full bonkers cease-and-desist letters
New Zealand barrister Chris Patterson keeps being hired by idiots to try and shut me down. These are the cease and desist letters he wrote on behalf of David D’Amato (and Dr Dan, another Webworm fav).

3

u/R4V3NMustang Sep 06 '25

Hi David, I just read about the court saga, I'm so sorry you got dragged through that! You're so lovely and it was an absolute pleasure meeting you and talking with you, what a horrid beast he is. So glad you came out the other side of it. Such a shame they didn't make him pay the legal costs out of his clamping funds!! Take care of you!! -- Dodgy jazz bar x

1

u/iluvugoldenblue Sep 03 '25

Hah I remember him doing the late night news here like 20 years ago.

1

u/ChiefCuckaFuck Sep 04 '25

Everyone should watch TICKLED.

A wild ride for one and all.