| “ | Peace out, enjoy life, live the adventure. | ” |
―FunForLouis | ||
Louis Cole (born: April 28, 1983), better known online as FunForLouis, is an English vlogger and YouTuber residing in Venice Beach, Los Angeles, California, United States. His motto is "Peace out, enjoy life, live the adventure", which he always preaches to his viewers, to encourage them to go out and enjoy life.
Louis appeared on the BBC TV show called 'Homefront' when he was younger.
In 2007 Cole purchased and renovated a double-decker bus, equipping it as a mobile centre to help homeless youth with music and video game facilities. The Boombus project now receives funding from local council wards.
Discovery signed Cole to its Digital Seeker Network in 2015.
Cole has been named a top travel influencer.
Controversy[]
Violating Animal Welfare Act 2006[]
In April 2012 he posted a video of himself to his YouTube channel Food For Louis that showed him eating a live goldfish. This caused the RSPCA to prepare a case against him under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Since he had previously only eaten invertebrates, the fish was the first incident in which he may have broken the law. The RSPCA's handling of the issue was criticised as "heavy-handed" in the way it pursued a "humane prankster". The case was settled: he admitted his "guilt" and received a caution, avoiding a trial and a possible criminal record. He has received death threats from some animal lovers.
In the past, Cole has eaten locusts, a raw heart, maggots, roadkill rabbit, roadkill pigeon, a frog corpse, ragworms, and scorpions.
Cole claims his videos are not cruel and that he kills the animals quickly to avoid any unnecessary suffering. He argues that viewers' disgust is based on ignorance of or bias against other culinary cultures. He has denied that his goldfish-eating stunt caused unnecessary suffering, and claims that the RSPCA is "wasting its time" in pursuing the case.
Speed Limit in New Zealand[]
At the beginning of 2016 while driving in New Zealand with his girlfriend Raya, he was pulled over for speeding 41 km/h over the speed limit. While the officer caught him travelling at 141 km/h (87 mph), he used discretion to officially register it as 139 km/h. Since he was registered under 40 km/h over the limit, under New Zealand law Cole received a NZD$400 fine instead of automatic loss of license. The story made national headlines in New Zealand.
Tour to North Korea[]
In August 2016, Cole was criticized for his vlogs from his visit to North Korea. He was accused of promoting North Korea and his videos were described as propaganda for the North Korean regime. He has stated that he disagrees with the ideology of the regime and that the content was not funded by the North Korean government.