Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle

[Dave]

What did we think?

Topic

[Tanya Jones]

The fact that you didn’t even wait for it to finish probably counts for a lot. I was really disappointed that he stretched mediocre material to breaking point, and that he’s become REALLY snobby. Or was he always like this? Is it me?

[Pete Part Three]

I’m actually baffled that this made it to BBC2. Not because I didn’t enjoy it (thought it was great, sans most of the sketches), but because it was clear that BBC had let him just do what he wanted to.

>I was really disappointed that he stretched mediocre material to breaking point

I saw him perform much of this stuff in Edinburgh last summer. His schtick has always been to analyse stuff in great detail. Not mediocre.

>he?s become REALLY snobby. Or was he always like this?

He’s always been like this. But I don’t think any of his targets are held in high-regard in literary circles either.

[Dave]

>The fact that you didn?t even wait for it to finish probably counts for a lot

The use of the past tense gives is telling too, I suppose.

The opening ten minutes really impressed me.

The middle rappers-on-the-top-of-the-pop-of-the-tops section was really dull, and the sketches just reiterate the standup material and are unnecessary.

I’m in the studio audience and over the coming weeks you may well get to hear about my shoes. It was much funnier in person.

[pfm]

I liked it a lot, apart from certain parts which made him sound like a pissed off old fart. The bits about rappers, and shouting at adults for reading Harry Potter maybe would have been alright as material 5 or 6 years ago. Other than that this felt good. Praise be to the BBC for giving him this show. Good to see a few familiar faces in the sketches, VT offshoots, whatever you want to call them.

[Carlito]

Stewart Lee’s back on TV?

Information that would have been of more use to me YESTERDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYY.

Adam Sandler mode deactivated.

I missed it. :(

[Seb Patrick]

If only there were some kind of magical device that allowed you to watch programmes made by the BBC after they’d been broadcast! Oh, if only a wizard would come along and conjure one out of thin air!

[Tanya Jones]

>I saw him perform much of this stuff in Edinburgh last summer. His schtick has always been to analyse stuff in great detail. Not mediocre.

Pete, I’ve been a fan of his since 1996. I KNOW what he does. I saw his Edinburgh show last summer too, and I’m surprised he started with what we thought was his weakest material, and for it to be stretched to breaking point. He’s capable of a lot more, and he just seemed to be sniping at lazy targets rather than doing something interesting. Laughing at Asher D? Oh, for fuck’s sake, it’s not like he’s even famous any more. Also, quoting books out of context, sneering at adults enjoying Harry Potter and then trying to prove he’s better by namedropping William Blake just makes him sound like a cunt.

[Pete Part Three]

Sorry, Tanya. You asked whether he was always snobby so I assumed you’d missed some of his stuff rather than following him closely. He has always been sneery and sarcastic, especially towards other comedians and comedy shows.

I thought the book stuff was great when I saw it in Edinburgh, and liked it just as much last night. I guess it’s harder to laugh at this stuff if you actually like the people involved (I realise there’s an appreciation for Moyles and Brand round these parts). The Asher D segment was a little overdone though.

>sneering at adults enjoying Harry Potter

Despite being in this group, I’d argue that this is a wholly valid target.

Ps. Great to see Putner and Eldon too, even if the sketches were the weak link.

[Seb Patrick]

>Despite being in this group, I?d argue that this is a wholly valid target.

Why, though? He didn’t say “Adults shouldn’t read it because it’s shit”. He said “adults shouldn’t read it because it’s a kids book”. Which is bollocks. Some of the greatest books ever written (which the Potter books don’t number among, I hasten to add) were originally written for children. Are you telling me that Roald Dahl or Just William or CS Lewis aren’t worth reading?

[Pete Part Three]

>Are you telling me that Roald Dahl or Just William or CS Lewis aren?t worth reading?

Not at all; they’re great children’s books (well, some of Narnia is a bit ropey but nvm) and should be compulsory in schools. You don’t see many adults on the tube reading The Twits though. There’s no “Adult Edition” of William the Detective.

I read the Harry Potter books for much the same reason that I read The Da Vinci Code. Curiosity brought on by non-stop hype. While reading JK’s efforts were certainly more enjoyable than Dan Brown’s (supposedly more adult) bag of shite, I didn’t feel that this was the literary masterpiece that the sales suggested.

Dan Brown is loved by people who don’t usually read books. JK Rowling is loved by adults who know they should read more books but have been burnt in the past and don’t bother. They know Potter is easy to read (because they’ve been written for 12 year olds) so that obstacle is skipped straight away.

[Ian Symes]

On the whole, I bloody loved it. I felt the rappers bit went on for too long, some of the sketches were unnecessary, and I can see why people are annoyed by his snobbery. (In particular, I knew that John and Tanya would hate it as soon as he – perfectly validly and fairly – kicked Moyles’s arse.) But so much of it was just sublimely hilarious, I can forgive it for its faults. The Grange Hill sausage, Father Stone dressed as a goat, “How I Crush Saplings by Jeremy Clarkson” – all superb.

[si]

I recorded it and haven’t managed to watch it, although I did catch five minutes of the red button stuff just before I went to bed – about half one-ish – where he was talking about Adrian Chiles, and living in a post Chilesean world.

[Mr Flibble]

I haven’t seen it yet, but plan to (although someone did mention the Moyles bashing stuff to me this morning as a fan of his).

However, speaking of kids books, I was in Waterstones the other day. A Roald Dahl book (Matilda IIRC) was in the “New Books” section. I asked the member of staff who was helping me look for something how it could be a new book when he’s been dead for 15 years. He wasn’t very sure…

[Seb Patrick]

New edition, maybe?

[locusceruleus]

>However, speaking of kids books, I was in Waterstones the other day. A Roald Dahl book (Matilda IIRC) was in the ?New Books? section. I asked the member of staff who was helping me look for something how it could be a new book when he?s been dead for 15 years. He wasn?t very sure?

Probably in the same way that The Beatles release an album every couple of years and Star Wars gets a fresh coat of paint once a decade. I didn’t know that reissues, reprints and re-releases were such an obscure concept.

Or perhaps a customer put it there.

The member of staff more than likely told you he wasn’t sure in the hope that you’d leave him alone. Can’t say I blame him to be honest.

[Tarka Dal]

> New edition, maybe?

What’s Bobby Brown got to do with this?

[Mr Flibble]

The member of staff more than likely told you he wasn?t sure in the hope that you?d leave him alone. Can?t say I blame him to be honest.

Actually he laughed. And never did find the book I wanted.

[pfm]

> The member of staff more than likely told you he wasn?t sure in the hope that you?d leave him alone.

This. Oh this.

Pfft might as well chime in on the whole Harry Potter issue. If The Lion The Witch & The Wardrobe can be seen as an absolute classic that’s ‘acceptable’ for anyone to read then so can Harry Potter, which is far less ‘childish’ than the Narnia series. All I know is that I read a book to be entertained and to escape into something else for a while. Harry Potter gave that to me in bucketloads (and he didn’t even spill any on the carpet).

In Deathly Hallows, when he’s walking down to the forest at the end, and the King’s Cross part, you’re not telling me that kids fully understand the meaning of it all. I’ve rarely been moved by a book as much as I was at that point. Maybe she’s not the best writer, technically, but I think what she achieved with the whole series was nothing short of pure genius.

[locusceruleus]

Anyone who’s so stuck up and holds themselves in such high opinion as to criticise someone elses choice of reading matter should go fuck themselves up the arse with a swastika shaped dildo.

[Pete Part Three]

Dan Brown fan, eh?

[Phil]

Either that or a fan of swastika-shaped dildos.

[Danny Stephenson]

swastika-shaped dildos.

God forbid if I sound out of place here, how the fuck would you use it?

[Ian Symes]

Four people standing in a special formation.

[Dave]

>God forbid if I sound out of place here, how the fuck would you use it?

With three like minded-friends who like to walk backwards

[Danny Stephenson]

Oh I SEE!! Four ends! i thought it was like a swastika shape extruded.

[si]

So did I, to be fair.

[Danny Stephenson]

SOunds painful, although why we’re discussing the existence of a swastika shaped dildo, is fucking beyond me!

[Tarka Dal]

> a swastika shaped dildo is fucking beyond me!

Danny Wins.

[ChrisM]

SOunds painful, although why we?re discussing the existence of a swastika shaped dildo, is fucking beyond me!

Could be worse. We could be discussing the application of said swastika shaped dildo.

Oh…. wait….

[si]

The extra stuff is on the BBC red button thingy right now, if anyone wants to catch it. I know it loops, but i don’t know how long it lasts to start with.

[Seb Patrick]

Well, that was a fuck of a sight more like it.

But the sketches were pretty rotten. With the exception of the Dorian Gray one, they were just completely unsubtle hammerings of something he’d already said. Just in case there were stupid people watching who didn’t get the joke, or something. The sewage thing was appallingly Little Britain-esque the first time, and just tedious by the last one – I can’t understand why an audience that had gone to Stewart Lee were pissing themselves and applauding it. The Del Boy one was good fun, and superbly put together, but just went on a bit long.

But negatives about the sketches aside, the standup stuff was pretty much spot on.

[si]

I forgot to record this tonight – I’ve been all over the net with the ‘Lister’s coming home’ stuff…

[ChrisM]

It was ok.

I still think that Del boy sketch is funny though. (But shown too often, maybe.) Remarking on it ironically seems to be old now too.

And whatever you can say about channel 4, it’s had some good comedy. Better than the BBC lately.

[ChrisM]

Ok. Maybe ‘some’ is overstating it a bit! ;)

[Pete Part Three]

>Well, that was a fuck of a sight more like it.

I actually thought last week’s episode was far stronger. The sketches are still completely unnecessary; just illustrating a point that already been analysed in the stand-up itself. The Del-boy sketch broke up the Del-boy diatribe and actually made it less funny.

[Pete Part Three]

So, was that you Dave?

[mick]

Really enjoying it, and really enjoying robbing it off iPlayer for later burning to DVD.

[Jonathan Capps]

I thought this week’s had by far the best good stand-up:good sketches ratio. Very good indeed.

The chats with Armando are really lovely, too.

[Dave]

>So, was that you Dave?

Yep, I am that vane arrogant man

[Alex]

The chats with Armando are really lovely, too.

The past few weeks i’ve actually found those funnier than the show itself (but I am a big fan of Armando’s stuff and these do seem to often have more to do with him than Lee). That said, this weeks seemed to be better and more like the standard of the first one.

[Jonathan Capps]

> Yep, I am that vane arrogant man

You’ve never been more attractive to me.

[Jonathan Capps]

> The past few weeks i?ve actually found those funnier than the show itself (but I am a big fan of Armando?s stuff and these do seem to often have more to do with him than Lee). That said, this weeks seemed to be better and more like the standard of the first one.

I just *love* Iannucci when he’s doing this gentle comedy, with everything in the way he says things and the excellent faces he pulls. Also, and I’m not sure if this is the case, but it feels like Stewart is being asked these questions for the first time and then ad libbing with Armando.

[Author]

Replies