Whilst I think the comparison joke has…. The fourth wall post when read properly - as opposed to…. Is well thought through. congratulations! Your cheque will not be in the post as I can’t find the button on the you tube.
Convoluted posts evoking Brechtian alienation that lull the reader into a false yet somehow uneasy sense of security before delivering a punchline comprised of a rehashed version of an old catchphrase have........
@@graypaul4 I'm under the impression he was a furious Corbyn critic, HIGNFY and Twitter, part of the Corbyn pile-on. Can't find examples now, hope I'm not wrong.
The more Stewart Lee 'lets himself go' the better he gets, middle-age has given him a lot more to say. The last few years have seen him really hit his stride imo, no one makes me laugh more
+Chris “cd” D Couldn't agree more :) For example his routine about the Ukips (Ep 2 'England', series 3 of Comedy Vehicle) is not only hilarious and brilliantly delivered, but quite profound. It's a million miles ahead of the likes of Michael McIntyre 'spoonfeeding you his warm diarrhea'!!!
You ever see Stewart Lee live? It's like watching a man slowly dismantle society with a teaspoon. You sit there, thinking, "Is he still going?"-but then you realize, you’re the absurdity he’s been talking about the whole time. Absolutely brilliant.
Its the level of commitment ,actual research and amazing detail that defines everything he does ! Whatever he does or say you can bet it’s going to be complete!
Who doesn't want to know who's on a toilet and where? I came to this video because I love Stewart Lee, I watched it from the viewpoint of an aspiring musician and I leave with a clearer view of the direction I'm stumbling in. "Many are prepared to suffer for their art; few are prepared to learn how to draw"
Unfortunately due to government funding cuts, Darlington Arts center had to be closed and was derelict for a few years before it was sold off and turned into apartments. The staircase Stewart is referring to also used to have a classroom on it where we used to do our music 'listening' lessons as the sixth form college is next door and they shared spaces. Spent many hours sat waiting for lessons in that corridor looking at the posters. Its a great loss to the town and was an incredible hub of creativity.
Really enjoyed this, despite not being a graduate or knowing many of the references Stewart uses. It's a joy to be entertained and educated at the same time. I'm unsure if you'll see these comments Stewart, but if you do, thank you! I look forward to seeing your next tour.
The little "scams and tricks" he mentions were the ways that our society in the UK used to nurture artists. Now we don't and we are reaping the rewards of neglecting our culture: a devastated cultural wasteland. Such a shame. :(
I am and always will be impressed by this mans genius. There is no comedian out there previously or even presently that manages to hold your hand, take you on a completely random journey and places you never imagined being funny and still holds your attention throughout. He's not only clever, hes challenging, self deprecating and clearly a cut above some of the moronic comments on here.
@@Jordannadroj20 Norm and Stew are my two favorite comedians for exactly this reason. They play opposite characters to achieve similar results (Norm plays the dumbest guy in the room and Stew plays the smartest).
Being clever and being elitist aren't mutually inclusive. He's a much-needed antidote to the Michael McIntyre school of prancing, observational bollocks. Lee describes his comedy as sometimes being overly clever as a device to appear self-conscious - "smug" even - 20 minutes into this video. It's all part of the act. He's obviously a very humble human being and not part of any elitist Oxbridge favouritism. I see huge optimism in his so-called bitterness.
Spot on! I can't believe that McIntyre has been getting away with "spoon-feeding his warm diarrhoea" for so long. And "antidote" is such an apt description. When I first heard Stewart Lee voice the oblique derision, having long been bemused by the incredible success of "prancing, observational bollocks", I mentally punched the air and shouted "YES!"
Honestly, this is so important. His views are learned, they can be argued but he has a lot to say from his own personal experience and research. I gather, from his vast knowledge, that we were always progressing, humanity was moving. Social media came along and really fu3ked everything up. I stand by this. I mean it...
Fascinating and absorbing. I have always had massive respect for Stewart Lee but I have even more now due to his candid and articulate way of unpicking a very personal process. One I will watch again and be sharing. Thanks so much for posting this.
"I begin to assemble a facsimile of a person's ideas at the point of conception rather than at the point of perfection" is an amazing insight into his process.
I realized I enjoy his style in a way that's like enjoying that Ansel Adams picture of the Grand Tetons: the subject's alright, but the real satisfaction's in the dynamic range. Astonishing how one could think they're looking at some snapshot when what they're witnessing is more like a master craftsman stretching out the medium.
I was convinced,that he was pretending to read his old speach,in fact memorised the whole thing,just acted reading out!!!!And laughed lots through out,turned out he was reading ,Facinating suff cheers kid.
Fantastic to see that this online now - I watched it at the event where this was filmed and in an earlier form at the previous writing event. Excellent both times, and I'm glad I can now share a link to it instead of enthusiastically misquoting it to my friends. I'd recommend Dan Abnett's talk from the same day as well. In answer to the comments below, the audience were fascinated, enthusiastic and much louder than you can hear on that recording (probably because only Stewart was mic'd!)
Funnily enough I remember reading Stewart Lee locked himself in his flat for 6 whole months watching back to back Monty Python, the whole experience only came to an end when he let himself go.
As someone from Doncaster I would have loved to have seen you from that time, but I do see your point. There are some of us with the same ideas questioning society and norms that you speak of, but so many people from my hometown are happy to just get along without any issue
Really fascinating, love when he reads that he's 44 then realsises he's actually 45 now! Gonna have to watch that economics episode of Comedy Vehicle now!
the cultural insight was huis weakest game... where as his artistic one was birlliant. his cultural "insights" seem saomewhat standard left wing tho liberal, partyline. and therefore how i dont agree with his otherwise valid and somewhat important comedy
Your description is totally accurate but that's why some of us like him. I think at some point in his long career, he thought I'm bored of telling jokes, I'm going to see if I can do a whole set on Crisps or stretch out a mediocre punchline (which everyone already knows) for ten minutes. Some how, he pulls it off. That said, he's definitely not for everyone. Sun readers for example.
the "let himself go" is a bit of a long-running stewart lee gag, where he talks about how comments online say things like "KD Lang's let herself go", "Morrissey's let himself go", etc.
Hi Stewart, came to see your latest show in Nottingham with my son, then Salford with my mate. Both shows were superb. Keep doing what you do, it’s inspiring and also funny!
Totally agree with stewart lee. If im gonna watch a comedian i wanna hear him talk about his view on life like, pryor, carlin, hicks, cosby, stewart lee, and a few others.
Wow I think its incredibly fearless the way that he goes for his 'peers' calling them out for using writers. I wonder if that had a backlash for him (forgive my ignorance). I used to think of comics as these scrupulous artists who were terribly jealous of their own material. But now...
You must own your failings - the shame is yours - attributing it to a convenient scapegoat is just another of your failings. Take stock, take responsibility & take back your life - best foot forward now.
@@cahillgreg It's in no way your "failing" if you quit school because your professors are pedagogically unsound or socially irrelevant. In reality, that's their problem.
Wonderful to have an insight into his writing process. He's also quite insightful about the history of comedy too. I've always favoured writers as comedians from Beyond The Fringe through to Python, the Young Ones and Mitchell and Webb (for example).
I didn't think that Stewart Lee would be the sort of person who comments on UA-cam videos. But now I see that I am wrong. In order to gather more material for a forthcoming show, he has adopted the persona Stefan G, someone who supposedly hates his stuff and resents his Oxbridge education whilst paradoxically loving Monty Python and ignoring their Oxbridge educations. It should be a promising routine.
I used to think i wanted to be a stand-up... but the fact that i keep laughing out loud whenever the audience isnt laughing at lines that arent apparently funny leaves me thinking i should be a writer... or a fireman. Thankyou Steven Lee, ill remember this lesson.
good call. i really really enjoyed watching that. i've been a fan for years and even i was somewhat cautious when i saw how long it was, however, loved it
He doesn't mention Eddie Izzard, whose autobiog. I have just read, but he also is a stand-up who learned to write his own material and how to make the most out of it. Now he is an actor/entertainer. They are clever people. I am a snob with my stand-ups; I only want to see the ones who are smarter than I am; who say things I haven't thought myself.
@@thinkingsincerely7260 According to some Channel 4 poll. He's made reference to the ranking a few times and even used it to name one of his shows. I made this comment before UA-cam had direct replies. It was a sarcastic dig at a hater so is out context now.
Sadly the Darlington Arts Centre has been empty for the last couple of years, it's being sold to be converted into flats. Same as the beautiful library. :-(
Please tell me you're joking. Arts centres closing are a result of government cuts, absolutely nothing to do with God. Planet of the apes is a satire on society using blind faith as a tool of oppression. That should have been obvious, it had animals in it!
@@rowanmorrison7022 Man without acknowledgement of the divine is but an animal. It's why the devil and the evil things in religious iconography have horns, tails etc - beastly qualities. Art is about forms, forms are transcendental etc this all plays into a higher power.
whilst i think this is great and a wonderfuLL insight Lee completely side steps the fact that there is a class distinction with the 70's comics and with his stuff which is middle class,, none of the comics of the 70's went to Oxford,, they were just lads from the building site or chancers but they would never have had a sniff at the kind of privileges he has been afforded,,don't get me wrong i think Lee is awesome ,, and i accept a majority of the 70's comics were shallow and racist but they were in fact following a music hall tradition of low culture and popular culture, where as Lee has taken a low culture of stand up into an almost high culture,, almost the persevere of readers of The Times,, it wasn't too long ago that Opera was hi jacked by the upper classes and it became cleansed and antiseptic,, yet earlier Opera used to be baudy , rude,, using foul language and the subject matter was aimed at deriding the royals of the time and the aristocracy,, so i feel it is cyclical too..
Good on you for as above says - love him or not , it’s an important point with regard to the historical context or accuracy. How about the 80s ‘alternative comedians’ whom are now the establishment? When I saw Ade Edmunson as presenter of a cosy food programme made in very pretty country village locations about 10 yrs back I couldn’t deceive if it mattered or not.
its more about "not writing", as in having ghost writers. the same thing happens in hiphop. if you dont write your own stuff your not considered authentic.
Interesting, but a little wide of the mark. Yes, they didn't all go to Oxford, but you might be surprised to find that Cambridge Alumni includes most of the Monty Python team, and all of The Goodies, to name but a few to challenge your viewpoint on 70's entertainers (Graeme Garden qualified as a physician). However, the crappier (IMO) comedians were low-brow racist, mysogynist turds. And, try and dig up Jeremy Hardy's very amusing criticism of the idea of "middle class". He opines that everyone who has to work to pay the bills (instead of living off enormous, inherited wealth) is "working class". When a nurse is up to her elbows in blood, and poo and piss, it's not going to matter to her that she went to gymkhanas when she was young (paraphrasing Mr. Hardy's humour).
By "let himself go" I presume you mean "is acting naturally without pretense of an inflated ego, one which might cause someone to dye there hair and wear fashionable clothing at the expense of their credibility." In which case I can but agree with you.
The comments re: further education - and particularly with regard to arts courses - is even more true now than it was then. This is especially true, I think, in the Performance arena.
What? Which comedians have you been watching? Clearly not Bill Hicks, George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Billy Connolly, Robin Williams, Jerry Seinfeld, Joan Rivers, Sarah Silverman, Louis CK, Dave Chappelle. Eddie Izzard. Stewart Lee couldn’t lace any of their boots. A boatload of intellectual baggage and arrogance and about as edgy as a tennis ball
Taking someone else's old material, changing the noun and presenting it in a written form is as funny as it ever was, or ever will be. I've always found that being at a recording of a SL set and then watching it again in isolation means you hear a whole lot of lines you missed. A comedy audience is so keyed up to laugh that twists that need to be right after the punch are lost in the laughter. Learning that several big-name stand ups use writers might go some way to my feeling that their material didn't seem to come from some fixed point. I admit I have laughed at a few Frankie Boyle one-liners but not constantly. Only a few stand ups invest in a real on stage persona. One one hand, they feel more real but on the other hand people seem to believe that they are seeing the real person. Les Dawson did have a gift that went mostly unrecognized. His writing was amazing, the only better thing being his delivery. Dave Allen actually did some quite harsh lines. DAs tiny bits that were aggressive were all the more potent because it was in such stark contrast with the rest of his set. I've always been impressed by SL continuing to evolve. After a couple of decades, it must be easy to work out a demographic and pander to them. Easy to judge opinions of the many and take the safe route. With a family to support, that's got to be tempting. As someone has already pointed out - to be totally frank about how the financial side works cannot have made him many friends. I haven't read his books (I will) but I am hopeful that Tractatus-Illogico Risus will be possible. 'A serious and good philosophical work could be written consisting entirely of jokes' - Wittgenstein Of course, I could be totally wrong.
BTW The Independent wrote an article about the lecture. If people are not aware, journalists always offer a right of reply to a piece. In their words 'No one was available to respond to the claim at McIntyre’s agents, whilst agents for Osho, Whitehall and Boyle all declined to comment.' To be fair, he didn't say they were wrong to use writers, he noted it as a possible new era. While musicians cover other artists songs, I cannot think of a musician of global standing who JUST covers other peoples material. We don't know how much material is written by others. On reflection, I would say that the fact articulated a feeling about a number of stand ups.that I've held for a long time. No real stage persona so no obvious situations where you would think 'that persona would not make that joke'. Some of the jokes have been very funny but the person delivering them is a golem (in the traditional Jewish meaning of the work). Not something of flesh and blood but just an automaton with a limited, pre-learned stage craft. There are plenty of stand ups in SLs league but most of them are not as well known. Simon Munnery, Kevin McAleer, Kevin Eldon. The only people who will intentionally lose the audience at the start of the act. I mean keep going until not 1 person is left laughing. Only then do they win them back. What confidence - most stand ups want a joke in the first seconds. What ability - to knowingly lose the whole room and reliably get it back. With all of them, the box marked stand up isn't a perfect fit. I'm not simply fawning over a few stand ups, I've seen and enjoyed dozens but it's in retrospect, watching someone kill the room (having been in the room and then watched same on DVD), it's not something many would attempt. I would like to see some more acts develop who tread that fine line between losing the room for a while and still knowing you can get them back. I have seen it done, but watching alone shows the laughter squeezed out of the audience and filled from a different well. Or I could be totally wrong.
He’s giving it to us straight
Like a pear cider ...
@@Jesse__H Made from 100% pear...
Like a pear cider-made out of 100% pears!
@Midnight Son unnecessary apostrophe.
@@AA-hg5fk unnecessary unnecessary apostrophe
The fourth wall as a performance convention in which an invisible, imagined wall separates actors from the audience has let itself go.
And BK gets 14 likes......!
Whilst I think the comparison joke has….
The fourth wall post when read properly - as opposed to….
Is well thought through.
congratulations!
Your cheque will not be in the post as I can’t find the button on the you tube.
👏
Convoluted posts evoking Brechtian alienation that lull the reader into a false yet somehow uneasy sense of security before delivering a punchline comprised of a rehashed version of an old catchphrase have........
It's really wonderful to just listen to Stewart Lee describe the beauty of the comedic art-form. He's extremely eloquent and thoughtful.
Yes...but he’s not funny in real life
Still haven't forgiven him for promoting the Johnson government.
@@artphong9908 he did what?
@@artphong9908 how so?
@@graypaul4 I'm under the impression he was a furious Corbyn critic, HIGNFY and Twitter, part of the Corbyn pile-on. Can't find examples now, hope I'm not wrong.
The more Stewart Lee 'lets himself go' the better he gets, middle-age has given him a lot more to say. The last few years have seen him really hit his stride imo, no one makes me laugh more
TheDaddyO44 carpet remnant world is him at his very best. doubt he will top that.
+Chris “cd” D Couldn't agree more :) For example his routine about the Ukips (Ep 2 'England', series 3 of Comedy Vehicle) is not only hilarious and brilliantly delivered, but quite profound. It's a million miles ahead of the likes of Michael McIntyre 'spoonfeeding you his warm diarrhea'!!!
ivorbigonee I know this comment is 2 years old, but I've been to his current Content Provider tour, and can confirm he's topped CRW
One more expensive medical emergency and I think he’ll *really* hit his stride
TheDaddyO44 I saw content provider live and I’ve seen bits of CRW, but I think I prefer CRW (cp is still amazing tho)
You ever see Stewart Lee live? It's like watching a man slowly dismantle society with a teaspoon. You sit there, thinking, "Is he still going?"-but then you realize, you’re the absurdity he’s been talking about the whole time. Absolutely brilliant.
Its the level of commitment ,actual research and amazing detail that defines everything he does ! Whatever he does or say you can bet it’s going to be complete!
Who doesn't want to know who's on a toilet and where?
I came to this video because I love Stewart Lee, I watched it from the viewpoint of an aspiring musician and I leave with a clearer view of the direction I'm stumbling in.
"Many are prepared to suffer for their art; few are prepared to learn how to draw"
Love this interview, beautifully human, open and honest.
Unfortunately due to government funding cuts, Darlington Arts center had to be closed and was derelict for a few years before it was sold off and turned into apartments. The staircase Stewart is referring to also used to have a classroom on it where we used to do our music 'listening' lessons as the sixth form college is next door and they shared spaces. Spent many hours sat waiting for lessons in that corridor looking at the posters. Its a great loss to the town and was an incredible hub of creativity.
Yeah.. But..Darlington.?
@@biggusdickus5986Head
Tory cuts! 😆
Austerity has taken the soul of working class communities
@@markdrury4287absolutely yes
Dan Abnett and Stewart Lee, by coincidence my favourite examples of the things they are. Top blokes.
I could listen to Stew talk about comedy all day.
How man I was bored
Stewart Lee is much better than it is necessary to be given his typical audience.
Really enjoyed this, despite not being a graduate or knowing many of the references Stewart uses. It's a joy to be entertained and educated at the same time. I'm unsure if you'll see these comments Stewart, but if you do, thank you! I look forward to seeing your next tour.
The little "scams and tricks" he mentions were the ways that our society in the UK used to nurture artists. Now we don't and we are reaping the rewards of neglecting our culture: a devastated cultural wasteland. Such a shame. :(
I am and always will be impressed by this mans genius. There is no comedian out there previously or even presently that manages to hold your hand, take you on a completely random journey and places you never imagined being funny and still holds your attention throughout. He's not only clever, hes challenging, self deprecating and clearly a cut above some of the moronic comments on here.
Penis
well said Sir.
Norm Macdonald
@@Jordannadroj20 Norm and Stew are my two favorite comedians for exactly this reason. They play opposite characters to achieve similar results (Norm plays the dumbest guy in the room and Stew plays the smartest).
@@0228christian
That's exactly it
I'm watching this yet another 10 years later
Excellent talk, Stewart Lee rocks my world
Being clever and being elitist aren't mutually inclusive. He's a much-needed antidote to the Michael McIntyre school of prancing, observational bollocks. Lee describes his comedy as sometimes being overly clever as a device to appear self-conscious - "smug" even - 20 minutes into this video. It's all part of the act. He's obviously a very humble human being and not part of any elitist Oxbridge favouritism. I see huge optimism in his so-called bitterness.
9:55
Spot on! I can't believe that McIntyre has been getting away with "spoon-feeding his warm diarrhoea" for so long. And "antidote" is such an apt description. When I first heard Stewart Lee voice the oblique derision, having long been bemused by the incredible success of "prancing, observational bollocks", I mentally punched the air and shouted "YES!"
Honestly, this is so important. His views are learned, they can be argued but he has a lot to say from his own personal experience and research. I gather, from his vast knowledge, that we were always progressing, humanity was moving. Social media came along and really fu3ked everything up.
I stand by this.
I mean it...
Fascinating and absorbing. I have always had massive respect for Stewart Lee but I have even more now due to his candid and articulate way of unpicking a very personal process. One I will watch again and be sharing. Thanks so much for posting this.
what a wonderful comment.
Very smart man, enjoyed his comedy in the nineties, the curious orange was brilliant!
Jesus I could listen to Stewart for hours. Tell me once more about these pint size Ninjas.
An hour of my life incredibly well spent.
For anyone who's interested, "you can't step in the same river twice", isn't a zen saying, it's Heraclitus. (i.e. Greek).
Max White it is Zen in essence, not in origin.
@@Koreviking Actually it's a quote from Heart of Darkness by Conrad.
@@Johnconno Where did Conrad get it from? It's probably one of those universal 'thingys'.
@@kenhutley971 Conrad thought it up and then wrote it down.
No Zen. No Greeks. No Thingys.
The End. (Beautiful Friend) ; )
@@Johnconno I am in awe sir, of your certainty. You knew Joseph well then? ( ;
"I begin to assemble a facsimile of a person's ideas at the point of conception rather than at the point of perfection" is an amazing insight into his process.
I realized I enjoy his style in a way that's like enjoying that Ansel Adams picture of the Grand Tetons: the subject's alright, but the real satisfaction's in the dynamic range. Astonishing how one could think they're looking at some snapshot when what they're witnessing is more like a master craftsman stretching out the medium.
I was convinced,that he was pretending to read his old speach,in fact memorised the whole thing,just acted reading out!!!!And laughed lots through out,turned out he was reading ,Facinating suff cheers kid.
Fantastic to see that this online now - I watched it at the event where this was filmed and in an earlier form at the previous writing event. Excellent both times, and I'm glad I can now share a link to it instead of enthusiastically misquoting it to my friends. I'd recommend Dan Abnett's talk from the same day as well.
In answer to the comments below, the audience were fascinated, enthusiastic and much louder than you can hear on that recording (probably because only Stewart was mic'd!)
Funnily enough I remember reading Stewart Lee locked himself in his flat for 6 whole months watching back to back Monty Python, the whole experience only came to an end when he let himself go.
I have just discovered this guy and let myself go.
Stewart Lee, what a boss.
As someone from Doncaster I would have loved to have seen you from that time, but I do see your point. There are some of us with the same ideas questioning society and norms that you speak of, but so many people from my hometown are happy to just get along without any issue
I really enjoy listening to him talk, as much as I do his comedy, which is meant with full respect. His intelligence is so tangible, fascinating man
Really fascinating, love when he reads that he's 44 then realsises he's actually 45 now! Gonna have to watch that economics episode of Comedy Vehicle now!
A really good lecture with a good insight into contemporary culture, there's not enough of this.
the cultural insight was huis weakest game... where as his artistic one was birlliant. his cultural "insights" seem saomewhat standard left wing tho liberal, partyline.
and therefore how i dont agree with his otherwise valid and somewhat important comedy
@@beakfordflappering4647 Shush now
What a wonderful history piece by a master!
I envy the only guy in the audience who seems to get it, no doubt he had the time of his life...
Marvelous. Simply marvelous.
The Space Battleship "Yamato" has let itself go.
Your description is totally accurate but that's why some of us like him. I think at some point in his long career, he thought I'm bored of telling jokes, I'm going to see if I can do a whole set on Crisps or stretch out a mediocre punchline (which everyone already knows) for ten minutes. Some how, he pulls it off. That said, he's definitely not for everyone. Sun readers for example.
Got to admire the art, even if its not funny.
the "let himself go" is a bit of a long-running stewart lee gag, where he talks about how comments online say things like "KD Lang's let herself go", "Morrissey's let himself go", etc.
I've watched this several times. So brave to unpick this stuff. Oh, our Stu ... gotta love him. and fun too. thanks for the brain food.
Marc Walton I was going to write some words but I'll just agree with you instead #perfect
Stu? Is this not Morrissey?
If it is he's let himself go
Is Ali Campbell?
That was great... He should also do one on 'Not Being Funny".
Hi Stewart, came to see your latest show in Nottingham with my son, then Salford with my mate. Both shows were superb. Keep doing what you do, it’s inspiring and also funny!
This was so interesting. I need to listen to this again.
Looking at him from almost a decade ago I can't help thinking "Stewart Lee's made himself come".
"On Not Writing", which is accidentally verbose. Love this Man!
Totally agree with stewart lee. If im gonna watch a comedian i wanna hear him talk about his view on life like, pryor, carlin, hicks, cosby, stewart lee, and a few others.
That was wonderful, I'll be referring to this a very lot.
Wow I think its incredibly fearless the way that he goes for his 'peers' calling them out for using writers. I wonder if that had a backlash for him (forgive my ignorance). I used to think of comics as these scrupulous artists who were terribly jealous of their own material. But now...
Excellent references.
If I'd had professors like this I might have finished college.
At least you can form a third conditional correctly.
You must own your failings - the shame is yours - attributing it to a convenient scapegoat is just another of your failings. Take stock, take responsibility & take back your life - best foot forward now.
@@cahillgreg God, you must be fun at parties.
@@cahillgreg It's in no way your "failing" if you quit school because your professors are pedagogically unsound or socially irrelevant. In reality, that's their problem.
@@Rufusdos People who type this are ironically usually not very fun at parties.
This is great- thank you for uploading and sharing.
Wonderful to have an insight into his writing process. He's also quite insightful about the history of comedy too. I've always favoured writers as comedians from Beyond The Fringe through to Python, the Young Ones and Mitchell and Webb (for example).
UA-cam commenters are unwilling to let go.
+
Exactly. Endlessly recycling an old Lee joke is not very funny.
The battleship Yamoto one did make me giggle though
Sort of like a pear cider then
Brilliant . . . a masterclass this.
I didn't think that Stewart Lee would be the sort of person who comments on UA-cam videos. But now I see that I am wrong. In order to gather more material for a forthcoming show, he has adopted the persona Stefan G, someone who supposedly hates his stuff and resents his Oxbridge education whilst paradoxically loving Monty Python and ignoring their Oxbridge educations. It should be a promising routine.
i doubt he knows how to work an ipad
George Carlin is my favorite intellectual comedian
Yes but has Stefan G let himself go ?
Bumgardener Kreme I’m Stephen G and certainly have.
I used to think i wanted to be a stand-up... but the fact that i keep laughing out loud whenever the audience isnt laughing at lines that arent apparently funny leaves me thinking i should be a writer... or a fireman.
Thankyou Steven Lee, ill remember this lesson.
good call. i really really enjoyed watching that. i've been a fan for years and even i was somewhat cautious when i saw how long it was, however, loved it
this was absolutely fantastic, brilliant upload
Every time Stewart Lee looks at his watch the audience should start asking their question again.
it was an informative and entertaining lecture. the fact you didn't like it says a lot more about you than it does about Stew.
Delightfully interesting. My actual comment.
28 years old! Yesss!
He doesn't mention Eddie Izzard, whose autobiog. I have just read, but he also is a stand-up who learned to write his own material and how to make the most out of it. Now he is an actor/entertainer. They are clever people. I am a snob with my stand-ups; I only want to see the ones who are smarter than I am; who say things I haven't thought myself.
He's actually the 41st best standup.
41st best in based on what measure? Certainly not based on intelligence. He's much smarter than that.
@@thinkingsincerely7260 According to some Channel 4 poll. He's made reference to the ranking a few times and even used it to name one of his shows. I made this comment before UA-cam had direct replies. It was a sarcastic dig at a hater so is out context now.
Sadly the Darlington Arts Centre has been empty for the last couple of years, it's being sold to be converted into flats. Same as the beautiful library. :-(
Nirvana Sanctuary that's a shame :(
That's what happens when you lose God. Planet of the Apes incoming.
Please tell me you're joking. Arts centres closing are a result of government cuts, absolutely nothing to do with God. Planet of the apes is a satire on society using blind faith as a tool of oppression. That should have been obvious, it had animals in it!
@@rowanmorrison7022 Man without acknowledgement of the divine is but an animal. It's why the devil and the evil things in religious iconography have horns, tails etc - beastly qualities.
Art is about forms, forms are transcendental etc this all plays into a higher power.
Oh I am sorry, I didn't realise you were logic challenged. Be well x
GET ON WITH IT!!!
thanks! this looks great; looking forward to watching it.
vic reeves has let himself go
Actually 4 years later I think Vic Reeves 'now' would like to look like Stewart then!
@@CoachStephen subtle point 😆
15:20 Daniel Kitson - now that’s a comedian! I saw him down the Comedy Store about 20 years ago. Holy moly!
Love Stu.
An offensive 1950's cartoon of a Chinaman has let itself go.
Eskimo face from the 90s
whilst i think this is great and a wonderfuLL insight Lee completely side steps the fact that there is a class distinction with the 70's comics and with his stuff which is middle class,, none of the comics of the 70's went to Oxford,, they were just lads from the building site or chancers but they would never have had a sniff at the kind of privileges he has been afforded,,don't get me wrong i think Lee is awesome ,, and i accept a majority of the 70's comics were shallow and racist but they were in fact following a music hall tradition of low culture and popular culture, where as Lee has taken a low culture of stand up into an almost high culture,, almost the persevere of readers of The Times,, it wasn't too long ago that Opera was hi jacked by the upper classes and it became cleansed and antiseptic,, yet earlier Opera used to be baudy , rude,, using foul language and the subject matter was aimed at deriding the royals of the time and the aristocracy,, so i feel it is cyclical too..
Very good insight! Sorry though I have to ask - I really don't mean to be rude - why do you keep using two commas next to each other?
Good on you for as above says - love him or not , it’s an important point with regard to the historical context or accuracy. How about the 80s ‘alternative comedians’ whom are now the establishment? When I saw Ade Edmunson as presenter of a cosy food programme made in very pretty country village locations about 10 yrs back I couldn’t deceive if it mattered or not.
its more about "not writing", as in having ghost writers. the same thing happens in hiphop. if you dont write your own stuff your not considered authentic.
*its also about
Interesting, but a little wide of the mark. Yes, they didn't all go to Oxford, but you might be surprised to find that Cambridge Alumni includes most of the Monty Python team, and all of The Goodies, to name but a few to challenge your viewpoint on 70's entertainers (Graeme Garden qualified as a physician). However, the crappier (IMO) comedians were low-brow racist, mysogynist turds.
And, try and dig up Jeremy Hardy's very amusing criticism of the idea of "middle class". He opines that everyone who has to work to pay the bills (instead of living off enormous, inherited wealth) is "working class". When a nurse is up to her elbows in blood, and poo and piss, it's not going to matter to her that she went to gymkhanas when she was young (paraphrasing Mr. Hardy's humour).
To be honest I preferred Stewart Lee back when he was good...
In the eighties...
Under Thatcher.
Yeah, it really affected him when all the rope bridges fell into disrepair.
He appears to have let himself go
Great talk.
Subtitles for the audiences questions would have been nice.
Letting yourself go has let itself go.
I didnt even know Billy the fish had such an eloquence with words and timing
Good to see Mark Kermode doing so well.
some gleaningful gems, whatever that means.
This was made before my life fell apart. I didn't see it coming.
Slobodan Milosovic has let himself go
But he's still a much nicer bloke in real life. :)
john smith
At least Slobodan Milosovic lived his life by a consistent set of moral principles.
hexonatapeloop Jesus christ.
a
a
Stan laurel has let himself go
at about 11:00 he refers to symbol cracks, what is it? I tried googling it, but it just came up with loads crack logos and tattooed arses
Cymbal crash lol
@@Michael-ux4yd I see where I went wrong, thanks :D
By "let himself go" I presume you mean "is acting naturally without pretense of an inflated ego, one which might cause someone to dye there hair and wear fashionable clothing at the expense of their credibility." In which case I can but agree with you.
The comments re: further education - and particularly with regard to arts courses - is even more true now than it was then. This is especially true, I think, in the Performance arena.
You extrapolate things,,,,in a way I have taken on board and made me laugh on the way. Job Done.
I don't find the video quality lacking in any way for the purpose of a talk like this.
GENIUS
I much prefer Tom O'Connor - he was a proper comedian - quick, like lightning in a dish
Stewart looks simultaneously like.. Actor Martin Shaw
(The Professionals),
Terry Christian (The Word)
Absolute Gentleman.
This is brilliant. Stew is a national treasure who's material ages like fine wine.
whose
Or 100% pear cider
The best, funniest comedian of the last 50 years at least. Utter genius.
What? Which comedians have you been watching? Clearly not Bill Hicks, George Carlin, Richard Pryor, Billy Connolly, Robin Williams, Jerry Seinfeld, Joan Rivers, Sarah Silverman, Louis CK, Dave Chappelle. Eddie Izzard. Stewart Lee couldn’t lace any of their boots. A boatload of intellectual baggage and arrogance and about as edgy as a tennis ball
God he's smart.
That is one thing comedy can be about.
That is what comedy is about for you.
If you watch this without looking it doesn't seem like this is written (which is absolute genius if you ask me)
Taking someone else's old material, changing the noun and presenting it in a written form is as funny as it ever was, or ever will be.
I've always found that being at a recording of a SL set and then watching it again in isolation means you hear a whole lot of lines you missed. A comedy audience is so keyed up to laugh that twists that need to be right after the punch are lost in the laughter. Learning that several big-name stand ups use writers might go some way to my feeling that their material didn't seem to come from some fixed point. I admit I have laughed at a few Frankie Boyle one-liners but not constantly. Only a few stand ups invest in a real on stage persona. One one hand, they feel more real but on the other hand people seem to believe that they are seeing the real person.
Les Dawson did have a gift that went mostly unrecognized. His writing was amazing, the only better thing being his delivery. Dave Allen actually did some quite harsh lines. DAs tiny bits that were aggressive were all the more potent because it was in such stark contrast with the rest of his set.
I've always been impressed by SL continuing to evolve. After a couple of decades, it must be easy to work out a demographic and pander to them. Easy to judge opinions of the many and take the safe route. With a family to support, that's got to be tempting.
As someone has already pointed out - to be totally frank about how the financial side works cannot have made him many friends. I haven't read his books (I will) but I am hopeful that Tractatus-Illogico Risus will be possible. 'A serious and good philosophical work could be written consisting entirely of jokes' - Wittgenstein
Of course, I could be totally wrong.
BTW The Independent wrote an article about the lecture. If people are not aware, journalists always offer a right of reply to a piece. In their words 'No one was available to respond to the claim at McIntyre’s agents, whilst agents for Osho, Whitehall and Boyle all declined to comment.'
To be fair, he didn't say they were wrong to use writers, he noted it as a possible new era. While musicians cover other artists songs, I cannot think of a musician of global standing who JUST covers other peoples material. We don't know how much material is written by others.
On reflection, I would say that the fact articulated a feeling about a number of stand ups.that I've held for a long time. No real stage persona so no obvious situations where you would think 'that persona would not make that joke'. Some of the jokes have been very funny but the person delivering them is a golem (in the traditional Jewish meaning of the work). Not something of flesh and blood but just an automaton with a limited, pre-learned stage craft.
There are plenty of stand ups in SLs league but most of them are not as well known. Simon Munnery, Kevin McAleer, Kevin Eldon. The only people who will intentionally lose the audience at the start of the act. I mean keep going until not 1 person is left laughing. Only then do they win them back. What confidence - most stand ups want a joke in the first seconds. What ability - to knowingly lose the whole room and reliably get it back. With all of them, the box marked stand up isn't a perfect fit.
I'm not simply fawning over a few stand ups, I've seen and enjoyed dozens but it's in retrospect, watching someone kill the room (having been in the room and then watched same on DVD), it's not something many would attempt. I would like to see some more acts develop who tread that fine line between losing the room for a while and still knowing you can get them back. I have seen it done, but watching alone shows the laughter squeezed out of the audience and filled from a different well.
Or I could be totally wrong.
What id like is to be able to download this (legally) as an mp3 so i can listen to it on the train.
There's some software to do this here:
download.cnet.com/windows/download-managers/?sort=userRating+asc
No need - it's on iTunes! itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/on-not-writing/id418892718?i=162090063&mt=2
Not one minute of this made me Ang Lee
Just as well; I wouldn’t have liked you if you were.
"Shakespeare - many people think he's great." Lovely.
Dan is an excellent, EXCELLENT writer
ALL COMMENTS (330) has let himself go