TV Review - March 2016 The Sunday Times - By AA GIll - March 6th, 2016

I’d given up on ever again finding stand-up on TV funny, so Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle didn’t arouse antic expectations. But actually it is properly funny, and what makes him funny is instructive. He plays a character. It’s not him, it’s a performance. He’s not just a spooky, needy fat man telling jokes; Lee’s character…

Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle - March 2016 Reasons To Be Cheerful - By Ryan T - March 6th, 2016

In life we all have different guises. There are times at work where we have to dress up our serious side and play the professional. Then at home we can kick off this costume and return to our default role of leading goofball. I mean, this blog I write is another form of characterisation: it…

A comic who splits opinion – so which side are you on? - March 2016 Liverpool Echo - By Paddy Shennan - March 4th, 2016

It’s very tempting NOT to review Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle (BBC2, Thursday), because the tirelessly self-analytical comedian does such a good job of doing that himself. He also told us in the first show of his fourth series: “No one is equipped to review me.” Maybe he’s right, but let’s give it a go, anyway.…

Comedy Vehicle roars back with more deceptive deadpanning - March 2016 The Guardian - By Brian Logan - March 4th, 2016

“Each shit series is like a suicide note,” Stewart Lee tells Chris Morris in the first episode of Comedy Vehicle series four; “or like someone that’s carried out a crime and written in blood on the wall, ‘Stop me before I do this again.’” The BBC clearly isn’t getting the message – notwithstanding Lee’s frequent…

Series 4 Episode 1: Wealth – Chortle Review - March 2016 Chortle - By Steve Bennett - March 3rd, 2016

Accused of intellectual snobbery, Stewart Lee hits back, pointing out that it’s a valid performance device, under the theatrical technique of Brechtian alienation. Thus explaining himself and reinforcing the criticism in one kamikaze blow. The friction is all part of the rules of engagement of his Comedy Vehicle, which are well-established now it enters its…

Episode 1: Wealth – The DVDfever Review - March 2016 DVD Fever - March 3rd, 2016

Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle is rather like Luther – it comes round every 2-3 years and is to the TV schedules what oxygen is to our bodies – an essential requirement. Often, the programme is like a comedy masterclass, with this first new episode, showing how to segue between light-hearted and serious topics, the latter…