It starts with a cheerily vivid threat of violent retribution to users of camera phones. It ends with a visual punchline: a riposte to generation selfie delivered from on top of piles of rival comedians’ remaindered DVDs. And in the two hours of jokes about Brexit, Trump and “the individual in a digitised free-market society” in between, Lee delivers what may just be the most consistently funny show of his brilliant career.
As you’ll know if you’ve seen Lee in his now-cancelled BBC Two stand-up show, his thirst to address our messed-up world is matched only by his hunger to discuss his style, technique and simultaneously marginal and pre-eminent position in the marketplace. He sets up a hall of comedic mirrors in which any joke about stuff that matters — his Brexit routine is good, as is a Trump routine hastily but artfully conceived to mirror it in every detail — fast ricochets into live footnotes about how the show is going, about whether this is all just “massaging the prejudices” of the metropolitan liberal elite.
Yet secretly there is a plan to Content Provider, a return to the sort of long-form live show that Lee sidelined in the years when his tours became tryouts for television material. And we, the Lee consumers, are getting a much better deal: his mixture of the overstatedly satirical and the wilfully absurd needs time to attain equilibrium.
As he roams between mocking the faddish mimsiness of anyone under 40 — his beaming, Neanderthal mime of people on their phones is my funniest moment of the year so far — to mocking politicians, Russell Howard, Game of Thrones (“Peter Stringfellow’s Lord of the Rings”) and the strictures of his own persona, he is also trying to find a way to be authentically amusing in a divided society with atomised tastes.
If that sounds highfalutin, what renders it hilarious is Lee’s sheer devotion to jokes. His writing is both dense and loose. He mocks the narcissism of our age, while forever keeping a jaundiced eye out for his reflection. Phew. I laughed till it hurt.
Joe, Independent.co.uk
Joe, Independent.co.uk
Robert Gavin, Twitter
Robert Gavin, Twitter
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Mpf1947, Youtube
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Peter Ould, Twitter
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Cojones2, Guardian.co.uk
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Horatio Melvin, Twitter
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John Robins, Comedian
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Brendon, Vauxhallownersnetwork.co.uk
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Anon, BBC Complaints Log
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Coxy, Dontstartmeoff.com
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Emilyistrendy, Youtube
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Pirate Crocodile, Twitter
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Slothy Matt, Twitter
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Alex Quarmby, Edfringe.com
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Someoneyoudon'tknow, Chortle.com
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Aaron, comedy.co.uk
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Meninblack, Twitter
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Birmingham Sunday Mercury
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Henry Howard Fun, Twitter
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Whoiscuriousgeorge, Youtube
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A D Ward, Twitter
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Johnny Kitkat, dontstartmeoff.com
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Cabluigi, Guardian.co.uk
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Anon, westhamonline.com
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General Lurko 36, Guardian.co.uk
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Visualiser1, Twitter
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Dominic Cavendish, Daily Telegraph
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Brighton Argus
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Anonymous, The Northfield Patriot
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Tweeter Kyriakou, Twitter
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Dahoum, Guardian.co.uk
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Iain, eatenbymissionaries
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Pudabaya, Twitter
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Anon, dontstartmeoff.com
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Ishamayura Byrd, Twitter
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Lenny Darksphere, Twitter
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Frankie Boyle, Comedian
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Maninabananasuit, Guardian.co.uk
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Richard Herring, Comedian
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Tin Frog, Twitter
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Shane, Beverley, Dailymail.co.uk
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Esme Folley, Actress, cellist, Twitter
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Tweeterkiryakou, Twitter
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Secretdeveloper, Youtube
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Bobby Bhoy, Twitter
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Gwaites, Digitalspy
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NevW47479, UKTV.co.uk
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98rosjon, Twitter
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Mrdavisn01, Twitter
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Dominic Cavendish, Telegraph
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Gabrielle, Chortle.com
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Gmanthedemon, bbc.co.uk
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Etienne, Chortle.com
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Cyberbloke, Twitter
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Al Murray, Comedian
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Yukio Mishima, dontstartmeoff.com
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Aiden Hearn, Twitter
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Lee Mack, Mack The Life, 2012
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Borathigh5, Youtube
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Pudabaya, beexcellenttoeachother.com
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Dave Wilson, Chortle.com
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Joycey, readytogo.net
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Lents, redandwhitekop.com
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Spanner, dontstartmeoff.com
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Contrapuntal, Twitter
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Anonymous, don'tstartmeoff.com
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Foxfoxton, Youtube
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Syhr, breakbeat.co.uk
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GRTak, finalgear.com
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Pnethor, pne-online.com
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Carcrazychica, Youtube
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James Dellingpole, Daily Telegraph
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Rudeness, Youtube
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Hiewy, Youtube
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Leach Juice, Twitter
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Lucinda Locketts, Twitter
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Len Firewood, Twitter
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Liam Travitt, Twitter
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Deepbass, Guardian.co.uk
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Peter Fears, Twitter
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Karen Laidlaw, Edfringe. com.
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Peter Ould, Youtube
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Patrick Kavanagh, Guardian.co.uk
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Dick Socrates, Twitter
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Carla, St Albans, Dailymail.co.uk
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Sam Rooney, Youtube
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Shit Crit, Twitter
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Genghis McKahn, Guardian.co.uk
BBC iPlayer edition of discussion of Stewart Lee on A Good Read
BBC iPlayer edition of discussion of Stewart Lee on A Good Read
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Meanstreetelite, Peoplesrepublicofcork
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Rowing Rob, Guardian.co.uk
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Wharto15, Twitter
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Sweeping Curves, Twitter
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Joskins, Leeds Music Forum
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Alwyn, Digiguide.tv
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FBC, finalgear.com
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Neva2busy, dontstartmeoff.com