STEWART LEE’S cat is called Jeremy Corbyn. Or so he would have us believe.
Long before Corbyn’s stratospheric rise from rebellious backbench MP to Labour leader, Lee remembers seeing one of the North Islington MP’s campaign fliers in the 90s and thinking it would make a good name for a cat, his story goes. But that revelation is in fact the vehicle for a wonderful metaphor about the new Labour leader not singing the national anthem.
In the absence of cat litter, Lee recounts how he uses a load of cheap England flags he says he bought during the 2012 London Olympics for Corbyn the cat to shit on.
Afeared by this anti-patriotic act, Lee spends the next five to 10 minutes attempting to sing the national anthem while mimicking the cat’s farting sounds.
The image of a red-faced, saluting Lee blowing raspberries defiantly at the audience is a comic-gold conclusion to one of the master raconteur’s trademark lengthy anecdotes.
But there’s so much more, with much new material from the sardonic Lee as he prepares to record a fourth series of his brilliant Comedy Vehicle for BBC2.
He test-drives four ingenious sequences in his trademark digressive vein and there’s even time for some classic asides on the brain-dead observational “comedy” practised by his contemporaries.
A highlight of the show is a gag about his three-year-old daughter asking him what “that thing” is — a condom thrown over the wall by a local prostitute which hangs off their back-garden tree.
Mindful to protect her innocence, Lee tells her: “It’s a pixie’s hat,” to which she replies: “Then why is it filled with sperm?”
There’s his usual self-deprecation and mocking of the audience’s slowness to respond immediately with the barrel of laughs that his intelligent and painstakingly crafted “jokes” so often deserve.
“That’s why you’re down there like rats in the dark and I’m up here like a sun god,” he tells us, tongue in cheek.
He mocks us further, as he does for most of the set. Referring to us as “vegetable-eating Guardian readers,” he adds: “The haloumi sleeps easy on the grills of Soho’s vegetarian restaurants tonight.”
But he laments the speed and scale of volatile political material that he simply didn’t have time to turn around such as “that Cameron would have had sex with a severed pig’s head, the world of satire couldn’t have predicted that.” And he laments too the fact that Isis the dog — “the best actor” on Downton Abbey — had to be killed off because of a 21st-century terrorist organisation.
“Now the series is just thinly veiled paternalistic Tory propaganda,” Lee tells us.
Don’t miss.
Bobby Bhoy, Twitter
Bobby Bhoy, Twitter
Pudabaya, beexcellenttoeachother.com
Pudabaya, beexcellenttoeachother.com
Guest1001, Youtube
Guest1001, Youtube
Patrick Kavanagh, Guardian.co.uk
Patrick Kavanagh, Guardian.co.uk
Carcrazychica, Youtube
Carcrazychica, Youtube
Horatio Melvin, Twitter
Horatio Melvin, Twitter
Gabrielle, Chortle.com
Gabrielle, Chortle.com
Gwaites, Digitalspy
Gwaites, Digitalspy
Danazawa, Youtube
Danazawa, Youtube
James Dellingpole, Daily Telegraph
James Dellingpole, Daily Telegraph
Contrapuntal, Twitter
Contrapuntal, Twitter
Pirate Crocodile, Twitter
Pirate Crocodile, Twitter
Spanner, dontstartmeoff.com
Spanner, dontstartmeoff.com
Wharto15, Twitter
Wharto15, Twitter
Stuart, Chortle
Stuart, Chortle
Joe, Independent.co.uk
Joe, Independent.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
John Robins, Comedian
John Robins, Comedian
Hiewy, Youtube
Hiewy, Youtube
Aiden Hearn, Twitter
Aiden Hearn, Twitter
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Syhr, breakbeat.co.uk
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Slothy Matt, Twitter
Dave Wilson, Chortle.com
Dave Wilson, Chortle.com
Sweeping Curves, Twitter
Sweeping Curves, Twitter
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Pnethor, pne-online.com
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Lucinda Locketts, Twitter
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Yukio Mishima, dontstartmeoff.com
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Anamatronix, Youtube
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Keilloh, Twitter
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Borathigh5, Youtube
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Neolab, Guardian.co.uk
Richard Herring, Comedian
Richard Herring, Comedian
Dick Socrates, Twitter
Dick Socrates, Twitter
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Anon, BBC Complaints Log
Genghis McKahn, Guardian.co.uk
Genghis McKahn, Guardian.co.uk
Alwyn, Digiguide.tv
Alwyn, Digiguide.tv
Mini-x2, readytogo.net
Mini-x2, readytogo.net
Cabluigi, Guardian.co.uk
Cabluigi, Guardian.co.uk
Brighton Argus
Brighton Argus
Joskins, Leeds Music Forum
Joskins, Leeds Music Forum
Iain, eatenbymissionaries
Iain, eatenbymissionaries
Brendon, Vauxhallownersnetwork.co.uk
Brendon, Vauxhallownersnetwork.co.uk
Al Murray, Comedian
Al Murray, Comedian
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Karen Laidlaw, Edfringe. com.
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Mearecate, Youtube
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Henry Howard Fun, Twitter
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Liam Travitt, Twitter
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Pudabaya, Twitter
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Anon, westhamonline.com
98rosjon, Twitter
98rosjon, Twitter
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General Lurko 36, Guardian.co.uk
Peter Fears, Twitter
Peter Fears, Twitter
NevW47479, UKTV.co.uk
NevW47479, UKTV.co.uk
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Jamespearse, Twitter
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Jackmumf, Twitter
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Rowing Rob, Guardian.co.uk
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Cyberbloke, Twitter
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Robert Gavin, Twitter
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Kozzy06, Youtube
12dgdgdgdgdgdg, Youtube
12dgdgdgdgdgdg, Youtube
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Maninabananasuit, Guardian.co.uk
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Tres Ryan, Twitter
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Tokyofist, Youtube
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Aaron, comedy.co.uk
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Peter Ould, Twitter
Microcuts 22, Twitter
Microcuts 22, Twitter
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Esme Folley, Actress, cellist, Twitter
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Dahoum, Guardian.co.uk
FBC, finalgear.com
FBC, finalgear.com
Birmingham Sunday Mercury
Birmingham Sunday Mercury
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Lee Mack, Mack The Life, 2012
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Foxfoxton, Youtube
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Z-factor, Twitter.
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Peter Ould, Youtube
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Lenny Darksphere, Twitter
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Tin Frog, Twitter
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Deepbass, Guardian.co.uk
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Funday’schild, youtube.
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Joycey, readytogo.net
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Stokeylitfest, Twitter
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Leach Juice, Twitter
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Bosco239, youtube
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Zombie Hamster, Twitter
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A D Ward, Twitter
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Gmanthedemon, bbc.co.uk
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Dominic Cavendish, Telegraph
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Tweeterkiryakou, Twitter
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Secretdeveloper, Youtube
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GRTak, finalgear.com
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Mpf1947, Youtube
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Coxy, Dontstartmeoff.com
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Lancethrustworthy, Youtube
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Mrdavisn01, Twitter
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Idrie, Youtube
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Johnny Kitkat, dontstartmeoff.com
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Cojones2, Guardian.co.uk
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Frankie Boyle, Comedian
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Emilyistrendy, Youtube
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Len Firewood, Twitter
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Meanstreetelite, Peoplesrepublicofcork
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Whoiscuriousgeorge, Youtube
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Ishamayura Byrd, Twitter
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Anonymous, don'tstartmeoff.com
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Rudeness, Youtube
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Sam Rooney, Youtube
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Visualiser1, Twitter
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Someoneyoudon'tknow, Chortle.com
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Alex Quarmby, Edfringe.com
Dominic Cavendish, Daily Telegraph
Dominic Cavendish, Daily Telegraph
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Lents, redandwhitekop.com
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Fowkes81, Twitter
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Chez, Chortle.com
Tweeter Kyriakou, Twitter
Tweeter Kyriakou, Twitter
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DVDhth's grandparents, Twitter
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Etienne, Chortle.com
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Rubyshoes, Twitter
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Meninblack, Twitter
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Guest, Dontstartmeoff.com
Sidsings000, Youtube
Sidsings000, Youtube
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Nicetime, Guardian.co.uk
World Without End, Twitter
World Without End, Twitter
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Carla, St Albans, Dailymail.co.uk
Shane, Beverley, Dailymail.co.uk
Shane, Beverley, Dailymail.co.uk
Anonymous, The Northfield Patriot
Anonymous, The Northfield Patriot
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Anon, dontstartmeoff.com
Clampdown59, Twitter.
Clampdown59, Twitter.
Neva2busy, dontstartmeoff.com
Neva2busy, dontstartmeoff.com
Shit Crit, Twitter
Shit Crit, Twitter
Fairy Pingu, Twitter
Fairy Pingu, Twitter