Stand-up is more of an organic process. An imagined dialogue with the audience. Stewart Lee audiencedialogueimagine Change image and share on social
It's interesting to me that apparently distasteful comments from the Right against weak targets tend to draw a lot less media fire than apparently distasteful comments from the Left against hard targets. That's one of the threads that runs through the show and that people hopefully pick up on. Stewart Lee apparentlycommentdistasteful share on social
The me you see on stage is largely a construct, based on me at my worst, my most annoying, my most petty, and my most patronizing. Stewart Lee annoybadbase Change image and share on social
I'm forever reading on the Internet that I apparently cultivate this audience and never go badly. Stewart Lee apparentlyaudiencebadly Change image and share on social
I don't think I'd want to be a comedian today if I saw it on the telly. I wouldn't think it was a thing for weirdoes and drop-outs; I'd think it was a thing for squares who wanted to be famous. Stewart Lee comediandropfamous Change image and share on social
Normally, when I write a tour show, it's got a title that means something - a beginning, a middle and an end - and some kind of storyline and ideas going through it over two hours. Stewart Lee beginendhour Change image and share on social
I went to a hypnotist to learn how not to use drinking a pint before you go on as a way of giving you the confidence to just fly at it, irrespective of the fear. That's not a long-term strategy, when you do as many gigs as I do. Stewart Lee confidencedrinkfear share on social
I thought it would be a funny concept to publish a book about stand-up comedy with Faber, the poetry publisher, and to apply to stand-up the same sort of weight of annotation that you would to a classic work of literature, an epic poem. I thought that would be funny. Stewart Lee annotationapplybook share on social
Lots of stand-up showcases on TV are made by production companies that also represent acts as clients, so there tends to be a demonstrable bias towards a certain group of people. Stewart Lee actbiasclient Change image and share on social
I think a comedian has to be low status on some level; that gives you the right to do all sorts of jokes about all sorts of different kinds of people. Stewart Lee comedianjokekind Change image and share on social