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Carpet Remnant WorldReview: Stewart Lee, Tyne Theatre, Newcastle

By Sarah Mullaney in Evening Chronicle Posted on Monday, March 26th, 2012

It’s a lie, of course. The deadpan comic would have you believe his Carpet Remnant World show is nothing more than a collection of off-cuts but, as ever, he’s put together fresh material that’s lapped up by his growing number of fans.

He’s quick to mock his increasing popularity – buoyed by his BBC Comedy Vehicle show and his status as the darling of broadsheet critics ­- poking fun at ‘new fans’ he claims not to want and distancing himself from the funnymen who’ve become household names thanks to TV exposure.

“The Russells” , Michael McIntyre and Frankie Boyle are put to the sword, although anyone who’s seen Lee’s last couple of tours will already be familiar with his disdain for the commercialisation of stand-up. Perhaps it’s a theme that’s becoming a little too well worn.

But the “Us and Them” stance is central to his whole performance as he willfully tests his audience’s patience – making them work for the laughs – by stretching parts of his routine to breaking point before expertly reeling them back in, just because he can.

Like a master magician who now reveals his secrets, he breaks down the art of stand-up, bit by bit, as a way of making us acutely aware of what we’re laughing at and, crucially, why we’re actually laughing at all.

Noted for his dry delivery, and dripping with irony, he somehow takes us through a surreal world of Scooby Doo cartoons and zombie pirates, mixed together with riffs on Al Qaeda, Maggie Thatcher and those who peddle lazy observational comedy for the masses.

Split into two parts, the show stretches past the two-hour mark (although it seems to race by faster) with much of the material hitting home. He’s not afraid to poke fun at himself – and his reputation for being smug and superior – by collecting together a number of outrageous online insults before it all ends on a ridiculous and ultimately uplifting tale that gives the show its name.

He might have told us he had no jokes, but that didn’t stop him skillfully weaving together another fantastic show that fits the room perfectly.

Written by Sarah Mullaney in Evening Chronicle on 26th March 2012. Filed Under: Carpet Remnant World, Reviews
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