Do you hate stand-up comedy? You might love Stewart Lee’s new quirky TV series - January 2013 Evening Standard - By Bruce Dessau - January 30th, 2013

Stewart Lee, the scourge of mainstream comedy, is lending his expertise to a commercial television enterprise. But fear not – he hasn’t sold out. He’s curating The Alternative Comedy Experience, a showcase of talented stand-ups who have a substantial club following but wouldn’t normally get a chance to perform on screen. “These are comedians you…

The Alternative Comedy Experience: Interview with Stewart Lee - January 2013 London Student - By Rhys Giles - January 28th, 2013

We met Stewart outside the offices of Comedy Central off Oxford Street. He was holding a carrier bag containing a few CDs from HMV that he had picked up prior to the interview. Readers of Stewart’s occasional Guardian column will know that he is not getting paid for the DVDs he supplied to HMV of…

Stewart Lee’s defining moments in alternative comedy - January 2013 The FT - January 25th, 2013

The acclaimed British comedian recalls five personally influential moments from the scene’s 1980s heyday 5 DEFINING MOMENTS OF ALTERNATIVE COMEDY, A PERSONAL VIEW 5th May 1981 BBC 2 aired the second and final edition of Boom Boom Out Go The Lights, the first, and extremely short-lived, TV showcase of Alternative Comedy. I didn’t see the…

The Alternative Comedy Experience - January 2013 The List - By Brian Donaldson - January 22nd, 2013

Stewart Lee is not sure that he and Comedy Central will have the same hopes for his curated 12-part show. The comic sees it as being similar to a ‘slightly under-attended Tuesday night at an arts centre’; Comedy Central’s ambitions remain unclarified, but on viewing the full four hours they may have considered renaming the…

Interview: Stewart Lee, comedian - August 2012 The Scotsman - By Jay Richardson - August 2nd, 2012

WHEN alternative comedy emerged in the 1980s, a new wave of stand-ups savaged their celebrity predecessors for their crass sexism and racism and naff commercialism. Stewart Lee recalls “taking the piss out of Max Bygraves or whoever … tax-dodging multimillionaires who did any piece of shit that came along, all their material written by other…

Stewart Lee in interview: “Annoying, confusing, weird, satirical and clever” - June 2012 The Skinny - By Bernard O'Leary - June 29th, 2012

Next week, The Stand Edinburgh will be taken over by the kind of lineup that will make comedy purists tremble at the knees. Josie Long, Robin Ince, David O’Doherty, Tony Law, Bridget Christie, Simon Munnery and Isy Suttie are just a few of the names appearing at the series of ten shows, masterminded by none…