As a tiny child, I fell in love with the pageantry and camaraderie of the Eurovision song contest. But my infant innocence was shattered as early as 1969 when, barely 18 months old, I watched Norway’s Kirsti Sparboe crawl criminally into last place with her swinging slice of Carnaby Street pop Oj, Oj, Oj, Så…
Sometime between quitting drinking two months ago and the evening of the general election, I developed the ability to travel through time. Or rather, it appears that time has developed the ability to travel through me. That said, if you remember when 70s donkey-jacket socialism dissolved in the acid of 80s Thatcherism, then the instinctive…
Are we naturally selfish? Or do we have an innate sense of empathy for our fellow living things? The radio journalist Herbert Morrison watched the Hindenberg come down and announced, “Oh! The humanity!” And once I stood outside a pub on the canal in Camden and watched a crowd of drunken men laughing and cheering…
The Thracian slave Aesop is historically lauded as the master of the fabular form, pitting simplistically symbolic creatures – the wily fox, the lascivious bat and the slothful sloth – against each other in tales that have delighted fans of prescriptive anthropomorphic narrative for generations. But the current race towards No 10 has an audacious…
My irregular “David Mitchell is on holiday” columns on page seven of the Observer New Review frequently generate massive web traffic, with thousands of below-the-line reader comments, though, admittedly, most of them call for me to be sexually punished. But these opportunistic weekly election diaries have provoked minimal comment-is-free contributions from the Observer’s hopefully future-proof…
This week, on a break between standup tour dates, I am on holiday with the children in Nether Stowey, Somerset, from where I file the next of my election columns. As a north London Old Speckled Hen socialist I assumed there would be little political for my satirical pen to set about in Somerset, where…
Alex Quarmby, Edfringe.com
Alex Quarmby, Edfringe.com
Kozzy06, Youtube
Kozzy06, Youtube
Zombie Hamster, Twitter
Zombie Hamster, Twitter
Jamespearse, Twitter
Jamespearse, Twitter
Joycey, readytogo.net
Joycey, readytogo.net
Sam Rooney, Youtube
Sam Rooney, Youtube
Fowkes81, Twitter
Fowkes81, Twitter
Mpf1947, Youtube
Mpf1947, Youtube
Nicetime, Guardian.co.uk
Nicetime, Guardian.co.uk
DVDhth's grandparents, Twitter
DVDhth's grandparents, Twitter
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Rudeness, Youtube
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Al Murray, Comedian
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Tin Frog, Twitter
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Funday’schild, youtube.
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98rosjon, Twitter
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Secretdeveloper, Youtube
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Sweeping Curves, Twitter
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Neolab, Guardian.co.uk
Etienne, Chortle.com
Etienne, Chortle.com
Carla, St Albans, Dailymail.co.uk
Carla, St Albans, Dailymail.co.uk
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Borathigh5, Youtube
Microcuts 22, Twitter
Microcuts 22, Twitter
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Anonymous, The Northfield Patriot
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Someoneyoudon'tknow, Chortle.com
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Anamatronix, Youtube
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Meninblack, Twitter
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Whoiscuriousgeorge, Youtube
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Dave Wilson, Chortle.com
Guest, Dontstartmeoff.com
Guest, Dontstartmeoff.com
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Sidsings000, Youtube
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Bobby Bhoy, Twitter
Birmingham Sunday Mercury
Birmingham Sunday Mercury
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Pnethor, pne-online.com
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Rowing Rob, Guardian.co.uk
Johnny Kitkat, dontstartmeoff.com
Johnny Kitkat, dontstartmeoff.com
Mrdavisn01, Twitter
Mrdavisn01, Twitter
Iain, eatenbymissionaries
Iain, eatenbymissionaries
GRTak, finalgear.com
GRTak, finalgear.com
Richard Herring, Comedian
Richard Herring, Comedian
Leach Juice, Twitter
Leach Juice, Twitter
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Pirate Crocodile, Twitter
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Dahoum, Guardian.co.uk
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Lucinda Locketts, Twitter
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Emilyistrendy, Youtube
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Bosco239, youtube
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Ishamayura Byrd, Twitter
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A D Ward, Twitter
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Tres Ryan, Twitter
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Karen Laidlaw, Edfringe. com.
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Meanstreetelite, Peoplesrepublicofcork
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Joskins, Leeds Music Forum
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Frankie Boyle, Comedian
Aaron, comedy.co.uk
Aaron, comedy.co.uk
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Joe, Independent.co.uk
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Henry Howard Fun, Twitter
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Stuart, Chortle
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General Lurko 36, Guardian.co.uk
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Foxfoxton, Youtube
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Z-factor, Twitter.
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Stokeylitfest, Twitter
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Lee Mack, Mack The Life, 2012
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Visualiser1, Twitter
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Wharto15, Twitter
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Yukio Mishima, dontstartmeoff.com
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Gmanthedemon, bbc.co.uk
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Aiden Hearn, Twitter
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Syhr, breakbeat.co.uk
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Dick Socrates, Twitter
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Danazawa, Youtube
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Hiewy, Youtube
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Peter Fears, Twitter
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Genghis McKahn, Guardian.co.uk
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Robert Gavin, Twitter
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Lancethrustworthy, Youtube
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Shit Crit, Twitter
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Len Firewood, Twitter
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Keilloh, Twitter
Spanner, dontstartmeoff.com
Spanner, dontstartmeoff.com
Jackmumf, Twitter
Jackmumf, Twitter
Mini-x2, readytogo.net
Mini-x2, readytogo.net
Mearecate, Youtube
Mearecate, Youtube
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Tweeterkiryakou, Twitter
Cyberbloke, Twitter
Cyberbloke, Twitter
Brendon, Vauxhallownersnetwork.co.uk
Brendon, Vauxhallownersnetwork.co.uk
Cojones2, Guardian.co.uk
Cojones2, Guardian.co.uk
Brighton Argus
Brighton Argus
Peter Ould, Twitter
Peter Ould, Twitter
Rubyshoes, Twitter
Rubyshoes, Twitter
James Dellingpole, Daily Telegraph
James Dellingpole, Daily Telegraph
Gwaites, Digitalspy
Gwaites, Digitalspy
Coxy, Dontstartmeoff.com
Coxy, Dontstartmeoff.com
Neva2busy, dontstartmeoff.com
Neva2busy, dontstartmeoff.com
Lenny Darksphere, Twitter
Lenny Darksphere, Twitter
BBC iPlayer edition of discussion of Stewart Lee on A Good Read
BBC iPlayer edition of discussion of Stewart Lee on A Good Read
Esme Folley, Actress, cellist, Twitter
Esme Folley, Actress, cellist, Twitter
Patrick Kavanagh, Guardian.co.uk
Patrick Kavanagh, Guardian.co.uk
Anon, westhamonline.com
Anon, westhamonline.com
Idrie, Youtube
Idrie, Youtube
Liam Travitt, Twitter
Liam Travitt, Twitter
Dominic Cavendish, Daily Telegraph
Dominic Cavendish, Daily Telegraph
Pudabaya, beexcellenttoeachother.com
Pudabaya, beexcellenttoeachother.com
Fairy Pingu, Twitter
Fairy Pingu, Twitter
Alwyn, Digiguide.tv
Alwyn, Digiguide.tv
Chez, Chortle.com
Chez, Chortle.com
Tokyofist, Youtube
Tokyofist, Youtube
12dgdgdgdgdgdg, Youtube
12dgdgdgdgdgdg, Youtube
Contrapuntal, Twitter
Contrapuntal, Twitter
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Tweeter Kyriakou, Twitter
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Peter Ould, Youtube
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Carcrazychica, Youtube
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Slothy Matt, Twitter
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John Robins, Comedian
Horatio Melvin, Twitter
Horatio Melvin, Twitter
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Deepbass, Guardian.co.uk
FBC, finalgear.com
FBC, finalgear.com
Anon, BBC Complaints Log
Anon, BBC Complaints Log
Pudabaya, Twitter
Pudabaya, Twitter
NevW47479, UKTV.co.uk
NevW47479, UKTV.co.uk
Shane, Beverley, Dailymail.co.uk
Shane, Beverley, Dailymail.co.uk
Maninabananasuit, Guardian.co.uk
Maninabananasuit, Guardian.co.uk
Anonymous, don'tstartmeoff.com
Anonymous, don'tstartmeoff.com
Anon, dontstartmeoff.com
Anon, dontstartmeoff.com
World Without End, Twitter
World Without End, Twitter
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Dominic Cavendish, Telegraph
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Lents, redandwhitekop.com
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Clampdown59, Twitter.
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Cabluigi, Guardian.co.uk
Guest1001, Youtube
Guest1001, Youtube
Gabrielle, Chortle.com
Gabrielle, Chortle.com