[Johnny 1989]

Have to agree.
Watched Lee on I Player after a friend recommended it. Actually didn't make me laugh but it seemed well constructed.
As for his comments re 2nd book. Well...I think he has a point!
Love Chris and the show, been listening for 8 yearsish and bought and read both books. I thought the 2nd was pants. Not in its entirety; there were some amusing anecdotes, but taken as a whole it seemed more a money making venture than an effort to tell a story!

It could have been in the contract that he had to write two? Sometimes certain contracts require a limit of so many before an agreement is reached (for example U2 signed a contract to do 3 "Best Of's..." for Island Records of which they have already done, although 18 Singles is rather rushed)

[ALFIE]

You may well be right!

Still, loved the 1st book. Think a 3rd could happen, he just needs to wait a couple of years and gather some more stories!

[Yudster]

The only way a third book would work would be if he went no-holds barred and told everything like it is, and even if he was in a position to do that, I really don't think he would. Neither of the books were literary milestones, but realistically they did what they said on the tin didn't they? Literary candyfloss undoubtedly, but so what? Its not like he pretended they were anything else. And I like candyfloss.

[SAV1OUR]

Stewart Lee gets called to account, he doesn't discuss Moyles in this bit, however, it would seem there is more than what meets the surface, when pressed, Lee outlines that he may actually be more passionate about his chosen 'victims' than you think..
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00jd8gp
(It's the second video down)

[JonnyYesno]

Does Lee make any mention of Moyles being fat anywhere?

He's attacking his 'vaulting ambition' for the book to be only read for defecating purposes.

"Oh Icarus"

[Andy B]

The Oxford English Dictionary has a great entry titled "Irony". Feel free to read it some day. To summarise though it's basically the use of words of phrases to convey a meaning other than their literal intention.

That's what annoyed me most about Lee's review (for the want of a better word). If you take any form of comedy and analyse it seriously it will always seem stupid rather than funny. I mean if only Ronnie Barker had said "I'm sorry I thought you wanted four candles, why don't you give me that list so I can easily get the other items you want" the whole debacle could have been avoided.

Oh Vienna.

[Johnny 1989]

The Oxford English Dictionary has a great entry titled "Irony". Feel free to read it some day. To summarise though it's basically the use of words of phrases to convey a meaning other than their literal intention.

That's what annoyed me most about Lee's review (for the want of a better word). If you take any form of comedy and analyse it seriously it will always seem stupid rather than funny. I mean if only Ronnie Barker had said "I'm sorry I thought you wanted four candles, why don't you give me that list so I can easily get the other items you want" the whole debacle could have been avoided.

Oh Vienna.

Good Point well made, but, Ronnie Corbett would have been the one who would have been the who would have said that, not Ronnie Barker

[JonnyYesno]

The Oxford English Dictionary has a great entry titled "Irony". Feel free to read it some day. To summarise though it's basically the use of words of phrases to convey a meaning other than their literal intention.

That's what annoyed me most about Lee's review (for the want of a better word). If you take any form of comedy and analyse it seriously it will always seem stupid rather than funny. I mean if only Ronnie Barker had said "I'm sorry I thought you wanted four candles, why don't you give me that list so I can easily get the other items you want" the whole debacle could have been avoided.

Oh Vienna.

The greatest irony here is that you think fork handles is an ironic take on four candles. Feel free to....etc.

[S4B]

Andy's never been the brightest button in the box. I'll send him a dictionary

[Andy B]

I think you'll find those were two differing statements. One emphasising Moyle's use of irony as a comedic literary device and the other was pointing out the (bigger what's the right word?) absurdity(?) of trying to analyse comedy from a serious point of view.

I suppose Chris' "great toilet book" comment could be taken as self depricating humour but then is that not a form of irony?

[JonnyYesno]

I suppose Chris' "great toilet book" comment could be taken as self depricating humour but then is that not a form of irony?

Erm but where's the humour in the irony? - are you suggesting the book's actually better than he claims?

[S4B]

Oh shush you!

[hdsport82]

Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle = Faux-intellectual snobbery.

[Andy B]

I love you. That's what I wanted to say.

[TIAL]

Comedy really doesn't lend itself well to be discussed in any big way. It really just boils down to this:

Person A: I think X is funny.
Person B: Seriously? I think X is very unfunny.
Person A: You're wrong, X IS funny. And here's why.
Person B: But I don't find him funny. He's unfunny for these reasons.

etc

[JonnyYesno]

Comedy really doesn't lend itself well to be discussed in any big way. It really just boils down to this:

Person A: I think X is funny.
Person B: Seriously? I think X is very unfunny.
Person A: You're wrong, X IS funny. And here's why.
Person B: But I don't find him funny. He's unfunny for these reasons.

etc

Eh?
But your dialogue even shows that Person A and Person B want to discuss the comedy thus contradicting your initial statement. Which is it?


I'll fix it:

Person A: I think X is funny.
Person B: Seriously? I think X is very unfunny.
Person A: You're wrong, X IS funny. And here's why.
Person B: But I don't find him funny. He's unfunny for these reasons.
Person C: Oh shush you two - stop tryin' to be clever...Ha someone just said poo on the telly.

[TIAL]

I wasn't saying that people don't want to discuss comedy. I was merely saying that the subject doesn't make for good discussion.

[dckymt]

Well that show's a fundamnetal ignorance on the nature of discussion. There is nothing more boring than people duscussing something they all agree on as there is nothing original to say. When people disagree then of course people will end up getting pissed off, but it enables you to see something from a different perspective and maybe learn something. More importantly it makes you properly think about your own opinions in a way that you can communicate and therefore you own understanding becomes more succinct.

I think Stewart Lee was brilliant on comedy vehicle. And those people who think he hasn't changed since the nineties have some problems with their basic observation skills. But the fact that there are people out there disagreeing and offering differing opinions makes for a great discussion.

Even though they are obviously wrong.

[Andy B]

So then in order to give this show a second chance I started to watch the second show on iplayer and by not even the third minute he'd resorted to doing gags he once proclaimed as for beind used by "Lazy Comedy Slags"

2/12 mins on iplayer

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00jhpy6/Stewart_Lees_Comedy_Vehicle_Television/

TMWRNJ



It may have been an ironic use of the gag but if it is then the irony is lost on me. Personally I think he's lost it.

[JonnyYesno]

Well spotted. His show only got 1m, ie all his fans. It seems he's not going to comprimise his brand of humour to draw in a larger audience and will probably not get a second series which is a shame because I think it's the freshest breath of TV stand up for years. The '28 years old' has been an indulgant signature gag of his, designed to get a 'wahey' of recognition more than a genuine laugh. Like I say, he's likely to alienate those who've never seen him before because he's not traditional and deliver's Dave Allen style routines rather than straight gags. Pretentious? Absolutely! Consider him a snobby grumpy old git that sneers at anything successful in the mainstream purely for being popular, and probably lazy.

[TIAL]

by not even the third minute he'd resorted to doing gags he once proclaimed as for beind used by "Lazy Comedy Slags"

I think you're missing the point. Isn't that simply a nod of gratification to his fans rather than a weak attempt to get laughs?
I wasn't aware of that previous sketch, but the way it was such a lazy repetitive punchline being said in a non-plussed style seemed to me like he was taking the piss out of lazy comedians.

[C-Kay]

This guy is as funny as a kick in the nuts.

[MonkeyMonger]

Watching the second one (called "television") is just painful... I started to feel sorry for him. Worst thing is that he obviously thinks a lot of himself.

Also just wondering, are iPlayer stats included in ratings? Because Horne and Corden is getting half the viewers it was before, but most popular on iplayer. I think somewhere in the thread it says 1mill but is this with iPlayer showings?

[Munki Bhoy]

This guy is as funny as a kick in the nuts.

Funny, but only to onlookers?

[C-Kay]

This guy is as funny as a kick in the nuts.

Funny, but only to onlookers?

Hmm, that would make him funny, seeing as i would be an onlooker watching his show. Thanks, you have just ruined my analogy


He's * shit! That's better