Stewart Lee: Content Provider

Definitely my favourite Stewart Lee special of the three I've watched so far.

He goes nuts in the second half and turns into some kind of gloriously awkward performance art where I was almost in tears laughing.

The first half had me worried for a while, as there were many similarities to another special of his, Carpet Remnant World, but it things get brought home in the final stretch.

The weird mockumentary interludes were pretty amusing too.

Maybe I'm starting to "get" Stewart Lee, or maybe I'm just laughing at the broadest stuff, I don't know 😅

I can say, though, that parts of this would make up the funniest standup in years- maybe since I discovered Bo Burnham in all honesty.

I love Stewart Lee. This was the third time I'd seen him live. Somehow topping the previous shows.

Like many people, I've seen Stewart Lee's brand of intelligent self-deconstructive comedy done across a range of his shows, and essentially it is very similar in terms of what it does. Content Provider is no different and indeed contains the same 'interview' interludes as his recent BBC2 show did (albeit this time with Alan Moore in the Chris Morris place). Despite this, it continues to work well because it is the action of a well created character, but built on different material and approach each time. The idea of 2 hours of him berating his audience for not being smart enough, did make me wonder if I would like it, but it is how it is done, not that it is done again, that works. It is consistently funny throughout.

Here and there it drags on a bit - for effect I'm sure, but the Howard impersonation and the 1930's S&M bits all felt like they didn't need to be as long as they were. Hard to begrudge though, since mostly there is payoff to be had. It is a well-worn path at this point, and I'm not sure which of the groups in his audience I fall into, but Content Provider is another example of the quality of the comedian in how he works the crowd, and works within very strong and cleverly written material.

The cliche is true, if you get Stewart Lee, if you actually see what an incredible mind/talent he is, you cannot fully enjoy other stand-ups. If this is your first viewing of Stewart Lee, I envy you because you have so much of the old stuff to go back and discover. This show is fantastic, it ticks all the right boxes for any Stewart Lee fans, I would be hard pushed to find a favourite amongst his back catalogue, each set has something unique to offer, even if some of the quirks of his stage "persona" become familiar to you, that's what's so good about it. Highly recommended. Any Stewart Lee fan knows that already, the elitist liberal elite are a lucky bunch indeed.

Whilst I am a devotee of Lee's material, I appreciate that he is not everyone's cup of tea.

Why this is so I used to have no idea until I came across the explanation that Stewart Lee operates on the terms of Brechtian Alienation. In other words, he goes out of his way during his performances to turn his audience against himself.

This might sound self-defeating unless you already know this in advance. Once you do know, his smug, pretentious and insulting persona becomes an hilarious kind of inside joke. But far too many people take his act/persona at face value and totally miss the point.

All that being said, I urge you to see this performance and bear in mind what I've said. Many of the points he engages with are serious, he is a thinking mans/womans comedian and does not waste your time.

I've watched this many times on DVD, I always find myself laughing out loud and tonight I actually applauded him in my own house. It's either that or cry at the awful reality that he attempts to address.