16 March 2009 (2009-03-16) – 7 April 2016 (2016-04-07)
Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle is a British comedy series created by and starring Stewart Lee and broadcast on BBC Two. It features stand-up comedy and sketches[1] united by a theme for each episode. It was script-edited by Chris Morris and was initially executive-produced by Armando Iannucci, marking a rare reformation of a creative team formed for On the Hour in 1991. Lee had said that this is exactly the sort of show he wanted to do, saying "I don't want to do any television that I don't have complete control of."[2]
The first series aired in 2009, with subsequent series in 2011, 2014 and 2016. Stewart Lee announced in May 2016 that the BBC had declined to make any further series. This was due primarily to cuts to BBC 2's comedy budget which would now focus instead solely on scripted comedy.[3]
Format
The bulk of the show is a Stewart Lee stand-up comedy performance, recorded live at the Mildmay Club in Stoke Newington with a club audience. Usually two episodes of the show were recorded per evening. Each episode has a theme, which Lee performs with his material. The stand-up is punctuated with sketches, written by Lee but usually performed by Kevin Eldon and Paul Putner with cameos from other TV and circuit comedians. From series 2, the sketches were removed in favour of a short film at the end of each episode. An element of the programme is the "hostile interrogator", played by Armando Iannucci in the second series and by Chris Morris in Series 3 and 4. In a darkened room, the interrogator quizzes Lee about his approach to stand-up comedy and his attitudes toward his audience and the comedy industry. In Series 1, the interrogator segments (with Iannucci and Johnny Vegas as interrogators) were not included in the main programme, accessed instead via the BBC Red Button and included on the DVD releases as bonus features. The interrogator segments were integrated into the main body of the show by Series 2. The opening theme tune to Series 1 is "Tom Hark" by Elias & His Zig-Zag Jive Flutes. From series 2 there is a cold open and no theme tune or title card.
DVD releases
Series 1 was released on 7 September 2009 as a 2-disc region-2 PAL set. Red-button extras are included.[4]
Series 2 was released on 20 June 2011 as a single-disc region-2 PAL issue. Red-button extras are absent.[5]
Series 3 was released on 10 November 2014 as a 2-disc region-2 PAL set. During a promotional run of his A Room with a Stew tour at the Leicester Square Theatre the admission price included a complimentary copy of the DVD.[6]
Series 4 was released on 10 October 2016 as a 2-disc region-2 PAL set.[7]
Stewart analyses a comedy record by Franklyn Ajaye. This episode was intended to be the last in the series of six but was transmitted early, so as to not broadcast the "Religion" episode on Easter Monday. It appears as the last episode on the DVD release of the series.
Series 2 was filmed between 11 and 14 January 2011; aired from 4 May to 8 June 2011. It features Armando Iannucci as the hostile interrogator. Six lines in the series were written by Bridget Christie, Simon Munnery and Tim Richardson.
Overall no.
Series no.
Title
Guest cast
Airdate
7
1
"Charity"
Arnold Brown, Robert Thirtle
4 May 2011 (2011-05-04)
Stewart sets out to explore some ideas about charity, but gets sidetracked and ends up talking mostly about his grandfather and crisps.
8
2
"London"
—
11 May 2011 (2011-05-11)
Stewart looks at metrocentrism, the countryside, quality of life and what happens to Londoners who move to the countryside.
9
3
"Charity"
—
18 May 2011 (2011-05-18)
The comedian returns to the theme of charity after failing to address it in the first episode of the series. He asks whether charity is a moral obligation, and how much money millionaires like Russell Howard should donate.
The award-winning stand-up series returns after a three-year absence, as he ponders some alterations to road signs along the A1 in Northumberland. The background music in the short film at the end of the episode is Ludovico Einaudi's The Earth Prelude.
14
2
"England"
Kevin Eldon, Paul Putner
8 March 2014 (2014-03-08)
Stewart turns his attention to Paul Nuttall of "the UKIPs" and immigration, while Chris Morris quizzes him on his audience control.[8] The background music in the short film at the end of the episode is Don Randi's cover of "Theme from The Fox" by Lalo Schifrin.
15
3
"Satire"
—
15 March 2014 (2014-03-15)
Stewart explains satire, using the examples of Animal Park and Planet of the Apes. A section of the episode is ad-libbed when an audience member leaves the room at an inopportune time. The background music in the short film at the end of the episode is "Assault and Battery" by Hawkwind.
16
4
"Context"
Kevin Eldon, Paul Putner
22 March 2014 (2014-03-22)
Stewart looks at context in comedy and asks whether it is possible to have a context-free word. The background music in the short film at the end of the episode is Frédéric Chopin's "Prelude, Op. 28, No. 4" performed by Martha Argerich
17
5
"London"
Paul Putner
29 March 2014 (2014-03-29)
Stewart Lee wants to talk about national and international property. To keep things funny, he mostly talks about his hatred for dogs. Lee performs the last verse of Harry Champion's "Out Went The Gas".
18
6
"Marriage"
—
5 April 2014 (2014-04-05)
Stew gives us a glimpse into the life of an impotent, vasectomied, 45-year-old functioning alcoholic father of two. The music used in the short film at the end is "Come In Number 51, Your Time Is Up" by Pink Floyd.
Series 4
Series 4 consists of six episodes, broadcast from 3 March 2016.[9]
Overall no.
Series no.
Title
Guest cast
Airdate
19
1
"Wealth"
—
3 March 2016 (2016-03-03)
Stewart reflects on his recent lack of commercial and critical success with respect to The Graham Norton Show and the BAFTA Awards. The music used in the short film at the end is "Pseudo Youth" by Napalm Death.
20
2
"Islamophobia"
Kevin Eldon, Paul Putner
10 March 2016 (2016-03-10)
Stewart attempts to make some Islamophobic comedy, by talking about a Muslim woman sitting on a copy of The Watchtower on a bus. The bus is later occupied by Quakers.
Stewart starts to talk about the European migrant crisis, his contribution to the relief effort and Rod Liddle but something goes awry.
24
6
"Childhood"
—
7 April 2016 (2016-04-07)
Stewart discusses childhood memories relating to urine.
Reception
Andrew Billen of The Times described the first series as "the most intelligent half hour of stand-up you will see on television this year" and that Lee "has become the master of deadpan stand-up".[10]The Guardian Guide said "Lee's Vehicle feels well overdue, with his brand of bone-dry, spot-on scepticism a refreshing change from the perky, ambitious tones of the Mock the Week brigade [...] it's brilliant."[11] Brian Viner of The Independent said "In my front room, Lee was preaching not so much to the converted, as to an ayatollah. He did so brilliantly, though."[12]
The Guardian named Comedy Vehicle as one of its top ten television highlights of 2009, commenting that it "was the kind of TV that makes you feel like you're not the only one wondering how we came to be surrounded by so much unquestioned mediocrity".[13] One of the show's few negative reviews came in the Sunday Mercury, which stated: "His whole tone is one of complete, smug condescension".[14] Lee subsequently used this line to advertise his next stand-up tour.[15]
Writing about the third series in The Metro, Keith Watson said "It’s comedy that makes you stop and think, and there’s not enough of it about", awarding the show four out of five stars.[16] Ellen Jones writing in The Independent said "this comedy about comedy would be unforgivably self-indulgent if Lee wasn’t just as incisive on every other facet of modern life as he is on his own comedic genius".[17]
