“I play by my own rules, not the rules of entomologists”
Stewart Lee performed at Pestival 2007, later describing his idea to perform as an insect, costume and all in his book, How I Escaped My Certain Fate.
Stewart details his return to live performance, and the journey that took him from an early retirement to his position as the most critically acclaimed stand-up in Britain, the winner of BAFTAs and British Comedy Awards, and of course his involvement with Pestival.
“Then I was approached by an old friend, Bridget Nicholls, an eco-activist with pirate blood who was organising an entomology-based arts event called Pestival at Barnes Wetlands Centre that May. Would I do the opening-night cabaret in some capacity?
.. Now, I’m known as a maverick within the world of comedy, I play by my own rules, not the rules of entomologists. If I want to do a joke about a spider, no amount of entomologists are going to stop me. You can threaten me with court and I’m still not scared . . . except with that TV thing cancelled I need this to work out, I need this. I need this. I need Pestival’
Watch the one and only elusive clip from Stewart Lee’s now cult-esque Pestival performance, filmed by Junita Baggett:
