Modern comedy is 'too cautious'

Alexei Sayle has accused Michael McIntyre of peddling ‘bland guff’.

The former Comedy Store compere – who says he still considers himself a comic despite a 15-year absence from the stage - said the modern stand-up scene was too unadventurous.

In an interview with BBC News, he said: ‘At the moment it’s all terribly cautious isn’t it, really. What people want is bland guff from Michael McIntrye.’

He said he was starting to take a renewed interest in the comedy circuit, adding: ‘People like Stewart Lee, a guy called Josh Howie, they will be my friends just because of my place in history – they don’t like me.’

However he said he didn’t relish his own time as a a stand-up.

‘I don’t think I ever actually really enjoyed being a stand-up comedian because it was a desperate drive to be successful,’ he said.

‘When you are in the middle of creating an art form - which is what we did - sometimes you are ecstatic, it’s dizzying, but enjoy doesn’t really encompass the feeling. The central drive – certainly in my case – was to make me famous.’

Click here to watch the interview.

Published: 18 Jun 2011