Stewart, Colbert 'rally for sanity' in DC

Comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert have hosted a mock political rally in Washington DC.

The event was announced on Stewart's The Daily Show last month as a reaction to Fox News pundit Glenn Beck's 'Restoring Honour' rally, in which the right-wing anchor urged his supporters to "turn back to God" and "return America to the values on which it was founded".

'The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear' opened with an introduction from Stewart, who was quickly interrupted by Colbert, shown on a video screen from within his underground "fear bunker".

After being convinced by Stewart to join him above ground, Colbert rose from under the stage in a device similar to the one used to allow the trapped Chilean miners to escape earlier this month.

Several celebrities joined the pair onstage, including the musician Yusuf Islam, formerly known as Cat Stevens, Ozzy Osbourne, Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow. Colbert also awarded one of his "Medals of Fear" to "Anderson Cooper's tight black t-shirt", explaining that when CNN's Cooper "shows up on your front yard, you know something terrible has happened in your community".

As the rally drew to a close, Stewart's message turned more serious as he urged the crowd to resist fearmongering, and said that while some may label America as fragile and torn by hate, "the truth is, we work together to get things done every damn day".