Showbiz

Alexei Sayle 'I'm fascinated by comedy again'

Published Friday, Aug 12 2011, 12:25 BST | By Mayer Nissim | 5 comments

Alexei Sayle has said that he is fascinated by the world of comedy again.

The former Young Ones star gave up stand-up in the mid-1990s and has since written several novels.

Of his return to the stage during Stewart Lee's At Last! The 1981 Show tribute in May, Sayle told The Guardian: "I f**king killed, mate.

"Walking on stage, I instantly felt, 'I know what this is'. I felt a tremendous satisfaction just to be there."

He added: "My inclination for comedy came from being faced with so much pomposity and humourlessness when I was young.

"And now, I'm fascinated by that world again, a world I'd deliberately not looked at for 15 years. I'm fascinated by comedy."

Sayle said that since the show he has "forced himself" as a mentor on a number of younger comedians and will compere Robin Ince's Nine Lessons and Carols for Godless People later in the year.

The alternative comedy icon was one of a number of stars who signed a letter in 2009 calling on Iran's government to respect the human rights of its people.

> Read Digital Spy's recent interview with Stewart Lee