Joe Lycett
Joe Lycett | |
---|---|
Born | Birmingham, England | 5 July 1988
Medium | Stand-up, television, Entrepreneur |
Nationality | British |
Alma mater | University of Manchester |
Years active | 2009–present |
Website | joelycett |
Joe Harry Lycett (born 5 July 1988) is a British comedian and television presenter. He has appeared on TV shows including Live at the Apollo, Taskmaster, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, 8 Out of 10 Cats, QI, as the announcer on Saturday BBC One show Epic Win, the narrator for Ibiza Weekender and as the presenter on BBC Two's The Great British Sewing Bee and Channel 4's consumer rights show, Joe Lycett's Got Your Back.[2] In February 2020, Lycett briefly changed his name by deed poll to Hugo Boss as part of a protest against the fashion brand of the same name.[3][4]
Career
Lycett was the 2009 Chortle Student Comedian of the Year, the winner of Bath New Act competition in 2009, the runner-up in the 2009 Laughing Horse New Act of the Year, and a finalist in the 2011 BBC New Comedy Awards. In 2012, his debut stand-up show Some Lycett Hot was nominated for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards.
In his early career as a 22-year-old comedian, Lycett appeared on stage alongside Jim Davidson. Davidson is known for his offensive jokes, which have been described as both racist and homophobic, and Lycett complained about Davidson's use of the racial slur 'chink' in one of his jokes (which Davidson later removed). The two became friends while touring together (with Davidson's only complaint to Lycett being that he swore too much). "[Jim Davidson's] views on race are incredibly misguided but he is very educated about it. He has read the Quran, and at one point told me in detail about the origins of Rastafarianism", Lycett told the Birmingham Mail in 2011.[5]
Lycett has appeared on television on Live At The Apollo, 8 Out of 10 Cats, 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, Celebrity Juice, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Spicks and Specks, Would I Lie to You?, Insert Name Here Virtually Famous, and Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, and was a regular panelist on the E4 show Dirty Digest. He has also co-written narration on ITV2 shows The Magaluf Weekender and Ibiza Weekender. Lycett featured on Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled Christmas Special with Jason Manford, Rev Richard Coles, and Jo Joyner. Lycett also starred as one of the contestants in the fourth series of Taskmaster, and has made several guest appearances on Sunday Brunch in the absence of one of the regular hosts.
On the radio he has been a guest on Scott Mills, Greg James and Nick Grimshaw's programmes on BBC Radio 1 and on Richard Bacon's programme on BBC Radio 5 Live. In August 2011, he wrote and performed the short story Spooky and the Van which was broadcast in the Afternoon Reading slot on BBC Radio 4.[6] In August 2013, he made his debut on Just a Minute on BBC Radio 4. In September 2016, he took over from Miles Jupp as the host of It's Not What You Know, also on BBC Radio 4.[7] Lycett was also known as "the resident news hound" on Josh Widdicombe's XFM radio show, which was broadcast on Saturday (and later Sunday) mornings.[8]
In addition to his appearances on various radio stations, Lycett has also featured as a guest on numerous podcasts, including My Dad Wrote a Porno,[9] SoundCheck Podcast,[10] The Comedian's Comedian with Stuart Goldsmith,[11] and the Richard Herring Leicester Square Theatre Podcast.
On 12 February 2019, Joe Lycett took over as the new presenter[12] on the fifth series of BBC Two's The Great British Sewing Bee.
Lycett started presenting his consumer show Joe Lycett's Got Your Back, which was branded a "sexy Watchdog"[13] in 2019 with help from various guests and Mark Silcox.[14] The show takes on big corporations, such as airlines and banks, to provide justice for consumers, with a comedic spin.[15] The series was renewed for a second series.[16] Lycett describes the show as "a cross between Rogue Traders and RuPaul's Drag Race".[17]
On 17 August 2019 and 26 October 2019, Lycett stood in for Rylan Clark-Neal on Rylan on Saturday on BBC Radio 2. In December 2019 he returned to Radio 2 covering Sara Cox's drive-time show during the Christmas and New Year period.
In February 2020, in response to a legal dispute between fashion company Hugo Boss and the Swansea-based Boss Brewing, Lycett changed his name by deed poll from Joe Lycett to Hugo Boss.[3] He said that he was drawing attention to fashion company Hugo Boss's use of legal action and cease and desist letters relating to alleged copyright violations against numerous small businesses, including Boss Brewing, for use of the word 'Boss'.[3][18] In the second series of Joe Lycett's Got Your Back, the comedian launched a fake fashion show celebrating the release of a wrist brace under the name 'Hugo Boss' outside the flagship store of the fashion company with the same name in Regent Street, London.[19] Lycett claims that Hugo Boss, the company, called the police following this incident.[20] In April 2020, he changed his name back to Joe Lycett.[4]
In 2021, Lycett presented the television documentary Joe Lycett vs the Oil Giant.
Personal life
Lycett was born in Hall Green, Birmingham. His parents are David and Helen Lycett. He attended King Edward VI Five Ways grammar school, studied Drama and English at the University of Manchester, and was awarded the 2009 Chortle Student Comedian of the Year. Lycett frequently refers to his bisexuality[21] and pansexuality[22] as part of his stand-up routines. Lycett has been described by Unicorn magazine as "probably the most high-profile pansexual man in Britain today". In a 2015 interview with Attitude magazine, however, he described how being bisexual "presents its own challenges," when people have "no box to put you in", adding "It just means you fancy people of all genders."[23]
In 2015, while performing in York, Lycett was given a parking ticket for parking illegally in a taxi rank. The ensuing trail of correspondence, between him and City of York Council, was recounted as an anecdote on 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown and then became the basis for one of his stand-up routines.[24]
In May 2019, Lycett arranged for the Birmingham Lord Mayor Yvonne Mosquito to officially open his kitchen extension. At first, Mosquito declined, as it was not a public event, but after Lycett raffled four tickets to the event to the public she agreed.[25]
Lycett has been a supporter of West Bromwich Albion since 2012.[26]
Filmography
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2010 | Laughter Shock | Himself | TV movie |
2011 | Epic Win | Himself | August – September 2011 |
2011 | Dirty Digest | Himself | November 2011 |
2012 | 8 Out of 10 Cats | Himself | Series 14 |
2012 | Celebrity Deal Or No Deal | Himself | Won £35,000 for his selected charity after choosing box number 16 |
2012 | Celebrity Juice | Himself | Series 8 |
2012–2014 | Never Mind the Buzzcocks | Himself | Series 26 (2012), Series 28 (2014) |
2014–2015 | Virtually Famous | Himself | Series 1 (2014), Series 2 (2015) |
2014–2016 | Live At The Apollo | Himself | Series 10 (2014), Series 12 (2016) |
2014–2017 | 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown | Himself | |
2015–2017 | Would I Lie To You? | Himself | Series 3 (2015), Series 5 (2017) |
2015 | Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled | Himself | Series 3 (2015) |
2016 | Insert Name Here | Himself | Series 1 (2016) |
2016 | Countdown | Himself (Dictionary corner guest) | Series 75 (2016) |
2017 | Taskmaster | Himself | Series 4 (2017) |
2017–present | QI | Himself | Series O (1 Episode), Series P (2 Episodes), Series Q (2 Episodes), Series R (2 Episodes) |
2018 | Roast Battle | Himself | Series 1 (2018) |
2018 | The Time It Takes | Himself | Series 1 (2018) |
2019–present | The Great British Sewing Bee | Presenter | Series 5–present |
2019–present | Joe Lycett's Got Your Back[27] | Presenter[nb 1] | Series 1 (2019), Series 2 (2020), Series 3 (2021) |
2019, 2020 | The Big Fat Quiz | Himself | The Big Fat Quiz of Everything (2019 Special), The Big Fat Quiz of the Decade (2020) |
2020 | Dragon's Den | Presenter[28] | Dragons' Den: Best Ever Pitches: The Inventions, Ep1 - 6 |
2021 | Birdgirl | Graham | Voice Acting |
30 April 2021 | Have I Got News for You | Himself (Panelist)[29] | Series 61, Episode 4 |
24 October 2021 | Joe Lycett vs the Oil Giant | Himself (Presenter) |
- ^ Series 1 as Joe Lycett and Series 2 as both Hugo Boss and Joe Lycett
Stand-up DVDs
Title | Release Date | Age Rating |
---|---|---|
Joe Lycett: That's The Way A-Ha A-Ha, Joe Lycett – Live | 21 November 2016 | 15 |
Joe Lycett: I'm About to Lose Control And I Think Joe Lycett – Live | 26 November 2018 | 15 |
References
- ^ Boss, Hugo [@joelycett] (1 March 2020). "It's clear that @HUGOBOSS HATES people using their name. Unfortunately for them this week I legally changed my name by deed poll and I am now officially known as Hugo Boss. All future statements from me are not from Joe Lycett but from Hugo Boss. Enjoy" (Tweet). Retrieved 15 February 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Joe Lycett's Got Your Back: Joe Lycett's Got Your Back". Channel 4. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ a b c "Joe Lycett: Comedian changes his name to Hugo Boss". BBC. 2 March 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
- ^ a b Joe Lycett [@joelycett] (16 April 2020). "A statement" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Laws, Roz (31 January 2011). "Jim Davidson gives Birmingham comic lecture in swearing and race". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ Lycett, Joe (25 August 2015). "Afternoon Reading: Spooky and the Van". BBC Radio 4.
- ^ "It's Not What You Know". BBC Radio 4.
- ^ "Joe Lycett". The Dome. Archived from the original on 5 January 2016.
- ^ acast (21 July 2016). "Footnotes: Joe Lycett – My Dad Wrote A Porno on acast".
- ^ "Glastonbury Special With Joe Lycett". Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
- ^ "Episode 168 – Joe Lycett (Live) – The Comedian's Comedian Podcast with Stuart Goldsmith". British Comedy Guide.
- ^ "The Great British Sewing Bee viewers give their verdict on new host Joe Lycett: Joe has stepped into Claudia Winkleman's shoes". Good Housekeeping. 13 February 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
- ^ 15: John Hannah, Kevin McCloud and Joe Lycett's Got Your Back, 8 April 2019, retrieved 24 April 2019
- ^ Solutions, Powder Blue Internet Business. "Mark Silcox vs Burger King : Video 2019 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ "Joe Lycett's Got Your Back: Joe Lycett's Got Your Back – On Demand". Channel 4. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
- ^ Stolworthy, Jacob (1 March 2020). "Joe Lycett changes name to Hugo Boss in protest against fashion house". The Independent. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
- ^ Armstrong, Stephen (5 April 2020). "Joe Lycett interview: why I changed my name to Hugo Boss". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
- ^ Stolworthy, Jacob (1 March 2020). "Joe Lycett changes name to Hugo Boss in protest against fashion house". The Independent.
- ^ Mangan, Lucy (10 April 2020). "Joe Lycett's Got Your Back review – will the real Hugo Boss please stand up!". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
- ^ Williams, Kathryn (10 April 2020). "Joe Lycett's takedown of Hugo Boss aired tonight and it was brilliant". walesonline. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
- ^ "Comedian Joe Lycett: 'Being Bisexual Has Its Own Challenges'". Attitude. 26 June 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
- ^ "Joe Lycett on comedy, revenge and pansexuality". iNews. 19 October 2016. Retrieved 27 December 2016.
- ^ "Joe Lycett's battle with fame anxiety and bizarre reason he is so productive". 2 November 2021.
- ^ "Comedian dreams up genius way to dodge York parking fine – celebrates with street party". YorkMix. 6 November 2015. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
- ^ "The lord mayor, a comedian and a kitchen". BBC News. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
- ^ "Comedian Joe Lycett unleashes a sweary blast at Birmingham City after West Brom's dramatic win". Birmingham Mail. 30 March 2019. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
- ^ Boss, Hugo (6 March 2020). "Filmed this last night. It's a lot of fun. Coming to @Channel4 next month. pic.twitter.com/cJQQKME4WS". @joelycett. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ Den, BBC Dragons' (30 May 2020). "In 24 hours the vault swings open again to reveal Dragons' Den- Best Ever Pitches @joelycett will be your host on @BBCTwo at 8.15pm and tonight we raise a toast to inventions.pic.twitter.com/QeIvluZj8b". @BBCDragonsDen. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
- ^ Lycett, Joe (30 April 2021). "misinterpreted the text ur dad sent me asking to see me at 9pm on friday so i accidentally went on his favourite show". Retrieved 9 May 2021.
External links
- 1988 births
- Comedians from Birmingham, West Midlands
- English male comedians
- English television presenters
- LGBT rights activists from England
- LGBT entertainers from England
- Bisexual comedians
- Bisexual men
- Pansexual men
- Bisexual rights activists
- Living people
- Alumni of the University of Manchester