Phill Jupitus began his performing career in 1984, when he quit working in a Job Centre to become a left-wing punk poet, going by the name Porky The Poet.

He did the rounds of pubs and universities, supporting bands including The Style Council, The Housemartins and Billy Bragg. Two years later, he began working for indie label Go! Discs - whose artists included Billy Bragg - where he eventually became press officer for The Housemartins. He has also directed videos for Billy Bragg and the late Kirsty McColl.

And as his poetry turned into comedy, Jupitus remained linked to the music scene, with his big TV break coming in 1996, when he joined BBC2's pop quiz Never Mind The Buzzcocks as a regular team captain.

He also hosted his own show on BBC GLR, where he presented his own show from 1995 to 2000, and became the breakfast DJ on 6 Music in 2002.

As a stand-up, he has performed two UK tours: the Star-Wars-themed Jedi, Steady, Go in 1996, and Quadrophobia in 1999.

Phill also supported Madness on their 2000 national tour, and starred in a sitcom called Dark Ages for Granada Television. In January 2000, he joined BBC1's comedy panel game It's Only TV But I Like It as a team captain, alongside Jonathan Ross and Julian Clary.

He has also provided the voice of Dandelion in an animated series based on Watership Down for ITV and in Aardman Animation's Rex The Runt.

He has also played a patient in Holby City and an embittered sports journalist in the film Mike Bassett: England Manager.

Phill Jupitus: Stand Down
Live Review

Making his return to stand-up after a decade away, Phill Jupitus treads carefully, with an hour of engagingly-written comedy that clings closely to familiar ideas. But although that lack of originally prevents the hour from sparkling, he’s got some deft lines and a solid presence that holds the crowd with efficient, dry humour.

He adopts the customary stance of the middle-aged comic fretting about his gradual decay, while envying the fecklessness of youth. But he doesn’t look his 49 years, especially as there’s much less of him than you might expect, as he’s shed more than six stones this year.

Still, he goes around the room categorising people by decades: the teenagers discovering sex, the twentysomethings continually drunk on vivid-blue drinks, the thirtysomethings with their dinner parties and chi-chi delis… It’s nothing you won’t have heard before, but Jupitus has a charming turn of phrase and the effective deployment of a few spot-on references to emphasise he knows what he’s talking about.

Other running themes include how elderly parents go mental and how much he hates Coldplay, especially as Chris Martin has nothing to complain about given his wealth and Hollywood beauty of a wife. If there’s one thing more dull than loving Coldplay, it’s moaning about how dull Coldplay are. And given that Jupitus is known for his encyclopaedic musical knowledge – surely he could have found some band less clichéd to complain about.

The show’s robustly constructed, the story about his teenage girl bringing home a boy for the first time – incontrovertibly the best, most truthful of all his routines – neatly bookends procedures. A running joke about a Welsh porn star mightn’t be all that funny, but provides some more skeleton to support other material.

Perhaps Jupitus needed to keep things simple as he took the plunge back into the live circuit, just to prove to himself he’s still got the basic talents to get an audience to laugh. Now that’s been ably demonstrated that he can hold a room well, too with a storyteller’s skill for modest but effective deliver, let’s hope for a return with more adventurous, or more personally relevant, material.

I saw Phill last night performing new material and I have to say I wasn't expecting him to be so funny. I agreed to go see him when I was drunk but when sober I thought...hmm, how can I get out of this? I am glad I went to see him, really, really good night. If you haven't seem him recently go buy a ticket and judge for yourself.

Karl, November 2011

Have to agree with all of the other comments on here. I really don't understand how his star rose with such a thin and unoriginal "talent". He always goes for the obvious, tries to disguise it with vocal pyrotechnics and goes on far too long. I can't listen to the News Quiz when he is a guest - makes my heart sink.

Robert, January 2011

Jupitus should go back to the sixth form, where his 'humour' will no doubtedly be appreciated by a everybody ignoring it. He is a tw*t. Not funny, boring, labours every word in the vain hope he might get a laugh. Just look at the expressions on the other people on QI when he says something - its akin to humouring a 4 year-old.

clooge, November 2009

Say something funny and you could guarantee that Jupitus would have it tied up and recycled in his own crap style almost straight away. Watch QI and see some fine examples of his recycling abilities. He also labours the point if he does get a laugh way beyond the comfort zone. no stars at all.

Andy Phillips, November 2009

If he was a tenth as good as he thinks he is, he would be brilliant. Unfortunately, he's crap.

Ray Girling, August 2008

Anywhere Phill is on the bill puts me off going (e.g. I am forgoing Harry Hill - a favourite - at the Lyric in October because Jupitus is supporting). He's like the comedy plague. Aside from random "open mic" performers, Jupitus is the most unimaginative and unwatchable comedian I've seen in about 10 years. How does he get work? The lack of comments here about him is surely testament to the "not with a bargepole" standards of most comedy fans.

Gordon Perry, September 2007

Terrible compere at Orangutan charity gig. A lesser known comic would have been booed off the stage.

Juqsy, May 2007