His take on Edward Lear's Owl And The Pussycat

Stewart Lee has written a book based on his stand-up routine deconstructing Edward Lear’s poem The Owl and the Pussycat.

The comedian has teamed up with illustrator David Waywell for Pea Green Boat, which will be published in September.

And he will revive the stand-up performance – with live improvised musical accompaniment – at a series of gigs to help promote the book. 
 

Lee said: 'David's illustrations have brought this twenty-five-year-old tale to life in a way I could never have imagined, and a quarter century's hindsight gives it meanings I could never have imagined. It's the perfect anti-Christmas gift.’

Waywell added:‘When I discovered no print version of 'Pea Green Boat' existed, I knew I had to draw it, trying to match the darkness and latent menace Stewart had put into every line of his neogothic adaptation of Lear’s classic.’

Publishers Ebury Spotlight describe the book as ‘a dark, grotesque retelling of The Owl and the Pussycat in which Edward Lear's characters are revealed to be catastrophically poorly-equipped for maritime travel. 

‘Told through the increasingly deranged diary of the Owl, the real story is unmasked – he cannot open the honey jar due to his lack of opposable thumbs, he is terrified the cat will eat him in his sleep, and he struggles to play the guitar despite having no fingers. 

‘As hunger, exhaustion and poor navigation take their toll, it becomes clear that these two creatures should never have been put in a boat together.’

Lee previously wrote the books How I Escaped My Certain Fate, analysing his stand-up,  and Content Provider and March Of The Lemmings – both drawn from his newspaper columns.

The book will be published on September 3, with Lee performing it at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall on September 9 – with Will Sergeant on guitar – to mark its launch. 

He will also perform the routine on December 1, 2 and 3 at  Leicester Square Theatre in London. Tickets go on sale on Friday.

Lee first performed the show at the 2002 Edinburgh Fringe (Chortle review), and released it as a 10-inch pea-green vinyl to mark its tenth anniversary. An edited version was broadcast on Radio 4 in 2004.

 Pea Green Boat  is available to order from Amazon priced £16.99 in hardback or £8.99 on Kindle – or from uk.bookshop.org, below, which supports independent bookstores.  

• Click here to make Chortle a 'preferred source' on Google, which means results from this site will appear higher in your search results.

Published: 23 Apr 2026