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'I saw my dead mum in Wolverhampton Civic Hall!' - Legendary comedian Stewart Lee on a ghostly experience

Comedian Stewart Lee has revealed he thought he saw his recently departed mother in Wolverhampton.

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Stewart Lee talks ahead of Wolverhampton gig

The Wellington-born comedian opened up about the loss of his mother on BBC Radio 4 and described the moment he saw a "vivid image" of her in The Halls, Wolverhampton.

He said: "My mum died when I was on tour, so I knocked the tour on the head and went to hospital until she died, then I had a week or two sorting stuff out. 

Stewart Lee had a Wolverhampton gig he will never forget
Stewart Lee had a Wolverhampton gig he will never forget

"My promoter then said 'perhaps you should get back to work'. So my first gig back was in Wolverhampton Civic Hall."

He added: "What I always do afterwards is I set up a little table in the foyer and sign books and DVD for fans. So I was doing that and there was a queue of people. In that queue was my mother standing there in a brown puffer coat and holding her handbag in front of her.

"She smiled at me, I said 'look, I'll just do this and see you in a minute'. And then after five minutes I was like 'whoa, hang on - she has been dead for two weeks'."

The 56-year-old comedian, widely regarded as one of the most talented of his generation, was speaking to Danny Robins on his Uncanny show.

"There is two possibilities: she manifested herself from beyond the grave and inexplicably chose to come to Wolverhampton, which admittedly is not that far from where she died in Worcester.

"Or my brain is telling me it's time to move on. And I've got to compartmentalise stuff and carry on."

Looking back on the experience Stewart, whose latest show Stewart Lee versus the Man-Wulf has garnered rave reviews, said it was glad it happened.

He said: "I am very glad I had that experience because it was nice see her again, and it gives you a bit of hope in the afterlife."