TV & Showbiz

Sacha Baron Cohen is reviving Ali G for a new stand-up tour

Ali G celebrates his 25th anniversary this year

Georgina Pellant - 11th August 2023

Sacha Baron Cohen is reportedly reviving Ali G for a new stand-up tour as the satirical character celebrates its 25th anniversary.

According to reports in Variety, the English actor and comedian is planning to bring back his iconic 1990s tracksuit-wearing character for a new one-hour stand-up special.

The publication said that Cohen had been working on a new stand-up tour and that the character was set to make a reappearance.

First appearing on Channel 4’s The 11 O’Clock Show in the late ’90s, Ali G helped to catapult Sacha Baron Cohen to fame at the start of his career.

The character, who styles himself as a Staines Junglist, speaks in a West Indian patois and generally acts like a spoof of a hip-hop pretender, was such a hit he eventually got his own standalone series called The Ali G Show, which ran for three seasons.

Variety also addressed rumours of a new film, with a source close to Cohen strenuously denying a movie was in the works and saying Cohen was abiding by strike rules.

“As a SAG and WGA member he is supporting the ongoing strike alongside his fellow writers and actors,” the source told the publication.

If Ali G makes a comeback it will not be the first time Cohen has resurrected the character, bringing him out on stage at a gig in Australia.

“I just wanted to get on stage and muck around and see what Ali G would be like with a crowd,” Cohen said at the time. “It was really good fun.”

Ali G first appeared on our screens in 1998, with the character making its debut on Channel 4‘s sketch series The 11 O’Clock Show as the “voice of da yoof”.

The faux-streetwise poser became known for conducting interviews with people who didn’t realise they were being set up, bragged about coming up “in da heart of da Staines ghetto” and leading a local street gang, “Da West Staines Massiv.”

Featured image – Channel 4