Joe Lycett trolls Paul McCartney with ‘banned’ sculpture prank

Joe Lycett has targeted Sir Paul McCartney with his latest prank.

The comedian, 36, has become known for his elaborate jokes after “catfishing” parliament with his own fake Sue Gray report back in 2022 and claiming he was “very right wing” on Laura Kuenssburg’s politics show the same year.

Steering away from politics for his latest prank, Lycett has opted to wind up McCartney by nominating an “unflattering” sculpture of the Beatles singer for an award.

Writing on X/Twitter, the stand-up said: “Paul McCartney supposedly hates this sculpture byWilfrid Wood and had it BANNED.”

He continued: “I have nominated it as ‘The Greatest British Masterpiece’ in a poll forThe Times. It’s up against Hamlet.”

Many Twitter/X users were confused as to why Lycett would target McCartney with his latest stunt rather than a figure in a position of power.

“Not sure why you want to wind up Paul McCartney?” one person questioned. Meanwhile, another user added: “Pauls a nice guy though…. Why pick on him?”

Back in March, it was claimed McCartney had demanded the sculpture be removed from a charity auction raising money for War Child because he found it “unflattering”.

Writing on Instagram, the art work’s creator Wilfrid Wood claimed: “My contribution was BANNED by Macca and the gang because it was TOO UNFLATTERING.

“So, I’m auctioning it myself on eBay with ALL proceeds going to War Child UK , a charity for children affected by conflict in Gaza, Ukraine and other war zones globally.”

However, a spokesperson for McCartney subsequently told NME that the Beatles musician “never saw” Wood’s sculpture nor had it banned.

The Independent has contacted McCartney’s representatives for comment.

Lycett has previously planted multiple fake stories in the UK media. In April, the stand-up revealed he had successfully shared a story about a man with a bruise resembling Prince Harry’s face with multiple news sites.

The comedian’s latest prank comes days after Lycett was announced as the host of the inaugural Sky Arts Awards, which are set to take place on Tuesday, 17 September.

The announcement followed weeks of confusion over a series of “Stop the Arts” protests along London’s Southbank, which Lycett had been behind.

Although Lycett’s protests declared the arts are a “waste of time”, the faux demonstrations were actually intended to draw attention to the comedian’s “Manifesto for the Arts”, which he will deliver to the Government next week in a bid to improve the culture sector.

He said in a statement: “Over the last few weeks I’ve been meeting with arts organisations, venues and artists to devise my Manifesto for the Arts, with clear and actionable points the Government can do right now to improve conditions for everyone working in Britain’s cultural industries.”

The comedian will share his manifesto while hosting the Sky Arts Awards next week.

Of his appointment as host of the event, Lycett said: “I’m very much looking forward to dragging this highbrow event down into the gutter.”