NORTH Yorkshire will have two Rooms With A Stew in quick succession after comedian Stewart Lee booked into Brawby Village Hall, the spiritual home of The Shed, for June 7, the night after he plays the much-bigger-than-a-shed York Barbican.

Lee has long championed the work of Ryedale alternative arts impresario Simon Thackray at The Shed, and his return marks the re-awakening of Thackray's enterprise of big ideas in small places after a period of hibernation.

"The stark contrast betweenStewart's forthcoming big-venue tour of A Room With A Stew gigs and our Brawby date is striking but couldn’t be more apt," says Simon. "Stewart and I last met up in Berlin for the filming of the British improvised music documentary, Taking The Dog For A Walk, which Stewart narrates.

"It features Shed performers such as Malton bingo caller Mrs Boyes, off-the-cuff percussionist Mark Sanders and Fish and Chip van tour trombone player Alan Tomlinson, so it will be great to catch up with Stewart again. I hope to show the documentary film the same weekend and fly the Shed colours."

Lee's A Room With A Stew show will have a sold-out month-long London run at the Leicester Square Theatre in January 2015 before taking to the road until late June with room for further additions into the summer.

As well as the York and Brawby gigs, Lee will play Leeds Town Hall on March 20; Hull City Hall, May 12; Harrogate Royal Hall, May 13, and Scarborough Spa Theatre, May 15, all performances starting at 8pm. Box office: York, 0844 854 2757 or yorkbarbican.co.uk; Brawby, 01653 668494, but yet to go on sale; Leeds, 0113 224 3801; Hull, 01482 300300; Harrogate, 01423 502116.