Honest, introspective comic Simon Amstell digs deep and delivers a uniquely vulnerable stand-up set on love, ego, intimacy and ayahuasca.

Comic Russell Brand uses drugs, sex and fame in a quest for happiness, only to find it remains elusive. As he explores iconic figures such as Gandhi, Malcolm X, Che Guevara, and Jesus, he transforms himself into a political antagonist.

The Thompson family is accused of murder when a stranger dies at their dinner table. Six months later, family friend Tim visits freelance therapist Dr. Eric Sacks and the story finds it’s way to the press. The facts are bent and the details spun as the Thompsons become known to the public as ‘The Family of Killers’.

This one-off stand-up special is a performance of Simon Amstell’s stand-up show, ‘Numb’, which he toured to sell-out audiences around the UK and Ireland in 2012, as well as Australia and, more recently, Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York. Recorded specially for BBC Four at TV Centre, it’s a stripped-down, intimate performance, with no set and minimal lighting – a painfully raw, honest and deeply funny exploration of disconnection and loneliness.