‘Very right-wing’ comedian Joe Lycett unveils Liz Truss portrait

‘In Liz we Truss,’ comedian captioned painting

Joe Lycett has unveiled his latest artwork – a portrait of Liz Truss.

Last month, the comedian claimed to be a “very right-wing” Tory supporter who loved Truss, while appearing on the first episode of Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.

Lycett later said that he’d been told Truss, who was named as prime minister the following day, had “a face like a slapped arse” during his segment.

On Tuesday (4 October) night, the comedian hosted an event at The Wilderness restaurant in Birmingham, which he streamed on Instagram Live.

The event was a fundraiser for local charity SIFA Fireside, which supports people experiencing homelessness in the area.

During the session, Lycett – who often shares his paintings on social media – created a number of artworks including a portrait of Truss.

The finished product was shared on Wednesday (5 October) morning, as Lycett posted the portrait, which is emblazoned with the words: “F***ing hell.”

“In Liz We Truss,” he captioned the Twitter post, along with two Union Jack emojis.

On Instagram, he added: “While diners enjoyed the fruits of my small garden and the genius of the kitchen I sat in the corner of the restaurant painting.

“One of the paintings was of the Prime Minister, who across the city was refusing to tell journalists if she would support raising benefits in line with inflation, a policy which will undoubtedly affect and likely increase the homeless population of this country. IN LIZ WE TRUSS, BABY!!!”

In his original interview with Kuenssberg, Lycett sarcastically claimed that he believed Truss’s promise of support to help cover energy bills amid the cost of living crisis.

“Yeah, she was very clear what she said,” he said. “I think you know exactly what’s going to happen. I’m reassured, you’re reassured.

“I think the haters will say we’ve had 12 years of the Tories, and that we’re sort of at the dregs of what they’ve got available, and that Liz Truss is sort of like the backwash of the available MPs. I wouldn’t say that, because I’m incredibly right-wing, but some people might say that.”

Explaining what had caused his political shift, Lycett later explained: “I have changed my viewpoints over the year, but then so has Liz Truss. She was a Lib Dem, now she’s a Tory. She was Remain, now she’s [a] Brexiteer.

“People change their minds and you’ve gotta keep up with that… Somebody said you get eight per cent more right wing with every year you get older. I think I’ve just leap-frogged it.”

Truss delivered her speech at the Conservative Party conference on Wednesday.