Hey, Barbecutie

Often accused of being twee as fuck, Belle and Sebastian have always had a darker edge hidden deep, deep within their lyrics. Not to mention that time they put a lady breastfeeding a tiger on their album cover. They may be a glistening pretty-pop delight, but they are still a bunch of fuckers from Glasgow. Here are some of their most hardcore moments.

1. Trashing Top of the Pops: Their only appearance on the flagship show (for Legal Man, peaking at number 14) involved some extraordinarily bad miming, having being denied permission to play live, Stevie’s patented Elvis dance moves, and a man in a gorilla costume crashing on top of Richard’s drum kit.
2. …swiftly followed by trashing the Eastenders set: Afterwards, they decided to get a pint in the set of the Queen Vic next door, only to be arrested for trespassing after Richard and manager Neil Robertson were caught urinating next to Arthur’s bench. Presenter Jamie Theakston managed to convince security to set them free.
3. Stuart and Isobel’s break-up played out on The Jools Holland Show: Stuart and cellist Isobel Campbell’s turbulent relationship ended before she left the band, producing some very bitter break-up songs. In what could be the most awkward four minutes of television ever, Stuart performs I’m Waking Up To Us (“You like yourself and you like men to kiss your arse”) while Isobel sits sullenly on the floor. The rest of the band avoid eye contact.
4. Murder Threats: in We Could Be Dreaming, Stuart offers to kill an abusive love rival “outside a butcher’s with a knife on a bike chain” – the most threatening sentence ever to be followed by the words “la la la, yeah yeah yeah yeah”
5. Accidental Outings: Many fans mistakenly believe Stuart’s brother is gay, according to the lyrics of The State I Am In, where Stuart alludes too vaguely to a dream he once had. According to Stuart, his brother, a navy officer, is not thrilled with the assumption.

Talk about stretching it. Okay, so Crass probably have nothing to worry about, and one look at the video for Is It Wicked Not To Care? demolishes the argument pretty quickly, but let’s not fight.

Instead let’s bond over the Graham Linehan shagfest that is Step Into My Office, Baby.