Ali G set to RETURN in stand-up routine as Sacha Baron Cohen prepares to bring his yellow tracksuit out of retirement 25 years after launch
Sacha Baron Cohen looks set to be bringing back his iconic character Ali G who shot the actor to fame in the 1990s.
Variety revealed that the English comedian is believed to be working on a tour incorporating the iconic Channel 4 character, who first appeared in 1998.
While fans will be waiting with baited breath, the possibility of a new Ali G film has been ruled out for the moment due to the actor and writers' strikes in the US.
A source told Variety: 'As a SAG and WGA member he is supporting the ongoing strike alongside his fellow writers and actors'.
Sacha is yet to announce how he will incorporate the fictional Staines local, with no tour dates revealed either.
Back: Sacha Baron Cohen is set to revive his iconic character Ali G on an upcoming stand-up tour
Solidarity: However, the comedian is not going to bring Ali G back to the big screen anytime soon amid the actor and writers' strikes in the US
Ali G was also brought back in 2021 for a surprise gig in Sydney, Australia.
Sacha took the stage at Moore Park's Entertainment Quarter as his alter ego shortly after he and his family had moved to the country, and stunned those in attendance.
He said at the time to British GQ: 'I just wanted to get on stage and muck around and see what Ali G would be like with a crowd. It was really good fun. The reason I became a comedian was that I loved people laughing at my jokes.
'To actually hear laughter is a rare thing for me. When I do the movies, I have to wait three months to hear an audience laugh.'
That wait is something which the Borat star will not be experiencing for another while as actors and writers are striking all across the United States at the moment, demanding better pay conditions.
One of the requirements for members of the striking unions is encouraged not to talk about current, past or future projects in the hope that this will further impact the entertainment industry and hamper efforts to get more money from TV or movies.
Ali G made his on-screen debut in 1998 on Channel 4's The 11 O'Clock Show, when he would interview prominent public figures in the UK.
The novel interactions made the character a household name, before heading Da Ali G Show from 2000.
Icon: Ali G first appeared on British TV in 1998 as the interviewer in Channel 4's The 11 O'Clock Show
That was then... Some of his most iconic guests included David and Victoria Beckham when they appeared in a Red Nose Day special in 2001
Some of his most iconic guests included David and Victoria Beckham when they appeared in a Red Nose Day special in 2001.
Sacha roasted the couple, including speaking about then two-year-old son Brooklyn, saying: 'So, tell me does Brooklyn like your music, or is he getting a bit old for it now?’
The Cambridge-educated comedian decided to retire the character in 2007 as he became more recognisable, restricting the effectiveness of his antics.
Last month, Alf Lawrie, the head of factual entertainment at Channel 4, said the show would never have come to fruition with modern rules.
He said: 'You can't make Ali G, Borat or Brass Eye now because the rules have changed. You can't hoodwink people on the same grand scale. TV has become a slightly more regulated environment than it was 20 years ago.
'When you were making Borat 20 years ago, you could pretend quite seriously that he was from Kazakhstan and until it aired people had no idea otherwise. These days you can't mislead in the same way...
'We're far more respectful of our contributors now than we used to be. But it means the nature of some satire has changed.'
