The great English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, Noël Coward was one of the most celebrated wits of the 20th century. He’s what they used to call a “sophisticate.”

But when Sir Noël wanted to throw down, he could throw down. Coward’s rapid-fire patter and clipped diction in this televised 1955 performance of his “Mad Dogs and Englishmen” could give any of today’s top rappers a run for their Benjamins.

Witness this extraordinary elocution execution: