10 Genius In-Jokes In The Simpsons

10. Paul & Linda McCartney's Lentil Soup Recipe

The season seven episode "Lisa the Vegetarian" is an all-time Simpsons favourite among fans and critics alike, and features memorable guest appearances from Paul and Linda McCartney as themselves.

While talking to Lisa, Paul explains that he's so committed to animal rights that if you play his song "Maybe I'm Amazed" backwards, you'll be able to hear the recipe for "a really ripping lentil soup."

This alone seems like a fun nod to The Beatles' song "Revolution 9," which has been alleged to contain hidden messages only audible when played backwards, and also the general Satanic panic of the 1980s where Christian groups accused rock bands of implanting subliminal messages in their songs.

Yet the episode does one better during its closing credits sequence, which are in fact set to Maybe I'm Amazed.

Those few who bothered to actually heed Paul's advice and play this modified version of the song backwards would indeed hear McCartney reciting a recipe for lentil soup.

Even better, Paul can also be heard saying, "By the way, I'm alive," in reference to the decades-old urban legend that he died in 1966 and was replaced by a lookalike.