How did you get into standup?
I went to the Comedy Store in Leicester Square one night in 1986 as a punter and felt immediately that this was what I was supposed to be doing. Jeremy Hardy, Paul Merton and John Hegley were on. It felt like this new comedy scene had started without me. It so happened that it was an open mic night, and it sounds mad, but I asked the compere if I could go on. It was a baptism by fire but afterwards they offered me another try-out the following week. And so it began.
You recently made a documentary on Tony Hancock, a comedian who influenced you. Is there someone away from the world of comedy who inspired you?
My grandfather was a keen artist and I remember when I was young, he showed me a painting of a zebra. It was just black stripes on white paper but I remember him saying how much he admired what the artist doesn’t do in order to tell you that it’s a zebra. I’ve always tried to make my standup like that – creating a picture that tells you much more than the words you use.
