How did you get into comedy?
I auditioned for Durham University’s sketch group when I was a fresher because I was slightly drunk and wanted to impress a cool third year who lived on my corridor. I vaguely remember doing a monologue for [fellow students] Ed Gamble and Nish Kumar in a sort of white noise haze of fear, and then got in.
Can you recall a gig so bad, it’s now funny?
I did a preview where the audience watched it entirely silently like it was theatre. Not one single laugh. I was very close to asking if I should cut it short, just because they must be so bored, but decided to keep going as a challenge to myself. At the end they gave me a standing ovation. It was absolutely baffling.
You do a lot of sketch comedy – what is the current state of the genre?
It has, like most genres in most creative fields, been democratised to the point of utter meaninglessness. There’s never been so much good stuff out there, and never been a worse time to make a living from it.
British TV has a strong history of sketch comedy. Why hasn’t there been a mainstream sketch show commissioned recently?
You can watch 34 million new sketches online for free every day. Why would a channel spend money and months of hard labour making one? Sketch shows require multiple locations, costumes and so on. They are way more expensive than other genres of comedy, but I grew up loving them and I think there’s space for them and would love to see them make a comeback.
What’s your Edinburgh fringe show about?
The main aim is to make you laugh. I suppose themewise it is loosely about how absurd and bizarre being online is now, but there are also jokes about pipes and a section involving moths. Something for everyone.
Any preshow rituals?
No, and it would be great to cultivate some quickly because currently I just pace about backstage looking very tense. A cool SNL writer was on after me at the fringe in 2019, and she journalled but I don’t think I could pull that off. Maybe I should just accept that tense pacing is my vibe.
Do you have a comedy hero?
My comedy hero is the film Airplane and the series Police Squad. I am, in a way, always searching for that high of seeing them for the first time. Occasionally it happens and it’s like reaching nirvana.
What’s one of the strangest fan encounters you’ve had?
A few years ago, the grate came off my USB desk fan and for a split second I thought I was going to die. The noise was phenomenal. I can’t remember any strange encounters with a human fan, they’re all sort of nice and fine.
Do you have any regrets?
I recently froze some birthday cake (as a sort of experiment because I didn’t want it to go to waste) then ate it straight from the freezer in a 90s romcom kooksville way, before having the worst stomach issues of my life.
Best advice you’ve ever been given?
Spend more money on desk fans. And give yourself lots of little deadlines rather than one big deadline.
Stevie Martin: clout is at Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh, 29 July-25 August
