Some comedians use interviews as a way to try out their stand-up material.
Tom Gleeson is not one of them.
Asked about the title of his new touring show, Gear, which could mean several things, he says: "It's what we call stand-up material."
More specifically, the theme in this show is revenge.
"It reveals just how petty I can be and how patient I can be," he says.
He's a firm believer in the adage revenge is a dish best served cold.
And that's all he'll say about that: "I don't want to do spoilers for the show."
Fair enough.
There are, however, other projects Gleeson will talk about.
As well as stand-up comedy he's a major TV presence with two successful shows, Hard Quiz on the ABC and Taskmaster Australia on Ten. And there's another program that will appear soon - of which more anon.
Gleeson is a stand-up comedian at heart, but TV has its benefits, too.
"With stand-up you have more freedom," Gleeson says.
"You're in the same room as the crowd, you can say whatever you want."
The audience in each venue is relatively small but the reactions are immediate and easy to gauge.
On television there are more limitations to what he can say, but the potential audience is much, much larger, though their response is, apart from the studio audience, not immediate.
Hard Quiz began in 2016 and Gleeson says he intends to "run it into the ground".
With this as with much of what Gleeson says it's hard to know quite how seriously to take him - good-humoured snarkiness comes naturally to him, and he uses this to full advantage.
Hard Quiz, which began in 2016, brings in ordinary people with interest in and knowledge of particular subjects, ranging from ABBA and origami to the Russian revolution and croquet. The show is now in its 10th season and Gleeson is not inclined to mess with success.
"I'd be a fool to make any major changes, wouldn't I?" Gleeson says.
"I'm not there to entertain me, I'm there to entertain the audience."
Viewers could be forgiven for thinking there's a little bit of both at times.
Taskmaster Australia - in which Gleeson sets comedians challenges they have to complete - is newer but is also doing well. Apart from the format, Gleeson says the other big difference is the nature of the contestants. With the comedians, he knows how they think - "laterally" - so he has an idea of what they'll say, while on Hard Quiz it's harder to predict what will come out of contestants' mouths. He doesn't meet them before the recording.
"I like the improvised nature of the show," he says.
As for the new show: coming up in June is a new platform, ABC Family. One show on it will be Hard Quiz Kids, a spin-off which Gleeson is also hosting and where contestants are aged between 10 and 13. Gleeson said the special subjects of the young contestants were as diverse as those of adults and included quokkas, World War II, and Caterpillar earthmoving equipment.
Getting back to stand-up, Gleeson says he has noticed in the last 15 years or so: "Everyone's the same in Australia now. They've all got the internet and access to the same things."
Previously, he had noticed more regional variations - Brisbane audiences were rowdy, Sydney's were impatient, Melbourne's supportive, Adelaide's egalitarian and Perth's grateful. And Canberra's? The standard adjectives still apply - Canberrans as a rule are intelligent, tertiary-educated and affluent. But Gleeson didn't want to flatter us too much.
"I don't want the crowd to be more full of themselves than I am," he says.
Is such a thing possible? You be the judge.
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Gear is on at the Canberra Theatre on May 30 and 31. See: canberratheatrecentre.com.au.
