Have you been on holiday in the UAE before?
Never on holiday, always working. I’ve been many times and I love it.
What do you like best about this part of the world?
The hospitality, always, always, always a good reception and of course the weather. This year in the UK we’ve had the wettest April since records began, so we are really looking forward to the heat and dryness.
Are you worried at all that your humour won’t go down well with the audience in Abu Dhabi?
I’ve found that we always get a good mix of types at our gigs here. It’s an international audience. We adapt. It’s an improvisation show, so we don’t have to stick to any set routines. We take the audience suggestions and work with them in a very funny and humorous way. Actually, you’re making me sound serious now. It’s a comedy show. Relax!
Is Whose Line is it Anyway, really improvised? Aren’t you tipped off about what’s going to hit you?
We get asked this all the time. The answer is yes, it is really improvised. No tip offs, no clues, no safety nets, just us flying by the seats of our comedy pants!
For people who’ve never seen the show before, can you tell them what to expect?
We literally walk on stage, ask for a location – a beach, cave, lift, cockpit; ask for an emotion; ask for a film style or theatre style; and then we make it up. Two of us. Three of us, whatever. We don’t know what we are going to do until we do it, so it’s a bit scary and dangerous. But we’re all seasoned performers, comedians, actors, musicians and acrobats, so we can always guarantee a classy, funny show.
Have you ever had an incident where you couldn’t come up with anything?
Oooherrr, ummm, can’t come up with an answer for that one. Next question. See what I did there? See, funny.
So what was it like working on Blackadder?
A right royal laugh. A lot of us were friends before we worked on that show so it was very relaxed working with friends. In the firing squad episode of Black Adder Goes Forth, I played the head of the firing squad and a lot of that was made up by me on the night. Improvistation!
So, at what age did you realise you were funny?
When I was born, my mother said to the doctor, ‘Stop joking, where’s the baby?’
Hah! Can you tell us a joke?
Sure, as the French presidential elections are coming up, I’ll tell you a French knock, knock joke.
Frappe frappe.
Quiest La?
Jean
Jean Qui?
Jeandarme – Gendarme, get it? Internationally funny!
Whose Line is it Anyway is on May 14 from 8pm at the InterContinental Abu Dhabi Auditorium. Tickets are Dhs150 (800 423 463).
