Q. What is your greatest indulgence or luxury?
A. Travel is my indulgence. I like to go to different places and but I don’t like repeats. I don’t like to go to the same place twice. If I go as a tourist I like the luxury, if I want a cocktail bar it has to be a good one. But if it is somewhere more spiritual then the luxury doesn’t matter.
Q. What or who has been your greatest influence in your life?
A. Nobody specifically really as I feel I have invented my life on my feet and any influences have been accidental. They have been people who have sort of saved me along the way. It was Alan Rickman who suggested I start writing comedy and started to teach me how to do it. I may not have gone down that route otherwise?
Q. How do you write?
A. It depends on what I am writing. The most difficult was writing my book – I can only sit in front of a computer for days if I have to! My travel writing and comedy is about taking the ideas in visually, digesting them and spilling them out as fast as possible.
Q. You seem to have done all sorts in your public carer – from Shakespeare through to interview and comedy. Is there something in this career that you still have to achieve?
A. It would be doing much heavier documentary work. I like the idea of doing them about people, looking at how they tick, exploring life. Comic Relief has meant I have been able to visit some interesting places and see interesting things, but that work is for charity. I would like to take an investigative approach. Going to the Middle East to understand that situation would be fascinating.
Q. If you were given the opportunity what would you choose to go on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square?
A. I think the project that Antony Gormley is doing is great. I wouldn’t do anything different. Putting real people up on a plinth and being able to look at them is really interesting. It’s about life and life is always interesting
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