Katherine MacAlister finds out why the Irish comedian is returning to his stand-up roots

In the past Patrick Kielty’s stand up has been known for its topical material, so Help represents something of a new direction for the Irish comedian.

Instead he will be discussing such personal topics as his childhood and marriage to TV presenter Cat Deeley, on stage at The Mill tomorrow night.

“It does feel like a departure. A lot of the stuff I have done previously has had a political edge. When I started out as a stand-up in Belfast, my brain became very politically tuned in. A lot of my material was about what was going on in the world. But the response has been so positive that I’m thinking, ‘Why didn’t I do this years ago?”

The answer is that the comedian has been off making highly successful TV and radio shows, but has returned to create a modern rulebook for love, life and happiness in his new show.

Patrick, who has been a TV star since his breakthrough alongside Ben Elton and Jo Brand on Comic Relief’s St Patrick’s Day Stand Up Special, got married nearly three years ago to Cat Deeley, his co-presenter on the Fame Academy.

“I’m so thrilled to be touring again,” beams Patrick, who fronted the Channel 4 comedy series Last Chance Lottery and six seasons of his hit BBC1 chat show Patrick Kielty Almost Live. “There’s such a tremendous honesty to stand-up. You can’t fake laughter.

“Even if someone loves you, if the show isn’t that funny, the best you can do is fix a grin and think, ‘Oh my God, someone please laugh!’ “So as a stand-up you have to be honest enough to talk about what’s going on in your life. You can’t fake it and it’s very important as a stand-up to have something to say.

“Audiences don’t want to just hear gags. They want to know that what you’re talking about is something you’ve actually experienced that they can relate to. I’m saying, ‘This is my personal, honest story,’ and the audience like that.”

Patrick, who studied psychology at Queen’s University, Belfast, outlines the nature of Help: “I wanted to write a show about being happy. I’m 44. At that age, most performers are going through a mid-life crisis – ‘is this all my life is going to be?’ But the funny thing is, my life has gone the opposite way. Help is about the opposite of a mid-life crisis. Things are going very well for me, and I’m the happiest I’ve ever been.”

But just in case, Patrick has written a get-out clause into his show.

“Essentially, I’ve written a pre-emptive strike, I’m saying, ‘OK, guys, things are going very well, but what could potentially go wrong for me? Is there any advice you can give me?’ That’s the idea for the show. I’d rather do that than be sucked into being someone who pays £300 an hour to lie on a sofa and tell someone my problems! So in the last 15 minutes, I hand the show over to the audience.”

ON STAGE
Patrick Kielty is at The Mill Arts Centre in Banbury tomorrow. His show has sold out