“We talk of a divided Britain, but I am here to unite us!” claims an optimistic Andy Parsons.
Known for his ten-year stint on the topical comedy show Mock the Week, and more recently for his podcast Slacktivist Action Group, Parsons returns with his fifth UK tour, Peak Bullsh*t.
“A fair amount has been happening in the last couple of years,” he says. “You can imagine the things we will be talking about: the election, the world situation with Kim Jong-un, Brexit, and of course there’s Trump.”
When discussing current affairs there are obviously contentious issues, so I was intrigued whether any topics were off-limits.
“Nothing is off-limits,” he says. “It all depends on how you approach your target. If someone is being abused, and they’re the victim, then there’s something wrong with the joke, but if the abuser is the target of the joke, then the joke is fine to go on.”
Parsons believes people may find comfort in comedy that addresses the madness of the world today: “When you’re in immense amounts of pain and distress, then having the ability to laugh about it can definitely help.”
Parsons is probably best known for Mock The Week, re-runs of which can still be found on the Freeview channel, Dave. Since he quit the show in 2015, Parsons has not missed it in the slightest.
“There is a certain format to Mock The Week, and when ‘Things you’d unlikely to hear in a superhero movie’ crops up for the fourth time, you just think, ‘Nah! It’s time to move on.’”
I tell him how impressed I am when comedians on the show come up with jokes on the spot. Parsons bursts my bubble: “The producer’s nerves couldn’t take it, so they give you nudges and winks. TV producers like to live in a more certain world, so we get a list of themes. We’re fairly aware of what to expect.”
Parsons never intended to be a comedian. At school he was advised to take up law because it lay somewhere between arts and sciences. “It turned out to be somewhere between tedious and interminable. Comedy was a happy landing place and I have been happy to be there since.”
So, do you prefer doing stand-up or being on television? “Stand-up, definitely.”
“A two-hour live show is perfect. People have come to see you. There’s no editing and there’s always something different about each show, whether it’s the venue or the material. Something will happen in the King’s Hall that will happen nowhere else ever again.”
When he left Mock The Week, Parsons advocated that a female comedian fill his place, so I wanted to ask him more about women in the comedy industry.
“Well women are massively under-represented on Mock The Week and still are. I believe that since I made the pledge for there to be a female team captain, the show has had two female panellists on the same show for the first time ever. I mean if you think that is no reflection on the gender balance of the country, then Mock The Week and similar shows need to improve on this.”
In terms of female comedians to look out for, Parsons tell me that there are “masses, absolutely masses” out there. He does not name any specifically, yet he says a list of his favourites will have appeared at his Slacktivist Action Group down in London. [Recent guests have included New Comedy Award winner Angela Barnes and Radio 4 regular Lucy Porter – Helpful Ed]
Parsons is currently enjoying being on tour and has no plans for when it is over. He has three more Slacktivist Action Group meetings lined up, with guests including Clive Lewis MP and Lucy Powell.
The monthly podcast is recorded live at the Soho Theatre in London. Parsons along with invited MPs, journalists, experts and other comedians, thrash over current affairs, aiming to achieve one bit of action prior to the next meeting.
“The whole idea of the Slacktivist Action Group is that we’re talking to a group of people who get the chance to inspire us, maybe even annoy us depending on your persuasions,” explains Parsons. “It’s a chance to hear other people who are passionate about what they do, and it’s a chance to awaken the slacker in all of us to get out and engage a little more fully.”
Andy Parsons – Peak Bullsh*t is at Kings Hall, Ilkley on 20th November. Details here.