I am not an official replacement for Ian, just step in whenever I can. IS it true you went to school with Billy Bragg? We went to the same school but he is four years older than me. We would have been knocking around the playground at the same time but we never knew each other. It wasn t until later in life when we were adults that we got to know each other and realised we had friends in common. HOW did you get into comedy? I was working as a civil servant in a job centre.

I really hated it and used the job as a way of paying to go to gigs. I would go to anything from comedy to music. In the 1980s there was quite a fashion for bands to have poets on as a support act. I saw this one event where there were 30 poets and most were truly awful. I thought I could do better so I gave it a go. Eventually James Brown, who become editor of Loaded, said to me The poetry is rubbish but the chat in between is good so I expanded the chat and the poetry died a death.

WHAT S the worst job you have ever had to do? I think that would have to be at a glue factory where I once worked. I had to operate the machine which put the glue into tubes. I cocked it up and ended up with glue all over my face and tubes stuck to me. I swear I was still peeling glue off my skin two years later. The lads in the factory also thought it would be hilarious to let me work without a mask so by the end of the day I was quite high. YOU have done the odd bit of acting.

Any plans for the future? I did something at the Edinburgh festival this year called Waiting for Alice. It is good to try something different every now and then. It was a comedy drama so it wasn t too different for me. I really enjoyed it. WHAT are the best and worst bits of being famous? The best bit is that people are really friendly and come over to say hello.