CityLife

Interview: Andy Parsons

Andy Parsons

The last time we nattered to Andy Parsons, he mentioned that he might be writing again with his old verbal sparring partner and one half of double act Parsons and Naylor, Henry Naylor.

Three years on, however, he admits: “I’m not sure what I mentioned I was working on last time with Henry but I don’t think it has come to fruition! The last time I saw Henry he came over for dinner a couple of months ago and neither of us were in any fit state to write anything.”

So it doesn’t look likely that anything is happening there but Parsons is nevertheless keeping himself busy. He’s out on tour for the third time now.

“I believe that was before my first tour,” he notes of our last chat. “The country is looking much the same as the first tour – although nicely the venues are a little bigger and the B&Bs a little more like hotels.”

Parsons has earned the upgrade; it’s 20 years since he first started out, inspired in part by a stint studying law.

“I had no interest in law whatsoever. I did law to get away from science A levels which I hated and they wouldn’t let me do English because I had science A levels.

“It was all a question of trying to get away from things rather than wanting to do anything.”

Comedy came up rather unexpectedly, though serendipitously at that point.

“I left university and had a friend who was working for Week Ending on Radio 4 (the satirical show that ran until 1998) so started writing for that. It can be quite frustrating because they tell you that things are bad and you think, well I’m not sure they are. So I used to do little open spots and do some of the stuff that I’d been told was or was not that good just to find out whether any of it would work and that’s how I kept doing it.”

He teamed up with Henry Naylor when they were in Cambridge Footlights and they worked as a double act on the circuit for many years. Then Parsons became a regular panellist on BBC’s Mock The Week and his popularity soared.

Of course, Mock The Week  being a topical show means that Parsons is used to writing timely and satirical material but occasionally something comes along to make you appreciate the freedom of speech we have in this country.

When Parsons was alerted to the plight of fellow comedian Zarganar, who has been sentenced to 35 years in prison in his native Burma for criticising the government’s handling of Cyclone Nargis in 2008, he jumped at the chance to help raise awareness.

“Equity asked me to front their campaign to get the Burmese government to release Zarganar and I was very happy to do so. You realise how lucky you are when somebody has been locked up for 35 years for saying something that, if it had been said here, would have been regarded as rather tame.”

As well as Mock The Week,  Parsons is also doing his bit to lampoon the government in his latest show which takes inspiration from the coalition’s actions so far.

“It’s called ‘Gruntled’ and it’s based on David Cameron asking the National Audit Office to come back to him with a Happiness Index about how happy the UK population is.

“I’ve jumped the gun before they have a chance to report back and make some sweeping generalisations as to how happy I think the population is given that we are in a credit crunch and have got the first coalition government since the war.

“The feedback has been great and it’s a good fun show to do – some shades of light and dark with several full-on tirades and a peek behind the showbiz curtain.

“The first leg of the tour goes until May then Mock The Week is back for 12 weeks then the Edinburgh Festival. Then the tour restarts again until November when my DVD will come out.”

Phew, a rest pencilled in for Christmas then?

“After that lot, I shall imagine that my only ambition will be to have a lie down,” he agrees.

Andy Parsons is at The Lowry on April 7, 2011 (Thursday) and plays Buxton on 17 May. More information on the Zarganar campaign can be found at www.freezarganar.org.