Imran Yusuf

April 2011

I HAVE a friend up in Nottingham, who I actually met while travelling in Japan seven years ago, so even when I’ve not been doing stand-up at Jongleurs or Just The Tonic or Glee I’ve been up there visiting him in New Basford. In fact, I hosted the speeches at his wedding in Nottingham.

I’ve never had the chance to look around the city but hopefully this time I will because I like to talk a bit about what’s happening locally. I like to personalise each gig, otherwise I may as well just read off a script.

I’ll be doing the same in West Bromwich, where I’ll be tomorrow. Normally, after a show, I’ll invite everybody to the bar and we have a chat. Some people want photos or autographs. Sometimes that will go on for an hour or so because I enjoy being able to meet the people who have come out to see my show. On Saturday night we’ll be driving back home. It’s myself and my support act, @Jason Patterson,@ who used to be a courier so he doesn’t mind doing all the driving.

If we’re in a hotel we often stay up and write material or talk about comedy. We geek out a little bit. It’s the same on the drive home.

I do have Sunday off and Monday, well that’s the idea anyway but I’ve got to that point in my career where it’s all kicked off. So I don’t really have days off. If I’m not performing I’ll be in meetings sorting stuff out. It’ll be either sitting with the people designing my poster for Edinburgh or with people at the BBC because I’m working on something for them or meeting my accountant.

When I get the time I’m like any other bloke, I like talking to girls, playing video games and playing football.

I’m very selective about the TV I watch. Someone told me never watch anything that doesn’t inspire you. So I’d never watch @EastEnders @or @Jersey Shore.@

I love everything Japanese and I watch a lot of @anime@ on the internet with English subtitles. And I love @24@ – Jack Bauer (played by Kiefer Sutherland, left) is the ultimate man. Ultimately resourceful, ultimately persevering... and that really appeals to me.

I love watching my comedy as well. It’s actually how I discovered stand-up comedy, watching it on the @Comedy Channel.@ I thought: “Wow, people actually do this for a living.”

I was watching @Curb Your Enthusiasm@ last night and I’m always impressed by the celebrity cameos he (Larry David, right) gets into the show.

I love playing video games but I wish I had more time. I’ve got an xBox Live and I just got an iPhone 4 so I’m really good at @Angry Birds.@

I love biographies, particularly people who have persevered through something. The last one I read was @Lance Armstrong’s@ – the world cycling champion. That guy, I don’t think he’s heard of the words “give up”. I’m currently reading @As Used On The Famous Nelson Mandela@ by @Mark Thomas@. I’m kind of sculpting my political philosophy around a lot of what he’s bringing up. If he didn’t do it I wouldn’t know about it. I read his book on Coca Cola, @Belching Out The Devil,@ and while I was reading it I didn’t drink any Coca Cola. I have since but it’s not like he’s evangelising to not drink Coca Cola – he just wants people to be aware that some of the biggest companies in the world are turning a blind eye to human rights abuses abroad.

I don’t get out to see gigs, except the comedians I’m on with. Which is obviously easier at the @Edinburgh Festival.@

I do get to the cinema sometimes because I have a friend who works at one locally so I often get in for nothing. The last good film I saw was @Limitless@ with Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro. It was about being able to draw on your sub-conscious to become a better man. Which I thought was really cool. I’m really in to my personal development stuff.

A perfect weekend would be anywhere in the company of friends and loved ones, which I know sounds schmaltzy. My perfect wife would ideally be Swedish. Why? In January I went to Thailand where I met some Swedish girls who were lovely. Not only were they beautiful but there was no pretension. They came over to London and I took them out. I’ve got my heart set on one of them now.

Imran Yusuf appears at The Glee Club on Wednesday, April 20 at 8.30pm. Tickets are £12, call 0871 472 0400 or go to www.glee.co.uk