Jason Byrne Australian Tour Interview 2013

It’s been near impossible to get hold of the Irish comedian, but we finally managed to pin down the funny man for a quick chat, in between filming his brand new sitcom ‘Father Figure’ for BBC1. Completely off the wall, the family man has based the sitcom on family life with his two cheeky sons and wife. Jason will be heading out to Australia in September and October to do a massive national tour entitled the ‘Special Eye’ tour. Having been a sell-out at Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Jason’s radio credits also include BBC Radio 2 and 4, including hosting three series of ‘The Jason Byrne Show’ on Radio 2. Here we find out a little more about who Jason Byrne is, and what we can expect from the upcoming tour!

Hi Jason, how are you?
How would you be if you just stood on a starfish, and it wasn’t even at the beach, but in your grandmother’s house, it fell off the fireplace and you were bare foot; and that’s why I do stand up…what was the question?

Never mind… where are you at the moment?
Sitting in the corner of my living room having Lego men heads flicked at me by my sons.

Haha! You’re about to start filming your new BBC1 sitcom Father Figure, how is it shaping up? Are you excited?
It’s shaping up well, all ep’s are ready. It’s like living inside a womb, and the baby is the sitcom and I’m the placenta, and the excitement is I can’t wait till it’s born.

From what we know, you play a father who tries his best for his two sons, but things don’t always work out how he intends; does this reflect your real role as a father at all?
I’m a great dad, but I would say that wouldn’t I? My children always do what I tell them, until their mother walks out the door; I then go from being their dad to being their brother, and that is how the sitcom runs.

Will the wife and kids be watching?
Oh defo, the sitcom characters are cartoon versions of my real family; the two kids in the sitcom are called Tom and Jerry and the wife’s name is Betty Boo.

You’ll have a live audience watching you filming; are you hoping that will make it feel more like a stand-up gig, what you’re used to?
I will defo feel better with a live audience there. It will lift the performances of all the actors and, most importantly, tell me if the gags are working straight away.

You have to miss this year’s Comedy Festival season in Australia as a result, are you a little disappointed?
I was so disappointed, to miss the trip of a lifetime to such an amazing country would have been awful, but I have been recording a BBC1 sitcom and that’s a chance of a lifetime, and now I get to go back already.

Will your Special Eye tour in September and October make up for your absence?
In the best way I can, and that’s normally the best way ever.

Last time we spoke to you, you were desperate to get some sun in Australia; is that the same this year? What will you be doing in your spare time?
Can’t wait to smell the heat, feel the heat; and I have been really fit since the sitcom, as I had to do a few stunts, so I’ll be running along those beautiful coast lines. And I may even go diving as I’m an amazing swimmer; I can do deep sea diving with no air tanks.

Show off! What can we expect during this tour? Any surprises?
I’ve always wanted to not turn up. That would be the best surprise of all. But to give away surprises now would be crazy, this whole show will run in the Edinburgh Comedy Festival, and as it runs more and more surprises happen, so I’ll bring them to Oz.

There’s a huge Irish population in Australia, is that comforting when you’re away from home? Will you be paying a visit to any of the Irish pubs?
When I’m away from my country, I love to meet my fellow countrymen, but I normally don’t have to go into an Irish bar, as I like to go to the Oz bars. I’ve a fairly good idea what an Irish bar looks like, and I’m normally heading back home to that anyway.

You’ve done a number of incredible gigs and radio and TV shows; do you have a memory that stands out from the rest?
When I recorded my live radio show at the BBC in London Radio 2, I had an audience full of nurses and I spoke to an Irish nurse. I said it must have been great to be a nurse, but she answered and said, “I’m not a nurse anymore I’m a roofer.” Only an Irish woman would leave nursing to work on a roof.

What’s in the pipeline for 2014?
Please God more sitcom, more sitcom; more Oz, more Oz.

Thanks Jason, and we look forward to catching you on tour in Australia!

Jason Byrne Tour Dates
19th September – The Enmore Theatre, Sydney
20th September – The Concourse, Sydney
21st September – Civic Centre, Newcastle
22nd September – Lyric Theatre, Wollongong
27th September – The Regal, Perth
29th September – Anthenaeum Theatre, Melbourne
30th September – Her Majesty’s – Adelaide
2nd October – Empire Theatre, Toowoomba
4th October – The Tivoli, Brisbane
5th October – Dec Playhouse, Darwin

More information available at www.jasonbyrne.ie

By Charlotte Mellor