Geordie stand-up Ross Noble is back in the UK and heading to the North-East on tour and brilliantly under-prepared. Viv Hardwick reports.

"ASK me in a few weeks time," says Cramlington-born stand-up Ross Noble when questioned about the content of his latest comedy tour called Nonsensory Overload.

“Essentially it’s me talking about what’s on my mind and just messing about,” claims the 34-year-old, recently voted Number 11 in a Channel 4 poll of the 100 greatest stand-ups of all time.

Having ventured out onto the boards for the first time with his new act last week, Noble is likely to be well up to speed by the time he reaches a near sellout Middlesbrough Town Hall next month and in his pomp thanks to Newcastle City Hall going into a fifth night of sales in November and York Grand Opera House welcoming him on December 2.

“I don’t think I’m the finished article, We all have to pay our dues. I always think that standups don’t get really good till they’ve done it for 20 years. So in a year and a bit’s time, I’ll be ...

hosting game shows,” he jokes.

In fact Noble is nearer to his 20 years of learning the craft than he can officially admit, having started out as a 15-year-old sneaking into licensed premises via the kitchen to perform.

The one thing he’s never had is a set script.

“I like to take an idea and allow it to flourish on stage. You kick it around and play with it and see where it leads you. The problem with writing stuff down is that it makes it too final and gives it a set order. You never want to say ‘that’s funny – I’ll write it out’. Creating a show is a constant work in progress.

“What’s really good fun is when you improvise something for ages. But you can never recreate it. It’s never as good as it was the first time. When you tell a story, it comes out naturally and fully formed. There should never be a definitive version. Fluidity is key. Everything should simply flow together.”

So audiences can just as easily find themselves doing a conga outside into the street as listening to Noble discuss how his home in St Andrews near Melbourne, Australia, was destroyed by the 2009 bushfires.

As a result, he, wife Fran and daughter, Elfie, are now living back in the UK as Noble’s TV career continues to grow with a host of panel show appearances and THAT recent appearance on BBC1’s Friday Night With Jonathan Ross where he ended up wrestling with the controversial host.

“Some stand-ups can be a bit aggressive and set it up as ‘us and them’. But I feel very lucky because when my audiences come along, it’s all positive.

“There is a perception that if you sit in the front row, standups will take the mick out of you. But there is a big difference between taking the mick and singling people out, which is what I do. I want to talk to people and draw them into the show. It’s about creating as opposed to destroying. I want my audience to go away saying ‘it was brilliant to be involved’. I’d like them to think, ‘wouldn’t it be great if he talked to me?’ rather than ‘oh my God’.

“People get me now, some fans deliberately book front row seats so they can be part of the show.

That’s what I want. I want people to fight over front-row seats like I fought with Jonathan Ross.”

Spontaneity remains the spark for many of Noble’s more surreal routines and he admits that his preparation normally consists of writing down a couple of idea on his hand to set the ball rolling – or four words on a piece of scrap paper at most.

“I’ll walk down the street daydreaming and lost in my own head,” muses Ross. “Some people don’t like being faced with their own thoughts – they need to distract themselves from their solitude – but I find it quite pleasant. Being on stage just allows me to share those day dreams and show my working out.

“These days we’re often disconnected from each other and lost in a world of computers and video games, but there’s nothing like being at a collective event. When loads of people are at an event together, they all contribute to its unique atmosphere that night. The great thing is, the next night will be completely different.”

And in spite of the demands of TV, Noble is addicted to live touring and says of the experience: “It’s like the difference between seeing a band live and listening to them on CD.”

■ Ross Noble tour dates: October 6, Middlesborough Town Hall 01642-729-729 November 13-17, Newcastle City Hall 0191-261-2606 December 2, York Grand Opera House 0844-847-2322