There is a level of immaturity that is sort of financially rewarded in my life

Comedian Nish Kumar chats to MARION McMULLEN about the joy of touring as he hits the road

- MARION McMULLEN

MR NICE GUY: Nish Kumar will be at the Edinburgh Festival before his new UK tour

Do you enjoy the variety of work that comes your way?

I feel very lucky. I have sort of enjoyed everything I have done to some extent. I spent two years pretending to be a local newspaper journalist when I did Sky’s Hold The Front Page with Josh Widdicombe.

I loved doing Taskmaster and I love my relationship with that show because of the ongoing footprint and the new fans. (Laughs) It is really amazing that people are so excited and invested in stupid things you did almost a decade ago.

I was very proud of The Mash Report and what we were able to do with that show in the time that it was on air. I will still say though that doing a stand-up show is my favourite thing and it is the thing that makes me the most excited. It's challenging, it’s still not easy, it presents a lot of intellectual challenges to me, but it is still my favourite thing.

I get a variety of different age ranges and backgrounds coming to see me. I confidently back that an audience member in Texas would get along with an audience member in Guildford at one of my shows.

What is performing in America like?

I did a full American tour last year and I had a great time. We all benefitted from the international cult of Taskmaster and I habitually co-host The Bugle, which is Andy Zaltzman’s podcast, and that has a strong American audience. People really know what they are coming to see.