Published: Wednesday, 4th November, 2009 9:00am

Something to Stew over

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HARRIET MARSH talks to Mock The Week regular Stewart Francis

"I HIGHLY recommend lunch with Ricky Gervais - the man's a delight."

Fresh from hobnobbing with Reading's favourite son-turned-Hollywood-god, Stewart Francis will be in Newbury on Saturday.

The Canadian Mock the Week star has come a long way since working in a post office, dreaming of becoming a comedian.

Tour de Francis, which takes him round the country until the end of January, is his debut solo venture.

Stewart says: "As my first tour, it's terribly daunting but exciting at the same time. Simply doing extended shows of over an hour, so regularly, is a scary task."

Sharp one-liners are Francis' forte, and their genesis is as quick as their delivery.

"I've only ever consciously written two jokes. They're my strongest too, so maybe I should try it more often! But normally jokes will just come to me over the course of a day," Stewart confides.

These musings are then subject to the ultimate litmus test of amusing Stewart's wife.

"I know that if she laughs, it means it should go in, and if she says: 'Put that in', it means it should never see the light of day!" he says.

The couple met in Hong Kong, which Francis ranks as the best place he's ever visited.

"Hong Kong is my best place ever, ever, ever! Once I'd been there 10 hours I knew my life would never be the same again. I just felt a connection, an affinity, with it," Stewart enthuses.

Fansites speculate on the droll stand-up's likeness to David Boreanaz and Harrison Ford. After hearing this a few times, Stewart incorporated this into his act.

He said: "I make a strange little departure from the thread of the show, saying in a woman's voice: 'Ooooh doesn't he look like a young Harrison Ford and a young David Boreanaz.' The audience murmur with recognition and I plunge straight on with the show."

Mock The Week's blue-eyed, blonde-haired baby, Russell Howard, is Stewart's favourite colleague, and the one he'd share a desert island with.

"Russell is an absolute delight, a really sweet, grounded fella. So many comedians are messed up bitter men, but Russell is just so genuine," Stewart coos. Howard is one of few successful UK comedians under 30. Stewart recognises that comedy needs time to mature.

"Every show is a learning curve, even at my level. It's a confidence issue as well as having to find your voice. It can be quite a hurdle, and comedians need time to evolve," he says.

Francis's perfect day off would involve a warm beach, his wife and a few beers. With such a long stint in the UK ahead of him, Francis may have to wait a while, but his loss is our gain.

"Audiences can expect what they see on Mock the Week, except for an hour rather than a minute: silly, a little bit cerebral, with the odd bird call," he promises.

Stewart Francis is at New Greenham Arts in Newbury on Saturday, November 7 and the Norden Farm Arts Centre, Maidenhead, on January 20.

See www.stewartfrancis.com