An award-winning comedian has spoken about politics and subjects he will tackle as part of his upcoming show in Lincoln.

Geoff Norcott has shifted up numerous gears from being a stalwart club comic to an Edinburgh Fringe draw, to a touring comedian with a growing number of TV and radio credits under his belt.

He’s appeared on the likes of Live At The Apollo and Mock The Week, and as ‘the voice of conservative Britain’, is a regular correspondent on The Mash Report, while receiving critical acclaim for his documentary, How The Middle Class Ruined Britain.

His Radio 4 special Right Leaning But Well Meaning scooped a prize at the BBC Radio Music Awards, and he has a diverse range of writing credits on his CV such as Have I Got News For You, Roast Battle, 8 Out Of 10 Cats and Judge Romesh.

Taking Liberties is his latest show and he’s given Lincolnshire Live a glimpse into his mind ahead of his appearance at The Engine Shed on Friday, February 28.

As you take it out on tour, are you expecting to rewrite sections given how quickly the British political landscape shifts around?

The general election meant that there was a whole section that needed rewriting which is both annoying and exciting. I got to the point with Corbyn that he seemed like an easy target; it started to feel like bullying a pensioner. The Labour leadership race and the challenge the Labour Party now face is new territory; I always like to delight in offering the left advice when I’m probably really just taking the piss.

At its heart, the show is about being told what to do and being told off, and I think a lot of people hate that.

What other topics will you be tackling in the show?

Another thing is about automation and how we’ve already outsourced a lot of our capabilities to technology. Take driverless cars: I like driving and I think it’s healthy to be in charge of your own safety and location. To my son, who’s almost four, my ability to be able to drive to places without google maps is going to make me seem like a wizard. One of the other bits in the show is reasserting the right to make sweeping generalisations about men and women.

Geoff Norcott

You’re an outspoken comedian of the right. How does it feel to be in an industry that is still viewed as overwhelmingly left-leaning?

One of the joys of doing things like the Edinburgh Fringe in the past was that feeling of being behind enemy lines. It was very exciting and it did feel risky. When I did my show Conswervative, there were nights in the room when it was tense, which was kind of terrifying. The Mash Report recordings are like that to a point; the audience is good to me, but in the last series particularly around Brexit, if I made flippant jokes there were one or two tricky moments in the studio. I’ve never taken myself that seriously, though. I think I have good points to make, but I don’t make them unless the joke is funny. Otherwise, it’s just a bloke preaching.

You started stand-up while you were still working as an English teacher. Are there any links between the two professions?

Certainly when I was a supply teacher there was a quick need to establish yourself in front of a room full of strangers. The teacher training process was very much subject-led and practice-led but you can’t really do all that until people give a shit about what you’re saying in the first place. When I started doing the rowdy weekend circuit, you could draw a huge Venn diagram between the two. There generally wasn’t a problem of any bleeding between the two things, but I did do one gig very late and was in school very early the next day, and I came very close to doing a putdown on this nerdy lad. If he’s reading, I apologise, but it’s a long drive back from Truro.

For more information about the show, visit The Engine Shed website.