Legendary comedian Jeremy Hardy hopes that the audience will remember what he has to say after his gig at the Old Town Hall this weekend.

“I want to make people laugh, but I want them to remember what I've been talking about. I’ve watched gigs where I've laughed constantly, but couldn’t remember what they’d been talking about as soon as the show was over.”

The comic has been on the comedy scene for over thirty years and is perhaps best known for his work on Radio 4, notably on News Quiz, I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue and Jeremy Hardy Speaks to the Nation.

So what can the audience expect to see at Jeremy’s stand up gig at the Wycombe Swan?

“It’s just me talking about stuff as I have always done. I talk about a handful of things, usually food, religion, class and identity.

“I don’t really talk about football or what’s on TV because I'm not interested in football and I rarely watch TV. I’ve been doing this for over thirty years now, so I think when people come to see me, they know what to expect.

“They know what sort of things I will be talking about. A lot of people will have heard me on the radio. I talk about politics quite a lot and my usual audiences tend to be a little older than other comedians’ audiences.

 “I do have some quite silly jokes, but it’s not jokes about how you can’t find the end of the sellotape.”

Having been in the business since 1984, where he started out doing ten minute slots at open mic clubs, Jeremy says he always knew he wanted to do something where he could incorporate writing and performing.

“I wanted to be a poet or a writer then I settled on stand up. I tried writing for BBC Four pretty unsuccessfully so I’ve settled on being a comedian.

“I've been doing this so long now I don’t think I could do anything else. I haven’t got very many transferrable skills. I don’t think I could even work in Tesco.

“Not that I'm saying working in Tesco is easy!”

Jeremy has performed at the Wycombe Swan many times but after his recent experience at a gig in Burton-on-Trent, he fears it may be a bit dull in comparison.

“There was actually a full-on, physical fight at that show. A woman thought another woman was laughing too loudly and they ended up fighting.

“The police turned up so we had to take a long interval while it got sorted because the woman who started it refused to leave.

“That’s the first time that has ever happened but it was really quite exciting. The next night seemed like a real anti-climax.”

Having graced the stage in High Wycombe before, Jeremy reckons he knows what to expect from his show at the Wycombe Swan on March 14.  

“I’ve performed at the Swan a few times now. The audience in High Wycombe are usually very reserved. They have that awareness that you sometimes get in the Home Counties, but they usually loosen up by the second half.

“Maidenhead has always been the hardest gig for me. They’re always quite reserved so it’s a bit of a battle.”

The funny man, who lists Jack Dee, Sandi Toksvig and Mark Steel among his list of friends, admits he’s impressed with the talent on the stand up circuit at the moment.

He said: “I've amassed quite a few friends in the stand up world over the years. When you work evenings, it’s hard to be sociable with people outside of the comedy circuit.

“I'm very impressed with Romesh Ranganathan. I've worked with him on Jack Dee’s Help Desk and I really like him. I like Sara Pascale too. The standard is very high on the comedy circuit at the moment.”

But being on the scene for four decades hasn’t dulled the nerves Jeremy feels going out in front of live audiences.

 “I do get nervous still. Especially when I have a whole load of new material and I'm trying so hard to remember it all or when you have had a break for a while and you feel like you’ve lost your mojo.

“I get a really weird kind of nervous, where I just feel sleepy. It’s very annoying and not helpful at all.”

A common fear for comedians is if the audience don’t laugh, but how does a veteran comic deal with it when it happens?

“It’s baffling because some of your best jokes just die on stage. A joke that went down really well with one audience might barely get a titter elsewhere. It would drive you mad if you analysed what went wrong so it’s best not to dwell on it.

“I've never had it where no one laughs at all. Sometimes a few people will laugh; sometimes people enjoy the show quietly. There will always be at least one person who didn’t like a joke, but you just have to stick to your guns.

“There are always a few people who won’t agree with what you say, but if they don’t like it when I'm talking about identity or gender or humanitarian stuff then I always think that’s their problem really.”

Jeremy performs at the Old Town Hall on Saturday, 14 March. Tickets are £15, available online at www.wycombeswan.co.uk or by calling the box office on 01494 512 000.