With borders and clubs shut Jimeion takes live standup to the fans

Was the new show Waltzing Jimeoin shot during pandemic times or before?

The concept came up when I was in lockdown in Melbourne. I walked past a caravan and thought, nobody’s going to be travelling overseas, I could just stay here and do some sort of travel show. In the UK people tried to do shows outside, and I thought well maybe I’ll just do something like that, that involves camping and staying in caravans.

You’ve been in Australia a fair while now: was there a lot of the country that you still hadn’t seen?
I’ve done a lot more than most Australians, I’ve been around a load of times. I’ve driven the whole west coast … I’ve never done the Nullarbor. And I’m in no mad rush to do it. The rest of it I’ve done though, loads.

The veteran stand-up comedian takes to the road in his new series, Waltzing Jimeoin.

So in your journeys for the show, did the country hold any surprises for you?
I’ve been looking at it from the point of view of when white people first showed up, Waltzing Matilda, that romantic notion of a guy just wanderin’, and really that’s the idea. Just meeting up with people, doing shows, moving on. I still feel pretty wide-eyed in Australia because I didn’t grow up here. I like the birds, I like the adults, I love it all. It’s a bit spread out, that’s the only problem, but maybe that’s an advantage in some ways. It’d be good if Uluru and the Barrier Reef were right beside each other, but it’s two days of five hours’ driving each day just to get to the next bit.

And you bring along a posse of comedic colleagues.
Every episode is a different comic. A lot of them I’ve worked with over the years, different people that I know. I’m trying to be inclusive of every group of people too. It’s not an advertised gig, most of the people are from the caravan sites. The gig starts at half-four, goes till half-six, it’s like a Wiggles gig.

Is that difficult for you?
So far so good, it’s been really nice. They enjoy the fact they can just walk over from the caravan. A nice collection of families and different people: lots of grey nomads. It’s packed â€" we went to Hervey Bay and you couldn’t move for caravans.

Do you have to adjust your material for these audiences?
No, no. They seem to get the joke. I’m not really a controversial comic, I’m not really doing stuff they’re not going to dig.

Have you ever felt you’d like to be more controversial?
No … sometimes you look at somebody getting a bit of publicity because it’s controversial, but I find that the best kind of jokes, that travel, are the funny ones. If it’s funny, that’s the deciding factor of whether it’s in the act. If it’s controversial, it doesn’t really matter if it’s funny.

Do you find, doing these gigs out in the regions, that people are stunned at the magnitude of comedic star they’ve found themselves in the vicinity of?
Who knows? They all turn up, that’s great. They’re tough old gigs, in some ways, so it’s good. The craft’s an interesting craft: if you did lots of theatres, and you’re good at them, but you try and do a little pub gig or gigs outside, they’re not as easy, so it’s another skill that you’re getting better at.

After all your years of touring, does it ever get old, do you ever think this game’s getting boring?
Writing new material is what I find really enjoyable, there’s nothing I enjoy more than a new joke. Actual live stand-up is when your brain is most active. When you come off-stage is when you’re really alert, which is its biggest problem â€" you’re wide awake at the end of the day.

Is there a big difference between performing comedy in the UK and Australia?
I’ve always found the weather is the biggest factor for me. I enjoy warmth and I enjoy being outside and I enjoy all the things Australia has that the UK can’t match. There are nice cathedrals, but otherwise …

Waltzing Jimeoin premieres on Ten on Sunday at 4pm.

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Ben Pobjie is a columnist.

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