It has been a while - but this is worth waiting for I promise ... my first real stand up comedy gig (the real first one was at a friend's party) ... and this was on a BIG stage - at the Bloomsbury Theatre in London no less (this is the view just before the audience flooded in ....)

I had been invited to take in Robin Ince's Nine Lessons and Carols for Godless People and was introduced as 'undoubtedly my number one hedgehog expert' ... am slightly worried that he knows of others!

Was I scared? You bet! Did I sneak a dictaphone into my pocket? Of course ... how else would I find out what I said!

Let me know what you think - and then book me!

And now welcome to my Beauty in the Beast podcasts - all about Britain's favourite creatures and the people who love them.

Each of these creature features will make some sense on their own but are designed to be listened to in conjunction with my book, The Beauty in the Beast.