Jim Jeffries

When he moved over here from Australia, Jim Jeffries grafted a name for himself on the comedy circuit as someone not afraid to tell it how it is; someone who could drop the odd joke about rape or ‘dick cancer’ (an affliction he suffered). It was his blend of honesty and edginess which earned him the moniker ‘Britain’s most offensive stand-up’ (despite coming from Down Under). He has since relocated to the US of A, and the Yanks love him. He’s had his own HBO Special TV show and his popularity is soaring. He has had to change his name though. Ladies and gentlemen – Jim Jeffries … err, Jefferies … no wait, Jeffries … hold on … oh, here he is.

E: Are you looking forward to touring the UK?
JJ: Very much so. It’s actually probably the busiest tour I’ve ever done, so I’m already looking at how my stupid manager’s been putting dates on different sides of the country. There’re 50 shows, in 60 days, in 48 towns. I’m not looking forward to the travel at all, but in saying that I am looking forward to playing in front of British audiences again. They’re better crowds than the Americans.

E: Why’s that?
JJ: They’re just more involved; they’re more vocal. They seem more passionate about comedy. It’s a little bit tepid over here.

E: You’ve played at Hastings before, isn’t that right?
JJ: I ... I … probably.

E: I think it was an Edinburgh warm up gig.
JJ: Well, was it alright? Were you there? Sometimes I get people saying, ‘I saw you in some town’. I do 300 shows a year and I’m like, ‘was it a good one?’ Because 20 of them go tits up a year and you just don’t know which shows people have gone to.

E: For people who haven’t seen you live, how would you sum up your show?
JJ: I’m a storyteller; more so than ever now. I just tell really long stories and they’re funny. Whatever show you see, if you’ve seen it before, it won’t be the same show. I’m quite manic now. I’ve thrown away the rule book. I know what joke I’m going to start with and I know what I’d like to end with, but what happens in between, I’m not sure.

E: How’s life going in America?
JJ: It’s the same shit different smell really. It’s good. I’ve had a lot of meetings with people where they’re telling me I’m great, but no one’s put me in a movie yet (laughs). But the stand-up’s going great; I’m pulling big crowds and I’m probably bigger now in America than I was in Britain. And that’s kind of cool, the way it’s happened so quickly.

E: How did you feel when you were offered the HBO Special?
JJ: I was elated, that was the best thing that ever happened to me. It’s one of those things that when you’re a comic you always dream of. I’ve also learnt that after it happens, everything’s the same. You just go back to doing gigs, but getter bigger audiences. It’s weird because I’m a different comic to what I was before having the minimal success I’ve had. Now I can go onstage and they give me a little more leeway; I can do the jokes I want to do and I don’t pander as much. Being a good club comic is a different thing. If you’re playing the circuit you’ve got to play to hen night on one side, a stag do on the other, an office party over there. And you’re going to offend people. So I actually toned it down a bit in the clubs. There were times when I was drunk and I thought fuck them, but I was trying to please everybody. Now I’ve just got to please my fans, which not as hard and it’s slightly more gratifying as well.

E: When you did the HBO show, did it seem like a million miles away from being punched onstage at the Manchester comedy club?
JJ: I’ve only been a comedian for a bit over eight years and eight years ago seems miles away. I never thought that would have happened. But yeah, it seems miles away from me getting punched in the head. Although it still gets asked every time I have an interview or in press.

E: It’s not something that’s seen too often.
JJ: It happens more often than you’d think. I was just lucky enough to capture it on film. That’s the real secret.

E: I hear you had to spell your name differently when you went to America.
JJ: Well, not through wanting to. There’s another Jim Jeffries who’s an actor, but I’ve never seen him in anything. I’ve Wikipediaed the guy; I’ve Googled the guy – I don’t know what he does. But he pays his union fees which means I have to have a different name.

E: As name changes go, it’s not the biggest departure from what you had before.
JJ: No, Jim Jeffries and Jim Jefferies. It’s not much. I’m thinking of calling my next tour Jim Jefferies, the artist formerly known as Jim Jeffries.

E: I get a sense that you’re getting a bit tired of being labelled ‘Britain’s most offensive stand-up’.
JJ: It’s a double-edged sword that. I made a career out of being a bad boy or whatever, even though I hate names like that. And so I know a lot of my fan-base comes from people who want to see me be offensive, but I’m just doing the jokes that I keep doing. I’ve written a very clean routine just this last week, it’s got no swear words in and it’s about four minutes long. But, look, fundamentally I’ll always tell a few cock jokes.