Introducing... surreal comedian Boothby Graffoe, still in recovery from fleeing the Kings Of Comedy reality TV show.

Kings Of Comedy? I've got to be honest, I didn't see it.

"Good! Well done. You're not alone. If you missed it on C4 and E4, there were eight comedians stuck in a house, five days a week, and then they let you out at the weekend. It was like a game show; you had to perform in the evening, and you got points for being good."

How well did you do?

"I got to the final day, and then I realised that reality wasn't for me. That's showbusiness."

What took you so long to quit?

"It took a long time because I just wanted to get the money. I did the show because I needed the cash. I've done the show... I've survived, unscathed really."

Do you have any regrets about walking out?

"No. It was what they wanted. I gave them a bit of reality TV: half a bottle of Scotch, three bottles of wine and then upending a table. It was five o'clock in the morning, and all the cameras turned round just too late to catch it."

Was it worth postponing your autumn tour - the York show was originally booked for September 22 - for a brief fix of reality TV?

"The show was moved around the Friday night schedule a lot on Channel 4; each week it was on at a different time, so they weren't exactly plugging it. When I did a gig at the Brighton Festival during that time, Jo Brand was compering, with 1,500 people in the audience and just before I came on she asked them who'd seen Kings Of Comedy. You could hear the sound of tumbleweed rolling across the stage, so I think we know how many people watched it."

Goodbye Kings Of Comedy, hello re-scheduled autumn tour.

"Can't wait! I'll be talking more to the audience on this tour; there's some fun to be had in that, and I've got some new songs lined up. There's one called I'm A Coward Like My Father Behind Me, and then there are the songs from Wot Italian?, my first album, which is available from all good record shops...if you can find it there."

Television was not the most satisfying experience for you, but your radio show, Boothby Graffoe In No Particular Order, is one of the joys of Radio 4. Will there be another series?

"Yes, I've got a third series starting next June. We'll start recording it next May and I'll be testing out lots of the new material in York. I've got some very good writers working with me: Jim Miller, who used to write for Jo Brand; Dave Thompson; and Martin Coyote, who's a smart political writer."

Last time you were in York, you were on a triple bill opening the first York Comedy Festival in June 2003. This time, it's just Boothby.

"Yes, this is my big solo show. Just me... so there probably won't be as many people there."

Prove him wrong, because he's worth it.

Boothby Graffoe, Grand Opera House, York, November 13, 8pm. Tickets: £12.50 on 0870 606 3595.

Updated: 16:23 Thursday, November 11, 2004