JULIAN Clary is touring for the first time in five years and he is as curious anyone to discover how well he will go down.

“I, Julian Clary, have done for mincing what Michael Flatley did for Irish dancing, but has the bottom fallen out of the homosexual meat market?” he asks, in his tantalising address to the nation. “I must tour my kingdom to find out.

“In these difficult times, I feel I should go and comfort my people in the provinces. My friend, Damien, tells me the men are very hard up in Sheffield. I only hope I’m not too late.”

The innuendos still come thick and fast, like they always did, as Britain’s favourite camp sight marks his 50th birthday and 25th anniversary in comedy by returning to the fray in Lord Of The Mince. The Grand Opera House in York beckons on Wednesday, the Harrogate Comedy Festival at Harrogate Theatre on October 30.

“I think when I did Strictly Come Dancing, I suddenly realised there were all these other things I hadn’t attempted, so I thought, ‘maybe I could write a book’, which I did, but then I found I missed being on stage as that’s how it had started for me,” reveals Julian.

Was it a growing ache? “Well, I wouldn’t go that far. I feel good about it: a nice touch of nerves. It’s all new material and all quite exciting. I just need an audience now,” says Julian, whose interview took place on the eve of the first night, hence the slight air of uncertainty in his voice.

Such uncertainty that day was understandable because the comedy scene now changes as quickly as the pop world, but Julian’s confidence still shines through. “My starting point isn’t ‘What would people like to see?’ but ‘What would I like to give them?’. I guess things have changed, but so have I,” he says. “I don’t think I’ve gone out of fashion, though I don’t know about innuendo as you can now come out and ‘name that genitalia’.”

Where comedy has changed, he says, is that “people have demystified things”.

“I’m quite partial to a single entendre as well as a double one, and I don’t like censorship. I don’t think people should be afraid of anything. It used to be about sex being such a fearful thing; I don’t think it’s like that now… but it doesn’t make it more difficult for me because you’re still playing with language and double entendres are funny for other reasons anyway.”

Julian admits he used to enjoy shocking his audience, especially in his days as The Joan Collins Fan Club. “But I was in my 20s and it’s different now: I see my function as being entertaining. You can’t carry on being subversive if you’ve been around the block a few times. I think I must be mainstream now – I’ve presented This Morning.”

His double anniversary surely qualifies for the status of national treasure, but Julian demurs: “No, I’m a national trinket. It’s a bit more lightweight.

“I’ve always liked the lighter, more trivial side of life. There’s no hidden message in this new show, no attempt to change the world. It’s about fun for its own sake. That’s the service I offer.”

Turning 50 may not have made him more serious but it has brought its benefits.

“It’s given me some material, actually, being 50. The thought of it was far worse than the reality. I feel fairly stately about it: you’ve achieved certain things and you’re lucky to be around. The thought of me being 50 quite amuses me, but I’ve come to terms with it,” he says.

“As a gay man, the gay culture is about being young, being youthful, but I think they’ve forgiven me for growing older.”

His tour poster depicts Julian in a red and white striped tie as immaculate as his face paint and thereby hangs a tale from his youthful past.

“I was a coxswain at Henley Regatta in 1977: I was very good at shouting at big men and I used to love it, but then I grew at 14 and I was told I was too big to do it any more, so I became an oarsman and rowed at Henley at 16 for Kingston Rowing Club – and their colours were red and white.”

If that sporting revelation qualifies as a surprise, so does a more recent event in Julian’s life.

“I talk in the show about moving to the countryside. I would never have imagined it but I’ve been there for three and half years now. It’s blissful, certainly when it’s sunny, though it’s muddy most of the time, of course.”

Welcome back to the stage, Julian Clary, country gent and Lord Of The Mince.

• Julian Clary, Lord Of The Mince, Grand Opera House, York, on Wednesday at 8pm; Harrogate Theatre, October 30 at 8pm. Tickets update: York, still available at £20 on 0844 847 2322 or grandoperahouseyork.org.uk; Harrogate, sold out.

• Please note: “Dress code is smart but casual, although the usual rules about corduroy trousers still apply,” insists Julian.