Rhod Gilbert prepares his ‘darkest ever’ dwell tour following most cancers remedy, as Morocco Trek placed on maintain

Rhod Gilbert says his new present, which he is planning to tour subsequent yr, will likely be “the darkest” he is ever executed, following remedy for most cancers.

The 54-year-old Welsh stand up was identified with stage 4 head and neck most cancers final yr, and has since undergone surgical procedure, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

Now again on our screens for season 5 of Growing Pains, he tells Sky News: “I’m feeling pretty good. I’m bouncing back and very happy to be working again.”

Gilbert would have been heading out to Morocco any day now, to trek up Mount Toubka – the very best peak within the Atlas Mountains – as a part of a charity hike he is led since 2013 and the primary since his most cancers prognosis, elevating cash for Velindre Cancer Centre in Cardiff, Wales.

Now earthquakes within the nation – estimated to have killed almost 3,000 – have clearly altered plans, however Gilbert says if it is doable to go, he’ll nonetheless go: “We’ve got people on the ground assessing the situation. And I guess if we can go, we probably should because we’ll be employing local people and putting money into our local economy and we may be able to help. The primary concern is obviously for the for the people there.”

The star has already accomplished 5 earlier treks for the most cancers centre, elevating over £1.8m, and had been their patron for a decade before joining them as a patient – a scenario he describes as “odd”.

Clearly, with a tour, a trek and new TV present all on the go, Gilbert’s a busy man.

Opening up about subsequent yr’s tour, he says: “It’s going to be pretty dark, but from what I’ve done so far – I’ve done a few little works in progress in Edinburgh and things – I’m really happy with the way it’s coming along.

“While it is the darkest stuff I’ve ever executed, clearly, after what I’ve been via, I believe for me it is up there with the funniest. It’s actually making me snort. And it appears to this point to be working.”

As as to whether the humorous man ever fears being cancelled, as tradition wars rage and a few declare worry of inflicting offence is killing comedy, Gilbert says he is not apprehensive.

‘I’m simply laughing at my very own life’

“In the past, I was talking about things like electric toothbrushes, duvets, lost luggage, mince pies. If anybody’s ever cancelled about those things, I’d be interested to hear. But I doubt it.

“Now, in my final present the Book of John and this subsequent one, I’m speaking about me and my experiences and you understand, my mum’s Alzheimer’s, my stroke, my infertility, my battle to have youngsters, my most cancers. So, I’m speaking about my stuff, my experiences, so, no I do not give it any thought in any respect.

“While I’m talking about stuff that is big controversial subjects, I guess I’m talking about my experiences, and I think people are fine with that.”

He provides: “I never seek to try and get headlines with it or be especially edgy with it, I’m just laughing at my own life.”

Having used his platform to assist break the silence round well being points up to now, he admits it isn’t all the time simple joking about most cancers.

“[My show’s] on a whole new topic that is a really tricky thing to navigate, you know, And that’s a real challenge and really exciting…

“It has the potential to maneuver individuals extra, it has as a possible to have a much bigger influence on individuals, I believe, than toothbrushes, duvets and stuff.”

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Away from the difficult subjects his subsequent dwell present, Gilbert has some extra light-hearted fare in his newest TV present, Growing Pains, that includes a number of fellow celebrities opening up about their cringingly embarrassing teenage years.

The ex-girlfriend he owes every little thing to

Gilbert himself had suffered crippling shyness all through his childhood and youths, lasting into maturity – regardless of his attention-grabbing selection of profession.

He explains: “I was terribly shy, you know, I’d never been on stage, until I was in my thirties. I did one school play where the only reason the drama person made me do it was to try and get me out of my shell, to try and push me to be less shy and less self-conscious. It didn’t really work, and I didn’t enjoy it.”

So, what occurred between his unsuccessful efficiency of Oh What A Lovely War and changing into one of many nation’s finest beloved stand ups?

It seems it was an ex-girlfriend who modified his life.

“I had a girlfriend who just thought I could do it and just kept on at me and just kept encouraging, kept nagging, whatever way you want to say it for about eight years, she kept on at me and in the end, I went, ‘Alright, I’ll give it a go’.

“But by that time I suppose I’d been a director of a market analysis firm. I used to be used to standing up in entrance of individuals and presenting. I used to be in all probability a bit much less shy than I had been in my teenagers and twenties, actually. But college was a write-off, you understand, an absolute social nervousness, shyness right-off. I barely left my room.”

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The ex in question was Bryony Katherine Worthington – now Baroness Worthington – a British environmental campaigner and life peer in the House of Lords.

“I owe her every little thing… with out her, I’d by no means, ever, ever in 1,000,000 years entertain the concept of doing this. It wasn’t in my head one jot.”

Made a peer for her lead role in drafting the UK’s 2008 Climate Change Act, Baroness Worthington is clearly a woman with many strings to her bow – she was also the first woman to breastfeed in the House of Lords.

Gilbert jokingly adds: “I believe she makes a big distinction to my life, however then of their work on the atmosphere has in all probability made a big distinction to extra.”

On Dermot O’Leary’s potty mouth: ‘I almost fell off my chair’

Guest appearances on Growing Pains embody comic Greg Davies (Gilbert says the Taskmaster star “used to chase [his sister] around a field on a on a moped with a cricket bat”); Presenter Dermot O’Leary (Gilbert says: “He swore in the studio, and I almost fell off my chair. I was like, ‘Dermot O’Leary, what!'”); and pop star Sophie Ellis Bextor (Gilbert admits to being jealous of her teen years: “The reason her life’s embarrassing is because it’s so bloody cool”).

As for what lies in retailer for Gilbert – who appears to be considerably of a workaholic – he says: “I don’t have a goal, I don’t have a five-year plan. I don’t have a bucket list of professional things I want to do. But I’m still really enjoying what I do and evolving, I think, and, you know, pushing it into different areas, which is nice.”

And trying again, he is fairly pleased with what he is achieved to this point: “There’s nothing that I think, ‘Well I must correct that record and go back and, and successfully do that thing I didn’t successfully do’. What I’m really enjoying about my career at the moment is that it’s always changing.

“I assume [I need to] maintain evolving, maintain it altering, and maintain shocking myself and maintain having fun with what I do.”

And despite being unable to stop working for long, he’s hoping to take brief break in the sun – after he’s attended an obligatory end-of-summer wedding.

Still in touch with all his old schoolfriends, Gilbert is travelling back to Wales from his holiday in the South of France just to go to a pal’s wedding. Admitting they’ve been together “a very long time,” but are only now tying the knot he jokes: “They’ve waited 30 years till I used to be on vacation, I do begrudge them a bit!”

Growing Pains is on Mondays at 9pm on Comedy Central.