Comedian Jimmy Carr reveals the best heckle he’s ever received

HE’S one of the world’s wittiest comedians, but Jimmy Carr was on the receiving end of a “heavyweight” heckle.

‘Best heckle I’ve ever received’

“A BIG girl once came up to me after a show and said, ‘I think you’re fatist.’ I said, ‘No. I think you’re fattest’.”

It’s hilarious (albeit slightly offensive) jokes like this one that have made Jimmy Carr a household name in the UK.

And soon it’ll be our turn to enjoy his witty one-liners, as the gifted stand-up brings his new show, Funny Business, to our shores in January.

Speaking to news.com.au, the star filled us in about his performing in front of the Royals, hanging with movie stars and the best heckle he’s ever received.

What can people expect if they go to see you on stage in Funny Business?

There’ll be 300 jokes in a row. It’s me on stage telling terrible, terrible jokes. Terrible in terms of brutality and rudeness.

How do you remember 300 jokes?

You’ve only got to remember the next one, that’s the joy of it. Also, it’s my only job. There’s people with proper jobs out there.

Every comedian has been heckled. What’s the best heckle you’ve received?

It was probably when someone said, ‘My mum died of cancer.’ To which I went, ‘What?’ And he said, ‘I only mentioned it because it was funnier than this.’ That’s a pretty good heckle, that’s heavyweight.

Credit where credit’s due. That’s a pretty good heckle.

You’ve appeared on a lot of UK panel shows, such as QI and The Graham Norton Show, and you mentioned once that those appearances affect you after you leave?

They leave you in ‘panel show mode’. You often get into this thing where you’ll be driving back from doing a few episodes of QI and you’ll stop at a garage to buy a diet coke or something and you’ll end up zinging the guy behind the counter and doing a put-down.

You’re mates with Elton John. How did that friendship begin?

I guess you meet people that work in the same industry as you. I was just speaking to Elton the other day actually, it was lovely. It’s weird to be friends with someone that you grew up listening to or someone you really admire. You never quite get used to that.

What’s the weirdest celebrity moment that you’ve had so far?

I think it was probably introducing Hugh Grant to Monica Lewinsky in my kitchen.

Any more details about that random encounter?

No. That’s all you get.

You’ve performed in front of the Royal family before. Do you have to get your jokes approved?

Yes, there is an approval process. I remember I did the Diamond Jubilee gig in 2012 (to celebrate the Queen’s 60th anniversary) and there were about a quarter of a million people in the mall in London. I was on stage and I said, ‘Everybody’s very nervous backstage. What do you say? What’s the right terminology?’ And I just looked the Queen in the eye and went, ‘Just call me Mr Carr.’

Later on that night they threw a big party for all of the performers in Buckingham Palace. Five hours later, when I was quite merry, I got a tap on my shoulder. I turned around and it was Prince William, and he put his hand out and said, ‘Mr Carr’. It was genuinely really funny.

Queen Elizabeth II meets Jimmy Carr backstage after the Diamond Jubilee, Buckingham Palace Concert.

To celebrate Jimmy Carr’s Australian tour, here are some of our favourite jokes from the 43-year-old:

— The reason old men use viagra is not that they are impotent. It’s that old women are so very ugly.

— I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but if you took all the money that we in the West spend on food in one week, you could feed the third world for one year. I’m not sure about you, but I think we’re being overcharged on groceries.

— I did a gig in the US once for the homeless. I said, “It’s nice to see so many bums on seats”.

— Throwing acid is wrong, in some people’s eyes.

— When you eat a lot of spicy food, you can lose your taste. When I was in India last summer, I was listening to a lot of Michael Bolton.

You can check out Jimmy Carr’s Funny Business tour dates on his website or click here for ticket info

Originally published as Comedian Jimmy Carr reveals the best heckle he’s ever received