Comedian David O'Doherty talks Derry connections, baking and his new show in the Millennium Forum

A man of many talents, including musician, children’s author, actor, playwright and TV star on shows like Eight Out of Ten Cats, Live at the Apollo and most recently, The Great British Bake Off Stand Up To Cancer, the ‘dishevelled prince of €10 eBay keyboards’ will present a ‘new pageant of laughter, song and occasionally getting up from a chair.’ on June 8 in Derry.

He is certainly no stranger to the city and can claim to be one of our own, as his great-grandfather, Seamus O’Doherty, ‘was from 23 Creggan Street’.

"He was a butcher, but I’ve left the butchering behind and now return as a fully-fledged stand-up comedian. I think the O’Dohertys were originally from Donegal. They were there for a few generations. They were revolutionary types, my great-grandparents. He moved to Dublin in 1914 for the 1916 Rising and we’ve been there ever since.”

His gigs, he added, have always ‘gone very well in Derry’ and he told how local people ‘saw something’ in him when he started in the industry.

"I have played the Playhouse before and Sandinos. I used to be there when I was just starting out and, to be fair to the audience, they were like: ‘We see something in this guy.’ I’ve played the Playhouse a few times and I also dip into the futuristic charm of the Millennium Falcon, as I insist on calling it!”

David is fresh from a hugely-successful tour of Australia and New Zealand and it has also been announced that his award-winning children’s book ‘The Summer I Robbed a Bank’ is being brought to life as a play this summer.

He added how he ‘really enjoyed’ filming The Great British Bake Off’s Stand Up to Cancer, which was ‘very fun’.

"Noel (Fielding) was hassling me to do it. My baking is ok, but I just didn’t want to humiliate myself. I thought it would be more stress, but it’s honestly so fun. What you see on TV is exactly what it’s like. It was a beautiful day and the tend has tiny cameras everywhere, so you do forget they’re there. My first two things were an absolute disaster, but it all came together in the end. I made my mother’s meringue recipe. It was like a redemption arc and turned out like a hero’s journey.”

While working within multiple genres gives ‘a bit of perspective’ – “I always feel if you only did stand up you’d disappear up the leg of your own trousers as you’re constantly thinking of jokes and what’s working,” said David – stand-up is very much his first love.

“Nothing compares to stand-up. Everyone is right there and you can see them and hear what they’re saying.

He continued: “There are times I can’t believe it still exists as an art form, in the era of Tik Tok algorithm and short attention spans, that people are willing to just sit in the dark and watch people chatting and doing songs for an hour. That’s why I love it, there’s something magical about it.”

The show, which includes a ‘small battery-powered piano’ he got for his Confirmation, is ‘constantly evolving’.

"The beauty in it is that it’s never fully finished. That’s why I don’t write specials for Netflix – I don’t like the idea of that definitive version of the show. I prefer it evolving and in a year’s time it’s completely different.”

Along with the shows, he is also launching a new podcast with Max Rushden called ‘What did you do Yesterday,’ ‘asking everyone what they did yesterday and analysing it in forensic detail.’”

“So that’s my other summer enterprise. But, I can’t wait to get back to Derry.”

Tickets are now available from the Box Office. Telephone 71 264455 (option 1) or visit millenniumforum.co.uk for bookings.