Patrick Spicer talks comedy, anxiety and worrying about getting things wrong

Patrick Spicer is bringing his debut hour to Edinburgh. But Patrick is WORRIED. He's spent a lifetime trying to convince himself, and others that he's SUPER NORMAL. He usually fails.

His endearing, self-deprecating debut hour is a personal and honest exploration of the absurd ways his mental and physical health issues manifest; and finding ways to make peace with those. Anyone who's ever felt humiliated or afraid or like there's something wrong with them can laugh along with Patrick. Any perfect legends who feel great 24-7 can laugh AT Patrick, but he'll know they're hiding it all. Better than he can.

We ask Patrick some stress-free/ful questions...

What's the most successful way you've found to supress feelings of not being normal?

I think not fixating on the abstract concept of normality and just accepting whatever I'm doing and whatever is going on is neither "normal" or "abnormal" is really good. I find if I really focus and work hard to get in that headspace, I can do it for about 20 minutes a year. And let me tell you for those 20 minutes I do feel very successful and cool.

Doctor Google: yay or nay?

It depends on what's wrong and how much of an idiot you are. If it's something fun like an ingrown toenail and you have a brain like a slick MacBook Pro that smells good and never crashes, then go for it. If you're like me and you're always convinced it's something sinister and your brain runs like a 1920s typewriter that's clogged with sand then it's probably best to see a professional, who can professionally tell you that it's all in your head / the tappy bit under the keyboard.

What's the worst thing you've done in the name of fitting in?

I lied about having lost my virginity for so long I managed to convince even myself that I was a worldwide champion shagger. I had all these recurring characters who would re-appear over the years like intersecting soap opera storylines. I'm sure none of my friends believed me because they never met any of these people or saw me go home with anyone ever. So it was mostly the worst in the sense it was completely ineffective.

How often do people relate to experiences you've had? Have you ever been surprised to discover something seemingly really specific to you isn't just you?

I can't remember who said it but someone clever said the more specific and personal you are on stage the more likely it is people will relate to it. Like, anyone can relate to the broad stuff but they might relate to it in a broad way. I used to joke about liking my anxiety medication because it has the word "lol" in it, and I've had multiple people come up to me and say they'd thought the same thing. Which just goes to show they are joke thieves and no longer welcome at my shows.

Did we ask the right questions? Should we have asked something else? Is this Q&A normal?

These questions are bad and you should feel bad!

No, come on, please! you did a great job! I reserve all criticism for myself.

The only way I could read these questions and think they were wrong or weird is if I had written them. I'd be thinking "why did I write that question god that's boring who cares" and "why am I interviewing myself this is not good for publicity."