Trust your instincts: Bill Bailey on preparing for tour

The British comedian is about to begin a six month tour of his latest show, and finds taking risks is all part of the game

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Like everyone else who works on their own, I need deadlines. I find it very hard to motivate myself and get the adrenaline going otherwise. It'd be like someone asking, 'Do you want to write some jokes?' Yeah, when? 'Well, it's up to you, mate.' When do I have to perform the show? 'Whenever you want.' So I can just sit around and watch three seasons of Narcos back to back? 'Yep, on you go.'

My next deadline is January 2018, when the new show starts. Larks In Transit, a collection of stories from my travels, will be the longest tour I've ever done. The UK leg alone is six months and I'll probably be performing in the Baltic countries and beyond towards the end of next year. There's an extraordinary appetite for British comedy in Europe.

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