Sir Lenny Henry

We dig a grave.

You know, we dig the grave.

Everybody has a turn digging the grave.

They hand the shovel to you and you have to join in.

And there was a moment when I took over, we were all crying at my mum's funeral, and we're digging the grave and somebody leaned into me and said, that's the hardest work you've ever had to do, ain't it?

I just think... There's a brilliant Samuel Beckett quote, I think...

ever failed, fail again, fail better.

And I think I learned that very quickly because once I'd won New Faces and I was seen by 16 million people, then I had to go out and do it live in front of people.

And it was really hard.

And I think I spent a lot of time thinking, God, when am I going to get good at this?

And it took about 10 years.

So there was lots of people not laughing.

There was lots of silence.

There was lots of people going, well, you're not very funny, but you're a black lad, you'll do.

There was a lot of that.

I did all the clubs.

I had people reading magazines when I walked on.

I did work in men's clubs where the pies arrived five minutes into my show and everybody went to get a pie.

LAUGHTER

I did shows like that.