MARK Watson has no medical knowledge or training.

He is a comedian by trade and by profession. The main reason I say this he does not profess to be able to make you feel better from anxiety or depression but many people who have seen his stand up have told him ‘they feel better for the experience’ and it has helped ‘to brighten up their day’.

What Mark Watson wants to do, what he wants to achieve is for people to come along to the show and establish a connection with other humans.

Mark has been a comedian since 1999 and a regular face and voice at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

He has appeared on many radio and television shows including Mock the Week, Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Live at the Apollo and Have I Got News For You, to name but a few.

Mark got into stand up by accident when she was at university.

Explaining how this occurred he said: “It happened at a comedy night at university.

“There were some professional comedians performing and one of them dropped out so we needed someone to go on for10 minutes.

“As I had done sketches I volunteered to get on stage.

“It went really well and from that moment on I was hooked.

“You do get hooked to the highs, the adrenaline the more you get used to doing it. but while there are highs there are lows.

“With a comedian he/she has to keep it fresh and it is something you have to keep working at and you learn to deal with the highs.

“For me comedy is a form of escapism, it helps relieve the pressure and make fun of seriousness and what is going on in real life. It is a chance to have fun.”

Somerset County Gazette:

Being a comic means due to the nature of the work you spend a lot of time on your own even when you are on stage in front of an audience.

Explaining this Mark said: “There has never been a time when I have not being doing stand up.

“What I have learnt is how self reliant and tough I need to be with so many ups and downs, so many set backs and rejections.

“I am not naturally confident so doing stand up has been good for my self belief and given me a hard shell. I have also learnt I enjoy entertaining people and I like the feeling (high from entertaining people).

“As a comedian with all the travelling you do spend a lot of time on your own and you spend a lot of time in your own company.

“It is odd going on stage as a comedian and trying to break down the gang (audience) and becoming part of them while there is only you on stage.

“Being on stage gives me a whole range of feelings. Mostly it is all welcoming as each audience is different and react in different ways.

“I do feel nervous and tense before I go on but that is a good thing and I hope I never lose this.”

The fun continues as Mark is on tour this Autumn.

Mark’s show is called The Infinite Show will be at The Brewhouse in Taunton on October 12, tickets can be bought online at thebrewhouse.net or call 01823 283244.

On November 9, Mark will be at the Octagon in Yeovil, and tickets can be bought online at octagon-theatre.co.uk or by calling 01935 422884.

The blurb states: “Watson returns to what he’s best at: being indoors. Inspired by the mostly alarming state of the world his children are growing up in, and a genuine, urgent desire to do something about it, this show is about empathy. 99 percent of the world’s.

Speaking about the show, Mark said: “I have done the show at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival at it went down very well.

“The show is very much audience participation and I am ready to have fun.”

Being a comedian has made Mark self reliant in coming up with new jokes, new material and aiming to get better being a comic.

He said: “I have to see it as a job as it is not a hobby. It is a job I am very lucky to do as it allows me to be creative. When I look at what I have achieved in my career it is difficult to take stock as you are always looking ahead to the next thing.

“I enjoy entertaining a large number of people and I certainly wake up looking forward to doing my job.

“As a comedian you have to keep it fresh and it is something you have to keep working at to be successful and keep coming up with new and funny stuff.”