Luke Heggie came into comedy late.
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The Sydney-based comedian was almost twice the age of his fellow hopefuls when he entered and ultimately won Raw Comedy in 2010.
“I was 35 and everyone else was about 18,” Heggie said.
“I wouldn’t have thought of (comedy as a career) when I was 18. When I was that age I just wanted to travel, I had no ambition.”
Fast forward six years, and Heggie is still forging ahead with comedy as a career – it’s the longest job he’s ever had.
And in a twist, it’s the job that’s fulfilled 18-year-old Luke’s dream of travel – when he spoke to X-Static he was on the return drive from Canberra.
The past 12 months have seen him do two trips to Afghanistan to visit and perform for Australian troops.
“I never would have the opportunity to go there otherwise, and it’s the strangest place that I’ve done a gig,” Heggie said.
“You’re in front of a group of (soldiers) standing there with their arms folded, and nearby are security men with guns.”
You can catch Heggie in the flesh as the headliner for this month’s Fresh Comedy.
Tasmania is also a spot that holds a special spot in Heggie’s travel diaries.
“I love Tasmania – I went about 18 years ago. I took my bike down and rode around for about three months, camping in my tent,” he said.
“Since then I’ve been back three or four times.”
As for his day to day life as a comedian, Heggie said it was a fun job but it was still work.
It’s a regular challenge to think of the next joke and the next show.
“It takes me about six to eight months to come up with an hour show. Like most people, I’m a bit slack,” he said.
