What’s On previews Whose Line Is It Anyway? at Madinat Theatre in May 2015. Get ticket information about this live entertainment in Dubai.

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– Michael McIntyre

Improvising is usually something we do in a crisis, but for the talented comedians of Whose Line Is It Anyway?, making stuff up on the spot is a laugh-a-minute profession. This month, fresh batches of sketches come to Dubai, with the biggest names in improv at the helm. We put Andy Smart on the spot.

Improv: terrifying or liberating? Liberating. I love the feeling of not knowing what I’m saying. I’m often surprised at what comes out of my mouth.

Describe yourself in three words. Tall, concave, and convex.

When was the first time you told a joke and got paid for it? December 26, 1980 at The Everyman Cellar Bar in Liverpool. I was paid to do a poem that poked fun at an Adrian Henry poem called America. I wasn’t told he’d be in the room.

Your fellow performers – who’s skilled at what? Stephen Frost (main pic, top right) is the punster. He is a naturally funny man. Steve Steen (main pic, far left) is the rude one. You think he can’t go any further, then he finds a way. Ian Coppinger (main pic, bottom right) is the brains of the outfit. He knows all sorts of stuff, especially 1970s pop. His nickname is two bellies, because he eats meals between meals.

Do you get nervous before performing? Not really. It’s more like having a night out with friends, but there’s an audience watching.

Who’s your comedy hero? Tommy Cooper from the old days, and Sean Lock from my peers.

A typical Dubai audience: are they raucous or reserved? Terribly reserved – until the lights go out.

What’s the best improv scene you’ve performed? Steve Steen and I once did a castaway scene on a desert Island with an owl. Steve played the owl. It went something like this:
Me: “It’s the Captain’s fault that we got shipwrecked!”
Steve: “Who?”
Me: “The Captain.”
Steve: “Who?”
Me: “The Captain.”
Steve: “Who?”
Me: “You must know him? He steered the ship!”
Steve “Who?”
Me: “The Captain!”
Steve: “Who?”

We kept that scene going for ages.

May 20 to 23
Madinat Theatre, Souk Madinat, Dubai, Wed and Fri 8pm, Sat 7pm. Dhs180. Tel: (04) 3666546. Taxi: Souk Madinat. madinattheatre.com