SOME comedians would panic at the thought of doing more than a two-hour set, and most would flinch at the thought of five hours, but Mark Watson took it in his stride when he launched his first Edinburgh 24-hour set.

The 2004 show was a success and Mark ended up with the marathon event becoming something of a trademark. But he’ll be sticking to a more regular time slot when he comes to Southend on June 24.

So how do you prepare for 24 solid hours of comedy? Mark admits he had no idea how the concept would go down with an audience.

“I didn’t come from anything specific,” he explains. “All I can really think is that I always wanted to do something really different, something that had never been done before or, at least, not at Edinburgh in recent memory.

“I never saw them as something that would become a tradition, the first one was supposed to be a one-off, but it went well and people were asking whether I’d be doing another and it’s sort of become a trademark.”

Describing the atmosphere, where many people brought sleeping bags and camped out for the entire set, Mark adds: “It’s very hard to explain, it is unique and you really get caught up in it.

“It’s a mixture of a normal comedy show, blended with a sleepover you have when you’re a teenager, combined with a weird hostage situation.

“It’s a mixture of being exhausted and a slightly confused feeling – a bit like you’re drunk.”

Perhaps, fortunately for Southenders who may not fancy a night bedded down at the Cliffs Pavilion, Westcliff, Mark will be doing a more usual stand-up set, although true to quirky form, he employed an unconventional means of picking the venues on his current tour.

“These are all venues people have requested,” he explains. “Which makes you a bit more confident people might come anyway.

“I asked on my website for people to make suggestions of venues they’d like me to play. I often get messages from people asking ‘why do you never play here?’. Southend is not a bad example, I tended to just miss it out somehow before.

“This year I just thought I’d call their bluff, so if the audience doesn’t like it, they’ve only got themselves to blame.”

But letting his fans pick where he plays, means he’s come across a few surprises.

“There have been a few,” he says. “Wem in Shropshire and Millom in Cumbria. Until I get there and into the theatre, I won’t be sure whether they actually exist.

“It’d be a good opportunity for people to play an elaborate practical joke on me.”

Mark is well known for his TV shows. He hosts sports panel gameshow Mark Watson Kicks It Off and the BBC’s We Need Answers, and has appeared on Never Mind the Buzzcocks, Mock the Week and Have I Got News For You. BBC Radio 4 also saw Mark launch Mark Watson Makes the World Substantially Better.

But, as well as his comedy career, he’s also penned three novels. The latest comes out in paperback this week.

“I really wanted to be a writer initially,” he says. “I was doing stand-up more to get my material out there, then I gradually started to enjoy being onstage.

“It was something I took up as a hobby really, but I just got more and more obsessed.”

He doesn’t see one career as more important than the other. He adds: “I like to always have more than one thing going on, I wouldn’t want to pin everything on stand-up.

“I probably put more effort into writing in a way. The kind of projects I do take so long, so in a way that’s my main job. But stand-up is what I’m best known for.”

Mark Watson's Request Stops is at the Cliffs Pavilion, Station Road, Westcliff on June 24, at 8pm, for £16. Call 01702 351135.