“I don’t really like comparing cultures – in the States there are a lot of jokes about race. A lot of race based comedy. I do compare Australia and the States a little bit, but it’s fair to say I generally don’t do that. I’m not interested in things that alienate one group or another. Mine’s sort of a universal comedy. I don’t laugh at fat people. Some people eat too much. I might drink too much; you might watch too much internet. We all have our vices. I’m happy for me to be the butt of the joke, I’m happy to be the one who makes a dick of himself.
“I don’t self-consciously set out to make myself fresh. That would be very contrived and the result would be inauthentic. I just stay open to new ideas. There’s no one certain way to get inspired. Sometimes if I can’t write a joke I’ll go through my old notebooks; but I can only come up with the shit I come up with.”
There’s a real ’70s vibe to his publicity shots for Get In My Head. “I needed a poster,” Barker explains. “It’s sort of a homage to old ’70s album covers. The title of the show is like the name of one of those bizarre ’70s albums. It’s not any reference to the content of the show.”
Does he miss the being on TV with Flight of the Conchords? “I do cos they’re good friends. Acting isn’t a huge part of what I do so I don’t miss that as much. I miss the guys. I’d miss stand-up more if I had to stop. I’ve been doing stand-up for 25 years. I was barely out of high school when I started. Comedy’s a positive thing. Laughter is mean to be really healthy.”
BY LIZA DEZFOULI
