My comedy heroes when I was little were mostly very silly British people: I grew up on 1066 And All That. We’d listen to The Goon Show in the car on the way to the Buddhist meditation centre my parents helped build. Eventually there was Monty Python and Blackadder. And I adored Margaret Dumont with The Marx Brothers; the line she walked between silliness and seriousness delights me still, and thinking about it now, definitely planted seeds in my vibe.

Then there’s Fry & Laurie. I used to say if I could have a career anything like Stephen Fry’s I’d be pretty happy because he gets to do serious projects and also still be allowed to be silly. Nowadays my heroes are people like Jackie Kashian, Gary Gulman and Maria Bamford in the US, John-Luke Roberts, Laura Davis and Daniel Kitson in the UK. And Andy Zaltzman, Felicity Ward and Chris Addison for doing lots of different things while remaining essentially themselves. 

Basically, I have all the time in the world for anyone who is doing Their Own Thing very hard. I’m fundamentally wary of putting someone on a hero pedestal, though. I’ve known people who get worshiped and I don’t think it’s healthy. I like the idea that we can enjoy someone’s best work, without thinking that’s their best self (it would be sad if your best self was in your work) or thinking there are no other worse selves in the cupboard. We’ve all got some stale pasta back there.

Alice Fraser: A Passion For Passion tours until Tuesday 25 February; main picture: Steve Ullathorne.