GROWING old is something that can be quite daunting.

Whether it’s feeling a bit achey, becoming breathless just walking up the stairs or the dreaded first grey hair, getting older is full of little challenges.

But not for 41-year-old Russell Kane, a comedian well known for his lively stage persona, who insists he is relishing the prospect of growing old.

Ahead of his latest tour in the new year, Right Man, Wrong Age which will be coming to Bridgwater, Kane admits he has stopped clinging on to his youth, ditched the guy-liner and youthful clothes.

“In the last year I’ve been married and had a baby,” he said.

“I’ve changed my hair, I’ve changed my look, I’ve thrown all my eyeliner in the bin.

“I literally went to my wardrobe one day and got all my ridiculous clothes and took them to the Sue Ryder shop for some other man having a midlife crisis then bought the four exact same suits in different colours from Topman.

“Then I got my hair as flat as it can go and I thought, ‘that’s it: this is me now’.”

But why the sudden transformation? Well, the answer lies in a somewhat uncomfortable epiphany for the London comedian.

“I’m always looking for the moment that can make me look ridiculous in a way that is compelling, he said.

“I was in the middle of spray-tanning myself upstairs in these tiny pants when the doorbell went.

“I went downstairs in my dressing gown and this window cleaner was touting for work.

“He leaned in and said, ‘I’m really sorry to disturb you: is your mum or dad in at all?’ “Initially you might have thought this was a compliment, but it’s really not.

“He could be talking about how I’m putting myself across so I thought: ‘clothes in the bin’. And at that moment, there was Right Man, Wrong Age.

“When you’re 18, you look in the mirror and think ‘I know what I want to do, so why am I trapped in this 18-year-old body?’ while the 80-year-old is still waltzing and dancing around in her head.

“That’s going to be my jumping off point and from there I’ll do lots of accessible observations as well as the odd thinky bit. But I don’t want to disappear up my own bum with this show, I just want to go on in my suit, like Michael McIntyre or Peter Kay, and just be funny and have lots of big laughs. My only job in life is to be funny.”

Kane said he believes comedians should always be evolving and adapting, and younger readers will know he has become a social media hit recently, with video rants, called ‘Kaneing’ on Facebook amassing thousands of views.

It’s a brave move for the comedian, putting his jokes directly into the vicious world of Facebook and Twitter, where people can instantly criticise.

He said: “I’ve not really seen other stand-ups doing it; I’ve seen some using their social media and doing bits of sketches but I haven’t seen many take the risk of doing stand-up down the barrel of a camera, posting it and seeing what happens.

“I did a thing recently, which I called The Kaneing, where I looked at a celebrity news story and put it on my Facebook wall. I was worried it might seem a bit embarrassing and desperate, but it got 64,000 views over-night.”

But whether it’s direct to your phone or computer screen, there’s one thing that keeps Kane coming back for more.

He adds: “I love it.

“If I ever have a bad day and feel miserable, I think about the things my family have done for a living.

“The fact that I can walk into a hotel, lie on the bed, watch a sci-fi movie, go and do an hour’s work on stage is incredible.”

Russell Kane will be bringing his Right Man, Wrong Age show to the McMillan Theatre in Bridgwater on March 24, 2017.

For more information on the show or to book tickets visit russellkane.co.uk or offthekerb.com