But soon, Greater Shepparton residents will have the opportunity to see him live.
Ray O’Leary is on a regional tour for his new show, Your Laughter Is Just Making Me Stronger, and Shepparton made the list of stops.
“Basically, I’ve been on the road for a long time,” he said.
But what is it about?
“A lot of people do shows that are about things, but this show is sort of not really about anything in particular,” O’Leary said.
“It’s some life updates about what I’ve been up to in the past year or so, but mostly it’s just things that I find funny and that have happened to me in the past year.”
Although Shepparton is on the list, it certainly wasn’t the first stop.
“I've been taking it all around Australia and New Zealand, and it’s been absolutely fantastic,” he said.
“The reception I’ve received, I really enjoyed it.
“It’s a fun way to go around and see Australia.”
It’s not every day Riverlinks Eastbank gets a comedian as well-known as O’Leary, but Shepparton was a top priority, he said.
“Every comedian says, you know, you’ve got to skip the Melbourne Comedy Festival, You’ve got to ditch Sydney, the place you've got to be, is Shepparton,” O’Leary said.
“They’re saying if you can’t make it in Shepparton, you can’t make it anywhere, so I've come out, I’m out here to prove my mettle, see if I can make it in this town.”
If you snag a ticket, O’Leary promises a night of his usual antics and all new jokes.
“It's a new hour of comedy,” he said.
“For people who have seen me on TV, it’s a lot like me on Have You Been Paying Attention? except I’ll be standing up and there won’t be a buzzer, and I’ve gotten rid of the other comedians.
“I’m quite deadpan and monotonous, but some people still find it funny, so thank God for that.
“It’ll just be me in a suit, rambling at you in a Ted Talk-like style with punchlines in between.”
He said that although he had done various mediums of comedy, there would always be a special place in his heart for stand-up.
“It’s definitely the first love and I think being on your own, being out there with nothing but you and a microphone and the audience is daunting, but it is what makes it so rewarding,” he said.
O’Leary had one message for the Greater Shepparton community, and it was loud and clear.
“Buy tickets to my show. It’s a very important message and I hope you take it on board,” he said.
To listen to the full interview with Ray O’Leary, check out episode five of Shepp Happens with Nicola and Djembe.
Ray O’Leary will perform at Riverlinks Eastbank on Friday, October 25 at 7pm.
Tickets can be bought at tinyurl.com/Ray-OLeary-Shepp
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