Alabama born, London-based Reginald D. Hunter is gigging around the UK and Ireland.

The comedian arrives on the Isle of Wight on April 3.

Of course you'll know him from appearances on the BBC's Have I Got News For You, QI and Would I Lie To You?, as well as Channel 4's 8 Out Of 10 Cats, but when his Bombe Shuffleur tour reaches Shanklin Theatre next month, expect a very different man to the one you get on mainstream telly. 

About that, the Perrier Award-nominated comic is very clear.

"Anything you do that's not stand-up, that's impactful...some [new] people are coming to your shows," he told the Isle of Wight County Press.

He's referring to the fans he has picked up after guesting on the peak time comedy shows and thanks to his documentaries, on the history of the American music scene (Reginald D Hunter’s Songs Of The South and Reginald D Hunter’s Songs of The Border).

"Over the years, BBC Two viewers started coming and they were shocked about some of the things I said on stage.

"They didn't understand, when I'm on TV I have yet to be sitting at my table. When they come to see my live tour shows, I'm sitting at my table. When I sit at my table, I can say whatever I like," he explains.

He's no stranger to controversy. A previous tour resulted in some venues deciding not to display his poster. His website biography refers to him as 'searingly honest', 'brutally honest' and 'never afraid to face challenging issues head on.'

The billing for this tour says: "Climate change. Mass unemployment. Economic pandemics. The rise of global fascism. What could this man POSSIBLY say to upset you?" 

By his own admission, 'there’s no time for niceties.'

Despite this, his southern American roots are still very much evident and he intersperses his responses to my questions with a wiltingly polite 'ma'am', delivered in an accent straight out the movies.

His aim is to entertain and to challenge.

"You can expect, apart from pathos and a bit of intellectualism, constant, relentless demon, dog pressure. Particularly from the hilarity part. I try to locate where the fun is."

For Reginald, Covid-19 meant lockdown in London. However, like all those who live anywhere packed with attractions for visitors, life has so far got in the way of him being able to enjoying some iconic city experiences.

"I've never visited Madam Tussauds," he jokes.

"I'm ashamed to admit it, but after 25 years of living here I still have yet to go to a premiership match. It's something I intend to do one day.

"I mean, I'm not a hockey fan, but in LA we were given box seats and I had a blast. It's a whole other game when you're watching out front. Maybe a similar thing happens with football."

Sadly, he's not even guaranteed a chance to see much of the Island on his whistle-stop tour.

His gig here in Shanklin is sandwiched between Swindon's Wyvern Theatre and the Churchill Theatre in Bromley, Kent.

"If there's any breathing room either side of the gate then, yeah, I'll stretch my legs a bit and go out and get reacquainted with the world.

"If it's wall-to-wall then it'll be just enough to arrive, have a meal, try to deliver on stage, try to make money and after that, go to the room, sit naked and look at the mirror and think, 'What the hell just happened to me today?'"

Whatever he concludes, he is certainly delighted to be back doing live shows. 

"I'm still [enjoying] the newness and being back doing stand-up. I'm still excited about new routines that have just started to work. I'm excited to get up each day and try this new stuff and see how it goes.

"It's like going on a date. If you walk in and just immediately think about all the previous women you've dated, it's going to affect the meeting.

"I try to be present in the room and I try to be present with whoever I'm talking to and we try to meet each other at some halfway point."

Unapologetic about being outspoken, Reginald D. Hunter takes a different approach to fellow tv panellist, broadcaster and comic David Baddiel (who also visited Shanklin Theatre recently), when it comes to dealing with trolls.

David's approach is to tackle them head on. Reginald prefers a different tack.

He refers to them as the 'recreationally offended.'

"Some of them come into my show and I have plenty for them to enjoy. 

"What inflames a troll is when you try to reason with them, because they don't want to be reasoned with.

"What they want to do is you use a stepping stone to a platform. I find ignoring them [is best] whenever possible.

"Most of us don't have any problems with anybody that's different than us, racially, politically, or sexually, but we all have a problem with bullies.

"There are bullies in every section of human life and nobody likes to deal with their own bullies. I despise bullies, no matter how righteous their platform is."

Dubbed 'cerebral' and 'gifted' by reviewers, his message is buy a ticket and bring friends and if you do, you might find you make an impression on him.

"The other night I was in Limerick. I was on stage first ten minutes and there was a couple in the front row and both of them were asleep," he tells me with a deep laugh.

"They were nodding together. I wasn't offended. I was like, 'okay, well they're comfortable enough to do that? Cool.'

"I swear, I look back ten minutes later and they were kissing each other's brains out, like they were teenagers. I took some credit for that too!

"People kissing, or even sleeping? An audience can treat you way worse than that!"

Reginald D. Hunter is at Shanklin Theatre on Sunday, April 3, at 8pm. Find tickets HERE.