For more than 20 years The Comedy Store Players have been entertaining audiences in London and around the world with their unique brand of improvisational comedy.

Now Paul Merton one of the founder members of The Comedy Store Players accompanied by his chums Lee Simpson, Jim Sweeney, Richard Vranch and Suki Webster, are preparing to flex their improv muscles on a 21-date tour of the country.

They come to the New Wimbledon Theatre for one night only on Monday, May 8. Paul, 48, is one of the most familiar faces on television and on a rare day off he has time for a chat with the Croydon Guardian.

He started in the business more than 20 years ago and has become a household name with the TV shows Room 101 and the hugely popular Have I Got News For You. But Paul can remember being paid a tenner for performing at a disco in West Hampstead.

Chatty and charming, he is one of those rare comedians who is just as funny off stage as on. An appealingly modest man, he starts by emphasising that despite his name being in the title, it is very much an ensemble show. He stresses that he and his chums all deserve equal credit.

"It comes down to that old Jack Benny line work with good people'," says Paul. "We're all equals in this show. We're a bunch of mates, and I'm just one of the guys. There is no resentment between us and that's why we've lasted so long."

As much as anything, the comedian relishes the camaraderie that comes from working as a team on Paul Merton's Impro Chums.

"I've only ever done one solo stand-up tour, and I didn't enjoy it," the comedian recalls with a sigh. "You do the first half and then sit on your own in the dressing room during the interval. You think, what exactly am I doing this for?' "Some people love performing on their own, but I don't. I get tired of the sound of my own voice. I clearly haven't got the solo stand-up gene."

Paul reckons the show has proved popular in the past because people value comedy.

"I get a great thrill from people coming up to me and saying how much they enjoy it," he says. "People do prize entertainment. A lot of people have nine to five jobs. They work in a biscuit factory where the pay is not very good and the noise is terrible. From time to time, we all want to go out and be taken to a different place. We all need a bit of escapism and that's exactly what this show provides."

It does indeed. Paul Merton's Impro Chums works well because the team's obvious enjoyment spreads like wildfire through the audience.

"I love the fact that every show is unique. It exists for one night only, so no one can get tired of it. We do the show absolutely off the cuff and we never remember it afterwards. It amazes me that some people still suspect that it's a trick. We make it all up on the spot. We're too lazy to rehearse, we're not that committed!" he laughs.

- Paul Merton's Impro Chums
New Wimbledon Theatre
Monday, May 8, 8pm
£17.50 0870 060 6646
New Wimbledon Theatre