Ruvan Boshoff

Riaad: I have an L9 disc fracture, which is going to need surgery at some point. What is this show about?

Nik: This show was a bit of a departure from where I had been operating previously. There is a piece of material about my dad and death.

I wanted to do it for a few years but I hadn’t found the confidence to talk about it. There was a bit of vulnerability and I wasn’t sure it was going to work. I don’t know if anyone will laugh, but I’ll let it go there even if it takes the crowd down (it didn’t).

Riaad: There is a lot of introspection here. Personal stuff. I did something different, I didn’t write as much. I would have a thought and then go to a comedy club late at night and perform, and perform until it was right. What is your role at home?

Nik: Bringing home the macon. It gets pretty busy in our house. Typically I’m the first one up at 6am. Baby gets a bottle. Normally a couple of fights to break up with the boys. Take the kids to school.

Riaad: School run, pick up Legos, bath time (also known as hell on earth). Put them to bed, fall asleep and then wake up in shock and realise you have to be at a show. What happens at bedtime?

Nik: Before bed, we ask three questions. How were you brave today, how were you kind and how did you fail?

It gives us a window into the day. Adam said he was brave because he said hello to a stranger. Ben says how failed: “I kicked Adam in the head.” Kind is usually nicer.

Riaad: I become Mickey Mouse. Somehow, it gets them to brush their teeth and get into bed if you speak in Mickey’s voice. What keeps you young?

Nik: I’ve started drinking a little bit of red wine. I have cut down on sugar because apparently it gives me a chest infection, but it’s not by choice.

Riaad: I’ve never smoked. Crack was a problem once, but not much apart from that. I have cut out caffeine and sugar. How do you balance work and family?

Nik: We have made a decision that I will not travel for long periods while the kids are young. By we, I mean my wife. Although I’ll be doing a show in London this year and I’m thinking of doing a show in Swaziland — that should really do something for my international career.

Riaad: We chose the difficult path of being really hands-on with our children. My wife has been breast-feeding for a long, long time. Pretty much went from one to the next. The youngest is two, so that must stop now.

But we wanted to do it by