YOU CAN BET ON THIS FUNNY GUY

years to get to the next level.

“I’ve been lucky to perform alongside many of South Africa’s greats and I feel like each performance brings me closer to that next level,” he said.

Heffer has also performed all over South Africa and in Perth, Australia, learning to improve with every effort. “I showed myself that my humour actually crosses borders, which is very important for any South African comedian.

“Many South African comedians (sometimes even the professionals), fall into the trap of going overseas and realising that the only people that can relate to their humour are South Africans.

“It’s a huge wake-up call doing a set overseas, no matter how small the gig.”

Despite his family’s entrepreneurial success in owning South Africa’s largest bookmaker, Hollywoodbets.net, Heffer has stayed humble in his ambitions as a comedian and worked just as hard in achieving his dreams.

By day, he is Hollywoodbets. net’s property portfolio manager and at night he is ferociously dedicated to performances.

“I count my blessings every day, because I am in the fortunate position to pursue both lifestyles fully.

“Until I take over The Daily Show from Trevor Noah, I will very much be a part of Hollywoodbets,” he smiles.

Heffer also credits mentors like Jem Atkins, Glen Bo, Carvin Goldstone and Neil Green for their role in organising and headlining comedy shows, which paved the way for others.

“They always had the time of day, as well as a five-minute open slot for a newbie comic, who knew as much about stand-up as a dog knows about the moon. I still look up to those guys,” he laughed.

As social media sharing has allowed audiences to document and share performances, it is becoming more difficult for comedians to repeat their material. Bearing this in mind, Heffer cleverly creates new stuff from everyday experiences.

Most of his jokes comes from banter with friends or even strangers, which helps him keep his routines fresh and entertaining. He also describes himself as a “oneliner kind of guy”.

Heffer added that the trick is to write down anything and everything that makes him even slightly giggle on the inside, because it’s a “process of elimination”.

“I write down a lot… but digging through that pile is where all of my best jokes come from.

“My comedy set is basically a string of those best one-liners in story form,” said the jokester.

He also does a killer Arnold Schwarzenegger impression and unlike most comedians who use the platform for political satire, Heffer concentrates on the really funny moments in life.

This allows him to be authentic and create a style that is different to most of the shows in and around Durban.

His advice to any aspiring comedian, is that being a stand-up comedian is not easy, but if you can criticise yourself, obliterate your ego and learn from your mistakes, you get better as you go along.

“The only thing that makes you better at stand-up comedy is stage time. I went from ‘newbie’ to amateur during a period where we were doing four gigs a week for four months straight.

“That kind of regular stage time allowed me to get comfortable on stage, which is the first hurdle any aspiring comedian needs to overcome,” he advised.

Talking a little more from experience, Heffer stressed that once you become comfortable on stage, then each show is used as a whetstone to sharpen your skills at making people laugh really hard.

“That’s where you learn about the finer details like the wording of your jokes and timing etc. We get better the drunker you are.”