RICKY GERVAIS

is bracing himself for the inevitable backlash from the release of his latest stand-up special. The controversial comedian’s show, Humanity, will be available on Netflix from March 13 and he’s ready for the fallout.

“Everyone will complain about their thing. There are 20 things that I talk about and there’ll be 20 different groups that will pick up on their thing in that 20,” says the 56-year-old of his first show in seven years. “I don’t know what to do really, you’ve just got to keep fighting the good fight.”

Netflix forked out nearly £30million for the rights to the special and a follow-up – the highest ever paid to a British comic. And Ricky reckons it is his finest yet, joking gloomily: “I think I’ve done the best stand-up ever because I’m so close to death that I think ‘What’s the worst that can happen?’”