While looking for something else – I found a site with 52 great photos of a post gig signing session (from a show in Slovenia’s Cankarev dom venue). This venue holds 2,000 people and Jimmy had performed an 8pm show there on May 11^th 2015.

And, as Exhibit B, the video below is one of the extras from his Making People Laugh DVD (from his 2010 tour Rapier Wit), showing him signing autographs on a post gig meet and greet.

The impetus behind this post was because this reminded me of how I often see new fans (usually from outside of the UK) asking if Jimmy will stick around to sign memorabilia after a show.

I think the answer nowadays would be – it’s quite a rarity and depends on where he is, where he’s heading to next and what time the show ends.

From what I’ve witnessed (and experienced) he often travels to gigs on public transport (hopping on tube and trains in the UK) and there are regular selfies, on Instagram, from people he’s met on planes and in airports and stations. As he travels around the world, he will often invite friends / acquaintances for a chat backstage, often during the interval or between the gigs (when he does a double gig night).

Unfortunately (from a fan perspective) as comedians move up into ever bigger venues the meet and greets become completely unworkable. Staying behind to sign for 2,000 people in Slovenia is a little easier than catering for, for example, an Arena audience of 10,000. And even signing for a good proportion of 2,000 punters is really a young person’s game. Can you imagine being 2 hours on stage and then having to chat / sign and take selfies with that many people?

In this 2020 podcast, with Rob Brydon, he said that camera phones contributed to him stopping the after-show sessions because everyone just wanted a selfie and there was no interaction. He said that he got really good at using all kinds of phones but that, instead of a handshake and a chat, people were just wanting a picture and that what used to take 45 minutes now took 2 hours.

The other issue, with Jimmy, is how much he packs into his daily life. He may joke about only working for 2 hours a day – but he’s being WAY too modest.

I relistened yesterday to a phone in interview to a New Zealand radio station (News Talk ZB) that he’d done on 15^th July 2022. He’d performed a gig in Scarborough (UK) and, as he was driven away afterwards, took advantage of the difference in time zones and hooked up a transatlantic phone call, to do the NZ interview (he mentioned that he’d just left Scarborough).

Add into that the fact that he often does 2 shows a night. The 2^nd show probably ends after 11pm and then he’s got to wind down and try to get some sleep. Often having to get up early to get a flight to the next destination.

And now that he’s the father of 2 young children (one not in school yet) he’s said that, when in the UK, he tries as much as possible to get back home to be around for when they get up.

So, to his new fans, I’d say that he’s a friendly guy when you bump into him – but he’s also INSANELY busy and has soooooooooo many people clamouring for his attention. Good luck!