THERE can't be too many Irish-Iranian-Teesside comedians. In fact, if pressed, I can only think of Patrick Monahan.

The winner of the ITV comedic reality series, Show Me The Funny, starred at the Edinburgh Fringe recently with his show, Shooting From The Lip.

An ambassador for BUPA, he will be taking part in the Great North Run on September 16. For more details visit facebook.com/Patrickjmonahan or twitter.com/patrickjmonahan

What was your first car?

My first car was a battered old Mini that my dad bought off a mate for £50, it was so battered it made it onto the road about twice before we sent it to the graveyard.

How many times did it take to pass your driving test?

Twice. I was such a bad driver and still am. I failed my test with four minor faults and five major faults.I was impressed that I got fewer minor faults than major ones, but then realised that's not a good thing.One of the major faults was parking in a bus stop.The driving examiner said pull over whenever you're ready, so I pulled into a bus stop.He said: "Are yousure you want to stop here?" I said to him: "Well, there's no bus here, so why not?"

Who would be your ideal passenger and where would you like to go?

My ideal passenger would be Bear Grylls because I always get hungry when on long road trips and can never find a service station open for food, but having Bear in the car would be brilliant because youcould just stop anywhere and he could make you a snack from the bushes and hedges and road kill.

What is your dream car?

A car that has a built in fridge and cupboard full of food and cake.

How would you describe your driving style?

Dangerous, friendly, polite, not concentrating enough. Is that a bus stop or a parking bay?

Tell me one driving anecdote from your past?

One time our mate took us for a spin in his new Volkswagen Golf GTI. We were all about 17 and 18 years old. He took us to an industrial estate to see how fast it could go.Then he found a massive pile of gravel in the shape of a mini hill -he revved up then drove straight up the pile of gravel and almost got to the top before skidding down backwards.After that day I realised that maybe not all teenagers should be allowed to drive cars.

What is playing on your in-car iPod or CD player at the moment?

I haven't a car at the moment, I'm using the bus or train a lot -so it's really whatever's playing on a fellow passenger'si Pod who hasn't got any headphones.If I had acar and iPod it would probably be Lionel Richie's Hello and I'd have it on full blast at traffic lights and wave at random cars next to me because I don't think drivers are polite enough nowadays.

What do you drive now and why?

The number 73 bus and the great East Coast and Grand Central trains.I'm less of a driver and more of a passenger.