MADCAP comedian Freddie Starr is back. After a near-breakdown and a lengthy lay-off, the workaholic comic is fighting his way back to fitness with a reduced touring schedule.

But, never fear, his surreal style of knockabout comedy survives intact.

Those who have seen him in action say he is as unique and unpredictable as ever.

So the man who spawned the famous headline Freddie Starr Ate My Hamster survives.

Clever money, of course, says Freddie never actually consumed the rodent but merely employed the services of a canny press agent.

Whatever the truth, he is a one-off.

His manic brand of comedy, which can zip from child-like innocence to full-on mayhem in a nano-second, attracts fans that really do span the generation gap.

Apart from an innate sense of what and what does not work on stage, Starr does have a huge amount of experience.

He perfected his act way back in the early '60s when, as a wacky Merseyside rock and roller, he worked alongside people like The Beatles, Gerry and The Pacemakers and Cilla Black.

Gradually he switched the emphasis from music to humour and an act was born.

Away from the stage Freddie avoids the limelight and is much happier indulging his passion for owning and breeding thoroughbred racehorses.

This came good when - ridden by champion jockey Richard Dunwoody - his horse Minnehoma galloped to victory in the most famous steeplechase in the world, the Grand National.

Freddie Starr plays The Pavilion Theatre in Bournemouth on Sunday, May 26.

* 01202 456456.