Mo Gilligan on Dubai's Lamborghinis, meeting Chris Rock and why shopping malls in UAE impress him: 'I want to move here'

Dubai: British comedian Mo Gilligan has rubbed shoulders with royalty, met comedy legend Chris Rock, worked with Formula One champion Max Verstappen and has Netflix specials to his name.

Yet, he still considers himself a civilian. And fame hasn't made him immune to life's more mundane worries, like getting a decent meal before a glamorous red-carpet event. Those fancy, bite-sized canapés simply won't cut it.

"I went to an event yesterday invited by the Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry," Gilligan tells us ahead of his October 12 show at Dubai Opera as part of the Dubai Comedy Festival.

"I was wearing this tux and everything. And I was running late. And I was like, you know what? I don't know when I'm going to eat and I need to eat."

His reasoning is wonderfully relatable.

"Getting these pieces of cheese with a grape on top, as much as it is very nice, I'm going to need about seven of them. But I can't take seven. I can't be like, let me take seven. So yeah, we need to normalise pre-eating before going to an event."

It's this knack for finding comedy in life's small absurdities that has helped Gilligan build his career. And Dubai, with its Lamborghinis inside shopping malls, offer plenty of material.

Dubai, where even shopping malls leave him speechless

Having visited Dubai several times for work and holidays, Gilligan remains fascinated by the city's extravagance, particularly its shopping malls.

"We've got a Primark in the mall. Fantastic. Wow. And then you'll see something else like you can buy a Lamborghini in the mall. The levels are insane."

"Then you're like, OK, cool. What? There's an aquarium here? And everyone's normalising it. And I'm like, OK. And after your aquarium, you can get on the taxi. They have the taxi [buggies] in the mall!"

And the more he discovers, the more tempting a move to Dubai becomes.

"Every time I'm in Dubai, I always see something I've never seen before that I'm so in awe of. And I'm like, you know what, maybe I might just move out here."

Even Dubai's airport conveniences leave Gilligan amazed, particularly the luggage services.

"They pick up your luggage. And before you get on the flight, they take your luggage and it's already checked in. Mind blown."

But he couldn't quite trust the process.

"I had to keep going and find my iPhone to be like, is it there? OK, it's there. All right. Just to be sure."

And it's not just the airport. From readily available Ubers to robots cleaning restaurant floors, Dubai's everyday luxuries continue to surprise him.

"You can go to a restaurant and there'll be a robot cleaning. There's no one seeing the robot cleaning the floor. Insane."

A comedy show designed to make you forget your problems

For those catching Gilligan live in Dubai, his advice is simple: arrive early and leave your worries at the door.

"If you've never been to a Mo show before, one of it is, it's escapism. So whatever's going on, leave it at home. If you're running late and you get to the show, just leave all of that stuff at home. We come to laugh at the Mo shows."

His brand of comedy is unapologetically silly, drawing laughs from everyday situations audiences instantly recognise.

"It's a very silly show. I think that's probably the best way I can describe it. It's not silly like it's wacky, but it's silly in a sense of you'll find yourself nudging your friend or your partner and be like, yeah, you do that. Oh my God, that's so true, isn't it?"

And the fun begins before he even steps on stage.

"If you're one of these people that don't want to come to the show early, please do come early. We got a DJ playing. We try our best to keep a party environment."

He also cheekily reminds audiences of his credentials, describing himself as a "three-time BAFTA" and "three Netflix special" comic.

"The proof is in the pudding."

Why Mo Gilligan still feels like an outsider in celebrity circles

For all his professional success, Gilligan hasn't quite mastered the art of acting blasé around famous people.

"No, I'm a civilian."

At Buckingham Palace, he was so excited that he began filming, only to be politely reminded of the rules.

"I went to Buckingham Palace and I didn't know this, but I was filming. So I was like, wow, look at this. And someone was like, sorry, sir, there's no filming in the palace. I was like, OK, all right, put my phone back."

"I get mad excited if I get to go to any event, whether it's Wimbledon or Buckingham Palace. I'm a fan first."

But his biggest pinch-me moment came at Wimbledon this year, when musician Tinie Tempah introduced him to comedy legend Chris Rock.

"Then I brought up the courage and he said, I'll come over. And Chris Rock knew who I was."

"Chris Rock knows who I am. This is unreal."

Despite his success, Gilligan admits that imposter syndrome hasn't disappeared with fame.

"I have that kind of imposter syndrome where it's lovely to be here. But I just, again, I don't know why when I'm at these places, I'm like, I don't think anyone knows me here. And I'm OK with it. That's fine."

Why he doesn't need raunchy jokes to make people laugh

While comedians often find themselves caught in controversies over offensive humour, Gilligan prefers mining everyday absurdities for laughs.

"I always try my best to show what I see, you know, what's silly and what's funny of the world."

His material ranges from relationships and marriage to the peculiar behaviour of airline passengers who jump out of their seats the moment a plane lands.

"Why is it when you're on a flight and the plane stops, everyone gets up?"

"My rule is like anyone in the aisle seat should be allowed to get up because I'm in the aisle. But sometimes people that have had the comfort of being in the window seat are like, yeah, I want to get up too."

"No, no, no, you got to stay over there. There's not enough room in the aisle for everybody."

But Gilligan doesn't just find humour in ordinary people. He's equally willing to poke fun at his own glamorous life.

In one of his previous specials, Gilligan recalled splashing out on expensive beverages at a nightclub in Los Angeles, convinced he had finally arrived.

Then came the bill.

"Oh, I'm not here yet. This is not for me ... Sometimes people can see my life and be like, wow, it must be great. And, you know, you've got this person following you on social media. I'm like, yeah, but guys, let me tell you what really happened."

Can AI replace comedians? Gilligan isn't worried

As artificial intelligence reshapes creative industries, Gilligan believes comedians have one advantage machines cannot replicate: lived experience.

"I think the AI thing with comedy is always interesting because no one can tell you, you know, I think a comic can tell you a feeling and explain it and make it funny."

"And I just don't believe that AI can do that."

His example is wonderfully specific.

"AI can't tell you what it's like when you're on a plane, hasn't taken off, you've taken a nap, but I could smell the chicken and beef that's coming through the aisle."

"It can't tell you the nuance of what that feels like and pretending to sleep. And, you know, it's all of those things."

His verdict is reassuring, if slightly cautious.

"I think our jobs are quite, quite safe. Just yet."

Max Verstappen and an Abu Dhabi F1 dream

Gilligan has also ventured into Formula One through 100 People vs Max Verstappen, a project involving Red Bull and Disney+.

The experience even earned him an unexpected souvenir.

"I got to meet Max. Weirdly, he gave me a signed hat, which is here in my kitchen."

But there's one Formula One experience still on his wish list: the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. He imagines the season-ending race having the relaxed atmosphere of the last day of school.

"It's like when you was in school and you're like the day before you're leaving and you're not really doing any work. It's like, yeah, we're kind of finished now."

"I'd love to try and get out to Abu Dhabi this year. Possibly that could be possible."

His biggest fear? Getting too comfortable

For a comedian who has conquered television, streaming and international stages, Gilligan's biggest fear isn't fading fame or being cancelled. It's complacency.

"My fears is just kind of you don't want to get too comfortable. I think that's my biggest fear, especially in this space."

He believes success means little if entertainers stop caring about the audiences who buy tickets to see them.

"There's people out there that rely on what we do as entertainers, comedians, as actors, where they're like, oh, I really want you to care as much as I care buying this £10 ticket to go and watch your show."

It's why he deliberately pushes himself into unfamiliar territory. When television became comfortable, he took his comedy on a world tour.

"When I was doing a lot of television, I was like, right, I'm really good at this. I'm really comfortable. So I was like, I'm going to go and do a world tour."

"I'll take this show to places that I don't even know if I've even got an audience. I don't know if I'd even sell it."

And once that worked, he set his sights on arenas.

"Once you do the tour, that goes great. And then you're like, let's do an arena show. Can we do it? Let's go."

Even the prospect of selling out London's O2 Arena comes with pressure.

"It is a luxury to want to sell out an O2 arena, but it's still like, you know, I want to sell it out. I don't want to be like, well, people buy tickets."

For Gilligan, those sleepless nights are part of staying hungry.

Bollywood calling? He's ready to dance

And if Bollywood comes calling with a film that requires him to dance, Gilligan isn't about to turn it down.

"A hundred percent. Listen, man, I know the Bollywood market."

"I'd definitely be up for that. So if you know anyone, let them know, man, let them know."

Bollywood filmmakers, you've been told.

Dubai wish list: Bespoke perfume and skydiving

For all his celebrity connections, Gilligan's Dubai wish list is surprisingly simple. Forget supercars and luxury watches. He's fascinated by a perfume maker he discovered on social media.

"There's a place people go to in Dubai and they can make any fragrance for you. I really want to go to this shop."

"I keep seeing it on social media where the guy can smell something and go, OK. And he makes it."

He's also contemplating something considerably more adventurous.

"The last time I came to Dubai, I said to my tour manager, I was like, oh, I've got a day off before the show. I said, do you want to go skydiving?"

"If you see me skydiving, you see me skydiving, but I need to go to this place to get the fragrances where he makes them."

"I'm desperate to go to that place."

And perhaps that's the charm of Mo Gilligan. He may have met royalty, rubbed shoulders with comedy legends and worked with Formula One champions, but he's still the man who gets excited about a perfume shop, eats before a red-carpet event and can't quite believe Chris Rock knows his name.