"I can't go out and complain, ‘People always nail me down as a German, why can’t they see me as a social commentator’, while I call my shows 1,000 Years Of German Humour, My Struggle and No Surrender.

“I should probably think of slightly more whimsical show titles if I want people to stop mentioning I’m from Germany.”

After more than eight years on the UK comedy circuit, German Comedy Ambassador To Great Britain Henning Wehn has begun to break through, as a radio panelist on Radio Five Live’s Fighting Talk, with appearances on the television series Edinburgh And Beyond, in short films for the BBC and as Stewart Lee’s warm-up man.

No Surrender, the new show he is previewing for two nights at the Caroline Of Brunswick prior to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, is appropriately enough based around the themes of success and failure.

“The springboard for the show was my time in Australia earlier this year,” reveals Wehn.

“I played in a very big room there, which I had incredible problems filling, because I had no profile there.

“The promoters were promising me that they had shifted lots of tickets – that they had sold 60-odd tickets on the opening night.

“In the end there were eight people in the audience. The promoter said she’d not told me the true figures as she didn’t want to bring me down.

“The shows got me thinking about success and failure, because if you’ve got eight people in such a big room, you can’t be self-referential – and you can’t talk about success or failure without looking like a total t***.”

It brought back memories of early shows in London, where once, after a three-night residency, he had to write the promoters a cheque because so few people had turned up.

“When an audience is small it can get quite self-conscious,” he says. “If there are a lot of people around they can relax more. With eight people you can never create a nice atmosphere because there is a lot of pressure on them to laugh, or not to laugh.”

Despite the recent antipodean setback, Wehn’s profile has been increasing, both through what he describes as his “fairly amusing” solo shows and his double act with Otto Kuhnle, 1,000 Years Of German Humour.

His nationality is never far away from his work.

“If I’m left to my own devices I can explore whatever I like,” he says.

“But in the context of a panel show someone else will always bring up Germany. I think I will always be talking about Germany in some shape or form.

“There is no denying my history; I can’t talk about what it was like growing up in Billericay. Your background is what shapes you. It’s my legacy and my value system.”

The endless football battles between England and Germany give the former marketing officer for Wycombe Wanderers an endless supply of gags.

“It gives me the opportunity to reheat old material,” he jokes.

“The parameters of that rivalry don’t change much and it comes up again and again every two years with the European and World Cup.

“The rivalry will end when both England and Germany are ruled by China.”

For now his main focus is achieving his ultimate aim: “world humour domination”.

“I’m not sure how I will achieve that goal,” he says, “but doubtless there will be radio work and more on the goggle box.

“I don’t feel the pressure to be involved in any major projects – if you stick around long enough it will come to you. Since the first day I started comedy I have had no immediate reason why it might go the other way.”

* Starts Tuesday 9.30pm, Wednesday 6.30pm, tickets £5, visit www.carolineofbrunswick.co.uk/f2f