Croydon-born playwright Robert Farrar returns to his routes on Friday when he premieres his new gay comedy, Relax, at Warehouse Theatre. GRAHAM MOODY talks to him about the star James Holmes (from BBC sitcom Miranda), the difficulties of attracting straight people to a gay play and being grilled by Morecambe and Wise as a 15-year-old.

Graham Moody: So tell me what Relax is all about then Robert?

Robert Farrar: Phil Setren (the director) and I once did a show called Lovers From Hell which was comprised of three short plays. One of them was called Get The Guest, starring James Holmes, and it was such a success I decided to turn it into this full length play. It's like an old French farce. The proprietor of this hotel, Sandy, is like a gay Basil Fawlty - once he has a couple of sherries he just cannot resist his guests. In the morning he cannot face what he has done so pretends it was his twin brother.

GM: Sandy sounds like someone a lot of people might relate to.

RF: He is a man who has trouble feeling relaxed about his sexuality. It was written as part of a series of stories about people who have complicated inner lives, people who are doing one thing and then denying it and pretending they are doing another. It's about having an inner life and hiding it to the outside world.

GM: Getting James on board again is a big coup.

RF: Sometimes you get great actors who will be in a small play like this. I cannot afford to pay James as much as Hollywood but it's a good role for him and something he can stick his teeth into. He is a star of the future and maybe this is the role that will turn him into a household name.

GM: The majority of your works are gay-themed aren't they?

RF: I have split myself down the middle. A lot of my work is as a film maker and it is quite difficult to do a gay-themed movie. Five years ago I was feeling frustrated as I wanted to be writing about something a bit closer to my experience so I started doing gay-themed plays and it has been really good for me to do that.

GM: Do you find most of your audiences tend to be gay?

RF: It tends to depend on the reviews and the publicity. I find that if you get good reviews then you get a mixed audience and you see a lot of young straight couples as they know it is going to be fun.

GM: When you were younger you were interviewed by Morecambe and Wise and almost had a pop career, is that right?

RF: Morecambe and Wise interviewed me on a show called It's Childsplay - a competition for young playwrights. It was terrifying. I was 15 and there were really setting me up for jokes. In my 20s I had a band called The Mystery Girls and we released a couple of singles on A&M Records but after that I decided I needed to be a writer. If I had been a pop star I would have been an appalling person."

Relax, Dingwall Road, March 12 to April 4, Tuesday 6.30pm, Wednesday to Saturday 8pm, Sunday 5pm, £12. Call 020 8680 4060 or visit warehousetheatre.co.uk.