"I HATE hecklers. I think they're the worst kind of human being and I will do everything I can to make sure anyone who heckles me knows exactly how I feel. I'm not pleasant about it."
Harsh words indeed, but Daniel Sloss has a point. The fresh-faced comedian reserves his deepest criticism for those who interrupt his stand-up routines not because he can't handle it, but because he feels it's the height of bad manners.
"I find heckling offensive," says the 22-year-old comedian. "Whether it's me they're heckling or someone else, I don't think it's in the least bit funny.
"I work really hard on my stand-up and take it seriously, so it really annoys me that anyone would think they can ruin it by telling me how rubbish they think I am while I'm on stage.
"I wouldn't mind if they told me to my face, but in front of a room full of other people? That's just rude."
And he doesn't end there. "They might feel that way, but other people might be enjoying it. What gives them the right to make themselves the spokesperson for everyone else in the room? "
A thorny subject, clearly.
Much has been made of Daniel's youth – he started out on the stand-up circuit when he was just 16 and was a finalist in the coveted Channel 4 competition So You Think You're Funny? a year later.
He's gone on to perform a solo season in London's West End – the youngest comedian ever to do so – written material for Frankie Boyle for Mock the Week and appeared in countless TV shows and in stand-up in the UK and Australia, yet it's still his age which gets the most attention.
"I'm both proud of it and a bit sick of it," he said. "It was a big deal to do all of that before I was even old enough to be in the clubs I was performing in – my mum had to get me some fake ID so I could even be in there – but it's all people want to talk about. I've moved on now.
"But it is an advantage in the respect that audiences have such low expectations of me because of my age. They're always pleasantly surprised."
People can see just how much he's moved on when Daniel appears at the Guildhall in Gloucester on Tuesday and again on November 7 when he takes to the stage at Cheltenham Town Hall.
"It's just about me and my life really," he said. "Don't come expecting to learn anything. I'm not going to preach to people. I'm only 22 – I know nothing about anything.
"I just want to make people laugh."
For tickets to see Daniel at the Guildhall, call 01452 503050. For Cheltenham Town Hall, ring 0844 576 2210. Both shows cost £13.50.
Elaine McLaren