In January 1992 Mike was minding his own business contract cleaning when his acting agent called, reminded him who she was, and told him the 'Sit Down Comedy Club' was about to open in Brisbane. It was a defining moment for him. As he stood in his trusty storeroom surrounded by mops and Chux supa-wipes (the extra absorbent type) he received 'the comedy calling' - a strange, dizzy feeling that seemed to bring stomach cramps as well. Two weeks later as he failed miserably on his stand up debut he realised it was not the comedy but the ammonia calling. It really wasn't a well-ventilated storeroom.
A few years later becoming a bit good at comedy Mike sold his contract cleaning company and began making a full time living as a performer. To facilitate this, there may have been a time when he regularly dressed up as (among other things) a clown, a spy, a waiter, and at one memorable gig the Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz. What can I say? He was young. He needed the money.
Mike continued to avoid doing stand up where possible - he even took a year off to sing and dance in a theatre restaurant on the Gold Coast, but always found his way back to stand up. Stints as the audience warm-up comedian for Channel 7's Family Feud did little to dampen his enthusiasm, and after his fourth successful tour of New Zealand's comedy clubs (both of them) he decided to give the street theatre and magic gigs a big miss, and gracefully accept that he and stand up comedy are going to be together a long time.
Mike's list of foreign countries worked in reads like a list of foreign countries worked in, and includes England, USA, Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and New Zealand. Some people are impressed by stuff like that.