Comedy Soup: How long have you been making your own comedy?

James:When I was a kid I wrote and drew stupid comedy books, inspired by The Goodies, Morecambe and Wise and Monty Python. Then I took a break of about twenty-five years or so, and started making comedy films about three years ago.

Comedy Soup: Who or what inspired you to get started?

James: The fact that we had a video camera. We started making short films, and it soon became clear that people would forgive slightly shoddy production values if they were laughing. The next step was to start making the films intentionally funny. The fact that you can put films on the internet is a huge plus; there's an audience out there. The only downside with that is the general lack of feedback. If you can show a film to a roomful of people you can get a much better idea of what works and what doesn't.

Influences on our stuff would be The Comic Strip, Christopher Guest, Garry Shandling, Chris Morris, Steve Coogan, 15 Storeys High, Arrested Development, Python, Father Ted...

Comedy Soup: What's been your proudest achievement or the most fun thing you've done so far?

James: I was pretty chuffed to be a finalist in the BBC New Film Makers Award in 2004 with the DIY comedy short "The Curse of Jeff". Mind you, making people laugh is its own reward if you're a congenital showoff. It gives me happybrain.

Comedy Soup: And what's been your worst experience?

James: It's all good!

Comedy Soup: What are your comic aspirations?

James: I'm going to realise one this year, hopefully: doing a show in Edinburgh. Beyond that, writing and performing in a sketch show would be nice - TV or radio, I'm not fussy.

Comedy Soup: Could you be any funnier?

James: We have resolved to become up to 10 unnier by 2012.

Comedy Soup: We've seen that some of your work has jumped from Comedy Soup onto BBC THREE's Comedy Shuffle. Well done! Who could have predicted that Nostradamus would be so successful?

James: Well I had no idea. That's the trouble when you work with paper facsimiles of 16th Century prophets, they never tell you anything.

Comedy Soup: The supernatural and paranormal seem to be common themes in your work. Is there any particular reason for this?

James: Write what you know: I have little experience of the natural or normal.

Comedy Soup: If you could have three super powers what would they be?

James: I'd like to be slightly taller. Slightly Taller Man they'd call me. Which would mean I could see slightly further, so that's the second power: my "slightly further" vision. The third power... I dunno, death fingers or something.

Comedy Soup: Who exactly are Shameless Films? Do you always work with the same people or do you pick randomly from a selection of desperate hangers on?

James: Shameless Films is one 11-year-old girl with a lot of wigs and a knack for accents.

Comedy Soup: Which other Comedy Soup members make you laugh, and what's your favourite submission?

James: Ooh, there's been some good stuff by Gareth Harris, David O'Reilly, Brainstopping, The Slagg Brothers, Dave Anderson to name but some, but I think my favourite submission is Beastenders by Cyriak Harris.