INTERVIEW: Frankie Goes to Liverpool as comedian dishes the dirt

Frankie Boyle has revealed the secret behind his relentless insults... his mother.

The Scottish funnyman, 49, admitted it was the matriarch who influenced his dark sense of humour, after being interviewed by his close pal and fellow comedian, Jason Manford.

Chatting to Manford, Boyle, who was raised by his mother after his parents split when he was young, said: "She was the one with the black sense of humour in the family."

He added: "If she thought something was funny, no matter how dark, she said it. And I think that is where I get it from."

Boyle also revealed that he was never afraid to speak his mind, even as a child.

He remembered: "If someone said something stupid, my mother would never back down. She would stand her ground and she would tell them she thought they were talking nonsense."

Boyle also revealed that he does not suffer from nerves before going on stage because he knows he can handle any hecklers.

He said: "I think because you're going on stage in front of people, people may be a bit scared of you. Anyone who's going to heckle, you've already got the advantage over them because they're not used to being confronted."

Boyle is currently on tour with his new show, Frankie Boyle: Lap of Shame.

The tour started in Liverpool on January 18, and will finish in Sheffield on March 4.

Speaking about the tour, he said: "It's the second year in a row that I've done a big tour. The venues are a little bit bigger, which is great. It's nice to be able to perform in front of a bigger crowd."

He added: "I'm really enjoying it. It's a great way to connect with the audience and I get to see so many different parts of the country."