Jonathan Ross’s favourite juggling comedian, Honor Oak’s Mat Ricardo, has issued a challenge to audiences for his last London Varieties Show this summer.

The performer wants people to bring the weirdest and wildest objects they can find for him to juggle at the final show at the Leicester Square Theatre on Wednesday, July 24.

“I will choose the three craziest objects to juggle for a minimum of ten throws – otherwise I will get a custard pie in the face,” said Mat, 48. “The only criteria is, they must be bigger than a grape and smaller than a suitcase, they must not consist of liquids or gases or anything containing liquids or gases... and of course, nothing alive! I won’t be juggling puppies.”

Mat’s series of six summer shows have pulled in great audiences to see him performing alongside mates like Eddie Izzard and Jenny Eclair. For the last show his special guests will include comedians Dave Gorman and Paul Zenon. Jonathan Ross was so amazed by videos of Mat online, he personally invited him onto his BBC chat show. Most people know Mat from the amazing trick he performs in a telly ad for income protection insurance. In it, he not only pulls a table cloth from under a set of dishes on a table... he also pulls the cloth back on again, leaving the dishes intact. “Everyone has seen magicians pull the table cloth off the table leaving the dishes intact,” said Mat.

“But I am the first person in the world who can put the tablecloth back on the table, underneath all the things. It’s a unique creation and the thing that people talk about. Jonathan Ross got the performer to show the trick to his amazed celebrity guests, including Hollywood actress Christina Ricci and telly stars Holly Willoughby, Fearne Cotton and Keith Lemon. But they couldn’t even pull the table cloth off without smashing dishes.

“In the new show though, there is a slightly more risky trick, where I juggle three cordless electric carving knives. My wife Lesley isn’t happy about this one..!”

For more information about the London Varieties Show gig visit www.matricardo.com