GROWING up as a mixed race Scottish Ghanaian in the 70s, I lost count of the number of times people asked me: “Where are you from?”

The honest, simple and truthful answer of “Perth” was never enough.

“No, where are you really from?”

"Perth.”

“No, where were you born?”

“Perth.”

The questions continued into my ancestry and background. My insistence that I was from Perth may have seemed like obfuscation, and to a certain extent it was. I could never understand my Scottishness being questioned, even though my granny was from Yorkshire.

As I continually asserted I was from Perth, I used to play a game to see how many different ways they would ask the same question: 1-2 questions indicated natural curiosity; 3-5 suggested latent racist tendencies; six or more questions… and they might vote Ukip.

The first time I realised I was Scottish was in primary 6. It was January and we had to compete to see who was best at reciting Scots Wha Hae, Burns’ interpretation of the call to battle at Bannockburn. I didn’t win the competition. In fact, I got detention for punching the English kid next to me. That was when I realised I was Scottish.

I still read, recite and perform Burns, and every year at Edinburgh Fringe I try to get people excited about Scotland. We gave the world the television. We gave the world the telephone. We gave the world penicillin! Okay, we gave them VD in the first place, but we still have an illustrious history.

So each year I put on a stand-up show that tries to inform, educate and entertain people about that history.

I always hope that when people leave my shows they think: “That was really funny and, you know, I learned something.”

In the run-up to last year’s show – A History of Scotland – I was doing a gig with a folk group. Back-stage I had an idea for a joke, so I asked one of the singers if people would know a certain fact about James IV. “I don’t know,” came the reply. “I learn my Scottish history from your shows at the Fringe.” I was delighted she placed that trust in me, but it felt like quite a responsibility!

During the August 2014 Fringe I did two shows, one called Aaah’m Votin YES. The other called Aaah’m Voting NO (don’t worry it was a lot more yessy than you’d think). I used to hand out YES badges at the end, and I asked a departing audience member how he was voting. He replied that he wasn’t sure, because he hadn’t yet been to my other show. Now that’s pressure!

The following month, I was manning a campaign stall in the run-up to September 18. An English chap, long resident in Scotland, came up and debated the issues with me. Among the dire warnings of economic and social chaos that would ensue if Scotland gained self-determination, he told me that Scotland should accept being subsumed into England. It’s a natural process in history. “After all, what happened to the Picts?” I didn’t get detention for the punch that day.

Logic meant he should accept Britain’s incorporation into Angela Merkel’s European superstate. Two years before England voted to get its country back He didn’t quite see the connection, but I decided it was time my folk singer and I knew a bit more about what happened to The Picts. I’m from Perth… honestly. Come and see my show Alba: Scotland the Origins.

No English people were hurt in the writing of this article.

Alba: Scotland the Origins is at The Stand in the Square every day until August 28. Tickets from edfringe.com or at www.oustandingtickets.com.