Skip to main content

Mostly Kay.


At last night’s Mostly Comedy, Phil Kay complimented us on our material. He also briefly referenced it in his set. That's something I'll store in my head for a rainy day.



Having him on the bill still excites me. The first time I watched him (in 2008, during our first Edinburgh run), he blew my mind. It was painfully funny. Literally. I laughed so hard and uncontrollably that my whole body ached, and I felt like my soul might escape through my mouth. It was the cleverest, most intelligent, most perfectly-constructed-while-being-off-the-cuff set I’d seen in my life. 

His Hitchin Mostly Comedy debut was a turning point. He was the only big, established act we’d approached up to then who we didn’t know personally. Just the thought of him arriving was intimidating. Thankfully he's lovely. He performed to one of our first sold out crowds for well over an hour and left them wanting more. He’s been back many times since. We’ve also interviewed him for our podcast.

Yesterday’s show was good all-round. We had a nice-sized audience who were very responsive. They liked mine and Glyn’s stuff. I also made my solo stand-up debut (which, thankfully, Phil wasn’t there to see. I didn’t need the extra pressure). My set was short but well received. Doing it felt strange yet satisfying. It was great to make a start. I’m looking forward to trying out some more.

Not only did Phil say nice things about us last night, he also used my harmonica. The important thing to remember when booking him for a show is to hide everything.

Popular posts from this blog

Shakerpuppetmaker.

Have Parker from Thunderbirds and Noel Gallagher ever been seen in the same room? The resemblance is uncanny. So much so, I think something’s afoot. If my suspicions are correct, I've stumbled across a secret that will blow the music and puppet industry wide apart. In the mid-60s / mid-90s at least. It doesn’t take long to see the signposts. There’s the similarity between the name of Oasis’ first single, Supersonic, and Supermarianation, Gerry Anderson’s puppetry technique. The Gallagher brothers would often wear Parkas . Live Forever was clearly a reference to Captain Scarlet and Standing on the Shoulder of Giants to the size difference between Noel and his bandmates. The more you think about it, the more brazen it gets. It’s fishier than Area 51, Paul is Dead and JFK's assassination put together. The only glitch to the theory is scale . According to Wikipedia, Anderson’s marionettes were 1’10” and Gallagher is 5’8”. How does he maintain an illusion of avera...

Comedy That's Worth a Letch.

Today, I nipped to Letchworth to meet with illustrator (and one-time - two-time - comedy poet) Mushybees, to discuss an event Mostly Comedy will act as surrogate parents to as part of Letchworth’s Arts Takeover in a couple of weeks. Months ago he got into contact to see if we’d be up for co-organising a comedy stage as part of Letchworth’s weekend of arts-based attractions in July; something I’d provisionally said yes to, before things got hectic in the lead-up to Edinburgh and we didn’t take it any further. Despite not getting down to the nitty-gritty straight away, we managed to pull a line-up together in a back-and-forth of emails yesterday, leading to me getting Glyn’s blessing and us deciding we’d officially go ahead with it (whatever ‘officially’ means in this context). In reality, it’s not complicated: from 12pm until 6pm-ish on the 22 nd July, Glyn, Mushybees and I will host four Edinburgh previews from four acts (including me), before Nor...

Stevenage: A (Tiny) River Runs Through it.

If ever a river was mis-sold, it’s the Roaring Meg in Stevenage. I just walked past it on my way to the retail park that has taken its name. They’re similarly uninspiring. The river is less of a roar and more of a dribble; cystitis sufferers produce greater flow. The retail park is soulless. What was once a thriving enterprise is nearly devoid of atmosphere, save an underlying essence of emptiness and despair. With a Toys R Us. When it was first built I was excited. Back then, the thought of a bowling alley, an ice rink, a Harvester and a Blockbuster Video within a small surface area was enticing. I celebrated many birthdays on site. There was an indoor cricket pitch there for a while where I once had a joint party with a friend. Why someone with an almost pathological fear of sport would agree to such a venture is beyond me, but I did it. Now, there’s very little at the Roaring Meg of note. The river would be a metaphor for the shopping ce...