Shifting Sands.


Today’s show was the most fun one yet.

For the first time, the thing as a whole started to make sense, which was a pain when I had press in yesterday. That said, there was an industry presence today too, so at least they got to see it when I was going at it a fair lick.

(That sounds inappropriate, so I’ll leave that image there.)

Today's audience were very on-board with what I was doing, which was great. It was noticeable how different their approach was, compared to the last two 2for1 days. It may be a coincidence, but I felt the people who were there today were on the same page as me, and knew what they’d come to see - or maybe the wind was just blowing in the right direction; you can never tell with the Edinburgh Fringe; it’s a changeable beast.

There was some concern before we kicked off, as only one of the PA speakers was working. The in-house technician was still trying to fix it minutes before we were due to kick off, which made me a little tense, as I didn’t want a late start on a day when industry were in. Thankfully, we made the executive decision to leave it as it was for my show, and he'd try to fix it later. Ironically, it sounded better than it did yesterday, when my voice was starting to wear thin.

After the show, I went back to my digs to make some lunch and catch up with my family (by phone; they’re not here). I then rushed to the Gilded Balloon Teviot to see my friend Katie Pritchard emceeing the excellent improvised musical 'Notflix' by the improv troupe Waiting For the Call. I met her boyfriend Jon outside and headed into the building for the first time this year; strange, as we have a history (*cough* The Balloon Debate *cough*). The best thing of all was the fact the show was in the Wee Room; the venue where me and Glyn made our Edinburgh Début, back in 2008. It was the first time I’d been in the room since, so it brought back a lot of memories. I’m glad they saw sense and flipped the room around, as it used to be the case that latecomers would have to walk past the stage to get to there seats, which would only ramp up the awkwardness.

Afterwards, I popped to Tesco, then to the Fringe Participants’ Centre to pick up some lanyards for my flyerers, so they can look more official, before rushing back to my digs and then out again to tech Fraser’s show. I was tempted to go out tonight as well, to celebrate a good day's work, but decided against it, as I have a late gig tomorrow and I still want to keep myself in check; as soon as everything feels more settled, I’ll be more sociable. Instead I made some leek, bean and potato soup while listening to some music, and FaceTimed my wife; all in all, a soothing low-key end to the day.

Popular posts from this blog

Shakerpuppetmaker.

Image
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...
Read more

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...
Read more

Hoo-ray and up She Rises.

So much has happened since my last post in March that this blog risks sounding like an itinerary. The main news is that Hitchin Mostly Comedy will return in the summer at a new venue, the Queen Mother Theatre . The road to this decision was convoluted, though enough fell into place en route to leave me optimistic about this new start. The catalyst was a survey I ran via our mailing list a few months back, in which I asked, "If the club returned in the current climate, with tickets still around £15 (and with similar line-ups), would you still attend?"; the response to which, in simple terms, was a resounding yes. Nearly 250 mailing list subscribers responded in a single week, with around a hundred also taking the option to leave some feedback. And only two people were abusive, which counts as a win when you consider they posted their comments online anonymously. Imagine how many more insults we would have received if the comedy club was a woman. Particularly if she was Diane ...
Read more