Hard-Pressed for Things to Say.

One of the downsides to writing a blog most days is occasionally, you don’t have much to say.

Today’s one of those days. Thankfully, I just remembered the press release I put together yesterday to promote this month’s Hitchin Mostly, which takes place in just under a fortnight. It doesn’t make for much of blogpost, but it does contain some words of vague interest that fill a page. So here it is in all its promotional glory; as to whether it will make any of the local papers is up for debate:

Press Release – 09.03.17

mostly comedy

a monthly comedy and music club at the sun hotel in hitchin

While March’s Hitchin Mostly Comedy has officially sold out in advance for the sixth month running, there’s still a chance to snap up return tickets on the night. This month, the club’s custodians DOGGETT & EPHGRAVE play host to two panel show favourites: HAL CRUTTENDEN and JOEY PAGE.

HAL CRUTTENDEN is one of the top comics working in the UK today, and a highly accomplished writer and actor. Over the last twelve months he’s performed on ‘The John Bishop Show’ (BBC1) made his third appearance on ‘Live at the Apollo’ (BBC1 & 2), his second on ‘Have I Got News For You’ (BBC1) and been a frequent guest on ‘The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice’ (BBC2). He has recently took part in the ‘Hell on High Seas’ challenge, where six celebrities and a professional crew sailed from Belfast to London on a Volvo 65 Racing Yacht, facing rough weather and sea sickness to raise over a million pounds for Sport Relief; their progress was aired each night on BBC1’s ‘One Show’.

Other TV appearances include ‘Would I Lie to You?’ (BBC2), ‘Mock the Week’ (BBC2), ‘Pointless Celebrities’ (BBC1), ‘Celebrity Mastermind’ (BBC2), ‘The Royal Variety Performance’ and ‘Sunday Night at the London Palladium’ (both for ITV). Cruttenden’s also a three-time Chortle Comedy Award nominee and was nominated for Best Newcomer at the Perrier Awards back in 2002. This will be his first appearance at Mostly Comedy.

JOEY PAGE, conversely, is a Mostly Comedy favourite, having played all four of the club’s previous HItchin homes as well as its venues in London and Edinburgh. Joey has spent the last decade working his way around the comedy circuit, supporting the likes of Josie Long and Noel Fielding - and appearing on shows such as BBC2's 'Never Mind The Buzzcocks', BBC3's 'Comedy Marathon', and Channel 4's 'Noel Fielding’s Luxury Comedy'. Fielding is a big fan, describing him as a ‘stylish comedian with a sonic imagination’.

The gig takes place on Thursday 23^rd March at The Sun Hotel; doors open at 7:30pm with the first act on at 8:00pm. The show will be emceed by “polished, natural comedians” (Camden Fringe Voyeur) DOGGETT & EPHGRAVE. While it’s officially sold out, a waiting list for returns will be taken on the door from 7:15pm, with any available tickets distributed shortly afterwards, on a first-come, first-served basis. Other acts set to play Mostly in the coming months include Mark Watson, Angelos Epithemiou, Richard Herring and Red Dwarf’s Hattie Hayridge; visit www.mostlycomedy.co.uk to book.

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...

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...

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...

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