A Portland Bill.


I had a lovely time at tonight’s preview at the cracking Portland Arms in Cambridge, which proved just how it is to arrive at a venue that’s properly equipped with a good technician to hand and a great sound and light set-up.

Me, on stage in Caombridge tonight.

As is always the case, the last few minutes leading up to the show were so intense that I went into to the gig with very little time to consider what I was about to do. It’s hard to find a space to get your head together and separate your tech and show mindset. I ended up sitting behind the screen on the stage for a few minutes so I could meditate quickly and centre myself before launching into it. Thankfully, the set-up in the space was so naturally strong that it gave me something to anchor onto (if that makes any sense) and - while yet again I have very little idea of what I actually said, it flowed pretty freely and got a good response.

Norman Lovett was on good form. He arrived probably half an hour before the gig kicked off and opted to relax in the green room while I did my set which was probably for the best as it made me feel less pressured; it’s one thing doing a new show in front of an audience, but it’s a whole other when there’s an act you look up to watching you, even if it’s someone you know well.

As ever, there were quite a few Red Dwarf fans in who asked to pose with Norm for a photos afterwards, but thankfully I didn’t feel like they spent the whole of my set just waiting for him to come on. There were certainly some good laughs in it (something Norman said himself when I went up to see him in the interval) and some nice feedback on Twitter afterwards which was a nice bonus (if unusual for me).

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