tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20703072764729823132024-03-05T13:47:09.414+00:00mostly david ephgraveA blog from the actormusocomic. "Devastatingly witty" (EdFestMag)David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comBlogger2072125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-4981862482564781422023-05-19T14:33:00.020+01:002023-05-19T14:48:12.844+01:00Hoo-ray and up She Rises.<div><span style="font-family: arial;">So much has happened since my last post in March that this blog risks sounding like an itinerary.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The main news is that <a href="http://www.mostlycomedy.co.uk" target="_blank">Hitchin Mostly Comedy</a> will return in the summer at a new venue, the <a href="http://www.qmt.org.uk" target="_blank">Queen Mother Theatre</a>. 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 Abbott.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The change of venue is not the only difference to adjust to, as my comedy partner of eighteen years, Glyn Doggett, is no longer taking part. He actually stepped down from the club in December 2021, a few months before we closed, so in that sense I've adjusted to the loss already, though we've only just announced it. But it will still be sad not to have him to my immediate right on stage anymore, though I completely understand his reasoning. I'll miss him though, inevitably.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The good news is that another longtime friend and colleague, Dan Graham, is coming in on the production side of the club to help me run it. I'm delighted to have him on board and wouldn't have persisted with this return without his involvement. The time for pushing myself to the limit to cover every base so Mostly can happen is over (he said hopefully).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The first show takes place on the 20th July as part of the Hitchin Festival, after which we'll break for August to come back monthly from September. Reginald D Hunter is already down for July, with another big name pencilled, to be confirmed early next month. While having Reg on the bill is impressive enough, having both acts together would blow people's minds. And who wouldn't want a little brain-blowage? I'll keep my fingers crossed in the meantime, which will make dressing very difficult.</span></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-639153755541153212023-03-06T14:37:00.042+00:002023-03-10T15:53:40.885+00:00Hancock's Hour and a Half<span style="font-family: arial;">Over the weekend, as a little treat, I attended a screening of three episodes of Hancock's Half Hour at London's Riverside Studios, which was the location of their shooting some sixty-six years earlier; I'm down with the kids (of 1957). </span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdfiWKJIM2vksylmcQvZTOaKLeC4CnrjvKSTjTXyewGJyKLhCQSjAYZGAHJ_fcExHRT1Qaw-lBAyFvdi77bV1ff5IvgYTefRirytjpjSwLbpWfQZF-CwBa3rlcJs5hyvC5iqursT4vYKTdECTRx7jLzFVZKY5dUciY_cp3rRyPOtcl1n6qb_SrpzhM/s4032/IMG_9909%20Copy.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdfiWKJIM2vksylmcQvZTOaKLeC4CnrjvKSTjTXyewGJyKLhCQSjAYZGAHJ_fcExHRT1Qaw-lBAyFvdi77bV1ff5IvgYTefRirytjpjSwLbpWfQZF-CwBa3rlcJs5hyvC5iqursT4vYKTdECTRx7jLzFVZKY5dUciY_cp3rRyPOtcl1n6qb_SrpzhM/s320/IMG_9909%20Copy.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The event was staged by the <a href="https://tonyhancock.org.uk/" target="_blank">Tony Hancock Appreciation Society</a>, of which I'm a member, and was the third screening at the venue, though I couldn't make the previous two due to the recent rail strike hoo-ha. So this trip was a case of third-time lucky for me. My last visit to the studios was in 2008, when Glyn and I filmed a promotional interview for our first Edinburgh show, The Balloon Debate (footage I recall seeing once at the time, but never since). Being TV nerds, we were excited to be at the former site of TFI Friday for work reasons. We probably even hummed the opening riff to The Riverboat Song as we walked around the building. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">It's no secret that I love Hancock's Half Hour. Why would it be? The writing's timeless, and I'm astounded by the comedy strike rate. Tony Hancock's acting ability is also sorely underrated. For some reason, the myth prevails that Galton and Simpson's scripts masked his lesser abilities, which sells him short. While they were undeniably his best creative match, and Hancock's quest to break America and his crippling self-analysis contributed to his decline after he split from them, by then, he was also battling depression and alcoholism. But at his peak, his timing was impeccable. Sid James said no one else came close, and he worked with everybody. And before Tony began relying on cue cards in those later years, his ability to listen and react truthfully to his co-stars while drawing out big laughs was a comic masterclass that Galton & Simpson's writing only knocked into a cocked hat.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">(I enjoy 1950s phrases as much as 1950s comedy.)</span></div></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">It's worth noting how good Sid was in HHH too, when unhindered by all that patchy Carry On material. It seems Galton & Simpson brought the best out of everybody.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: arial;"><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpGOc30LKn3/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpGOc30LKn3/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank"> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0px;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0px auto 12px; width: 50px;"><svg height="50px" version="1.1" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="50px" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g fill-rule="evenodd" fill="none" stroke-width="1" stroke="none"><g fill="#000000" transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; height: 0px; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg); width: 0px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="border-right: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); transform: translateY(16px); width: 0px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; transform: translateY(-4px); width: 16px;"></div> <div style="border-left: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); height: 0px; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px); width: 0px;"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpGOc30LKn3/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by David Ephgrave (@ephgraveseyeview)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">While I always enjoy an excuse to watch Tony and Sid working, the undoubted highlight of the day was meeting the 98-year-old Hancock co-star Laurie Webb, who was a surprise special guest. Laurie featured in two of the three episodes shown - The Reunion Party and The Cruise* - and nine episodes in total, and was also in Galton & Simpson's spinoff vehicle for Sid, Citizen James. He was remarkably sprightly for a man two years shy of a hundred and even dismissed the offer of a microphone to speak to the room, relying on old-fashioned vocal projection instead like the pro he is. He talked of how jobs like Hancock were mere daytime fillers to squeeze around his packed theatre diary (which took in seventeen West End musicals and many tours) and how he'd occasionally play golf with Sid James when they were on the road together.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">As people left the auditorium, I held back, knowing that if I didn't say hello, I would regret it. Webb was kind and friendly, and when I mentioned I was also an actor, he asked if I was working. I had a quick chat with his son too and said how lovely it must be to see a younger version of his dad in action. When Laurie turned up for those shoots in the late 1950s, he would have had no inkling that we'd still be watching his performances over sixty years later. But how lovely that we are, and that he's still here to watch them with us.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">*The third episode shown was The Alpine Holiday.</span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span></div>
<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpGQbyypqnf/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpGQbyypqnf/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank"> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; 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font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; 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line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CpGQbyypqnf/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by David Ephgrave (@ephgraveseyeview)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-16706444377490327412023-02-11T17:03:00.005+00:002023-02-11T17:17:27.858+00:00I Say a Little Prayer For You.<span style="font-family: arial;">I was sad to hear of the death of Burt Bacharach last week.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">There's little I can say about his music that someone else won't have said before, and no doubt better. To have had a career that spans so many decades is already extraordinary before you even consider the number of songs he wrote and how many live rent-free in the public consciousness. Even his simpler songs, such as Baby It's You or Magic Moments, have a depth that betrays their simplicity; listen to John Lennon's rendition of the former on The Beatles' first album, Please Please Me, and its hits you straight in the heart. Who cares that he was a twenty-two-year-old singing through a cold that day? The emotional pull of his vocal still gets you.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">It's no wonder that Bacharach started his career as a jazz pianist. So many of his songs achieve the feat of sounding both musically intricate and effortless. Dropped beats and unusual chords abound without confusing the ear or throwing you off. It's classy, intelligent songwriting that's still emotive and whistleable.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Speaking of magic moments, a couple of years ago, I was lucky enough to <a href="https://mostlydavidephgrave.blogspot.com/2021/08/why-dont-we-do-it-in-road.html" target="_blank">take a tour of Abbey Road studios</a>, which for a music nerd like me, was akin to a pilgrimage. A personal highlight was watching black-and-white footage of Bacharach passionately conducting Cilla Black from the piano as she committed the vocal of Alfie to tape alongside a live orchestra in the room I was standing in, all in one take. Now, I'm not a fan of The Scouse Foghorn - my usual thought on hearing one of her records is, "This would sound a lot better if anyone else sang it" - but there was no doubt of the power of her performance. And despite my reluctance to listen to her work, when she sings, "Without true love we just exist, Alfie. Until you find the love you've missed, you're nothing", I'm a gibbering wreck every time without fail. Blind Date's got nothing on this.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">In 2014, my wife and I were on honeymoon in Venice at the same time that Burt was gigging at the Teatro La Fenice. We didn't go as we couldn't afford it, but it was still nice to know he was in town. And getting to see him there would have undoubtedly been romantic. Is saying, "We longed to be close to him" too glib?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div>
<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CofbRBqMQFa/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CofbRBqMQFa/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank"> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0px;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0px auto 12px; width: 50px;"><svg height="50px" version="1.1" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="50px" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g fill-rule="evenodd" fill="none" stroke-width="1" stroke="none"><g fill="#000000" transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; height: 0px; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg); width: 0px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="border-right: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); transform: translateY(16px); width: 0px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; transform: translateY(-4px); width: 16px;"></div> <div style="border-left: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); height: 0px; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px); width: 0px;"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CofbRBqMQFa/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by David Ephgrave (@ephgraveseyeview)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-87822512178001782152023-01-30T16:09:00.010+00:002023-01-30T17:10:26.520+00:00Under Starter's Orders.<span style="font-family: arial;">Like most people, I'm gradually easing into 2023, quietly hopeful of what it may bring.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Admittedly, current world events don't create the most optimistic backdrop. Only today, the attention-seeking, Tribble-headed man-Muppet Boris Johnson disclosed a phone conversation with Putin early last year, in which old Vlads let slip that a UK missile strike "would only take a minute" (a statement I found less upsetting than Boris saying, "He called me on the blower" like the walking caricature he is). Optimism is a matter of perspective, really.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Personally, my January's been a drudge, as it often is. I had a near-miss workwise when I was pencilled for a job that I ultimately didn't get, which was frustrating, though at least it broke the seal casting-wise. By this stage of my career, I've had enough pencils to fill a Ryman the size of Jupiter, but what can you do? It's better to be nearly wanted than not wanted at all (and the less said about my recent tax return, the better, though I think Nadhim Zahawi's currently got the run on that particular topic.)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Whatever the case, I'm framing things positively. A new year is still a fresh start, however arbitrary, and I'm making the most of it. I even have new headshots to aid my cause (though I've still got the same face, obviously).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">So, let's see what 2023 has in store for us. One point of note is it's my blog's tenth anniversary. And while I don't post as often as I did at the beginning, I'm glad I’m still doing it. I pity anyone who's read them all, though. If you have, there are people you can speak to. </span></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-82706004568997242912022-12-10T17:15:00.027+00:002022-12-12T17:30:47.281+00:00'F' Off.<span style="font-family: arial;">Last night, we recorded the discussion that will form the meat* of our 'F' instalment of <a href="https://mccartneyabc.podbean.com/" target="_blank">The McCartney McAlphabet</a>.</span><br /><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The episode's been in the offing since August, though we kept postponing it, though the will to record was always there. But despite the long hiatus, it was great to be back, although I don't think I played my A-Game - or should that be F? - tonight. I wasn't on form though the edit will reveal if this reads (and if there's a subject I can bluff whatever my mindset, it's Macca).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">But despite my rustiness, it left me keen to get back in the swing of recording more episodes. I've been in the creative doldrums since I returned from the Fringe and desperately want to break the mental logjam with some new activity, and the podcast is a good start. It's an excellent way to stretch my mental legs (by which I mean 'the legs of my brain' and not some weird limb spasm).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">It's also worth noting the lovely boost we had when we released <a href="https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-qjjwv-12d9268" target="_blank">our last episode about Electric Arguments</a>, the excellent album by Paul's once-secret trance side-project, The Fireman, which was listened to and liked by the duo's other member, Youth. He was kind enough to share the podcast via Facebook, where he remarked, "Listening now, very good...goes deep into each song", and that we showed "very good insight". I'm just glad my gentle ribbing of his 1993 remix of Hope of Deliverance didn't anger him, though, as we reason in the forthcoming episode, saying a song's "very of the time" isn't really an insult.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><b><i>*Not the best word to use when discussing such a staunch vegetarian.</i></b></span></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-52068307284453703232022-11-24T15:00:00.045+00:002022-12-12T15:56:38.597+00:00I've Got The Music In Me.<span style="font-family: arial;">I'm grateful for the little light that came on today, metaphorically speaking*, while playing a few old songs on my acoustic.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">It was like a gap in my DNA was filled** to complete me. I felt comfortable despite being out of practice, and for once, I didn't question what I was doing; it just felt right. I had a brief moment of clarity that wasn't undercut by my mood or sense of self-worth. If I can tap into this, it might give me the impetus to start something new.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">It probably helps that I've been revisiting the songs from my 2018 standup show, 'David Ephgrave: My Part in His Downfall', by posting video clips of them on social media as a placeholder until I start my next project (whatever that is). In truth, it's hard to know where to begin with that. The combination of Mostly Comedy's closure after so much difficulty and my long, drawn-out route back to the Fringe has left me burnt out emotionally, creatively and financially, and I need a chance to regroup. Whatever I do next needs to be different for my sanity's sake and has to at least be accompanied by a thing that brings in money, God forbid.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">So I find myself trying to reengage my acting career while putting down my self-generated work for a bit. That's not to say I can't dabble with songwriting again, though, to see where it leads me. Maybe I'll do the odd acoustic gig or even some recording. To quote an unfinished song from many moons ago: <br /><br />"It would be nice if we could start all over. <br />It would be nice, you know. <br />To have a second go."<br /><br />I probably won't bother finishing that one, but there are a few little sketches that I'm proud of. Again, God forbid. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><i><b>*I'm not electrokinetic.</b></i></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"><i><b>**Another metaphor.</b></i></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CktCQgWojs3/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CktCQgWojs3/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank"> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0px;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0px auto 12px; width: 50px;"><svg height="50px" version="1.1" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="50px" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g fill-rule="evenodd" fill="none" stroke-width="1" stroke="none"><g fill="#000000" transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; 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line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CktCQgWojs3/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by David Ephgrave (@ephgraveseyeview)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-65670022234092745812022-10-04T17:23:00.005+01:002022-10-04T17:38:12.073+01:00A Tale of Two Podcasts.<span style="font-family: arial;">My ongoing mission to tie up loose ends saw me recently edit the final episode of <a href="https://doggettandephgrave.podbean.com/" target="_blank">More Than Mostly Comedy</a> (recorded at the last Hitchin Mostly Comedy on 9th December 2021) and my share of the edit of our most recent instalment of <a href="https://mccartneyabc.podbean.com/" target="_blank">The McCartney McAlphabet</a>. Both are available wherever you pick up your podcasts (you lucky thing, you).</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSb4OYSVtsAXHehJGjAGstHHeJMnZguTYvvXY_XXExYp_dneXM8282OscT_DyVmn2aVd8OIWhzsHX8ablE3-FF1diJl8WO6BW2COS38ue63KPxK1pftDAaFgNlU7dcIfa4BuAXzSViitp4iUjqbVghRq6dLUKuYfY4F32_3SqjhMVAofA32b-7REZA/s2048/7B0B452D-A41F-4C56-B149-78648088A4BB.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="2048" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSb4OYSVtsAXHehJGjAGstHHeJMnZguTYvvXY_XXExYp_dneXM8282OscT_DyVmn2aVd8OIWhzsHX8ablE3-FF1diJl8WO6BW2COS38ue63KPxK1pftDAaFgNlU7dcIfa4BuAXzSViitp4iUjqbVghRq6dLUKuYfY4F32_3SqjhMVAofA32b-7REZA/w400-h200/7B0B452D-A41F-4C56-B149-78648088A4BB.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">I'm now in the unusual position of all my editing being up to date, which is a rare treat. In the case of More Than Mostly Comedy, I purposely saved it until I felt ready to look at it and for a time when the stresses of the Fringe had passed. I knew it would be bittersweet because of the circumstances. Unsurprisingly, I didn't want to spend much time wallowing in the last remaining link to something that had been so central to my life for fourteen years. The thought of being confronted by audio from a show that wasn't supposed to be our last was daunting. Both my partnership with Glyn and Mostly Comedy were things I'd fiercely protected, and however difficult it had been to keep the club open post-pandemic, I didn't want to step in the shoes of the version of me who was still fighting for it. The prospect was sad, plus it irrationally felt a bit pointless to edit another episode now it was over, particularly with another solo Edinburgh on the horizon, which, at that point, added to my gloom.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">However, it was nice to hear that the concept of doing the podcast live worked, and the reaction was good. We'd strengthened our interviewing chops doing all those Zoom recordings during lockdown, and it felt good to do it in front of an audience. And when your guests are as interesting as Simon Day and Norman Lovett, the outcome's bound to be entertaining. Plus, the fact we hadn't interviewed Simon before gave me more impetus to complete it.<br /><br />The unfinished episode of The McCartney McAlphabet thankfully came with no baggage, aside from my frustration that it had been in the can for so long. I'm pleased with it and look forward to doing more, with the bonus that I have fewer things in my way now to slow the edit.<br /><br />That's not to say I'm not feeling tense about work right now. In fact, I'm very worried about it. Losing Mostly Comedy doesn't help, both for the sense of continual motion it gave and the slight income. I was toying with the idea of putting in a one-off show for Christmas, but the escalating cost-of-living crisis and the uncertainty caused by the Governmental damage to the economy these past few weeks put paid to that. There are currently far too many obstacles to make even the odd date worthwhile or viable, so I'm not going to do it. In some ways, that's for the best, as it always takes over the time I could devote to something else. The stagnation running the club has caused the rest of my career is self-evident, and I'm trying to redress this, albeit slowly. I have to make sure whatever I'm doing fits my current circumstances, which is proving difficult. I look forward to whenever that next project presents itself; I just hope it's not porn.</span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div>
<iframe allowtransparency="true" data-name="pb-iframe-player" height="150" scrolling="no" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?from=embed&i=qjjwv-12d9268-pb&share=1&download=1&fonts=Arial&skin=1&font-color=&rtl=0&logo_link=&btn-skin=7&size=150" style="border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);" title="E: Electric Arguments (Part 1)" width="100%"></iframe>
<iframe allowtransparency="true" data-name="pb-iframe-player" height="150" scrolling="no" src="https://www.podbean.com/player-v2/?from=embed&i=x6b2p-12ce921-pb&share=1&download=1&fonts=Arial&skin=1&font-color=&rtl=0&logo_link=&btn-skin=7&size=150" style="border: none; min-width: min(100%, 430px);" title="S05 Ep6: Simon Day and Norman Lovett" width="100%"></iframe>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-61528256746443762742022-09-27T15:37:00.025+01:002022-09-28T17:03:02.267+01:00How Low Can You Go?<span style="font-family: arial;">Despite being a bassist for twenty-five years, and probably considering it my first instrument (though that's a bit of a fluid subject), I've only ever owned one bass guitar: my trusty Tanglewood replica of a violin bass. So I think I was entitled to upgrade to a real Hofner, which I finally did this week.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj4LJJ_hx1--pVOfs0UQmQp0RfH3BUvb49-XhpxXJbdp3-gINP-Ws8rgeRggrJFho5T9tzTc95tOvkv2xFGqNu59OeCkvRGMieFGMP5-0kPTbu0t9Wbn8Ws8PK4M20lKyAOZeSADvPaEVIZqDkv9pN26VIIMSTsSFIj7iWsMlSLe2oMueRFAdcQS9W/s1080/IMG_6815.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="1080" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj4LJJ_hx1--pVOfs0UQmQp0RfH3BUvb49-XhpxXJbdp3-gINP-Ws8rgeRggrJFho5T9tzTc95tOvkv2xFGqNu59OeCkvRGMieFGMP5-0kPTbu0t9Wbn8Ws8PK4M20lKyAOZeSADvPaEVIZqDkv9pN26VIIMSTsSFIj7iWsMlSLe2oMueRFAdcQS9W/w400-h300/IMG_6815.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">Arty Hofner shot (as it's known in the trade).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><span style="font-family: arial;">I approached this purchase with guilt and trepidation, as I do when I buy anything significant, despite paying in instalments and not being expensive for what it is. Surely I'm allowed a new bass every quarter-century? Particularly when it's literally* for work. And yet I can't shake the sense that I'm treating myself at a time when money's tight (and that's before today's massive fall in the pound's value on the stock market, which I probably triggered by buying it).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">However, I bought it to be better equipped next time some muso work comes up. While my old bass has done remarkably well considering I've been using it since I was a teenager, and it's accompanied me on several tours, it's now a bit battered, and I couldn't keep turning up for gigs with it. It's no longer reliable, much like me. So why do I still feel like I've bought myself a new toy?</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ8LOaqHaByrGwtMaUaQkje6VzivYL5L4x8H6KL5JEwV_onpY73rUy7-TRSScQ8aDM45Mmod8kJqhF27boSJLcBmXEULwErd0Fo2WrGcHCJqHBAvtuR9Sdz2Z-7v3_0XeDNRQo6M-QFts8scvR13RGmsUnhP0dkdYK9FoKXRNZObfhr_8YIvujo32E/s3000/665153498.575318.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="3000" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ8LOaqHaByrGwtMaUaQkje6VzivYL5L4x8H6KL5JEwV_onpY73rUy7-TRSScQ8aDM45Mmod8kJqhF27boSJLcBmXEULwErd0Fo2WrGcHCJqHBAvtuR9Sdz2Z-7v3_0XeDNRQo6M-QFts8scvR13RGmsUnhP0dkdYK9FoKXRNZObfhr_8YIvujo32E/w400-h266/665153498.575318.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">Big Day Out, circa 1998, with my violin bass already in action.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;">Perhaps it's because it's enjoyable to play. My previous experience with vintage Hofners wasn't good (the last one I used had a neck like a mantelpiece), but the reviews of this model praised it enough for me to take a punt. And the good news is it was worth it. One thing going for my old bass is it's always been easy to play (not least as I learnt to play on it), and my new Hofner is very similar, encouraging the playing style you'd expect from a Beatles bass while being super light and, basically, a better version of the one I already owned, which was what I wanted. And it looks smart (not least for having the correct name on the headstock). Now I just need to sell a kidney to pay for it; I wonder how much I'd get if I offered both as a job lot? Gumtree, here I come (with a freezer bag to hand).</span></div></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><i><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">*One of the few times this word is accurate.</span></i></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbj-KKaMzoSu62NusldMej6aDMWGyHdSLiEpxXgxiy62npuwPUf2bjRSVwEj0xdMgU4_rNkTnVPmFKWDKdeTTWMCDecl6fDU4ggQY6GO79C39_CWncmt3uLN7OKxPwijGmVHmKlgrEYHRjNoN7YYhIN8-oPDi2tT6TVdkeRq_s2024Fi9gdRJurl64/s600/10150839217850021-enhanced-3425.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="399" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbj-KKaMzoSu62NusldMej6aDMWGyHdSLiEpxXgxiy62npuwPUf2bjRSVwEj0xdMgU4_rNkTnVPmFKWDKdeTTWMCDecl6fDU4ggQY6GO79C39_CWncmt3uLN7OKxPwijGmVHmKlgrEYHRjNoN7YYhIN8-oPDi2tT6TVdkeRq_s2024Fi9gdRJurl64/w266-h400/10150839217850021-enhanced-3425.jpeg" width="266" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">Still playing the Tanglewood, in 'Glad All Over!: A Sixties Celebration', <br />circa 2012 (photo by Tim Parker)</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-81673933086047755302022-09-26T13:18:00.001+01:002022-09-26T13:18:34.131+01:00Watch It.<span style="font-family: arial;">In the interest of tying up a few loose ends related to my recent Edinburgh Fringe adventures, I thought I'd share videos of two shocking events that occurred there.<br /><br />(Brace yourselves.)<br /><br />The first documents a washing machine with musical aspirations.<br /><br /><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cg94UFZjN_P/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cg94UFZjN_P/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank"> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0px;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0px auto 12px; width: 50px;"><svg height="50px" version="1.1" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="50px" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g fill-rule="evenodd" fill="none" stroke-width="1" stroke="none"><g fill="#000000" transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; height: 0px; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg); width: 0px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="border-right: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); transform: translateY(16px); width: 0px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; transform: translateY(-4px); width: 16px;"></div> <div style="border-left: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); height: 0px; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px); width: 0px;"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cg94UFZjN_P/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by David Ephgrave (@ephgraveseyeview)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div>The second shows at least one way my digs stuck the knife in.<br /><br /><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/ChzXkxTM50A/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-radius: 3px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5) 0px 0px 1px 0px, rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.15) 0px 1px 10px 0px; margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding: 16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/ChzXkxTM50A/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0; padding: 0px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; width: 100%;" target="_blank"> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0px;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0px auto 12px; width: 50px;"><svg height="50px" version="1.1" viewbox="0 0 60 60" width="50px" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g fill-rule="evenodd" fill="none" stroke-width="1" stroke="none"><g fill="#000000" transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0px;"></div> <div style="align-items: center; display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px;"><div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12.5px; margin-left: 2px; margin-right: 14px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px); width: 12.5px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style="border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); border-top: 2px solid transparent; height: 0px; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg); width: 0px;"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="border-right: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); transform: translateY(16px); width: 0px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; transform: translateY(-4px); width: 16px;"></div> <div style="border-left: 8px solid transparent; border-top: 8px solid rgb(244, 244, 244); height: 0px; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px); width: 0px;"></div></div></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"></div></div></a><p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0px 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/ChzXkxTM50A/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">A post shared by David Ephgrave (@ephgraveseyeview)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div>Popcorn, anyone?</span>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-57682209256596578122022-09-12T19:25:00.003+01:002022-09-12T19:25:51.611+01:00Truss No One.<span style="font-family: arial;">While the death of the Queen last week inevitably overshadowed the arrival of the new Tory Prime Minister, Liz Truss, I hope this won't lead to decreased scrutiny.<br /><br />It's hard to fathom that she's the most popular and competent candidate the Tories could rustle up to lead the UK, but I guess that's what happens when you leave the decision to 0.2% of the population. How can someone who sounds like she's voiced by Speak & Spell and curtseys like she didn't spot a dropped curb in front of her be in charge of our nuclear codes? Her speeches are more wooden than every Center Parcs put together, and the civil service nickname her the "human hand grenade", and yet she still nabs the top job. If nothing else, her promotion continues our ongoing Prime Ministerial decline. It's like watching The Doctor regenerate in the most budget way possible after switching from BBC1 to QVC. You can only fold a piece of paper seven times, and yet the Conservatives can pass from successive shit leader to shitter leader for all eternity without anyone noticing it's still the same party (who made all the mistakes each new iteration says needs fixing) in charge. To quote Alan Partridge, "They've rebadged it, you fool".<br /><br />I question any Government who'll let Victorian cosplayer and climate change denier Jacob Rees-Mogg be Secretary of State for Energy while the planet cooks. I'm surprised he doesn't advocate the burning of witches as a renewable power source. I bet he has a What the Butler Saw hidden in his attic that he uses for porn.<br /><br />Come back, Labour, all's forgiven.</span>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-2741882488098529012022-08-30T16:40:00.004+01:002022-08-31T13:11:22.600+01:00Whole Lotta Grief.<span style="font-family: arial;">It's fair to say my last week on the Fringe didn't progress as I intended.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The first enemy at the gate was my old friend, the vestibular migraine, which surfaced a couple of times over the first few weeks like a sinister prelude for what lay ahead. Then on the penultimate weekend, what started as a low-level toothache escalated to the point that I had to call 111 to arrange an emergency appointment for a suspected abscess (good times).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">I hadn't realised how swollen my bottom jaw was because my beard had concealed it the same way it hides my hideousness from day to day. By last Monday evening, it was extremely uncomfortable and had sent my vertigo into hyperdrive. I was vomiting and felt like seven shades of shit (and that's a lot of shit-shades to deal with).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">To cut a long story short, that meant no more shows for me. Firstly, my face was too swollen to speak at length, which is pretty much the definition of standup. I was prescribed antibiotics for the infection, which took a couple of days to kick in, alleviating the pain and the swelling but leaving me with my worst vestibular migraine in years. I accessed my balance each morning in the hope the show could go ahead, but could only ride it out, and by the last weekend, it was no better. Consequently, my last week morphed into an expensive holiday, only one where you seldom leave your digs for fear of falling over.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Despite the frustration, I leave Scotland today optimistic. I didn't want to cancel so many shows, not least as they were the only ones I had press in for, but I just couldn't do them. But that doesn't mean this year's Fringe was a waste. It was a shame to cut my run short just as I'd hit my stride, but there was nothing I could do about it. But I'm happy with the shows I did and the state 'Good Grief' is in as I temporarily leave it.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">And as wanky as it sounds, I've learnt a few valuable lessons. One is to not do Edinburgh again without a producer attached and outside funding, as it isn't worth the outlay. I already knew this, but I love to underline these things as expensively as possible. Another is that I'm now a "Fringe veteran" (or so says the festival stalwart, ThreeWeeks). It's strange to think I've now done more solo runs in Edinburgh than with Doggett & Ephgrave, with four under my belt (out of the five solo shows I've written in total). And the me of 2022 is markedly different to the version that made those tentative steps. I've never spoken so freely onstage or been so honest, which has done wonders for my mental health. After a lifetime of redacting to please the unpleasable, I'm no longer watching my back.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">On the day of my Hitchin preview, I jotted down a reminder to "find the courage to tell stories" and slipped it into my show notes. It was something I was determined to stay true to, and I did it. "And the rest", as they say, "is Listerine".</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBAcyMLcSM7ZyYB9uOplNcxY7EPKyyi-PXc8bb5-K41p8kg5CO0LjFufaIuwDUikNfE5oHXcRhNnFtA1LWR4m_FKmPJ-OK_XktK76IS3OGci762_pxGpnEGIU0Ff3gOYOPast6wxwhNzLfIdx6mvevZvyonIK83cW-4Tt1blar8kA-SlA5w9LSZqBk/s3071/E61438ED-D13F-4FE8-ABB3-6C2F658B3ED0.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2303" data-original-width="3071" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBAcyMLcSM7ZyYB9uOplNcxY7EPKyyi-PXc8bb5-K41p8kg5CO0LjFufaIuwDUikNfE5oHXcRhNnFtA1LWR4m_FKmPJ-OK_XktK76IS3OGci762_pxGpnEGIU0Ff3gOYOPast6wxwhNzLfIdx6mvevZvyonIK83cW-4Tt1blar8kA-SlA5w9LSZqBk/w400-h300/E61438ED-D13F-4FE8-ABB3-6C2F658B3ED0.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">Partridge’s pulped book. </span></td></tr></tbody></table></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-71586038076084139432022-08-18T20:37:00.005+01:002022-08-18T20:39:48.272+01:00An Audience With an Audience.<p><span style="font-family: arial;">Today proved how much better my show works with a bigger audience, something that's probably not that surprising, though it was lovely to have it confirmed.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">I didn't have that many in - probably about twelve, though a few more were shown through about ten minutes before the end when it was far too late to do a recap so God knows what they thought I was on about - though the impact on the atmosphere was huge. Suddenly, there were laughs to ride and the chance to have fun with the material, and I felt like a standup again too, which was a bonus.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">That's one of the positives to doing a lot of shows to small audiences on the Fringe: by the time you're back in front of a more substantial crowd, you quickly see the benefit of all those gigs when you had to work for a reaction. This was the case when we filmed my last show, 'David Ephgrave: My Part in His Downfall', a month after the 2018 Fringe. Putting it in front of a packed crowd felt like a treat, and the fact I was match fit post-Edinburgh meant I could give the material a fair crack of the whip. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The only downside to today's show is the size of the audience won't be reflected in my takings, as most of them turned up last minute and didn't have time to go to the box office. The front-of-house staff asked me if I was happy to let them in, and I, of course, said yes. I could have done a bucket collection at the end, but I was too busy packing up. Obviously, the money matters far less than making the show work, though it would go towards my settlement. It would have also made my sales look better to the venue, which helps me should I want to return. Either way, it felt nice to get a buzz from performing again and be reminded why standup is so exhilarating when it works.</span></p>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-72900166918928136492022-08-17T19:43:00.034+01:002022-08-18T20:12:15.659+01:00Further In.<p><span style="font-family: arial;"> A little over a week has passed since my last blog post, and I'm still in Edinburgh doing my thing.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Monday was my first official day off, which was much-needed, though I did squeeze in an interview for my McCartney McAlphabet co-host Clary Saddler's podcast Mouth-Off and a therapy appointment too. The show itself is going well</span><span style="font-family: arial;">, though I'm still struggling for numbers. I don't mind performing to a small audience generally as it reminds you to connect instead of going on autopilot, though it's not a cost-effective way to do a fringe run. It also doesn't help you build a grassroots following when so few people get to see it.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">What's nice is people are getting on board with the subject matter. No show is a wasted opportunity, though it's the stuff around it that's frustrating. For example, yesterday, I set up my gear - no mean feat itself - to pack down moments later because just one person came. Days like this when no one has booked in by the time I'm en route from my digs are the worst, as you're caught in a weird stasis of not knowing whether you're about to launch into an hour of storytelling or just pack up to go home. And the turnaround is such that you'll only know for certain a few seconds before you start. Call me fussy, but I could do without that emotional rollercoaster in my life.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">That's not to say I didn't already know this. You can't do Edinburgh multiple times without picking up this little nugget, and if you haven't, you were either very lucky or weren't paying attention. However, the combination of this and the intensity of the Fringe as a whole is hard to navigate. The trick is to stay light of touch and not take it too seriously, which is even more challenging for me this year when you consider my show's topic. To recount some of the most painful moments of my life daily to a fringe backdrop was always going to be tough, whether the format's standup or not. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">My latest tactic to give myself a bit of a psychological break is to try to adopt the mental health technique known as 'the vault', in which you imagine locking difficult recurring thoughts and memories behind a heavy door. It's surprisingly effective, though I wonder how long it'll be before I throw the Fringe in there too. </span></p>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-32101082208658857012022-08-09T20:26:00.003+01:002022-08-09T20:26:41.893+01:00Week One From a Weak One.<div><span style="font-family: arial;">It's a week today since I caught the train to Edinburgh to bring my show <a href="https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/david-ephgrave-good-grief" target="_blank">'Good Grief'</a> to the Fringe, and it's also the first chance I've had to take stock and write something to post here.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2-weh9dnoEerUogNr9lxhpYN8vKdZMdzFSj3pMgViJLNTyiR2ywqGsKgt5VOpFF-ShuCD7OMTq5U-bFvQt2CWksqcU08OSEffeqViXPMAP3uo1YmNrAZn1KYA3LAvBZCbdbEdBwnrOaHea3-yGnF0mSo59ypaYWI0JvD3FQELZSLQVwqIlv9J_avA/s3913/IMG_5846.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3913" data-original-width="2970" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2-weh9dnoEerUogNr9lxhpYN8vKdZMdzFSj3pMgViJLNTyiR2ywqGsKgt5VOpFF-ShuCD7OMTq5U-bFvQt2CWksqcU08OSEffeqViXPMAP3uo1YmNrAZn1KYA3LAvBZCbdbEdBwnrOaHea3-yGnF0mSo59ypaYWI0JvD3FQELZSLQVwqIlv9J_avA/w304-h400/IMG_5846.HEIC" width="304" /></a></div></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The short answer to the question, "So, how's it going so far, David?" is, "It's going well, David; thanks for asking", though, as it's the Fringe, that comes with many caveats. Or am I just being pessimistic? The fact is Edinburgh's one hell of an endurance exercise, however you look at it, with a definite sense of one step forward, two steps back. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">(And that's just navigating Cowgate.)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The biggest challenge is doing it alone. Firstly, there's the logistical impact. Some people who bring shows to Edinburgh have producers and directors assisting them. Not old muggins Ephgrave. The only person I have working for me is my PR, who's brilliant and lovely, but I pay for that (well, not the lovely bit, which comes naturally) as I know without him I'd sink without a trace. But everything that happens is done by me, right down to my rushed, equipment-heavy get-in and get-out each day. I have my wife as a sounding board, but it's ultimately my responsibility, and working alone without a support network or any job-sharing means you invariably miss something vital as you multitask. And when things go wrong, or you have a confidence crisis, there's no one to bolster you or help carry the load (often literally).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">This can feel thankless, particularly if you're stupid enough to open social media at a bad time to be confronted by a varnished version of everyone else's Fringe experience. Though I know it's seldom an accurate reflection, it can still feel like a kick in the teeth to see the wrong thing at the wrong moment. And let's face it, on the Fringe, it's <i>always</i> the wrong moment, so it's best to carefully cultivate what you look at. Your mental health is vulnerable thanks to tiredness alone, so it pays to show a little self-kindness.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">(Oh David, you <i>cunt</i>.)</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Despite plenty of previous experience, the first few days completely wiped me out. And to be honest, I'm only just recovering. The combination of the journey, picking up the keys for the digs, organising and then collecting the equipment I'd shipped up to take it to the venue for my tech to collect an inordinately heavy box of flyers on my way out turned me into a withered husk. And that's without considering the actual show, which is the reason I'm here, yet often lurks at the bottom of a very long list.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Despite my fatigue-encouraged pessimism, there have been a lot of positives. Firstly, while my audiences have been small so far, the show's been well received. I feel it's heading in the right direction, though having to cancel a few shows hasn't helped me find my rhythm. Annoyingly, I'm not getting many last-minute walkups either, as my show clashes with a mixed bill in my venue's main room, which will always be more popular due to value alone; there you'll see four or five comics for the price of one Ephgrave, which is hard to compete with.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Secondly, I'm coping well with my get-in and get-out, which is tighter than I'm used to with my AV setup, as for the last few years, I've always been the first show in the space. It definitely helps that I'm linking my laptop and projector with a transmitter and a receiver rather than connecting them physically, though the equipment wasn't cheap. And thankfully, it hasn't failed yet though there's still ample opportunity. See: my pessimism comes easily.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">I was also very lucky to have a gag included in <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/best-jokes-edinburgh-fringe-2022-hqzrlsv3t" target="_blank">The Times' best jokes of the 2022 Fringe</a> yesterday, which gives the whole thing a little credence. As ridiculous as it sounds, the fact that I've featured in a couple of rundowns during my last two visits created a bit of pressure to be included again, so it was a lovely boost when it happened. I always hope to have a little progression each time I come up, so it's good to have something to trade on. And the fact it's a reputable paper adds to the sense of validity, though I know they see those articles as an easy space-filler. Sadly, they spelt my name incorrectly and got the name of the venue wrong too, but you can't have everything.</span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiEiIcslLSxj4mxFuftLzBE6b268dZLc5mdA7-NSzT-g75CFHreUVw2f2Er--Sv0lriUy7arkA1489Z8GZWvjG31H6KBdhS7DtRG4vjzB98hGnOUXcBlu48gShklT5BAPKHahZpvKNLvi4xX-iHOnz4JPTgZJUF5NePnyUj4f0GmQLh3jBYFBMkpNd/s828/IMG_5878.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="315" data-original-width="828" height="153" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiEiIcslLSxj4mxFuftLzBE6b268dZLc5mdA7-NSzT-g75CFHreUVw2f2Er--Sv0lriUy7arkA1489Z8GZWvjG31H6KBdhS7DtRG4vjzB98hGnOUXcBlu48gShklT5BAPKHahZpvKNLvi4xX-iHOnz4JPTgZJUF5NePnyUj4f0GmQLh3jBYFBMkpNd/w400-h153/IMG_5878.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Dave Ephrave.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">One thing I've noticed is a dip in stamina. The first time I brought a show to the Fringe in 2008, I was 27. Now, I'm 41 and can feel the strain to my knees and my back. I've started doing a few more stretches before a show and will work in some gentle yoga instead of just expecting my body to cope with something that's physically demanding. And the fact my digs are half an hour's walk from the venue this year (and everything in Edinburgh is eternally uphill, despite the laws of physics) adds to the toll.</span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwNFSLE-Mbr5S3NY102OESSsfNuwl8R6MPDFGMAxXAUgCBGxPWp7QkPRQU9c_u5vU4BID8WxSpwkR44PfF7uvUzf6BY450O6LcfylKAvWwhdSnW2Toj7RtMjItN64BUwEuVyxTpmVnZg8Mh9-M2wAU4LVkpPley8JkHx7np2IAF9YzdCOB8wg75GEq/s1024/8C83453E-F0C4-405A-9229-071FB52D79D6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwNFSLE-Mbr5S3NY102OESSsfNuwl8R6MPDFGMAxXAUgCBGxPWp7QkPRQU9c_u5vU4BID8WxSpwkR44PfF7uvUzf6BY450O6LcfylKAvWwhdSnW2Toj7RtMjItN64BUwEuVyxTpmVnZg8Mh9-M2wAU4LVkpPley8JkHx7np2IAF9YzdCOB8wg75GEq/s320/8C83453E-F0C4-405A-9229-071FB52D79D6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">However, there have been the occasional small, personally significant moments that I've tried to quietly acknowledge to myself, however busy or stressed I might be. Seeing the first poster in situ with my dad's face on it as I arrived for my tech was one such moment; as was seeing him on the big banner on the street outside the venue as I pulled up in a taxi for my first show. I wonder what he would have thought to be up there. I know he took a photo of my show's name on the itinerary outside the venue the first time I came up on my own, so I'm sure he'd be chuffed to know I'm here this year to talk about him specifically. And having shown me such unwavering support across the years, as well as making what I do for a career possible, it's the least I can do.</span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh5ppBweX42ok287AJOwbtSmbccII-rYHQTDKCclhyNVOyRBdMLcO9ThepcmyqwJqMQne9qPRaFytjaU9CZ6Hwi98t2hWoEOq0fWGU2Eqkbcyby1wdK6iY5RbfdzuGOtqbl7VwjTsZN9GGOjY04-MCGgSQGxjA_4uk9M35cYaT7db2V4UIIBMKNk6f/s1882/IMG_5888.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1882" data-original-width="1381" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh5ppBweX42ok287AJOwbtSmbccII-rYHQTDKCclhyNVOyRBdMLcO9ThepcmyqwJqMQne9qPRaFytjaU9CZ6Hwi98t2hWoEOq0fWGU2Eqkbcyby1wdK6iY5RbfdzuGOtqbl7VwjTsZN9GGOjY04-MCGgSQGxjA_4uk9M35cYaT7db2V4UIIBMKNk6f/w294-h400/IMG_5888.HEIC" width="294" /></a></div></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-68804912523399565612022-07-22T16:32:00.074+01:002022-07-26T20:35:27.952+01:00Pitchin' to Hitchin.<span style="font-family: arial;">Last night, I had what was supposed to be the penultimate preview of my new show before I jet (or 'train') off to Edinburgh, but - for a variety of reasons out of my control - ended up being the first.</span><div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3EKL6pOq3X6kREm4WVc0xGZMvnLkR26k_jTQ5aTSQuY2VZRZHO6xlcsJpHfYPN7Ev75vr6Z10yeDZan8Mebpj3yNcS0Rk1nFJ7tAeyb4KLdQ1VDWFUf4StV1TjpFWnDLD1-dGmc4OtSNQZDADfqr-hGmy4D4cpUpql4eQJCwZz6P3cTtlBcBugaFJ/s4032/IMG_0749%20Copy.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3EKL6pOq3X6kREm4WVc0xGZMvnLkR26k_jTQ5aTSQuY2VZRZHO6xlcsJpHfYPN7Ev75vr6Z10yeDZan8Mebpj3yNcS0Rk1nFJ7tAeyb4KLdQ1VDWFUf4StV1TjpFWnDLD1-dGmc4OtSNQZDADfqr-hGmy4D4cpUpql4eQJCwZz6P3cTtlBcBugaFJ/w300-h400/IMG_0749%20Copy.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">Me, during last night's show at Hitchin Town Hall (21.07.22)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><span style="font-family: arial;">I'm pleased to report it went well, though there's still a lot of work to be done. While I'd intended on doing an hour, the distinct lack of opportunity to spread the stories I wanted to try across several dates made me decide to split the show into two halves so I could throw a few more into the mix without rushing them. It also gave me more time to regroup in the interval, which is useful when you're road-testing new material. Plus, it gave the audience a welcome break*, which was helpful, not least when the room was as hot as it was.</span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuxAKirC4MWNj6qsi6t8LMxQ36u1Auqsaf3nwXwtxj6SztTRV4IDv13YclttHrLLC-3A3uwbduJzHqsIgXZwEcZGJ2VVKcgarB5TEWO_VXgqOsbshlcsnNYxOB-BfIC43JHl_nwNz2LIlaTc2XofuOMyuVxL8j04NlFPLAnuOlAsA2G0KQkEc0YlyV/s3024/CF7A8B68-458F-484E-A5C2-1FD8CC988ACE.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuxAKirC4MWNj6qsi6t8LMxQ36u1Auqsaf3nwXwtxj6SztTRV4IDv13YclttHrLLC-3A3uwbduJzHqsIgXZwEcZGJ2VVKcgarB5TEWO_VXgqOsbshlcsnNYxOB-BfIC43JHl_nwNz2LIlaTc2XofuOMyuVxL8j04NlFPLAnuOlAsA2G0KQkEc0YlyV/w400-h400/CF7A8B68-458F-484E-A5C2-1FD8CC988ACE.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Going through my notes, pre-show.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">All in all, the results were encouraging. I've found it hard working in such isolation this year, particularly on the back of all the legwork I'd been doing since 2020 to keep Mostly Comedy afloat before it, so it was great to engage with an audience again to instant feedback. I just wish some of my other work-in-progress dates had happened too, but that's the way it goes. Now, it's just a case of whether my last two previews on Sunday (in Cambridge with Arthur Smith) and next Wednesday at the Etcetera Theatre go ahead too. The latter certainly looks unlikely as there's a proposed rail strike in the diary. I don't know what it is with me and previews, but with each passing year, my window to pull a show together gets tighter. Still, it keeps me on my toes (or, when I'm nervous, on the toilet).</span></div></div></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3km4tZvDWBK6JALZqzYYSpThk-Wt9xBxvFjKkkg4PmS7B_3mvlBFFSwIi0Zp83tgnk-x6kthkAdz8f-QmAOOOblxDhuQ6LPlDrPSfJ0sH2V9WeC3o-npoFKgNVL9FgyU0neU4y8Y2QtAEVfLm6MObjKchAM9UW0jpe_dq87C2cGNLj6GUTDIBIOxc/s1024/IMG_5189.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3km4tZvDWBK6JALZqzYYSpThk-Wt9xBxvFjKkkg4PmS7B_3mvlBFFSwIi0Zp83tgnk-x6kthkAdz8f-QmAOOOblxDhuQ6LPlDrPSfJ0sH2V9WeC3o-npoFKgNVL9FgyU0neU4y8Y2QtAEVfLm6MObjKchAM9UW0jpe_dq87C2cGNLj6GUTDIBIOxc/s320/IMG_5189.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">Shorts of fury (21.07.22)</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><b><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">*Not the service station.</span></b></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-20153514395856119872022-07-04T18:16:00.008+01:002022-07-09T20:14:15.444+01:00Still At It.<span style="font-family: arial;">As of today, I've been a professional actor and musician for twenty years. Allegedly. </span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Doesn't working in the same field for two decades technically constitute a career? If so, I look forward to the sense of security kicking in, both psychologically and financially. However, I know I should at least give myself a pat on the back for managing to stay in an industry so notorious for people dropping out. To still be acting twenty years after my showcase at London's Fortune Theatre is not to be sniffed at, whatever my bank balance/sinus issues say to the contrary.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">All in all, I haven't done too bad. My first two jobs - both No. 1 tours for Bill Kenwright - set a high bar in terms of the scale of theatre I was playing and the work I was doing. Being a musician definitely increased my opportunities in the early days, though I risked being typecast in a genre I was determined to not get stuck in. However, it gave me some great opportunities of which playing my heroes Paul McCartney, John Lennon and Buddy Holly are still the most ridiculous. And eight years after graduating, it got me in a West End musical.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The work I'm proudest of, however, was self-generated. The biggie was Mostly Comedy, which was totally accidental, and I would never have anticipated doing standup in the early days, let alone take solo shows to the Edinburgh, London, Brighton, Leicester and Bath Fringe. The show Glyn and I developed with Rob Maskell and briefly toured, 'Glad All Over!: A Sixties Celebration' was another highlight, which we would have kept doing in an alternate timeline (the 1970s?).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Carving a career as an actor is a bit like exploring a high-hedged maze, when all you can do is follow your nose to see where it takes you. Sometimes I wonder if I could have focused a clear path instead of doing things so haphazardly, but you can only explore the opportunities presented to you. I've always felt a bit like a basking shark careerwise: progressing slowly with my mouth wide open to every opportunity instead of specialising. But it is what it is. </span><span style="font-family: arial;">I hope that if I'm still stalking the planet in twenty years, I'll still be performing, though God knows how I'll ever scrape together a pension.</span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiItPXr8VyDJZGPOYvVOEvn7XzCD1QqSV5DoxejSto5uO95dwI70TzSPSIzvZ2Wx1OvfU4y4w4zEPvsgri1WDqAnXr5TyWvGRn4MAclHNEh2VzVOVl5LkvRdM7gSiIFaw-aAIP9tN4jjyeQD7zNLVxbjzt3pWrj_o9mtHp-VTWUaUpE2ntTfA0GRs-M/s2421/IMG_20140902_124421.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2421" data-original-width="2421" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiItPXr8VyDJZGPOYvVOEvn7XzCD1QqSV5DoxejSto5uO95dwI70TzSPSIzvZ2Wx1OvfU4y4w4zEPvsgri1WDqAnXr5TyWvGRn4MAclHNEh2VzVOVl5LkvRdM7gSiIFaw-aAIP9tN4jjyeQD7zNLVxbjzt3pWrj_o9mtHp-VTWUaUpE2ntTfA0GRs-M/w400-h400/IMG_20140902_124421.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;">He's a baby.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-17378180207405622492022-06-01T13:32:00.013+01:002022-07-10T13:49:02.682+01:00Change The Record.<span style="font-family: arial;">While writing my new show's progressing reasonably steadily, in my heart, I know it needs to be the last project I do alone for some time.</span><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">I guess it was my choice - though it often doesn't feel like it - that most things I do now are self-generated, but they all leave me needing to draw on a reserve of self-belief that's fragile at best. I have to ignore so much negative reinforcement to keep going, which is hard when the personal problems I've suffered have much the same impact.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">The truth is that what I do is increasingly lonely, and isolation triggers the false narratives my past can dredge up. I think my abandonment issues are understandable, but it doesn't stop them from dragging me back. And recent events in my life have reinforced my lack of self-worth, making it harder to ignore them.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">I didn't deliberately set out to be a solo performer. I was in a band and a double act and sought healthy collaboration. And while being an actor inevitably requires forging an individual path, I never wanted to do so much work on my own; this was only born from necessity (sadly, in large parts of my professional life).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">It's not that I don't enjoy the freedom that comes with performing alone; I don't want it to be the sum of what I do. We all need interaction, and I love having someone to bounce off creatively (which is why my Macca podcast with Clary is so enjoyable to do). But I don't want to put my limited energy into arrangements that leave me drained and, frankly, don't go both ways. I don't want to facilitate that anymore, as the outcome only disappoints. If I can be part of a genuine creative team and not just be staring at a blank screen most days, it would be good for both my job and mental health, and I might even do something totally new to me, which would be exciting.</span></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-35877588612244918772022-05-15T17:21:00.016+01:002022-05-19T17:38:13.010+01:00Older.<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">This turning 41 lark is a bit of a funny one.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><div style="text-align: justify;">While last year's birthday was one to be aware of, this year has made me a smidge more melancholy. Only a bit, though. I'm well aware of how these little emotional peaks and troughs fluctuate, and consequently, I try not to read too much into them. Reflection can be a poisoned chalice, and I've had a lot of reasons to look back lately, which were bound to affect me, so I'm trying not to overthink it.</div></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I try not to get too drawn into what doesn't matter now. The online world is a case in point. It only takes a quick browse of Instagram or Facebook to be confronted by at least three things that'll make you feel shit, particularly if you're not in the habit of carefully cultivating your social media presence. You start being bothered by stuff you'd never consider in real life. </span><span style="font-family: arial;">"Why wasn't I invited to this terrible event I'd despise if I'd attended?"</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Why does everyone look so happy in this carefully staged photograph? They clearly have a better life than me".</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">We all know people varnish their online profiles to the nth degree, but if you're feeling a little delicate, it's hard to hold onto that point with any clarity. And I'm not looking to be perfect as it's all a work in progress. If I can be true to myself and my loved ones, that's enough for me.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizfL70U8zIYBXKlkOqRjH1SMtzp4honMpDgmE7ebsCJz5KBGDZ97I-yvamzC8esfw8d41CLSbdZbX-3aNBsT-lqKSqw6uKrn7o9858zBQEBJVRKfn4mk38wIiRn_Pbb5wkJNkXUdOQs0-gDjah2M9gy_zR7o4kSnigdqGHmru5j9W3fZI_6NOsORTb/s3780/24E99F6E-1056-4707-A318-42DCA5F66C53.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3780" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizfL70U8zIYBXKlkOqRjH1SMtzp4honMpDgmE7ebsCJz5KBGDZ97I-yvamzC8esfw8d41CLSbdZbX-3aNBsT-lqKSqw6uKrn7o9858zBQEBJVRKfn4mk38wIiRn_Pbb5wkJNkXUdOQs0-gDjah2M9gy_zR7o4kSnigdqGHmru5j9W3fZI_6NOsORTb/w320-h400/24E99F6E-1056-4707-A318-42DCA5F66C53.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">Metaphor?</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-47708274393258209052022-05-13T16:40:00.001+01:002022-05-13T16:40:15.912+01:00Dad's The Way, Uh-Huh, Uh-Huh, I Like It, Uh-Huh, Uh-Huh.<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The big news is I'm taking a show to Edinburgh this year, and I'm trying to get as much of the admin sorted as swiftly as possible so I can clear time to write it.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">As it stands, I'm creaking toward that kicking-off point. The show will be about my dad (the one slated for 2020 until Covid hit and put paid to that), and I'm excited and apprehensive about the task ahead. There's so much I want to get across - as my pages of scribbled notes already testify - but primarily, I want to capture my dad's character so that the audience leaves the room feeling like they just met him, which is no mean feat. And I want to tackle what's it like to lose a loved one without forgetting that the show's a comedy (which, as far as challenges go, is worthy of fully spandexed Anneka Rice).</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">What's helped so far is the groundwork I did in 2020. For example, I already had a blurb that just needed tightening up. And I've also got a lot of material about him already, which I'm sifting through to see what might work in this context, along with various blogs I wrote as he got more ill. So I feel like I'm at a reasonable starting point. And I intend to use the few work-in-progress dates in the diary to blow a bit of life back into that old material as I re-engage an aspect of my personality that's been hibernating for a few years: i.e. me as a stand-up.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">That last bit is perhaps the most challenging. I've come out the other side of events of the past few years feeling like a different person, and my self-confidence took a battering. And my energy's not what it was, though I'm working on it. It's that old maxim about riding a bike: I know how to do it if I can access the right parts of my muscle memory. </span></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-34892491886354255262022-05-11T17:20:00.001+01:002022-05-21T18:07:57.016+01:00Kangol Around the World.<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">It may be a symptom of feeling a little rundown and sorry for myself, but listening to a random Oasis song this morning surprised me by hitting me right in the heart.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/lzjIeSS1X1c" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The song was 'Don't Go Away' from their overblown 1997 album, 'Be Here Now'. I don't even know why it entered my head as it wasn't a big hit and, if anything, comes across as a little generic. But, for whatever reason, I requested it via everyone's favourite spy-in-the-room, Alexa, and, within minutes, I was blubbing like a Daily Express reader who's just seen a photo of Princess Di. Or George Osborne at Thatcher's funeral. </span><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Okay, I may be exaggerating, but it moved me, even though it was probably the germs talking.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Oasis are an odd band for me as there was a time when I was really liked them. They appeared on the scene when I was a guitarist in a group at school and somehow made being in a rock band seem viable again. But my love for their music faded quickly, and now, most of their songs leave me cold. They're formulaic and all attitude with no substance. Blur may have lost the battle in 1995 when 'Country House' was up against 'Roll With It' - neither band's best work - but they won the war by a long chalk.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So, why did the song feel different? Most Oasis tropes are present, from the elongated vowels to Noel's trademark 'diddledy diddledy' lead guitar riff, and yet, somehow, it all lands better than usual. And the reason, I think, is Liam's earnestly sincere vocal. According to Wikipedia, he cried in the studio as he recorded it, which isn't surprising when you listen back. It's the age-old gift of honesty in art (even if the artwork in question is a lesser-known track from a subpar album); if the performer believes what they're saying wholeheartedly, the audience believes it too. And that's three years of drama-school training in a nutshell without the exorbitant fees and poncing around.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">(You're welcome.)</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So it turns out 'Don't Go Away' is a diamond in the rough. Listening to it won't change your life, but it might make you reflect for a moment. You might also start walking like an abnormally long-armed monkey, but if you do, that's your funeral.</span></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-85231866528759614592022-04-28T16:56:00.005+01:002022-04-28T17:10:18.425+01:00"They're Not Laughing Now."<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">And so Mostly Comedy has closed.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnQqN8EaoH79VVq9rHN121hNTrYKyXXCB2Dg5vk50drTERik982obiGxmLbmwNiDiCavuf2iptsRbUnqjzWtHvcfds-wCh23sbS44jnitt2BHmV0Qesa5uSFKtW08Y3laXcYwZyQJeirUcbVvX_RvPqcLEof4Nbo8unBNlysZpqObHTDN4TKYw_fDv/s3189/IMG_3641.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1879" data-original-width="3189" height="378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnQqN8EaoH79VVq9rHN121hNTrYKyXXCB2Dg5vk50drTERik982obiGxmLbmwNiDiCavuf2iptsRbUnqjzWtHvcfds-wCh23sbS44jnitt2BHmV0Qesa5uSFKtW08Y3laXcYwZyQJeirUcbVvX_RvPqcLEof4Nbo8unBNlysZpqObHTDN4TKYw_fDv/w640-h378/IMG_3641.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Our closure statement (26.04.2022).</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Arriving at this decision was difficult. It went against my natural-born instinct to keep things going at all costs. My brain has an annoying habit of defining what I do on the times when it isn't plain sailing at the exclusion of any evidence to the contrary, and this was no exception. But the fact is the circumstances we found ourselves in thanks to the pandemic were unprecedented and extremely hard to fight, particularly when you have so little money to start with and are constantly calling in favours from friends to make the shows run smoothly on the day.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtZLXVmLLqTUzboxrFefLjlhGgTwXGazqbjWGO19W_4eEM8Ls-6x_K7OwAb2ECcl17fy_5zsEBJIdHpmaOAt5NbMxr7eXTXvpjSG4F9JHSeD0Io-x7HWtA7USmJ0ZOVoeRZ7RpTllLQPy4PGXS2NpTJJn2BgfaWnKnkcx8VzJ3Lze7K0QMhfkkIJ9u/s3299/IMG_20190621_215256%20(3).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1854" data-original-width="3299" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtZLXVmLLqTUzboxrFefLjlhGgTwXGazqbjWGO19W_4eEM8Ls-6x_K7OwAb2ECcl17fy_5zsEBJIdHpmaOAt5NbMxr7eXTXvpjSG4F9JHSeD0Io-x7HWtA7USmJ0ZOVoeRZ7RpTllLQPy4PGXS2NpTJJn2BgfaWnKnkcx8VzJ3Lze7K0QMhfkkIJ9u/w400-h225/IMG_20190621_215256%20(3).jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Pre-show audience at a Hitchin Town Hall Mostly Comedy (June 2019)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The sad thing is I had visions of it carrying on long into the future, though if I could find a way to outsource some of the admin, that would've helped. I liked the idea of reaching our twentieth anniversary - we were already close to our fourteenth - as, for some reason, the idea that it ran for that long would make it feel real. Like a proper thing, whatever that is. But at least the spanner in the works that scuppered us was a world event entirely out of our control. Or at least the prominent cause was.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">While our statement explains the crux of the reason for our closure, there were other extenuating circumstances too. The dynamic behind anything that runs for so long is always complicated. For some time, Glyn's heart wasn't in the club while I kept chivvying it along, mainly because I still felt the spark of promise in Doggett & Ephgrave if we could find time to invest in it; something our podcast <a href="http://www.doggettandephgrave.podbean.com" target="_blank">More Than Mostly Comedy</a> reinforced. But for many reasons, that wasn't an option, and it had reached the point where I was spinning so many plates to keep Mostly going while Glyn grew more distant from it due to a genuine lack of availability. Then toward the end of last year, he told me he didn't want to do Mostly Comedy specifically anymore, which coincided with me reaching the apex of my disillusionment with all the work involved. And knowing I'd have to do even more without him only compounded it.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifET09oVR2qzl9kMCJz1euYMc0m_GbGDhRke4HGUSUdqSf5Be80XrvDqkkCVziwNGE59ChufwmqJ3tWbhaiOj2fgV80dzlVNQvxZdMDrhfRUZdKAjc5CAw-yffwzPdfxolST2QfPCemsGvVlVxGKnGWHk_qs-xY0NHQv8UwL0TVZFiLdN_oqvyiScS/s4032/IMG_2915%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifET09oVR2qzl9kMCJz1euYMc0m_GbGDhRke4HGUSUdqSf5Be80XrvDqkkCVziwNGE59ChufwmqJ3tWbhaiOj2fgV80dzlVNQvxZdMDrhfRUZdKAjc5CAw-yffwzPdfxolST2QfPCemsGvVlVxGKnGWHk_qs-xY0NHQv8UwL0TVZFiLdN_oqvyiScS/w400-h300/IMG_2915%20(2).jpg" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Doggett & Ephgrave soundcheck before Neil Innes' appearance (03.10.19)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">When I saw that today's proposed show still hadn't broken even last Friday, I pragmatically went through my remaining options, from soldiering onto our last advertised date in May to pulling both shows and closing immediately. I decided to make the final call on Monday, subject to whether we broke even by then. I also made a list of reasons I was still doing Mostly Comedy beyond my obvious care for it. And the three prime answers were "to work with Glyn", "to write new material", and "to earn some money". And when I realised that none of those still happened, I knew the game was up. Without my criteria met, for whom was I doing it? And when we still hadn't covered our costs with three days to go, that was that.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">That's not to say there won't come a time in the future when we might try again. But the level of commitment I gave it through the years isn't sustainable when it overwhelms everything else I want to do. And while the finances are the main factor, it's also the case that at this point, neither Glyn nor I can give it the level of commitment needed to keep it going. And without at least one of us, it can't happen, or at least not under the banner of Mostly Comedy. Though that's not to say other people can't book shows if they want to, though for my sanity - at least for a little while - I need it not to be me.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjol8Y6etVtBbuypz-pDHGP8qrif1-_gcDvrFVgz9-rsPLjADPjZL09As7xR6p56MievZ9cw6FErYupy-7DiqgSlVdyhvGcgQdVQQC-ANeMz8y4n_dEjGVfbvVwgsIFVpWcKaaD2wNB6NQ1NNJ4Bbk6MZOpHVLQymhlMqy7uPUlmNQU5pPOUQlb5ne5/s4032/IMG_20190222_021326_995.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjol8Y6etVtBbuypz-pDHGP8qrif1-_gcDvrFVgz9-rsPLjADPjZL09As7xR6p56MievZ9cw6FErYupy-7DiqgSlVdyhvGcgQdVQQC-ANeMz8y4n_dEjGVfbvVwgsIFVpWcKaaD2wNB6NQ1NNJ4Bbk6MZOpHVLQymhlMqy7uPUlmNQU5pPOUQlb5ne5/w400-h300/IMG_20190222_021326_995.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Explaining Norman Lovett at The Sun.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Despite all of this, I still cycle between thinking I've done the right thing and worrying that I should have just persevered. But a lot of that's to do with an often misplaced expectation in myself to keep going irrespective of whether it's still healthy (like doing this somehow proves my worth) and that it's my job to fill every gap. But neither point's true, and I know that deep down, however my muscle memory chooses to interpret it. And stopping now doesn't undo all the extraordinary things Mostly Comedy accomplished. Nothing can do that. And the roster of big names that joined us on the bill speaks for itself, as does the string of emails filling our inbox since Tuesday's announcement from people telling us how much they valued the club. We've had scores of tweets and comments on Facebook and Instagram too. We'll get back to them in time, but rest assured that we can't thank you enough for your support. Because to quote what I said at every gig after we listed that evening's lineup, "All in all, it's going to be a great night". And, all in all, it was.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw2zFQYmEduc-PrC4nboEu8FJEWO8KRYjNfvzxK9BaD_6AUOGtRdzzcmrRxw0W8ZWjw7Yq9E1ZVi_6Ofm802KVUlx6jAKFxgw8mLPG3DgyC0edDqhn0KU6vUoPAXK_Ihznou_h4fSLgILL_g3QGYr5JrUysjdiZgZJ1GHtKF5Fce9tY9NknrQU1lCw/s459/IMG_3665.PNG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="459" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw2zFQYmEduc-PrC4nboEu8FJEWO8KRYjNfvzxK9BaD_6AUOGtRdzzcmrRxw0W8ZWjw7Yq9E1ZVi_6Ofm802KVUlx6jAKFxgw8mLPG3DgyC0edDqhn0KU6vUoPAXK_Ihznou_h4fSLgILL_g3QGYr5JrUysjdiZgZJ1GHtKF5Fce9tY9NknrQU1lCw/w400-h370/IMG_3665.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Just some of the replies filling our inbox since Tuesday's mailing list announcement.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-89607895074925059642022-03-29T18:11:00.039+01:002022-03-30T15:34:53.356+01:00The Magic Small - Not Faraway - Tree.<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The plum tree my wife bought me for my fortieth has started showing tiny shoots and leaves, which is a handy metaphor for a new beginning as far as these things go.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgetA79ctSA8-LUyZHUpIqcecv-FM9dcj77O5m6lIfbQnehKCNX_SmzdZGb86YQ8NT6R28B-Fikn2aUCLKswvWW_rNbcaLhGdQJJapuC6Bkk5qGYNPiFahjOrmHqX_yplJEfyX8143_btC2Pvm6IWm9jMWAtWzDAHMFhFtOh_TrJ9MrNTAQ8MPVprMS/s1198/IMG_3273.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1198" data-original-width="1198" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgetA79ctSA8-LUyZHUpIqcecv-FM9dcj77O5m6lIfbQnehKCNX_SmzdZGb86YQ8NT6R28B-Fikn2aUCLKswvWW_rNbcaLhGdQJJapuC6Bkk5qGYNPiFahjOrmHqX_yplJEfyX8143_btC2Pvm6IWm9jMWAtWzDAHMFhFtOh_TrJ9MrNTAQ8MPVprMS/w400-h400/IMG_3273.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">It's surprising what such a tiny aspect of the natural world can do for your mood. Sitting in the garden now in the sun has given me a burst of energy I didn't have before. It's like a balm for the mind. Until I moved out of Hitchin, I've never had a garden, aside from a communal one at my first flat, which we never used due to some deep-seated need to hide from our neighbours. It's the same reflex that makes you pretend you've not seen someone you know on the street, only more intense, as you've less reason to chat to the guy who banged on the ceiling the night before because you were listening to Bob Dylan too loudly. Oh, those carefree student days (when I swear no-one smoked wacky baccy).</span></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">(For an insight into our antics, my flatmate Mark was once an hour late for his girlfriend because we were trying to pass three satsumas to each other in midair while juggling. Spoiler: we never mastered it.)</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">So, back to my tree. For the past year, it's been in a pot in the back garden, looking suspiciously like - well - a stick. That or a marker for a tiny shallow grave. The sort of place you'd bury a hamster who won't keep its mouth shut. "Oi, Penfold: what happens in Chez Ephgrave <b><i>stays</i></b> in Chez Ephgrave".</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The present was no less lovely for its slow progress. Despite staying small, I was still anxious. What if the wind blew it over? What if the dog ran off with it? The second option was less likely as wasn't a slipper or an empty halloumi packet.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">But today, it looks very different; it seems, after a turbulent twelve months, it's starting to settle into its new home. I get you, brother. With any luck, its baby trunk will soon gain purchase. And before long, I'll plant it in the garden soil when its bonsai days will be over; because big wood comes to those who wait. </span></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-12586578268614747422022-03-18T18:54:00.003+00:002022-03-18T18:58:47.247+00:00COVID-19, DAVID-40.<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I'm delighted to say that, after just under two years of trying, I'm the proud owner of a little Covid in the country.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhY1HRE-IX5EXduI4-98kZnCILMQ3bIL61LiO449--CfbJwi5BL62TP2bQv_NwZDA6lclvAqCwXACfLLjQXh_2fCKugSImQ_RWicvoH2QircAvOEARdp0uojDmAeT2MJORXiJca3qDqQVPwN8Kdw0NcrH2facUZ1JIKfZzjrwWkLHkYUTnh0ujtF9kO=s2901" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2901" data-original-width="2901" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhY1HRE-IX5EXduI4-98kZnCILMQ3bIL61LiO449--CfbJwi5BL62TP2bQv_NwZDA6lclvAqCwXACfLLjQXh_2fCKugSImQ_RWicvoH2QircAvOEARdp0uojDmAeT2MJORXiJca3qDqQVPwN8Kdw0NcrH2facUZ1JIKfZzjrwWkLHkYUTnh0ujtF9kO=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Scan the QR code for a short clip of me inserting a swab in a cavity of my choice.</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">Having those two red lines pop up so quickly was the scratchcard win I'd always dreamed of, and a result that the Government's PCR test-analysing scientists confirmed for me today. It's either that or I'm pregnant. You do wee on the little gubbins, don't you? That's why they call it lateral flow.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">The good news is I'm currently not feeling too bad, aside from a sore throat and general tiredness, which is pretty much my natural state. And obviously, my first thought was to show a wanton disregard for social distancing by driving to the nearest castle (that's apparently in Walkern, and no doubt haunted by a ghost called Christopher, who dances around the grounds to the club-singing bark of present-day Elton John). And I licked anyone who got in my way. The pandemic's over because Boris said so, so let's party like it's Lockdown No. 1.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: arial;">I wonder if nuclear annihilation's worse with an acute respiratory illness. I don't know what to Google first.</span></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-85090489482246133212022-02-25T17:18:00.004+00:002022-03-01T11:45:13.814+00:00Hitchout.<div style="text-align: justify;"><div><span style="font-family: arial;">From today, after twenty-three years there, I officially no longer live in Hitchin.</span></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjjRlw8MvoOFdnwDWaRrv2gWtuBoYFYJg7eLf6Zt4PBdkMatxYObQ-C4Ky8JdudIi37yXy8yujuWJ17HW2nRJ5hvVQP_qDew_P-EwHHd8YmA5cZ3aYW1f2I9kE9KSRMNDfoklMHEXk6jG4IptvxPgd0iRUQxm_0IWazeZCHXnXWXNoXTyqRHUIbVSL6=s4393" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4393" data-original-width="3295" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjjRlw8MvoOFdnwDWaRrv2gWtuBoYFYJg7eLf6Zt4PBdkMatxYObQ-C4Ky8JdudIi37yXy8yujuWJ17HW2nRJ5hvVQP_qDew_P-EwHHd8YmA5cZ3aYW1f2I9kE9KSRMNDfoklMHEXk6jG4IptvxPgd0iRUQxm_0IWazeZCHXnXWXNoXTyqRHUIbVSL6=w300-h400" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: xx-small;">Elwood looks down at Hitchin: the master of all he surveys (01.02.19)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><span style="font-family: arial;">What's changed is I've sold the flat my dad helped me buy seventeen years ago, with the funds going toward his childhood home. Still, leaving Hitchin is a big thing to process. The beautiful little market town has become hardwired as my home; a base to come back to when I was touring; a location to run a comedy club; a place to carve my own identity (with the emphasis on the "tit" bit).</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">That's not to say I'm not pleased to be moving to the village where my dad grew up. And it's not a completely new experience as it was our base for much of the pandemic while we waited for the flat to go. But the moment the sale went through was significant; to no longer have a base in the town I've lived since I was a nineteen-year-old drama student was a big moment.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">I'll always love it. And if asked at gunpoint where I class as home, I'd still answer "Hitchin" before asking why their question was so high-stakes. They had better not rescind my key to the city, though.</span></div></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2070307276472982313.post-70155664872936883752022-02-22T15:43:00.001+00:002022-03-09T15:43:44.054+00:00The Sound of Silence.<div style="text-align: justify;"><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Part of the reason I've been silent for a while is my attention is so divided. For nearly two years, I've been trying to push through the sale of my flat as it limped along for a variety of reasons, not least the pandemic's impact. Finally, we're potentially a few days from completion, which is hugely significant as it will draw to a close a stressful process that should also help create some closure from the issues it brought up from my past. And both points are sorely needed.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">Meanwhile, a different type of closure threatens Mostly Comedy. Trying to keep enough money in the kitty to cover our costs as multiple shows are cancelled or postponed for all manner of reasons has proved difficult; if it weren't for a generous donation via JustGiving last month, we would have folded. Frustratingly, sales were picking up for next week's gig when we had to postpone it to May due to a sickness in the line-up (which sounds like the proclamation of an apocalyptic preacher). And while we'd usually still go ahead after replacing the act like-for-like, the fact the bill was already moved once put paid to that. And to be honest, I haven't checked the number of refunds claimed yet as I know it will depress me. I'm just tired of it.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: arial;">A lot of things worry me right now. Money's a big problem that's exacerbated by all of the above. My earnings last year were the lowest they've ever been, and my outgoings were the highest (as we covered the cost of two properties). I'm keen to change direction workwise, but the dent in my confidence is significant, and my energy stocks are low. But there's a glint of hope on the horizon if I keep my head down as the flat sale goes through. We're at the metaphorical photo-finish if I can hold my nerve.</span></div></div>David Ephgravehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09895862709592345667noreply@blogger.com