mostly david ephgrave

Last night, we recorded the discussion that will form the meat* of our 'F' instalment of The McCartney McAlphabet . 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). 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). It's also worth noting the lovely boost we had when we released ou...

My ongoing mission to tie up loose ends saw me recently edit the final episode of More Than Mostly Comedy (recorded at the last Hitchin Mostly Comedy on 9th December 2021) and my share of the edit of our most recent instalment of The McCartney McAlphabet . Both are available wherever you pick up your podcasts (you lucky thing, you). 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, a...

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. 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. 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. 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 forgin...

My main focus for the past few days has been organising and promoting the on-sale dates for July's proposed return of Hitchin Mostly Comedy (provided the Delta COVID variant doesn't keep us on ice) and editing the second and third episodes of The McCartney McAlphabet. Unsurprisingly, sales for Mostly have been cautious. I suspect they'll pick up once we know the Government's plans for 21st June onwards, but even bearing that in mind, the low take-up is concerning. I worry our seventeen-month closure could play havoc with a momentum we may never get back. And while we're prepared for our return to be a slow build, there's only so much we can juggle low figures when the club's not a cheap thing to run, and one too many loss-leaders will spell closure for us. (What a happy cheery chap I am.) The podcast, however, is lots of fun. Our first two episodes are now up , with number three being edited and four at planning stages. I'm really happy with how the fir...

It's with no small fanfare - or at least with a faint anal parp - that the first episode of 'The McCartney McAlphabet' is out. I'm proud of it and am looking forward to doing more. The second episode's already in the can (not that there is a can) and needs editing, but it's good to at least have the show up and running instead of just a load of social media accounts with no product to push. And aside from a few syncing problems I had when I putting our conversation together, making it was an easy process. Recording our chat was fun and comes over well; as I've mentioned, the topic's not something I have to stretch to discuss and the whole thing's a labour of love. All that's left now is the hope people enjoy it. It's surprising how positive the online Beatles community have been. We've only had encouraging comments on the concept so far and I hope the content will live up to this. As with Doctor Who, I know that Beatles fans can be exact...

Yesterday, I found myself extolling the virtues of Macca's solo career to Mark Dolan on his drivetime show on talkRadio, after Royal Mail announced the imminent release of a set of post-Beatle McCartney themed stamps earlier that day. That's what happens when Paul Gambaccini has prior commitments. Chatting to Mark Dolan on talkRadio (06.05.21) It came about by chance after Mark dropped me a Twitter DM in the morning to see if I might be free to do it, having clocked the promotional posts for the McCartney McAlphabet this past few weeks. It just goes to show how you never know who's got their eye on you and will at least act as a spot of gentle promotion for the show. It also provided the ego boost of having Dolan bill me as a Beatles "Expert" which I'll happily accept in place of payment. Recording episode #1 with Clary Saddler. As for the podcast itself, I'm loving being a part of it. We've recorded the first two episodes now and I'm editing the f...

Planning Clary Saddler's and my new Paul McCartney-themed podcast The McCartney McAlphabet (which we start recording tomorrow) is proving to be a pleasant distraction from the norm. Artwork for the podcast, using a picture I took myself, no less (back when Paul didn't have a face). It helps that it's a subject I've engrossed myself in for a good thirty years, so I'd like to think finding something to talk about shouldn't be too much of a stretch. That said, I'm still slightly worried that I haven't done enough homework. The fact two of us are doing it inevitably brings on a form of "Are we doing Christmas presents this year?"-style panic. What if she's done reams of nuanced research and all I've got is a post-it note with "He plays bass" written on it? I think it's something we need to start to find out what needs doing. Most importantly it should be fun. Just the thought of a new project is exciting. I haven't looked...

The preparatory work I've done this week for my forthcoming McCartney podcast has been a pleasant diversion from my problems and has given me a glimpse of something to enjoy in the months ahead. I'm looking forward to starting to record it. It will ultimately be a slight flex of my creative muscles that I could do with. I want to have fun with it and find a way out of the personal mire of the past two years. As well as sharing notes for the first few episodes with my Macca conspirator Clary Saddler, I've also finished editing the Isy Suttie instalment of Glyn's and my More Than Mostly Comedy Podcast, which I'd abandoned for a few months due to a technical problem with the audio files that I've since resolved on a clear head. And the outcome is an interesting and funny conversation. And once I've edited our interviews with Lucy Porter and Lynn Ruth Miller, I'll be up to date and ready to turn my head to all things Macca. Hopefully, it will act as a palate...