mostly david ephgrave

Today would have been the last performance of my Edinburgh show about my dad, Good Grief. While I'm sad that I couldn't do it this year, if there's a Fringe to go to in 2021, I'll be up there with it; I don't bow out of potential debt that easily. Joking aside, it's strange how it all turned out. Like many people, I've watched the content of my diary vacate en masse thanks to the pandemic. I went into the office for the first time in weeks on Thursday and consulting my wall planner was like enjoying a visual joke, as nearly everything I'd planned didn't happen; no Bath Comedy Festival, no Brighton Fringe, no previews, no Edinburgh, and only two Mostly Comedys since January. I might as well have not put it up and saved money on Sharpies and Blu Tack in the process (and we're talking big bucks). I know I'm not the only one that's facing uncertainty, but there's still so much up-in-the-air. We're currently discussing with Hitchin Tow...

I'm not having the best of times at the moment, as is evidenced by the radio silence, but it's fair to say that people's kindness has helped. The nature of things right now is such that when I just checked my email to see the guy I sold my dad's electric bike via GumTree (solely to raise money for Edinburgh) is still having problems with it so I'll need to refund the balance (thus lessening what's now been repurposed as the Edinburgh cancellation fund) I wasn't surprised, though at the same time I felt a little bit like pulling my hair out; the issue with the bike was entirely unintentional on my part, which he knows, but that doesn't mean I can leave it at that; when I'm down on money I still to pay for my cancellation my cancelled Edinburgh run anyway, it's a situation - albeit a totally unavoidable one - I could do without. But then I could do without it all at the moment. I'm still trying to process the loss of my dad and the fact I ...

It's with real sadness and frustration - though it's totally unavoidable - that I've had to cancel my Edinburgh Fringe run. As I've intimated on social media and on my blog, I'm in a punishing situation involving long-standing issues, which have proved too much to work around. Add to this the loss of my dad, the fight to get my PIP reinstated, plus my poor mental health and this final twist was the straw that broke the camel's back. Firstly, I can't thank everyone enough for the ridiculously high level of support I've had to raise the money I couldn't get to due to my dad's assets being frozen after his death. My JustGiving page raised £3120 of the approximate £6500 grand total, which was bloody incredible. I hope no-one thinks the money was pocketed & not used for the cause (said while wearing my gold lamé jacket). While it's true some was spent on things I wouldn't need if I'd known I'd be cancelling - train ticket...

It's been a while, but here's a short interview I did last week about my show for Broadway World: Tell us a bit about Niche. 'Niche' is about embracing my fascination for the small details in life, and realising it's better to be true to who I am than to homogenise myself to be what others expect me to be.  The older I get, the more I accept aspects of my personality and interests I might have kept to myself in the past: yes, I'm a big fan of the band Wings. Yes, I've seen every episode of Diagnosis Murder and enjoyed them all, bar the one that claims vampires are real and the one in which Dick van Dyke plays every member of a whole family. Previously, I would have played these things down, because I was worried people would judge me, but I've since learnt that's ridiculous: I'm allowed to like what I like and sod what anyone thinks. So in this show I'm celebrating the fact others may see me as a niche prospect; so what if I don'...

I've not had the best week in the sense that I've been chasing my tail, trying to get things done and yet never getting close to where I need to be. Nothing's good right now. I know I'm always complaining about doing too much admin, but at the moment, it seems endless; if I'm not trying to sort something to do with my dad's probate situation I'm trying to solve some problem or other to do with Edinburgh that wouldn't have been half as difficult if the money was there. Sadly, everything's framed by this lack of funds, which overwhelms everything else. Nothing about the process is enjoyable right now, other than learning how generous people can be. Today there was a lovely piece in The Comet , which I hope will encourage a few more last-minute donations, but even if I manage to pull the money together, I still need some semblance of a show I'm happy with. Usually, I spend the best part of a year putting these things together; this time, I...

Today, my wife and I took the promotional image for this year's Edinburgh show, so all that's left now is to write it. (And find a technician and flyers, and work out how to get my dog there. And organise shipping of my luggage and equipment, and raise the rest of the money. So nothing much, then.) While time's super-tight for all of the above, I do have flashes of positivity about what's ahead. After all, the show is knowingly a compilation of old material and not a new entity. That was always my intention even before losing my dad, so there's no shame in it still being the case; it's like a placeholder, a premise that conveniently fits the title, 'Niche'. So fuck it. As previously mentioned we set the shot up yesterday, to make today less stressful. After all, it's never fun to split focus between the mechanics of a photo to being its subject. Consequently, it didn't take too long to get something we were happy with, which was a blessed r...

Today, the Edinburgh fundraising machine (which may be overselling it) saw donations pass the £2000 mark, which was splendid, although there's still a long way to go (says the eternal pessimist). One thing that should certainly help things along is an article about my predicament, which was published on the BBC News website this afternoon . It came about, following a conversation with the journalist Alex Pope after being alerted to the situation after seeing my story pop up on Twitter; proof once again of the positive power social media can have. We spoke with me firmly in the knowledge that nothing may come from our chat, but it was another metaphorical iron in the fire, so to speak. I can't help but wonder what my dad would have made of the attention levelled in his direction if you could remove the context. I'm pretty sure he would have been flattered, proud and pleased that it was helping me. I know he would be frustrated to have been part of the cause of my pr...

Perhaps the nicest moment at Thursday's Hitchin Mostly Comedy - aside from the round of applause when I dedicated the show to my dad - was when a woman in the audience stopped me as I sneaked in at the back mid-show to ask if she could give me a hug. It was a decidedly un-British thing to do, but the thought didn't go unappreciated and the conversation that followed was very nice. As well as saying kind, supportive things about losing my dad, she told me she'd been coming to the club since 2008 (so from the very beginning) and how much she loves it. She said her friends even have a Mostly Comedy WhatsApp group, which they use to discuss what shows they'd like to attend and who's paying for it. The fact people take the time to do this amazes me and reminds me our punters are a lovely bunch. I know losing a parent is such a commonality in life that being in my position isn't exactly special or unusual, but the combination of it, my Edinburgh situation and...

This afternoon I met with my lovely PR, Paul Sullivan, at The Ivy, ostensibly to discuss plans for pushing this year's Edinburgh show, but more than anything, to have a bit of a catch-up. Inevitably, much of the conversation centred on the loss of my dad and everything that's gone with it, to which Paul offered some sound advice. I'd like to be in a situation where it didn't dominate everything I do, though it's inevitable what with it being so recent. I just try to embrace it, particularly when I'm with someone who really gets it, as Paul does. While we didn't talk about the show massively - there's not much to talk about yet, to be honest - seeing him gave me a little burst of confidence about what lies ahead. I told him how I knew full well it won't be as well-rounded as last year's show, which I was quite proud of, but that doesn't mean it can't still be enjoyable if I keep it simple. I'll just call on some of the set pieces t...

...and so Ephgrave's Fringe Promo Machine springs into action (with a cough and a splutter, and a quick emergency call to the RAC.)  See below for my answers to a few questions for potential use in a feature about the Fringe for Fest, to hopefully get some publicity for this year's EdFringe solo show, 'Niche'. Easily the most exciting part of writing this was discovering a little technological secret: in all the years I've had a Mac, I never knew I could make it read my work back to me, giving my prose a Matt Berry-like quality; suddenly, answering this Fringe Q&A got interesting. (Beneath the article you find a link to listen to my answer to the first question, with Berry intonations; I know it's essentially just Siri, but it still amused me.) David Ephgrave: Fest Q&A. Q: What are some of the past practices that the festivals have nothing to be proud about? The obvious way the Fringe continues to let itself down is by exploit...