mostly david ephgrave

This afternoon, I caught up with a friend I haven't seen for a couple of years. The fact we haven't been in the same room for so long is, frankly, a little bit ridiculous. We both live in the same town. That's the way it goes; you end up making more effort with the people who live further away, and neglect those who live closest. Why is life like this? (Don't respond.) Thankfully, our friendship is such that's it's easy to pick up where we left off. There's no judgement about the time that's passed. We just get on with it.  It was lovely to see her and to hear how things have been going. We had a heck of a lot to fill each other in on and not enough time to do it. That's okay. Hopefully, we'll get back into the habit of seeing each other more often. She came armed with a wedding gift too, which was lovely, plus a batch of biscuits. You can't fail with biscuits. The rest of the day was filled with a doctor's appointment...

I spotted this in Wilkinson’s yesterday. As wedding cards go, it’s pretty pessimistic. I’m not sure whether it’s intended for the bride or groom. If it’s for her, it’s saying ‘you’re marrying a man with zero intelligence’, and if it’s for him, it’s saying ‘YOU HAVE NO HOPE. GET OUT WHILE YOU CAN’ . Neither is a sound basis for a long-lasting relationship. Let’s hope it’s the former option, as the latter is more sinister. There’s a slim chance it’s aimed at potential newlyweds with a fiancé who's sans head. You can get cards for anything these days. If that's the case, it's a ceremony you’d want to rush through. No use staving off the big day until the distant future. In reality, this was the only card on the rack where bodies outnumbered heads two-to-one. I wonder how it managed to get past quality control. Presumably the same way it got past the cashier, who didn’t bat an eyelid. He must have...

As I walked home this afternoon, I passed a little girl and her dad heading the other way. When they were behind me, I heard the the girl say ‘That man's got a poppy’. It was then that I realised I’ve reached the stage of my life when I'm seen unquestionably as an adult. When did that happen? It seems like only yesterday that I was just old enough to apply for my provisional driving licence. I’m now over twice that age. I’m hardly decrepit, I know, but it’s a sobering thought. I’m still not allowed behind the wheel without supervision though; one thing I've purposely kept in common with my sixteen-year-old self. The frustrating thing about life is its linearity. Things only go one way. This is something it shares with the majority of roads in St. Albans. Equally annoying. It like spotting crow’s feet starting to forming around your eyes or your subtly changing hairline; both of which I’ve done recently. You either embrace this,...

Yesterday, I listened to the second episode in BBC Radio 4’s current series ‘The Missing Hancocks’, and loved it. I make no secret of the fact that I’m a huge fan of both Galton & Simpson and Tony Hancock. It’s something I’ve discussed here before . Together, they were responsible for some of my favourite comedy of all time. Watching or listening to an episode of Hancock’s Half Hour is a fail-safe for putting me in a good mood. So much so that I’ve started listening to an episode every morning in the bath, to start the day with a positive kick. (Picture it.) When I heard tell of a handful of lost episodes being rerecorded by different actors, I was concerned. How could they make this work? I knew the writing would stand up on its own two feet – Galton & Simpson’s material is faultless – but how could you have a Hancock’s Half Hour without the real Huh…Huh…Huh…Hancock? Not to mention Sid, Bill, Kenneth, Andr é e, Moira, Miss Pugh and the rest. I needn’t have wor...

Today, I’m trying to work on my solo stand-up. I plan to write 5-10 minutes of new material each month, so I can gradually edge towards putting together an hour. I have half an eye on doing the Brighton and Edinburgh Festivals next year, which may be a little ambitious. It might be better to make my first solo festival venture a split bill with another act, if that’s not too contradictory, to allow me time to hone the best possible hour-long set. I’d hate to waste my first solo show by doing something substandard. I’d also sooner be doing a show with Glyn at the festival as well, so I’m not focusing on just one thing. This is not a step away from Doggett & Ephgrave, by the way. I cherish my work with Glyn. I just wanted to see if I had it in me to step up to the mic on my own. Not just step up to the mic, in fact, but say stuff. The starting point for my material is my blog. By writing something every day for a year I’ve built up a reas...

I’ve spent most of the morning sending out texts and emails, trying to book some interesting acts for Mostly Comedy in the New Year. By being lucky enough to have such excellent line-ups in 2014, we’ve created a rod for our own back. In recent months we’ve had – and will have - Phill Jupitus, Stewart Lee, Kevin Eldon, Richard Herring, John Thomson and Sean Hughes, all of which sold out; some, weeks in advance. We now have to maintain the same level to keep the night selling, and to meet our audience's expectations. It’s not an awful position to be in. It still excites me to have these people on the bill. I would never have anticipated it when we started it. I see it as a challenge to see who we can get next. It’s fun to aim big. There’s no harm in asking somebody high profile, as they can only say no at worst. (Unless they own a gun.) The downside is you spend too much time concerned with admin. It takes ages, juggling names, bu...

I saw an advert for McBusted’s tour today which described them as “The Ultimate Supergroup”. Who am I to argue? The combined forces of George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne could never compete with a cut-and-shut two-boyband line-up like that. The Traveling Wilburys may have had one of the most influential songwriters and cultural forces of the late 20th Century in their ranks, plus one of rock’s finest voices and an ex-Beatle – but pit them against the guy with the glasses, the guy with the hair, the guy with the hair, the guy with the hair, the guy with the hair and the guy from Strictly and there’s no competition: McBusted win by a cuntry mile.  (Misspelling intentional.) Think of the setlist. They could open with ‘All About You’ (obviously), stick ‘All About You’ in halfway through to lift the mid-show lull, then close with ‘All About You’. I’m not sure what Busted would bring to the table as I can’t remembe...