mostly david ephgrave

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...

Tonight's Mostly Comedy was a genuinely lovely gig, despite all the stress and frustration that led up to it. Tonight's Mostly Comedy line-up: (l to r) Clinton Baptiste, Glyn, Neil McFarlane, Brodi Snook and me. The spanner in the works, as I mentioned a few days ago, was Simon Day, unfortunately, having to pull out of the show due to filming commitments. In reality, this sort of thing's par-for-the-course and no big problem if it weren't for the misunderstanding of some, but not all, of the people who'd booked. We make it as clear as we possibly can at point of booking that line-ups may be subject to last-minute alteration - such is the nature of any event with so many variables - but as time has gone on and the club has grown, there's a reasonable contingent that ignores this. The point is, the show we run is a mixed bill and we don't officially credit anyone as the headliner, but for all the punters who know the score, there are always a handful ...

Today was an eventful day in the sense that I got a lot done, though there was more time spent in front of a computer screen waiting for technology to work than I'd have liked. I started the day by meeting Glyn for coffee (well, tea for him) for the first time since I returned from Edinburgh. The intention was to have breakfast, but it was such a nice morning when I met him in Hitchin Market Place that we just sat in the Square. I inevitably filled him in on the highs and lows of the Fringe; a conversation with additional contributions from Glen Davies who joined us after bumping into us on his way to get his hair cut (we didn’t get to see the final results). Whilst we chatted I told Glyn of my plan to film my show, which ended with us putting a date in the diary to do this at The Market Theatre on 11 th October; while I’m often reticent about doing my shows in Hitchin as they tend to get a slightly muted response, after weighing it up it stil...

Tonight’s Mostly Comedy had a very special headliner - true to form - in Simon Day and was a great gig all in all, though the last few hours before the show were a little frenetic, so we went into it pretty stressed. June's Hitchin Mostly Comedy line-up: (clockwise from top) Simon Day, Spring Day and Lorna Shaw. If there’s one thing I could eliminate from the whole Mostly Comedy experience it would be the tendency for a race-to-the-finish (or more accurately, a race to the start) with no backstage to disappear to to get your head together for it; just a dressing room would do, rather than slipping into the gents’ (which has the world’s slowest closing outer door) feeling sweaty and low status, hoping you won't first meet meet the main act when they burst in on you in your underwear. Running the club means constantly switching hats, much like that old, chaotic Tommy Cooper sketch, and the lack of a proper backstage area is often the ...

Today, I met my friend who moved away from the area towards the end of last year, for one of our regular catch-ups. We’ve actually managed to see each other almost as much as we used to when we lived in the same town, which is pleasing. I’m glad about this, as we’ve always been a sounding board for each other’s problems and frustrations, which is something we both need. It’s obviously not as convenient as it was to arrange meeting at short notice, but we still see each other every few weeks, so it’s not too bad. Other than that, yesterday didn’t entail a great deal for me. I kept a loose eye on our pre-sale for June’s Hitchin Mostly with The Fast Show’s Simon Day, which began on Saturday and has been selling very healthily, as expected. I doubt it will sell out entirely before reaching general sale on Monday, but a large percentage of tickets have already gone, so it looks set to be full before the night, which is great. We’re very fortunate for the club’s continuing interest. I ...