On Wednesday I had a hectic day at work then caught the train into Edinburgh to visit my new venue for the first time - Novotel run by Sweet, which is in Lauriston Place and just up from the busy Grassmarket. I had half an hour to run through the technical requirements for my spoken word show, but I was concerned at how much I would have to set up myself each day in limited time (officially only 5 minutes, but hopefully more), and I basically had to figure out how to incorporate my music pieces into my presentation. I then had a general briefing with the venue management.
I located my flyers which had been delivered safely to the venue, and took them down to my other venue, the Beehive in the Grassmarket, but there was no sign of my posters having arrived. I was able to try out the techie bit for my comedy show there and it seemed to have worked OK. I then went for the train and got home after 8pm. After eating, I had to work on getting those music issues sorted out.
On Thursday I had a very hectic half day finishing all my work before I could log off - after all, I am taking more or less the rest of the month off to perform at the Fringe. It was at this time my flyerer texted to say she had double booked and could no longer flyer for me.
It was then time to get all my things together and catch the train into Edinburgh to perform my first show at Novotel at 3pm. 2 people turned up for the show so there wasn't much pressure and things ran smoothly enough.
Although I could put up some of my flyers in the Beehive venue, my posters still couldn't be found. They were then located so I picked them up and put some up in the venue. Tomorrow is the first day when I'll be performing both my shows, as I will be every day after that, except for the middle Monday.
The Guildford Fringe has been just one of many highlights. They seem very switched on to marketing and the festival arranged an interview for me with BBC Radio Surrey. This was much appreciated, but it was timed to be at 08:25 on Monday morning. I had to get up an hour beforehand so I could feel awake enough to be able to talk to the presenters. In the end it seemed to go well enough.
I was visiting on a day trip yesterday to perform my comedy show in the Morecambe Comedy Festival. It was a sunny day, England were playing their third-place play-off football World Cup match and the guy who had the show before mine had not had any audience. It was little surprise then that nobody turned up for my show either. I know Morecambe and Wise struggled at the beginning of their comedy careers but having no-one turn up to see me after a 400 mile round trip is tough.
But at least I got to see the statue, and sample some nice fish and chips. And, just by turning up yesterday, there is now an opportunity to perform my spoken word show at another festival in the town in March next year. So, as Eric might say, wa-hey!
I saw this headline in the local paper today and just had to take a photo. Why rats are taking it out on Fifers remains a mystery, but then there's no point in seeking a logical reason for irrational behaviour. Regardless, we must do our utmost to challenge prejudice in whatever form it takes as it continues to plague our society.
Monday 1st February - What the heck, Auchinleck?
I was booked to do a gig in Ayrshire on Saturday night. In a place I had never heard of before (Auchinleck) and in a venue called 'The Railway Tavern'. I imagined some run down poky pub near a railway station. It turned out to be a huge venue, in the kind of room which must host wedding receptions for hundreds of people. Unfortunately this was the first comedy night they had run there, so the lighting was poor, but otherwise it was well run and the comedians were well looked after.
My own performance was seemingly well received, until someone heckled that they 'had paid a tenner for this' and was only 'there for the craic'. I thought my comebacks were quite good, but I then found I had lost my momentum, and I didn't know how many people had really taken the side of the heckler.
My spirits inevitably sag under these circumstances, and yet how often does this happen: on leaving the venue, the solitary smoker braving the cold told me what a great night it had been, and so instantly my spirits were lifted again. I reckon comedians have to show a measure of humility in the face of heckling which appears to be an on the spot (1 star) review. They're entitled to their opinion. At the same time though, there is a need to teach audiences to shut up at the right times, otherwise they're potentially spoiling it for everyone else. And everyone else has also presumably paid a tenner.
Where the humility comes in is, in, basically not having a rant back. The heckler may have paid a tenner, but I was just one of the acts, and by the end of a 7 hour shift would have driven nearly 200 miles in some pretty treacherous conditions to entertain them, in a place I'm never likely to go to under any other circumstances. I had prepared hard. I had taken time out from my family and given up my Saturday night. I almost didn't get home because of the snow falling on untreated roads.
But, what the heck. It's all part of the fun of being the clown who turns up, does some stupid stuff, gets some laughs, leaves and is never seen again, and almost certainly forgotten again. Especially by drunken hecklers who won't remember much about their night out the night before. So 3 cheers for the cheery smokers! And what the heck, Auchinleck!
Last Saturday was a tough gig in a packed room in an old mining village in Fife. The PA system and lighting were if anything a hindrance, and the hecklers were unforgiving. Yet all of the comedians who took part stepped up to the plate, embracing the set up, and the crowd had a really good time. It was, after all, supposed to be a charity fundraiser.
Then midweek was a spot at a queer cabaret night in Edinburgh. I was late on, performing after political poets, musical acts, drag queens, and even a drag king. Never did I feel so acutely that all I can do is 'straight stand up'.
Then yesterday was another fundraiser. This time at The Clutha Bar, scene of the terrible helicopter crash, but now a wonderfully revived and refurbished venue. It was a classic music event with a 'now let's get a comedian up on stage' spot. People simply don't stop talking when that happens. There was the added distraction of food being brought out for the customers during my set. But it was a privilege to be the first comedian to perform there since the place got up and running again, and I got some great feedback from individuals afterwards and requests to follow me on Twitter.
So a week full of variety. I'd quite like to do a gig in an environment without too much spice again soon though!
But for me, the format meant there was no opportunity to mix with other comedians. And it was a case of entertain whomever happened to be in the room at my allotted time. Which was a disappointing 4 at the start. But, the room was pretty full by the time I had finished my impromptu set. I would say that this was as much down to a band finishing their set in another room as to the quality of my set. But with so many people continually coming into the room, I had to be pretty interactive, and I quite enjoyed that for a change. I even developed a running joke with those already in the room about what the newcomers were expected to do.
I received some encouraging comments afterwards about my sense of humour going down well there and 'I must be doing something right'. So it may not have been Edinburgh, but it was a good enough experience to make me decide to sign up to going back and performing a show in the same venue as part of the Greater Manchester Fringe in early November. This time the audience will have to pay to see me though. As Arnie would say, "I'll be back!". But with tickets to sell.
As well as my own show, which resumes at 15:00 every day from tomorrow, I have some guest spots this week:
Tuesday: Pick of the Fringe at The Beehive at 21:10.
As well as my own show at 15:00, I've also got the first of 2 guest spots tomorrow:
Sunday 17th January - Durham, Durham...
I was booked to perform at the Gala Theatre in Durham on Friday night. There was some spectacular snow-covered scenery to enjoy on the drive down, and I was thankful that there was no travel disruption. In fact I turned up an hour early as the expected disruption around Durham never materialised. When I got to the venue I found out that the line-up had changed significantly for this sold-out gig, with Andy Fury now opening and Simon Donald, creator of The Viz, taking over as the MC. The promoter, who was present, had asked me to perform a 15 minute slot in the middle section.
I felt as if the audience hadn't warmed up enough in the first section so this added to the pressure I was under, having driven a relatively long distance (150 miles) to a gig, playing to a full room, and with the promoter there. I pack in a lot of short 1-liners near the start of my set and that usually sets the expectations well, but there are never any guarantees with how each audience is going to react. As it turned out, there was a warm reaction from the off, so I immediately relaxed into my performance. There was very little heckling and the biggest challenge was adapting to the ripple effect whereby some people - almost inevitably in a big room - are slower on the uptake, and it takes longer to get the laughs from them.
Having watched Vince Atta produce a brilliant beatbox set to close the night, perhaps the most interesting part of the evening for me was receiving both praise and advice in equal measure, from fellow comics and from the promoter. For example, it was recommended I wear a suit on stage. This is an interesting idea, as I have over time moved away from wearing loud shirts and always make sure I am respectably dressed, even though I still wear jeans (for the purpose of one of my jokes).
This is an idea I cannot wait to try out. Watch this space!
Monday 11th January - The man who fell from earth
I was just one of no doubt millions of people whose first waking moment of today was a profound sense of shock at hearing the announcement of David Bowie's death.
That announcement had been made by his family. It said that he had died after an 18-month battle with cancer, at the age of 69. He had obviously kept his illness a closely guarded secret. Having lost my own father to cancer - and he died at exactly the same age - my own feelings of loss returned with a vengeance again today. Whenever those feelings revisit, it still surprises me how raw those feelings are, even over a decade later. My father didn't so much fight 'bravely' as succumb to the inevitable with admirable grace. I still get a lump in my throat when I think about the time he told me the doctor's verdict on his, until then, undiagnosed illness. It takes a great deal of inner strength to maintain your composure as you tell your son you've been told you only have a few more months to live.
Despite the obvious shock of the surprise announcement, millions of Bowie's fans will soon move on from that, and come to realise that they will always have such a fantastic artistic legacy to enjoy. That renewed appreciation started afresh even today, and we'll be enjoying it for as long we ourselves live. I think Bowie's family however, those who actually knew the man, will feel an overwhelming sadness, and one which will never quite leave them. But that sadness will always be mixed with pride, especially when they take in the breadth and depth of the reaction to the man's death from all around the world.
And the family will surely also be proud already because - as is now becoming obvious - Bowie had made the latest album 'Blackstar' as his swansong, without the general public realising it, his death suddenly transforming it into something so much more poignant and profound. He had somehow managed to time things so that he was to die just after the album's release, with him singing the opening lyrics of the single released this week: 'Look up here, I'm in heaven'. Wow!
It reminds me of the last music released by Johnny Cash, full of grit and emotion, which was also made in the knowledge that death was close at hand. There's nothing like personal experience and emotion to drive out some profound works of art. But this is something far beyond just another artist releasing another, albeit final, album.
Yes, Blackstar was successfully released without anyone knowing the true facts, and therefore without understanding its true meaning or significance until later. That takes some organising and a kind of marketing genius. But this sense of timing, a sense that he was revealing to us the shocking reality of his passing, by singing it to us from 'the other side'? That maintains the magic, the aura he could conjure up of other-worldliness. Suddenly he seems to be singing to us from beyond the earth we mortals live in. This concept neatly fits in with the questions asked about creations such as Ziggy Stardust: Was he more than human, was he some kind of alien, or a spaceman?
That shocking announcement this morning suddenly seems more like just the start of another phase, not the end of something. It's triggered a renewed appreciation of the artist. It's just another of his many regenerations. And as a final earthly act, to have planned and engineered his death and final earthly act in this way, proves the genius of that artist.
Friday 8th January 2016 - Happy New Year!
2 lovely gigs this week to start off the new year: I was the opening act at Green Room in Perth on Tuesday, then the support act for Janey Godley's Wild Cabaret night in Glasgow on Thursday. I was impressed to see such well supported gigs, given that they were running midweek in the first week of January. Comedians often talk pessimistically about the demise of the circuit, and the imminent closure of Jongleurs in Glasgow is a case in point, but there are always plenty of smaller gigs on the go, and many of them are well run and marketed. The gigs in Perth and Glasgow, run efficiently and proudly by Gary Divers and Janey Godley respectively, and with some professional on-site staff, are two very good examples of the type of gig which keep audiences coming back, and so keep the 'circuit' alive.
BLOG 2015
Wednesday 30th December - Downs and Ups
December was quite a tough month. A combination of personal circumstances, stormy weather and the Forth Road Bridge closure meant I ended up cancelling all 3 of the gigs I had in my diary before Christmas. I hate cancelling gigs, but my attendance at these particular gigs was not vital. It did help put a downer on things though. Experience has taught me not to get too despondent as things inevitably take a turn for the better, and that is just what has happened these past couple of days.
Last night I had the pleasure of organising the first comedy show back at my local pub in Burntisland for ten months. It was quite full, the acts did well, and lots of money was raised for the local foodbank. That left a warm glow, where even getting out of the house for a drink would have been a minor pleasure.
Then today, I woke up to find I had been picked as the support act for the first show of 2016 organised by Janey Godley at Wild Cabaret in Glasgow. I felt privileged. Then came the news I had been selected to take part in Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival's annual UK Pun Championships in February. As the only act to take part in all three championships held to date, I felt even more privileged.
It proves the old adage is true that things even out, the up will follow the down. I now need to refamiliarise myself of some my material in time for the first gig on 5th January.
Sunday 29th November - I know you know what I do, but do you know I know?
It was time to replace the car this weekend. I figured, if I'm going to get to gigs reliably and safely, then I needed a car with at least 100,000 miles fewer on the clock. There was a bit of to-ing and fro-ing with the car salesman via email before agreeing to view a second hand car at the showroom yesterday, a car which had been brought in especially from somewhere else in Scotland. We were happy with the car (and even happier to get our rusty old car passed on).
When it came to the admin, I sat down with the salesman at his desk and computer, and it was all fairly standard stuff. I had already passed the finance checks. But as he turned his computer on, and the screensaver went off, I got a bit of a shock. The screen was just at an angle where I could view it. I don't think that was intentional, because I could see that he had been looking at my website. Whether as a 'due diligence' check or just out of curiosity I realised that I had been checked out.
Of course, if your name is 'out there', and in a self-publicised way, you can't complain about which people find out about what you do. He never mentioned the fact I perform stand up comedy, so neither did I. Maybe I should have been glad there was nothing worth mentioning.
I just hope he hasn't sold us a joke for a car.
Wednesday 4th November - Madchester
Spent the day yesterday travelling to and from Manchester, to perform my solo show at the Greater Manchester Comedy Festival, and before that to plug my show on Salford City Radio. I thought I might run out of time to do the radio show, with quite a lot of fog slowing down my journey to Manchester, but I arrived in Salford in good time to find a parking spot and then the radio station itself. After introducing myself to the manager I realised I'd left my phone in the car, so went to retrieve it. Upon returning to the studios I met the rather panicked hosts of the afternoon show 'Salford Scene', Teresa and Jake, who ushered me in with less than a minute to go before the show started. I was the sole guest and we chatted for what must have been at least half an hour about my show and what seemed to be their chief interest: what it's like to be a comedian/writer, and the art of punning. I enjoyed the chat and sprinkled in plenty of puns throughout the interview.
There was plenty of time to kill afterwards, so I looked for somewhere nearby to eat. I ended up in an ASDA café, eating a pulled pork burger to the sound of a voice repeatedly telling people they were nearing the end of the travelator, which was annoyingly close to where I was sitting. Not ideal preparation for working through my show. And I then saw an email which told me I had 1 pre-sale for my show. So, at least on the positive side, the show was going ahead - that's if the pre-sale purchaser turned up. And hopefully there would be some turn ups on the door as well. Soon it was time to get back to the car before the ticket expired. And so into a traffic snarl up of mega proportions, the like of which I just don't see at home, but I found a way through to get to the venue, and there was still with another hour spare.
At the venue, the Kings Arms, I had to wait for the technician to arrive. Then I found out that there was no screen and projector set up, and I had to ask for a mike and stand. I decided that as the space was quite small, it would suffice to show slides on my laptop. And it could be plugged in, so there was sound. As the time for the show arrived it became obvious that I had an audience of one. I promised to do the show if the 'audience' still wanted a show. He did. So I performed to my smallest ever audience. I turned up the stage lights so I couldn't see him. It was really rather surreal, but 40 minutes later we were probably both somewhat relieved it was all over.
Outside it was now raining - yes, in Manchester - and I had the prospect of a 250 mile journey home, arriving back sometime before 1am. I hadn't expected the radio interview to lead to an audience, and so it proved, but each part of the day did feel like a rewarding experience nonetheless. But of course, there is no substitute for a sizeable audience. And there are only so many times you can say to the same member of the audience, "So, is there anyone in tonight who has ever...".
Monday 26th October - Lancashire Hot Spot
Another weekend, another long journey. This time to drive to Southport to pick up an act, Ro Campbell, take them to headline a gig in Blackpool (at Comedy Station) while also doing a 15 minute middle spot there myself, then drive the act to Edinburgh, before driving myself back to Fife. What could go wrong? Well I left home at 3pm to make sure I got to Southport in good time. I found the venue, a lovely arts centre called The Atkinson, and met up with Ro. The show was part of the Southport Comedy Festival, with Gary Delaney as headliner. I got to stand backstage while the MC started the show, 10 minutes late at 20:40, and then Ro did a 25 minute stint, which went down well with the audience. So far, so good. But time was ticking by. We still had to get to Blackpool, and with so many speed cameras en route it wasn't possible for me to drive too fast. Then we had to find a parking spot in Blackpool away from the Esplanade, and then find the venue itself. Bear in mind the second show had started at 20:45 and there was only one act on before I was due to go on. We got there after 22:30! I expected a hostile, drunk reception, having kept them waiting for well over an hour.
I walked into the room with Ro, and all eyes turned on us. Everyone was still staring at us, a couple of guys at the back trying to make a joke with me, as the MC said, "Here they are... so without further ado, here's Richard Pulsford!". Ro had already dived into the toilets. By this point the stress levels were really high, but thankfully I had no time to really think about that or the jeopardy. I got to the stage and started with a half joke, half apology, about some imagined traffic problems, and then ploughed on with some one liners. Thankfully there were laughs all the way through my 15 minute set. Having walked straight in from the cold I could feel my nose starting to run a few minutes into my set, but didn't want to leave any pause to blow my nose in case I lost momentum, so had to keep sniffing and wiping my hand against the bottom of my nose. There was then a break before Ro headlined, and I could finally sit down with a sigh of relief, knowing I had done what was required of me.
We didn't get away until midnight, and we needed food. The drive back went OK, but with the Forth Road Bridge closed for the weekend I had to divert from Edinburgh all the way back as far as the Kincardine Bridge just to get across the Forth. The total distance for the day was 555 miles and I got home at 04:30. Thankfully with the clocks changing I got an extra hour in bed on Sunday, and I certainly needed all the clock changes I could get.
Wednesday 14th October - You're in the Spare Room
Sometimes you question whether a journey is going to be worth it or not. Heading south to a gig in Darlington on a wet Monday night wasn't the most promising of scenarios. However it was a pleasant surprise when I got there to find a well attended and well run night. It was held in an upstairs room called The Spare Room, in a pub called The Hole in The Wall. Neil Jollie of Hilarity Bites obviously knows what he's doing and the audience knows it can expect a good night. It made the journey back reasonably upbeat, despite the A1 being closed south of Berwick, leading to a 15 mile diversion. Some journeys are more worth it than others.
Sunday 4th October - Variety and spice
I've performed at 3 very different gigs this past week, which if anything goes to show that live comedy can be performed under very different conditions.
Wednesday 22nd September - Leaving of Liverpool
Last Sunday I was performing as part of the Liverpool Comedy Festival. That was the brief. Except I was at the regular Sunday show for the Hot Water Comedy Club, which was rather empty because the Festival was on and it had taken away most of the HWCC's regular audience. So it was a long drive to perform to a small crowd, but thankfully they were really up for it. I'm sure the promoter would take full account of the circumstances in assessing the performance of the acts and the associated noise level in the room.
Wednesday 9th September - Kings Arms Festival
Last Saturday was my first gig after the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. So, to the Kings Arms in Salford, a rather long drive compared to the relatively short journey into Edinburgh. From the largest arts festival in the world, to a festival in one venue over a weekend, and which is in fact mainly a music festival. But the pub, and it is a pub, actually has no fewer than 3 performance spaces (there may be more, but I found 3). So the venue made it possible for comedy to be performed in a rolling fashion in one of those spaces throughout the afternoon and evening.
Wednesday 2nd September - The Dangers of Becoming Conventional
I am now back at work after taking a whole 3 months off. I figured I deserved a long break after working continuously (with normal sized holidays) for 26 years. For one thing, it gave me time to leave the 'rat race' and enjoy performing a full run at this year's Edinburgh Fringe. I was upset today to see that in all the rush of the Edinburgh Fringe I had failed to notice that David Nobbs had died. In case you didn't know, he wrote for Frankie Howerd, the Two Ronnies, Ken Dodd, Dick Emery, Jimmy Tarbuck, Les Dawson and Tommy Cooper. He was also the creator of Reggie Perrin. As a child I loved watching The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin. I'm reminded of how the anti-hero character once said to his wife, when coming up with the idea of Grot shops: "I am being serious. What do you want me to do? Be utterly conventional? I spent twenty five years being conventional. Do you think I have been through everything just so that I can be conventional all over again? What would you have me produce - bulldog clips? Perrin's epitaph in a country churchyard: "Here lies Reginald Iolanthe Perrin. He made 196, 465, 287, 696 bulldog clips, and they were all exactly the same."?". How ironic to have revived that quote by such a great comedy writer just as I return to my office desk after performing at the Fringe.
Monday 31st August - The Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2015 comes to an end
So that was the Edinburgh Festival Fringe for 2015... It was a hugely enjoyable and rewarding experience. I've learnt so much about myself, my material, delivery, abilities and limitations. My show has changed, developed and matured (the takings in the bucket reflected this!). I even feel as if I have conquered Windows 10 - I'm glad I stuck at it. I'm humbled that well over 500 people came to my show, including many old friends who appeared on spec. Well over 1000 must have seen me perform in other shows and the feedback from audiences was very encouraging.
Special thanks go to my family for their understanding, to Ben Verth at The Beehive for entrusting me with the slot at the venue and to my flyerer Jack Chambers who was there on time every day and was always so pleasant to everyone. Also to everyone who gave me multiple spots in their own shows (Chris O'Neill, Rob Thomas, Masai Graham, Paul Sneddon, Ross Leslie, Ali James, Alastair Sadler, Njambi McGrath, Andy Stedman, Izzy Nicholson and Haran Sivapalan) and to other people who offered me spots which I couldn't commit to.
And I got to see some shows as well. It's always interesting to see how other comedians perform, especially ones in a similar genre, such as Milton Jones, Stewart Francis and Bec Hill. Also, I have admiration for all those comedians who were able to entertain my children. They got to see 4 shows, but I was most impressed by how James Campbell managed to do an hour of stand up - no props or gimmicks - to an audience of adults and children without anyone getting bored. Tom Binns (The Club Sets) gets the award for the most hilarious show I've seen this year, but Rob Coleman's Ocean Going Idiot was also 'up there' as something different, low key, and yet very engaging.
It's hard to believe it's less than 18 months since I first performed a solo show. Edinburgh has moved me on a lot. I hope to perform a solo show again next year, but in the meantime, there are plenty of other festivals to go to...
Thursday 27th August - Cracking puns Grommit!
3 weeks in, and this morning I found the first review of my show online. I didn't even know a reviewer had been in. I'm not sure about the etiquette around secretive reviewing, but then anyone can sneak in and out of a free show. There is no need to declare you're coming to the show by requesting a comp ticket. So to the review itself. One quote I can take from it is that I have "some cracking puns". Unfortunately all of the rest of the review is about my bad delivery and a tendency to criticise myself for having a bad day. I can see straight away that the reviewer must have been in last Saturday. It was my worst day of the run. My boss from work was in, and that had really put me on edge. It was also hot in the venue and my labyrinthitis (a recurrent ear infection I am prone to, which literally throws me off balance, especially when under stress) was particularly bad that day. And now I know why there was at least one other person in who was not laughing at anything - they were reviewing the show! So I can't disagree, I did have a bad day that day. Sod's Law they didn't come any other day this past week, but I'm not that bothered. I actually quite like the quote the reviewer gives me about me putting the bad into badinage! However, the upshot is, in spite of the 'cracking material', and some really good shows this week, I have been given a lone star review, and having that review online for evermore is going to make my job convincing people of my comedic talent that bit harder. I recognise my weaknesses when it comes to delivery - sometimes people really don't go for it and it's really hard to turn that around in the middle of a show, but I'm determined to keep improving, picking up tips on keeping an audience engaged, and I really want to end the run on a high.
Wednesday 26th August - A Day at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Managed to pack a lot into a half day at the Fringe yesterday. Started off with some flyering for my own show, then performed the show. And what a lovely audience as well. There were 25 in, which, as it turned out was the biggest audience I saw all day. I also managed to fit in 3 guest spots at different locations, at 5pm, 7:10pm and 9:45pm. Going on first in the 5pm show meant I could fit in a show to watch: Ocean Going Idiot at The Counting House, with Rob Coleman regaling his audience with tales of his ocean going rowing exploits. Rob has put himself under the Spoken Word section but there's plenty of humour in his show too, and it was thoroughly enjoyable. I met a fair few comedians for the first time, those sharing the various bills with me, and I also bumped into a lot of people, such as Alex Petty (Laughing Horse head honcho), Simon Caine (Ask the Industry podcast) and Christian Steel, amongst others. The Fringe is like a concentration of the rest of the year rolled into one month, and I am sure a lot of comedians go through varying degrees of depression every September as they have to hit the road to get gigs again and experience what is a kind of cold turkey. The end of the Fringe is approaching, but there's a lot of work still to do before my final show on Sunday afternoon...
Thursday 20th August - To sleep, perchance to escape
Thursday seems to be the quietest day of the week, but even then 14 came to see my show today. Most seemed to go for my puns, but one couple blatantly put their heads on each shoulders just a few minutes into the show to have a kip. This was so blatant and obvious that I really didn't mind, and it became a running joke in the show. They still somehow managed to wake up and leave just before the end, presumably so they didn't have to put anything in the collection bucket. When it comes to the Fringe, you have never seen it all.
Friday 14th August - Welcome rain
So today was the first day it rained at this year's Fringe. I was curious to see how this would affect audience numbers and mood. It turned out I had nearly a full room for my show and everyone seemed quite perky and up for a laugh. All except for one bloke who turned up late and complained to me (on stage) that he had travelled halfway across Edinburgh to see my show. No sooner had he sat down, he fell asleep! I suggested to everyone else that it might not have been worth the bother! My guest spot in the Clean (as possible) Comedy show was also really well received. I don't know if I can take all the credit though, as sometimes it can simply be that rooms are that bit cooler in the wet weather, meaning audiences are less distracted by how warm they are feeling. Whatever the reasons, both audiences and myself seemed to have a good day, in spite of the rain.
Monday 10th August - Full and almost flowing
Today is a 'rest' day. And much needed after a hectic first 4 days at the Fringe. Edinburgh seemed to be heaving at the weekend. I had a completely full room on Saturday, which was also the first day all the technical stuff worked. Unfortunately the screen failed on me early on in the show yesterday, but it was actually refreshing to put that aside and deliver half an hour of stand up. I decided to still show my closing material via the tablet and that got louder laughs than usual so I'm determined not to let the technology defeat me! I also found time to see some other shows yesterday, including Alfie Moore, Best of the Fest and the I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue show. So I now have a souvenir kazoo!
Wednesday: The Full Irish at Whistlebinkies at 11:00.
Thursday: Ross Leslie's show at The Beehive Inn at 13:25.
Friday: The Clean (as possible) Comedy Show at The City Café at 16:15.
Thursday 6th August - And we're off!
Well that's my first performance of this year's Edinburgh Fringe done and dusted. A technical nightmare, but pleasing nonetheless. It was actually my first gig in over a month. I remembered to deliver all but one group of 6 jokes out of more than 100. I was also pleasantly surprised to have an audience of 10, despite having done no flyering at all. A friend I had not seen for over 10 years came along and he said he thought the show was good. I also met Jack, my flyerer, and he seemed to laugh at all the jokes, which should mean he'll sell the show more enthusiastically to potential punters. If I can get on top of the vagaries of using Windows 8.1 I should be flying.
13:25 at The Beehive with Ross Leslie
23:45 at The Counting House with Njambi McGrath
Wednesday 5th August - The night afore
It's Fringe-eve. I've settled on all the gags for the show, the visuals, and the running order, but am still fiddling on with technical stuff. I'm determined to run a slicker show this year, but using a tablet and Windows to link up to a screen has proved much more fiddly and frustrating than I could have wished for. I wish I had a dedicated techie for my show so I can just concentrate on the funny! And then of course there will be the admin and hours of flyering to look forward to as well. I just hope all of the extraneous stuff isn't too distracting and I can remember and enjoy telling all of my jokes. So, here's to 3pm tomorrow, and the first of 22 performances of 'Unexpected Items in Badinage Areas' at The Beehive Inn.
Saturday 1st August - Ice cream or I scream?
So, August has arrived. The local ice cream van blared out the song to The Teddy Bear's Picnic for what seemed like hours this evening, in defiance of the unseasonal weather. I'm sure sales must have been slow. And with the changing of the month on the calendar I have developed a mild sense of panic, because my first Edinburgh Festival Fringe show starts on Thursday, and I have a lot still to organise, and I have a full run this year (right up until the 30th August). Oh, and I am having to lay out plans for the next 9 months in advance of next year's Fringe show, now. More on that shortly. In the meantime, tomorrow morning I have an interview with a local radio station, and then in the evening I am liaising with The Aberdour Festival as I have booked the comedians for their big comedy event, which includes Craig Hill as the headliner. It's more than the usual mix of nerves and laughter at the start of this particular August. I could do with an ice cream.
Saturday 11th July - Greetings from Poland
I'm not blogging much at the moment as I am on a tour taking in much of central Europe during the month of July, and access to the internet has been sporadic, while any spare time to sit down and write has been squeezed to the minimum. However, with some free time this evening, I thought I would share some wonderful words of advice I saw on a Polish train:
'Hand brake. Should the need arise to wiggle to the right till feelings the resistance. Unnecessarily usage will be sanctioned.'.
Childish to make fun of someone's attempt at a foreign language, I know, but amusing nonetheless. Like my attempts to speak Polish, no doubt. Dzenkuje.
Monday 29th June - I'm going to be on tv, maybe
Yesterday I was in Gateshead for the making of a local tv pilot comedy show. Showing up at a business park on a Sunday evening wasn't the most encouraging of starts, but Arron and the guys at 'Giz a Laugh' evidently take their jobs seriously, so they immediately made the comedians and audience feel welcome, ushering the former into a specially set up green room. For the filming, they had transformed a large meeting room into what for all the world looked and felt like a comedy club, complete with round tables with flickering candle effects, black out curtains with starry lights in them, a stage with a brick wall effect backdrop, and most importantly an audience who were prepared to laugh!
The challenge for us comedians was to 'clean up' our sets, and still have 15 minutes each of material left over. I felt, with my one liners, an editor would find it relatively easy to cut out anything too crude or 'offensive'. I thought I had gone through my set and pretty much worked out what should and shouldn't stay in anyway. A little bit of non-offensive, though less funny, padding jokes made it up to 15 minutes of 'clean-ish' material. What I hadn't figured out though, was what was going to happen when I got to the point where I ask the audience, "So who is drinking tonight?". Normally I would get a resounding cheer, but I forgot that this was a non-alcoholic venue, so all I received was a puzzled silence and had to hurriedly improvise and pretend some people had actually cheered. I'm sure Giz a Laugh are professional enough to edit in some cheering?!
Friday 12th June - Culross Festival
The best gigs are often the ones you've never done before, and indeed ones which are the first of its kind in any given place. Because you simply cannot pre-judge how it is going to go, it makes it all the sweeter when such an event does go well. I had just such an experience yesterday evening in Culross, a wonderfully preserved historical village on the north bank of the river Forth, upstream from the Forth road and rail bridges. We saw the need to reorganise the layout of the room a bit as people were already arriving, but the combination of a warm summer's evening, good PA, and a full 'house' ensured we were well set up for a good night. I also had full confidence in the performers I had booked. For me, as both organiser of and performer in such a 'first' gig, it was wonderful to see a festival courtyard fill up with eager punters, who were slightly wary for a short while once the comedy had got underway, but who warmed to the occasion, and by the end were roaring with laughter. As the organiser told me: "The locals are already nipping my head to make sure we do it again". For me, that was a top night of comedy entertainment, and more importantly we gained some more converts to the experience of live comedy events.