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A mild hangover and lack of sleep meant most of the day passed in a fug. Thank God I had made a last minute decision to employ Giles to drive me to Birmingham and back for my gig. I had been hoping to get some work done on the upcoming RHLSTP and Fubar shows, but I was feeling queasy and the sun shining in my face did not help. Why don't you fuck off, sun? Disappearing for ages and then turning up when no one wants you, expecting them to like you. Well we don't like you. You'r not British. Go back where you came from.
I wasn't in the best of moods.
But after eating a bit of healthy food in my dressing room I suddenly got a burst of energy and was pepped up by the 400 seater venue being more or less sold out (after a dip in numbers last year) and although my delivery wasn't quite as precise as it's been lately, it was a fun and lively show. I got a heckle about not being as successful as Stewart Lee (though not nastily delivered) and said how ridiculous it was that he was doing so well as I was clearly the funny one. "It's like someone giving a TV series to Schnorbitz," I observed. During the old woman who swallowed a fly, when I went from dog to cow, a disgruntled woman shouted out "What about the goat?" The goat verse, although popular, is not in all versions of the song. And was not in the one I checked when I wrote this routine. I don't like it anyway. It doesn't fit well in the canon "she opened her throat"? Come on. I told her that that verse was not in the original song and is apochryphal and mocked her for wanting its inclusion, "Why has my Bible not got the Gospel According to Thomas in it?" I whined. "Because it's apochyphal. Having a goat in the song makes no sense at all. It makes the whole thing look ridiculous, like a fairy tale. The old woman wouldn't swallow a goat." The people of Birmingham got this little extra at the expense of the Michael Barrymore bit. But I couldn't go back. The audienced participation was sharp and fun and occasional, the best kind for making a show different and interesting.
There's always a great welcome from the staff at this venue, led by Tim who has been here for years and really knows what he is doing. But I was properly looked after all round and it was great to have Giles back on board to take some of the pressure off. Certainly as I started to doze a bit on the M40 on the way home I was relieved that someone else was doing the driving.
The audio of the Marcus Chown interview from episode one of Meaning of Life is now up on the British Comedy Guide and iTunes. We won't be putting these up every month. It's just an example of part of what you will receive if you pay for the video and/or audio subscription.
And don't forget my guests for RHLSTP on Monday 10th are Josie Long and Danny Baker. Still some tickets left.
