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Thought that the shows (or at least the drive home) would be a struggle today, but I was energised throughout and only nearly crashed once. We’re still struggling to get the audience in, but the people who turned up were excellent and the guests hilarious and interesting. I really enjoyed myself and didn’t feel tired at all and only nearly crashed my car once on the way home. So that’s a result.
Two great comics tonight and also lovely men, Mike Bubbins and Ed Byrne. Nick Helm also showed up with Mike and terrific to see him too. I was maybe a bit tired and emotional as I had excessive eye moisture a couple of times in the dressing room (I am too manly to cry) as Nick gave me more information on the tragic death of Gareth Richards and Ed talked about the loss of his brother, Paul and Andy Smart. But Ed spoke beautifully and amusingly about Paul on the show and made a good case for employing comedy to get through tough times. His new show sounds fantastic. And both shows were filled with laughter. Mike Bubbins revealed that he didn’t understand what a human centipede was and answered a different but equally revealing question and had another extraordinary answer to the self-fellatio question. Ed was apoplectic about the idea that having sex with AI (that’s artificial intelligence, not someone called Al) might be cheating, as well as jokingly annoyed about how he was only just being asked back for his second appearance when Sara Pascoe has done it loads of times.
I am soon to be a guest on the Socially Distant Sports Bar (we recorded it a few weeks ago) and Mike is a very happy member of that crew - he’s paid for new teeth with money earned from the podcast, which somehow seems to sum up the whole medium somehow, or at least show what comes with success. The SDSB boys are very nice people and classy with it. I arrived home from my mini-tour to discover they had sent me a box of 5 big bars of chocolate, with a specially created wrapper celebrating my appearance on the show. It’s a lovely gesture, but, of course, due to my addictive struggles with the brown stuff, this is equivalent to sending a big bag of heroin to the characters from Trainspotting. I managed to resist scoffing them all down (and gave one away tonight to regular audience member Lou - and everyone got a RHLSTP Trumps game tonight - a thank you bonus which also helps me clear out my garage).
I continue with my struggles though. I got home tonight determined not to have a midnight snack - I didn’t even feel hungry - but I thought I could handle a couple of chocolate buttons and then suddenly I was scoffing down the contents of the treats cupboard until I felt sick. Morning me will certainly rue the recklessness of night time me. Morning me is always diligently healthy, eating stir fries and fruit and then night time me comes along and consumes 1000 calories just before bedtime. I don’t know how I dump that guy. He’s trying to kill me. Yet if I kill him, I die too. Fucker.
Finally waiting til the last minute for a guest paid off, as I secured Catherine Tate for next week’s show today. Am I bovvered? I don’t know how to answer that question. Should be lots of fun and hopefully will sell well (but I don’t know what you people want anymore).
Book quickly to get cheaper tickets.