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I don’t know what the Hell is going on with the Pleasance fire alarm system, but today my show was delayed because there had been another one this afternoon. I vowed that if another one happened during my show I would carry on. Even if I was literally on fire. We have kowtowed too long to the fake fire alarm and if that means, just occasionally our disregard for them means we die in a real conflagration, then so be it.
But better news was that unbelievably my show had sold out. On a Monday? Admittedly this is partly due to the fact that this Monday is the day that most shows take off, but even so. Back in my best ever Edinburgh of 2013 I was delighted to sell 200 tickets on this equivalent day (before heading off to do my live frame of Me1 Vs Me2 snooker), so to sell 320 is amazing. Everyone should do their show on the day off. It’s a ticket selling bonanza day.
And even though I was frustrated from the delay and sweating from speedily putting out all the programmes, this was the best show of the run so far. I shaved off some more rough edges, added some good new lines and hit the right pace and tone with nearly everything. I also over ran by 5 minutes (though there was no show after me so that didn’t matter), so had allowed a bit of self-indulgence and pausing for laughs. But it fizzled along.
I was full of energy, in spite of another early start with Phoebe. I think this was largely down to having had two meals full of fresh vegetables. We had lunch at a vegan restaurant on Clerk Street and then I made a big vegetable pie for dinner. As I walked up to the venue I felt like I was on drugs. But unless Tescos is now selling magic mushrooms, it was just my body thanking me for putting something healthy inside it. I added some beer, whisky and chocolate to punish it a bit too.
This morning we had been out to see The Amazing Bubble Man at the Udderbelly. This is the best kids show we have seen so far, but we are not the first to realise this - he had pretty much filled the huge venue at 11.30 in the morning. That should pay for some bubble mixture. I think he was having a bad day: his mic kept cracking every time he bent down and he accidentally knocked over a bucket of his bubble mixture early on. It was hard to tell if this was a deliberate bit, but the eventual appearance of the tech crew with a tarp seemed to validate as a genuine blooper. Working with bubble mixture is a bit of a random art and he seemed to have more than his fair share of failures today, which he took with good-humoured mild annoyance. Even the most amazing bubble man can have one of those days. But the vast majority of the show went off well and what this man can do with bubbles is almost literally magical. Though it’s all physics and surface tension and skill. Highly recommended if you’re with kids and maybe even if you’re not.
And there should be fireworks on Friday’s RHEFP as as well as Iain Stirling, I will be chatting to Radio Times Comedy Champion Jason Manford. There might be fisticuffs.
Book your tickets here (not too many left) and for the bonus gig on 25th (lots of tickets left). And
do book ahead for Oh Frig I'm 50 too. If I can sell out on a Monday then anything is possible.
