Return Of The Tardy Blogger. Week Two.

Isy Suttie. Work In Progress.

I think Isy's work in progress at Lowdown at the Albany was the first for her new show, which was bloody good when taking that into consideration. It was quite a different direction for Suttie who, in the past, has had character-heavy shows. Very whimsical, musical and completely adorable; I particularly liked her song about different generations falling in love "uppercase, uppercase, lowercase kiss".

Project Ace.

This was the first run-through for Danielle Ward and Martin White's new musical and was one of the most enjoyable shows I have ever seen. I think it is safe to say that the whole audience was blown away with its awesomeness. The cast helped: Margaret Cabourn-Smith, Colin Hoult, Doc Brown, Anna & Katy, The Penny Dreadfuls, Tony Gardner, Lizzie Roper and Frank Skinner.

I'm not going to even try to pick a favourite moment/performer because everyone ROCKED. Although, I think Colin Hoult needs a special mention for playing a number of different characters (male and female); uber talented.

WitTank.

I'd not heard of WitTank before, but after chatting to a friend about my love of sketch comedy she told me that seeing them was a must. I didn't have to wait long as they gig twice a month at Etcetera Theatre.

I'll quote from WitTank's tumblr account, which gives a damn good summary of what it is they do/their style:

"Witness the unacceptable mess as this sketch group mix razor-sharp wit with charm. And they look good, well, ok. Join us in London, Edinburgh and across the country for boundless energy, infectious fun and above all great jokes, leaving behind fond memories and possibly a restraining order. Forget your troubles and immerse yourself in ours. WitTank is: Kieran Boyd, Mark Cooper-Jones and Naz Osmanoglu."

It was epecially nice to see them with a friend (and mega-fan of WitTank's) that I don't often spend a lot of time with; she's such a laugh.

Crash Test Comedy.

This had become so popular that they had to swap the smaller room at The Pleasance for the big one. Brilliant sets from Delete The Banjax, Idiots of Ants, William Andrews and finally, some new material from Angelos Epithemiou (which was hilarious!).

Delete The Banjax have a sketch in which they tandem parachute. I'd seen it before but this time they ended the sketch by singing Cheryl Cole's 'Parachute'; brilliant.

Andrews' material about ghosts and 3 sylable names had me roaring with laughter. I must say, he looked extremely dapper in his tie and waistcoat.

A thought.

I like it when the phrase "let's dance" is used when one walks into a stranger and then continues to the move the same way. It never fails to amuse me.

Return Of The Tardy Blogger. Week One.

I've done it again, I haven't written a blog in 4 weeks. Maybe I should cut down on the amount of shows I see so I can keep on top of it (I don't think it's going to happen, to be honest).

Fat Tuesday.

This was Fat Tuesday's 5th Birthday bash and was jam-packed with some wonderful comics: Robin Ince, Matt Kirshen, Kevin Eldon, Holly Walsh, Ginger & Black, Lucy Porter, Carl Donnelly, Isy Suttie and Phil Nichol.

My highlights were Keven Eldon as the poet Paul Hamilton (he totally encompasses this character) and Tiernan Douieb and Phil Nichol singing 'The Only Gay Eskimo'. There are some awesome photos here.

100 Days To Make Me A Better Person. London Word Festival.

On the 1st of December Josie Long invited the public to do one thing for 100 days that would make them a better person. Over 800 people signed up and on the 10th of March an audience gathered in a secret location in Stoke Newington to see the end result as part of the London Word Festival.

Josie, Sara Pascoe and Isy Suttie took it in turns to talk about their challengers (Josie spoke to strangers and wrote jokes, Sara wrote letters and Isy drew pictures on a large canvas). Alex Horne was unable to be there, but his short film was debuted (he filmed his son for 6 seconds everyday) which was one of the most touching things I have ever seen.

The audience took great joy in sitting on cushions/rugs/mattresses and wandering around the 100 Days Gallery during the intervals. It was an immensly enjoyable and inspiring evening.

The Big Libel Gig.

This gig was organised by Robin Ince to help raise money to support the Coalition for Libel Reform which attracted big names including the likes of Dara O'Briain, Ed Byrne, Tim Minchin, Marcus Bridgestocke, Shappi Khorsandi, Professor Brian Cox, Simon Singh, Ariane Sherine, Professor Richard Wiseman and Doctor Ben Goldacre.

Highlights were Ariane Sherine singing 'The Simon Sing Song', Tim Minchin bear-hugging Robin Ince, Professor Brian Cox telling the tech men to "turn the fucking lights down" and Dara's rant about Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Photos here.

A thought.

I used to do something arty or crafty once a week, these days I don't any. I should really get back into scrapbooking; I have so many tickets, flyers and articles cluttering up my room.

Party. Arts Theatre.

This was the West End debut for Tom Basden's award winning play 'Party'. It was just as wonderful as I had remembered and this time it had a kick-ass set (a visual feast for a fan - i've seen inside Jared's summer house/shed!).

Duncan's (Tim Key) physical comedy with the water jug still made me laugh uncontrollably and Jared's (Jonny Sweet) phrases were brilliant (I particularly liked "good eff" and "dodge territory"). I predicted an accident during the part where Jared lunges forward and slams his foot down on the top of a tool box.

It received rave reviews in most of the top newspapers and rightly so.

A thought.

Growing up in Australia where not many houses have stairs meant they were always a bit of a novelty. Now that I live in England, the novelty has worn off. I approach stairs with caution; I think it's partly due to the fact that staircases were out-of-bounds when I was little incase we hurt ourselves. I've fallen down the stairs (4 stairs from the bottom) once. It hurt.

Joke Party.

This is a fairly new comedy night at The Wilmington Arms which falls on the first Tuesday of every month and features William Andrews, Colin Hoult, Anna Crilly, Katy Wix, Tom Bell, Ed Weeks, Sophie Black, Briget Christie, Mathew Baynton and Andrea Donovan.

The audience were a little strange and un-responsive which brought the show down a little bit. William Andrews was completely ace and got a pretty good review in TNT Magazine:

A young bloke in his twenties, saunters on to the stage and, after an exchange of pleasantries, pulls out a roll of gaffer tape.

"I'm going to use this as a metaphor for my job", he claims, wrapping the tape two of three loops around his head, "because, like my job, it's easier going on than coming off."

The audience reacts with raised eyebrows, but the comic than whips off his shirt to reaveal that his whole torso has been taped up as well. A miniature xylophone appears from stage-left and the comic begins to reel off one-liners, some whincingly corny, some clever enough to keep the audience laughing. In between each punchline, our experimental gag-man plays a brief ditty on his little xylophone. It's different.

And then, after a pause, he spits out the best line of the night: "If God truly is everywhere, then I came in his face this morning."

Colin Hoult and Briget Christie were also very, very good. I'm looking forward to the next installment.

A thought.

I find dieting easier when i've had enough sleep. I lose all will power when i'm tired. Sleep = fruit. No sleep = chocolate.

Ten-Year Self-Improvement Plan.

I've done it, i've jumped on the bandwagon that is Mark Watson's Ten-Year Self-Improvement Challenge. The plan is to make little changes in your life that will lead you to being a better person in 10 years time:

1) I will read a book a month and write a short blog about each one.

When the subject of books/authors/stories come up in conversation, i'd like to be comfortable discussing them. At the moment all i'm able to do is listen/smile and nod. I think reading will increase my knowledge and give me a better understanding of what my friends are talking about.

2) I will introduce myself to people I don't know, but want to talk to.

I do a lot of twitter chat/forum chat. I tend to feel confident talking to people online, but then when it comes to meeting them or introducing myself to them I get all awkward/shy/twatty and wait for them to make the first move or just don't bother. A desicion I always regret.

3) Keep an updated blog.

I love keeping a blog, it's one of my pride and joys. Lately, I have been so lazy at updating it after every show and therefore it has become a bit of a chore and nuisance to write.

4) Keep a book of thoughts.

I think a lot and sometimes have funny/genius (to me) thoughts, but then when I try and remember them, i've already forgotten. A friend gave me a molskine notebook for Christmas so I plan to use it to write down my thoughts as they come to mind.

5) Write an email to a member of my family at least once a month.

I'm so rubbish at keeping in touch with my family on the other side of the world. I try and write to my Mum once a week, but I don't write to anyone else. It racks me with guilt.

I think my challenges will make me more confident and happier. Confident + happy = a better person.

A thought.

As a fan of Mark Watson, this challenge is making me feeling appreciated and involved. Brilliant.

Popcorn Comedy.

The Tabernacal is an amazing venue and at this particular event, there was a pretty star-studded audience.

The first half was mainly funny films by various people (Man vs Toddler was my favourite), 3 sketches from Cardinal Burns (and 2 short films) and some impressions from Peter Serafinowicz. The second half included a bunch of improvisational games based on topical news stories called 'Funny or Die' - "The Blue Team" (which included Mike Wozniac) vs "The Red Team" (which included Humphrey Ker and William Andrews) and hosted by Sara Pascoe.

I couldn't stop laughing at William Andrews who had to convince his opponent that he was a homeless Lady Gaga. Andrews gave Gaga a Welsh accent and his opponent's first guess was "you're Lady Gaga who has just discovered her love of Gavin and Stacey?" to which came the reply "I think the accent is a bit of a curve ball; just ignore it". Hilarious.

A thought.

I hate my new roommate. Lots and lots.

The Slutcracker. Arts Theatre.

The Arts Theatre wasn't the best space for 'The Slutcarcker', but I enjoyed the performance nonetheless. Tim Key seemed to be particularly playful.

Really liked how Tim started in the audience and the start of the show signified by a spot-light shining down on him while this song was played.

Memorable moments included shouting at a man in the front row for not getting up to take Tim's beer (we were encouraged to call him a cunt and "say things about his v-neck jumper") and Key ripping off the sole of his shoe as it had been annoying him for a while (he then completed the show with "one-third less shoe" which "wasn't EASY!").

This performace was lacking Fletch (his tech person) and during the part where he plays trumpet over the top of a poem, a pretty violinist was drafted in. After the poem Key said "you know you've got an interesting job when you have to advertise for a fit violinist on Gumtree".

I found a brilliant photo of Key climbing over the audience with his baton and green headband on Twitter.

A thought.

We have too many staff members at the moment, it makes work incredibly boring.