I am currently in the organising stages - flat hunting, flight pricing. I have just finished a sort of 'beta test' version of a website for an act with a show at the Fringe this year - I won't say who just yet as it is not yet public. Watch this space.
I also have the promise of some work while I'm up there - I have been busying myself this year with being the comedy co-ordinator for the Brighton and Hove Fringe Festival which involved organising shows, including some late night ones. Noel James did a show for us, and brought some friends down from Edinburgh - who have now offered me some work 'babysitting' some of their late-night shows. I have also wangled a Scout Pass on behalf of the Brighton Fringe.
I'll be going up on the 18th, and going back on the 30th - not as long this year as I now have a permanent job and there is only so much time off you can take! So, things should start hotting up on the 18th, but stay tuned as I'll be hopefully revealing this new site very soon...
This mysterious website is for Steve Best, and is now finished enough to go live, and very good it is too, if I do say so myself. Got a nice pasta dinner out of it - also met his wife Alex who is lovely. However, the Best is yet to come, as the domain is taking ages to be registered - the site is currently on www.priestess.co.uk/immature, should be on www.immature.co.uk - but every time I check the domain is still not registered. I was told it was to be done yesterday. Grumble.Still looking for a place to stay - various people are looking into places for me, getting worried now as I have booked the flight. Have the offer of some floors though, so if the worst comes to the worst I can look while I'm up there.
New digital camera in the next few days thankfully, so pictures should be on the way.
Spent today nursing my bruised computer-geek ego by doing lots of little stickers and badges for his flyerers - so if you see little colourful stickies anywhere with www.immature.co.uk on them, I did them. Have also done some labels for the CD's - very sad, as they look great but are completely blank. Ironic. The annoying thing is that the first week is hugely important for a new show, and I can't do this b****y CD in time. I'm being too perfectionist I know. Will chill out tonight and go and see Austin Powers tomorrow - lent Steve the video of AP 1 as he hasn't seen it yet.
Didn't go and see Austin Powers in the end - Steve's brother-in-law had cooked something which smelt very nice so we stayed on and had dinner with the Bests, brother-in-law and Steve's friend Simon who I briefly met last year at the Polygram do. Conversation of course revolves around Edinburgh - Steve's props have already gone up and he and Alex are to follow on the 3rd. They've probably arrived by the time I write this.
All seem excited - the idea for the solo show came after a long conversation with Pete Harris of Screaming Blue Murder last year - and I know that many people, myself included, asked him if he was going to do one. He has now made the leap into being a solo performer, and we are all eager to see how it turns out - for the 'Best' of course, we hope. Apparently the preview reviews have been very promising - the Times especially. First show Wednesday - I hope they get back to me to say how it went.
I'm just waiting now for someone with some potential accomodation to call me back...
I have had an offer from someone who would like to be a guest reviewer - this is good as we'll get some reviews up before I go to Edinburgh, and I wanted someone impartial to review Steve's show anyway - I'm a bit biased I admit. So, stay tuned as we should have some reviews up in the next few days.
Speaking of which, the aforementioned guest reviewer has sent his first few offerings, so make your way to the Review page to see our first reviews!
I have also found somewhere to live - reasonably priced (a miracle) and a stone's throw from the Pleasance, so not too much walking thankfully. Can't wait - have packed already!
Do you have to have your sense of humour removed to be a critic or something? I get the feeling they all want to review ballet and got sent to comedy instead.
I personally don't think his jokes are "too many, too fast and mostly bad" And what about "using relentless moral blackmail, he cleverly shames his audience into laughter." You've lost me there, Mr Scotsman, I don't know what you're talking about.
*I* laughed. The problem with Edinburgh is people put too much faith and weighting onto reviews that have been written by luvvies who are so far up their own arse they are inside out, keep asking themselves "it is art?", when they should be asking "it is funny".
OK so I'm biased - but the main reason I like him so much is because he makes me laugh. It's about time some real people got to write reviews instead of these poxy journalists.
Grant sent his Steve Best review in - see the reviews page... I am very pleased! Steve has also got some very heartening comments on the Fringe Festival's noticeboard, so it seems that although the critics don't like him the public do, and that's what counts.
Anyway, must get back to the hoovering...
Went to virtually hold Steve Best's hand for a webchat on the 14th - on the Scotsman's website and called "Heckle Online" which unfortunately gave some people entirely the wrong idea and they wouldn't let him have a word in edgeways for a while. It all calmed down a bit and it ended up with a mixture of people including me, someone who thought Steve was the bee's knees, and an American called Wes who actually asked some sensible things. This Wes later put something up on the Guestbook of Steve's site about how sorry he was about the heckling which I thought was rather sweet so I've offered to meet up with him and introduce him to SB in the flesh.
Rather bizarre occurence today - putting my motorbike in the garage after work and found a rubber duck in the lane at the back of my house - he looked a bit lost and lonely so I have taken him in and called him "Joe Cool" on account of the shades. He can be a friend for my old rubber duckie, who features in the animation on Steve Best's website. It's a little eerie - what with me going up to Edinburgh tomorrow and Steve's show having a duck in it - probably a complete coincidence but it can't hurt to take Joe with me for luck. Will pack him this evening.
Looked at the Observers guide and Baby Wants Candy are still quoting Britcomedy Digest's review from last year! Must thank them.
Find Colin who I am sharing a flat with - get the key and dump my stuff in a nice little room and straight out again to check I can still find my way around. Flight arrived at about 8.45pm so it's already quite late. Check out the Pleasance as it's closest and I have another batch of badges for Steve Best, but he would seem to have gone as his show had finished an hour or so ago. Past the Gilded Balloon and on to the Cafe Royal, my workplace last year - I spot Addy Borgh first but who should it be at the top of the stairs but Steve Best! Give him the badges and chat for a while - there are loads of people here from last year and we all remark on how it's like we never left. Steve's off home and Addy's off to a gig, so we say temporary farewells and I'm off to Late & Live as I have to give Colin his key back. Do the Late & Live thing - it's a bit of a shmooze-fest and very hot. We meet up with so many old and new friends I can't possibly list them all - we go home. Just gone 4am and I'm writing this before turning in.
It's wonderful to be back.
The Press Office give me my nice new scout pass and point me in the direction of the Fringe club which has a phone socket I can use - however, my landline modem is locked in the flat and I don't have my own key. Nobody home.
An old friend Jayne is organising some comedy webchats and tonight's has pulled out, so I get Steve Best and Nic Ford to do it, with me as 'stunt typist'. We have a great laugh!
Steve leaves early to set up for his show - I speed off when Nic's chat is finished (with sore feet, not very fast) to Steve's show and Nic manages to overtake me somewhere on the way. Steve has a little heckle at me for arriving late, until he realises it's me. He has a small crowd - about 15 or 20 maybe, but they are wonderful and have a great time. A 'plan of world domination' is discussed by Steve and myself later and we are to get flyers with decent review quotes and the website address out. Rainer Hersch (I think that's how you spell it) joins us later, and we have fun playing the snake game on Steve's mobile. We then make our way home - the kids are racing each other up huge flights of stairs and then waiting for old Tess and her aching feet at the top. Our paths part here.
Gone midnight and I still can't get into the flat. Going to have to do something about this. Go to the Counting House late night gig but can't stay awake for it so leave before it starts. Addy Borgh is doing it - he tells me as I leave that the Perrier nominations should have just been announced but we don't know who to ask. I go to the flat and thank the Gods someone is there to let me in. Nurse sore feet, type up the diary and then to bed. Will start on Steve's flyer bits in the morning.