6831/19751
Back. On. The. Road.
It was horrible.
I kind of thought that Norwich was right next door to Hertfordshire, so was surprised to find it was a two hour journey time. And then more surprised to find that thanks to road works it was a three hour journey time. I was meant to be there at 4.30pm, but got there just after 5. And I'd made the mistake of buying a bottle of diet coke when I filled up with petrol and then spent most of the time in traffic jams desperately needing a wee. Then having a wee and then desperately needing another wee. When will I learn?
I will never learn anything.
I was at the venue in plenty of time. We were in a big tent in the grounds of a school near to the Cathedral - my dressing room floor was mud and there was a chemical toilet, like I was at a festival. But in the grounds of a fee paying school within easy reach of shops and stuff.
Gigs in tents can sometimes be difficult, but this one was set up well and we had two packed gigs with appreciative audiences and it was awesome to be back doing comedy to a full room, even if it had just been put up temporarily.
I had not met Jay before, but he's a charming and witty man and we had some fun sparring. I enjoyed pretending I thought Jazz music was nonsense, which riled him a little bit, so I carried on, but as a critic he gave as good as he got (if not a little better).
There was 45 minutes between gigs which is a little bit too long as the adrenaline dies down and tiredness seeps in and I was a bit woolly for the second show and the brilliant Matthew Holness, back on stage for the first time in a while, maybe a touch nervous. But RHLSTP is a magnificent beast and we quickly blew out the cobwebs and it was a fascinating and funny chat about his career and his bold decision to step away from the lime light. And I also did lots of Peter Kay style nostalgia, but of things that no one else remembers, so there were lots of laughs and silences of non-recognition. Matthew is modest and was encouraging the audience not to watch Possum. But you should. It's haunting and horrifying and will stay with you in the worst possible way. Tuck in.
The drive home came in at closer to two hours, but it was after my bedtime and I was maybe a bit too tired to make such a long trip. But I got home somehow. Being on the road has bad bits that I had allowed myself to forget (like completely avoidable huge Diet Coke wees) and I should have paid someone to drive me (not least because I could have used the drive time to work and/or sleep) , but it's good to be back. And Norwich is a fine place to perform and one of the places that I have done nearly every single show I've been involved with at some point. The Arts Centre was always first stop on the Lee and Herring tours and now look at me. Just 30 short years later I have graduated to playing a tent at a school.
I increasingly realise, as does Matthew Holness, that just being able to do the things you want and still be on my feet and doing the job is enough.
The booking up of guests for the London RHLSTP is going VERY well. Three big name guests were confirmed today. I was so excited about the first one that I sent out the badger email too quick - but all three are named in the secret area of rhlstp.co.uk and these shows are bound to sell out, so use your badger advantage to snap up tickets.
Or become a badger so you can get the news first.
