First trip to the bank of this tour. To pay in money for SCOPE rather than myself. At least there are now two banks near to me where I can pay in via coin machine. Oh how the Richard Herring of 2008 must envy me! Though there were queues at the machines in Hammersmith and it's amazing how few people understand how to pay in money and cheques via this method. A young bank assistant was employed solely to assist them and I think I was the only person there who didn't need his help. I wondered if this system was any more efficient than just having him behind the counter.
But it's certainly easier for coins, even if the women in front of me took three attempts to transfer all the coins from their individual bags. I didn't have to wait too long though and amazingly enough, from just the seven London shows completed at this point the audiences have donated over £1000, which given the limited numbers is very impressive. Luckily the Frankie Boyle controversy gives me something else to talk about when mentioning the collection and I can say that I am trying to make up for others in my profession whose attitude to disabled rights is perhaps not that good. Or maybe it's just the rude heavenly promise I make for those who give paper money that's bumping up the total.
And good to have some positive news for SCOPE because they've had some bad luck in Halifax (maybe courtesy of some Frankie Boyle fans - who knows?)
where callous burglars have stolen from the charity. That's low even for thieves. Even for Halifax thieves. I hope the more honourable thieves and people (the few of them that aren't thieves) of Halifax will hunt these low lives down and give them a talking to. Don't break their legs or anything or they might become disabled and then benefit from SCOPE's fine work. But they have brought shame on Halifax (which is a hard thing to achieve) and shouldn't be allowed to get away with it. Most of us will have had a better Christmas and if you feel like donating some money to a brilliant and often unappreciated cause you can do so via
my justgiving page or
the SCOPE web page. And thanks to all those of you who have donated at gigs or will do so in the future.
My Quality Street feast and famine diet plan seems to be working. I have stayed clean and free from chocolate/biscuits and pies of all kinds for three days now. I still have a small way to go to get back to the weight I was before I essentially ate two tins of Quality Street, but I am on the way, eating fruit and veg and lovely healthy stuff and exercising again. And got through Christmas without a drink (171 days since the last one now). What can I give up next? It's going to be hard to find a new year's resolution at this rate.
And my tongue didn't hurt tonight and it was a good show with over 150 (maybe closer to 200 in). The banker joke in the Pope letter bit didn't work again. It's not because people have heard the bit before, incidentally (I think most of them haven't), because the rest of the routine goes fine. It's just an odd little quirk that I mentioned really for other comedians out there and I've had a couple of emails of recognition about the way a small imperceptible change (often just a shift in mental attitude) can cause a once brilliant gag to flounder. Hopefully I will get it back!
