Rock and Roll Lessons

November 24, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really good couple of weeks. Mine have been fairly busy with lots of fun stuff going on. I have once again spent quite a bit of time at Wembley Stadium. But this time I was not watching Tottenham Hotspur. A friend of mine invited me along to the two recent England friendly internationals. I got to see England face Germany.

Which is always a decent fixture. And one which I have good and bad memories of from over the years. The big disappointment of losing that game in Italy in 1990 on penalties. Then there was the delight and amazement of the five-one win in Munich. When Michael Owen got a great hat-trick and even Emile Heskey got one. That was a great night. Not least because a week or so after it I was at Oktoberfest in Munich for the first time and it gave us the football bragging rights at the time.

The most recent game between these two world giants was exciting but goalless. It was end to end stuff but with few clear cut chances. We got to see a lot of young England players making their debuts. Plus we had brilliant seats. As we were sat in the Bobby Moore seats. They are the comfiest seats in the stadium and the view from them is ace. I like to watch games from a position around the half way line, personally.

It was nice to see a Spurs player, Eric Dier captain the team. It was an enjoyable evening catching up with a few people I had not seen for a while. It is always good to get behind the national team, I think. There was a decent sized crowd there. It was good fun and nice to clock up another cap as an England supporter.

I was back at Wembley a few days later sat in exactly the same seat to see England take on the might of Brazil. It is always a colourful occasion when they are in town. Those iconic yellow shirts and blue shorts are unmistakable. It is amazing that generation after generation they just seem to produce exceptionally talented footballers. Who are just so skillful and always great on the ball.

It was good to see Neymar in action and close up. Although this game also finished goalless, you could see in glimpses why he is the most expensive player on the planet. The England back four did very well against him. I will be honest it was not as exciting as the German game but it was still a good night at the home of football. If you cannot enjoy yourself when the Brazilian Samba band are playing. There is something wrong with you.

The England manager Gareth Southgate is being quite positive about the fact that we were not beaten by two of the best teams in the world. How much you can really base future performances on these kind of friendlies, I am not sure. World Cup Final games come with much more pressure and there is a long way to go till the summer. But I am happy to follow his lead. There is no point even turning up if you do not believe you can win it, so why not.

With a bit of luck who knows. And if not remember the final of the 2020 European Finals is being played at Wembley Stadium, so that is a great incentive for that tournament. I will hopefully get to at least one of the World Cup warm up games in the new year. Before we send the squad off to do battle on our behalf in Russia.

I went to a great music gig a couple of Monday’s ago at Bush Hall in Shepherds Bush. A lovely little venue that has hosted quite a few big acts on their way up the ladder. In the toilets they have old gig posters plastered all over the walls. While I was in there I spotted Lily Allen, Adele, Amy Winehouse and Florence and the Machine to mention just a few. It is a very cool, classic and old fashioned building with a bit of a school hall feel to it. Which I actually think adds to its charm.

I was there to see a new American group called Cactus Blossoms. When we arrived at the venue me and my friend spotted a gentleman at the side of the room who looked scarily like the leader of the Labour party Jeremy Corbyn. I do not think it was him but my mate thought it might be the lookalike they use on the Last Leg. Whoever it was they were just casually dressed and blending in to the background.

The support act was an Irish guitar playing singer/songwriter called Louis Brennan. He was very good, played well and had a good voice. His songs are quite mellow and a bit bluesy. But one thing I will say the songs and the lyrics are very specific to him and his life. Which for me will not give them universal appeal, as I would suspect it would be difficult to relate to them. But I am happy to be proved wrong on this, if he does suddenly become a huge success.

Before doing one of the songs he did actually reference Jeremy Corbyn. I will confess at this point I did glance at our suspected look-a-like to see if there was any reaction from him. If only just to acknowledge that he himself was aware of his resemblance to the man in question. But alas nothing.

The main reason we were there the Cactus Blossoms were brilliant. They are a guitar led band with two lead singers who also play guitar. If that reminds you of any famous American groups from yesteryear. Then it should, as they are called the modern day Everly Brothers. A title that is well deserved when you hear them sing the harmonies to their songs. It really does sound amazing.

This is not meant to sound patronising or derogatory but they could easily be the greatest Everly Brothers tribute band ever. That is meant as a compliment. I would love to hear them do their classic songs. Their own songs are good but possibly not good enough for what their musical talents and their voices really deserve. They are really likeable people. It was a nice gig, very enjoyable. They are a band you should check out if you get the chance.

I went to see the brilliant School of Rock at the New London Theatre last Monday. It has been a show that I had been meaning to see for a while. As I had heard nothing but good things about it. Unusually for me I had actually seen the film starring Jack Black when it came out. Which bearing in mind I watch an average of two films a year that is quite a coincidence.

This version is based on the film. It is produced by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber. Who wrote the music for it. Proving that he can write some decent rock style songs. But on reflection I guess there was evidence of that from his first ever show Joseph. There is an announcement from the good Lord himself just before the show starts basically confirming that all the children are playing their own instruments during the performance.

From my memory it is fairly true to the film and the story line and situations are similar. As you would of course expect. It is a clever and uplifting experience highlighting the importance of emotional development and family life versus the need to be educated and learn as much as you can.

It is a classic when two worlds collide and both help each other out kind of scenario. Firstly the adult cast are great, they all do a top quality job and as you would expect from a West End musical the singing and dancing is as ever sensational. They really drive the show forward.

The stars of the show of course are the children. They were all amazing and so talented. The acting, singing and dancing was spot on. Then you come to the members of the cast who actually make up the band.

Those kids are super talented. The girl on the drums is just amazing, the bass playing girl is perfect, the lad on the keyboards was so good he could give Vince Clarke a run for his money. Then there is the boy who plays lead guitar. He is ridiculously good. I would guess they are all somewhere between the ages of eleven and thirteen.

Like all West End Musicals there is a band. Who you can see above the stage to the right. As sometimes there are songs when the kids do not have instruments. But I really cannot stress how good these kids are. They are so good that despite the announcement at the start you do wonder are they really playing. Then when they perform at the end the Orchestra are all standing up watching the kids play and clapping along.

They are all amazing. It is such a good fun show and well worth seeing. It could actually be launching the careers of several up and coming rock stars in real life for all we know. Another nice touch is that during the encore they say you can at this point take some photos as long as you tag the show in on social media. Which sounds like a fair deal to me. Brilliant fun and another triumph for the king of musicals Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber.

I was lucky enough to be able to go and see Harry Hill do a work in progress gig at the Soho Theatre in London. It is a great comedy venue with a really nice bar there to use before and after you watch the show you are there to see. It is the sort of place where a lot of comics catch up with each other in the bar or watch their peers new shows. So it is a good place to potentially bump in to your favourites.

Harry Hill was brilliant. He is well known of course for hosting television shows but he is a great live performer and joke teller. He does a lot of clever one liners and as you would expect there is plenty of silliness throughout it all. It was a top night seeing a great comedian in a small room trying out some great new material. I expect him to do a full tour on the back on these gigs probably in the second half of next year.

I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here is back on television for this year. I always say it, Ant and Dec for me are the best TV presenters we currently have. So great to see them back together where they belong. They dealt nicely with Ant’s enforced summer break. That is why we like them because as an audience we are always in on the joke.

I am looking forward to seeing how Shappi Khorsandi gets on in the show. I interviewed her a few years ago and she was lovely. I know we are only in the very early stages of this series but I would like her to win it. Here is a bit of the conversation I had with her around five years ago.
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/shappi-khorsandi-interview/id1236437663?i=1000394847020&mt=2

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil

Real Good Night

November 11, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really good couple of weeks. Mine have been very busy with loads of fun stuff going on. I have mentioned before that I did an eight week comedy course led by the brilliant Logan Murray, prior to making my stand up comedy debut at the Tringe Festival five years ago now.

It was an excellent course and so much fun. He still runs them regularly all over the world, but mostly in London. I would recommend it to anyone whether you are interested in doing comedy or just want to try to improve your public speaking skills. While having a right old laugh at the same time. His course’s are quite a breeding ground for comics Rhod Gilbert, Greg Davies and Andi Osho have been on them in the past.

I know lots of people who did the course like I did as part of the Tringe Festival and have gone on to do very well for themselves. One such person is Olaf Falafel. He did the course in Tring the year before me. Then the year that I did it, he was the host in one of the pubs that I performed in. After that I ended up gigging with him a few times at various events over the years. Fast forward a few more years and he is regularly headlining comedy nights up and down the country. He also has now got two solo one hour shows at the Edinburgh Festival under his belt.

A couple of Friday’s ago I went along to the fantastic Museum of Comedy to see him perform his current full length show. It is a brilliant venue with lots of classic comedy memorabilia on display, including a Milton Jones shirt, a stuffed bear from Steptoe and Son and a Freddie Star jacket to mention but a few items. I have previously seen Michael McIntyre, Josh Widdicombe, Trevor Noah, James Acaster and Stewart Lee there. Olaf Falafel was performing his Marmosets of My Mind show. Which he did for a whole month in August at the Fringe in Edinburgh.

It was very funny, with some clever and very different bits in there. Mostly just silly fun, but very well done. It included one of the ten best jokes from this year’s festival, as selected by the TV channel Dave. Which he did reference himself, mainly to share his disbelief but it is a good joke and deserves to be there. The show does involve quite a lot of audience participation. But I sat at the back and managed to stay well away from all of that. I really enjoyed seeing him do a full show for the first time.

I did manage to have a quick chat with him afterwards. He is already booked in with the same venue in Edinburgh for next year’s festival, so will be taking a brand new show up there for that. He has two children’s books out, as he is a very talented artist and writer to. Plus he is well worth a follow on Twitter as he posts lots of very funny jokes and produces a lot of comedy videos. Great to see him and have a nice catch up. Keep an eye out for him and go and see his comedy show if you can.

I do like the Camden part of London and have been out in that area quite a few times over the years. But up until last Monday I had never been to the Roundhouse there. It does host a lot of great gigs with big artists. It is a place I was always keen to check out. Finally the opportunity arose when a friend of mine invited me to go there to see an American artist called Jason Isbell play with his current band The 400 Unit. He is from Alabama, he has won a Grammy and he plays a mixture of Country, Blues and Rock music.

I will be honest I knew very little about him before I went to the gig. I was aware of a few of his songs, though. I am a big fan of any guitar based music. Which is what he plays. I was impressed with the Roundhouse in general. It is a pretty cool and friendly venue. We did have some great seats with a decent view of the stage.

The concert itself was brilliant. Jason and the group were fantastic. The atmosphere inside was excellent. I would certainly go and see him again and happily go back to see some other gigs at the Roundhouse based on this experience. An ace night listening to a quality performer play some great tunes.

As you know I have been taking full advantage of the fact that Tottenham Hotspur are playing at Wembley Stadium this season. I am trying to get to as many of the games as I possibly can. I was delighted to be able to make the Champions League game against Real Madrid. That is the sort of big high profile match you really want to see your team involved in. The whole night was brilliant.

I met some friends in The Arch pub before for game for a couple of drinks. Then I headed in to the Stadium to grab a bite to eat and get myself in position for the game. I had my heart set on some Pizza but there were no Pizza places near me in the ground, so I had to settle for a Chicken Balti pie. Which I have to confess rather surprisingly was really tasty and enjoyable.

I took my seat ready for the game feeling excited and optimistic that we could get a result. It was a boost to see Harry Kane fit to play. Then it was disappointing to see Toby Alderweireld limp off injured early on. When Dele Alli touched in Kieran Trippier’s cross for the first goal the noise nearly took the roof off. At that point I felt we could win it. We got through to half time one up. Then early in the second half Dele Alli’s shot was deflected in for our second. At this point me and the rest of the Spurs fans were in dreamland. Then just when we thought it could not get any better Christian Eriksen added a third and Madrid looked beaten.

I really could not believe when in the sixty-second minute we started knocking the ball around them to shouts of “Ole” from the crowd for every pass. That was a brilliant moment. Predictably Ronaldo scored to pull one back for them. But we held on for what was a memorable victory. One which means we have already qualified for the knock out stages of the competition. We could top our group to and go through as champions, well sort of.

It was a great night to be part of and so good to always be able to say I was there the night we beat and outclassed Real Madrid. There were so many great performances. The whole team played brilliantly. I think my favourite thing to have come out of these two encounters with the Spanish side is this new song we now have “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go, Who needs Bale? When We’ve Got Sissoko”. I mean that is genius and amusing at the same time. It really is an interesting time to be a Tottenham fan at the moment and long may it continue.

I was back at Wembley a few days later to see Spurs play Crystal Palace in the Premier League. After the euphoria of the previous game and due to this being a midday kick off. The atmosphere was a bit more subdued and the team themselves failed to reach the same heights as in the previous game. Mind you it is fair to say Palace did not try to really get at us as much as Madrid had. Their manager Roy Hodgson of course has lots of experience of managing at the Stadium. It must of felt a bit odd for him to be in the away dressing room.

We gave a league debut to our third choice Goal Keeper Paulo Gazzaniga. Who terrified us all. When in the first minute he completely missed a simple cross and then in the process crashed in to one of their players. Thankfully he recovered from that well, kept a clean sheet and was our man of the match pulling off a couple of great saves. It was a very tight and close game. Which we managed to win one nil in the end.

But with the other top teams playing each other later on in the day, the win and three points was all that mattered. It was job done as I headed off to the pub to watch the next two games on television. When I got home I treated myself to my favourite Indian takeaway meal from my local Indian Restaurant The Radhuni. It was a fitting end to the day and very tasty.

I went to the Garrick Theatre in London’s West End recently to see the new stage version of Mel Brooks Young Frankenstein. I always enjoy a night at the theatre. This is another one of those shows that I had been wanting to see pretty much since it was announced. The brilliant cast included Ross Noble, who plays Igor, Lesley Joseph, who plays the house keeper Frau Blucher and Summer Strallen as Inga.

It is a slight reworking of the classic Brooks film. As ever he is very hands on with all of his work, so he also directed and produced this version. It is very funny, off the wall and very clever. Basically everything you would expect it to be.

I have to say I thought Ross Noble was really good in it and if I am honest I was surprised how good his singing voice was. All these comedians nowadays who seem to be great all round performers. I am not sure if I should be very impressed or jealous. Anyway he was great. As were the whole cast. It is a very slick production from start to finish. They got a well deserved standing ovation at the end. There is talk of Mel Brooks producing a stage version of Blazing Saddles.Which if he does, that will be a must see. I really wish that I had got around to seeing The Producers when that was on tour now.

As ever with working for the BBC at Broadcasting House you never know who you might bump in to. I passed Sanjeev Bhaskar the other day as he was leaving a studio and I was entering it. I still see Ian Wright around when he is doing 606. I am looking for the right opportunity to discuss Arsenal and Tottenham’s season’s with him. I have a feeling that could be a lively conversation.

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil

Country & Western

October 28, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really good couple of weeks. Mine have been fairly busy with lots of fun stuff going on. A couple of Saturdays ago I went up north to go to a Birthday party. It was for my mate’s son’s eighteenth birthday. This did make me feel quite old. As I remember once walking him to school with his mum when he was about five and that kind of seems like yesterday. The party was taking place in Warrington, so we were all booked in to a lovely hotel on the outskirts. The staff were great and the place was fantastic. It was called The Partridge. And if you ever need somewhere to stay in that area. I would recommend it.

It was a Country and Western themed fancy dress party. When I was younger I never really liked fancy dress but over the last ten years or so I have actually started to really enjoy it a lot. Plus the chance to dress up as a cowboy was simply to good to miss. I got myself some Cowboy boots, some faded denim jeans and a really nice country style shirt. Which I actually intend wearing again at some point, as it is that good. The outfit was topped off by a Cowboy Hat and bandanna. That I got from a fancy dress shop online. I am not going to lie. I really thought I looked the part. And I believe that look quite suited me.

We had a quick drink in the hotel before we headed to the party venue. I will be honest at this point I left off the hat and bandanna, to blend in a bit and not to scare the other customers. After that one drink we headed to the hall. Fair play to my mate and his wife. They had done it up well and it felt very country. They had a mobile bar there which was outside and housed in a horse box, very much keeping with the theme of the event. They also had a friend of their’s singing and playing the guitar. He was ace and did a few classic country songs. There was also a disco, so I did hit the dance floor and throw out a few shapes later on in the evening.

During the party one of the people who was there, dressed in non-fancy dress clothes. Suddenly disappeared out to his car and came back in wearing a Robin from Batman and Robin outfit. Admittedly this was very much not in the spirit of the actual theme but as the guy was about six foot eight and pretty skinny. Seeing him dance very badly around the room wearing this costume made for great entertainment. I am not saying it was too tight but let’s just say it did not leave too much to the imagination in certain areas.

As with all good parties there was a buffet, which included a cake my mate had made himself. Which for the record looked and tasted amazing. I also rediscovered an item of food from my childhood. Which I had not had for years. They had little packets of Iced Gems available. Do you remember them? They are tiny little bits of shortbread style biscuits with different coloured icing on top. Now I had enjoyed a couple of drinks by this point but they tasted so good. I wondered how I had survived not having them in my life for so long. It was a good fun night and a brilliant party. I had a lovely time celebrating such a happy and special occasion.

My friend and his family have recently moved to a lovely village on the English/Welsh border between Wrexham and Shrewsbury. The day after the party I went back to their new place with them to spend a nice relaxing Sunday there. After the birthday boy had finished opening all his cards and presents from the previous night. We decided to go out for an afternoon walk. The view of the countryside from their house is breathtaking. There is a river that runs down from the hills near by and just down the road a canal that actually goes across a viaduct.

So we went for a nice relaxing walk along the canal. It was so peaceful and relaxing. Despite being very popular with dog walkers and bike riders. As all good walks should the first part ended with us popping in to a pub on the canal to enjoy a couple of pints and some food in the beer garden. It was pretty busy with lots of other folk clearly all having the same great idea. Once we had refueled we walked back to the house this time along the river and through a field of sheep. Then to round off a great weekend we watched the Blues Brothers film. While having some tea and a chat. It was nice to see them all and an enjoyable couple of days.

The current series of Newsjack has come to an end on Radio 4 Extra. It was another brilliant and very funny series. Sadly I did not get any of my jokes featured this time but that will not stop me trying again when the programme returns in the new year. One of the weekly writers of the show Jenny Laville is another former attendee of a Logan Murray Comedy course, just like me. Nice to see her involved and doing well.

I do of course produce my own weekly topical five minute comedy podcast. It is on I-tunes please follow the link to subscribe and then you will get it automatically delivered to your phone or tablet every week. https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/neil-quigley-podcast-41-2017/id1236437663?i=1000393780498&mt=2

Last week I met up with a great bloke, who I used to work at Wembley Stadium with for a couple of drinks. There is always a chance that you could bump in to him pretty much anywhere in London. As he works at so many different places. For example he is sometimes at The Globe Theatre, The London Stadium, The Houses of Parliament and on the River Thames.

He is a professional and brilliant tour guide, who knows his stuff and always puts on a great show. Not only that but he is a drummer in a band. Who at one point nearly ended up going on the road with Status Quo for a bit. A real life actual Londoner and always good fun to be around. I am hoping to enjoy one of the trips around the House of Commons he fronts at some point in the not too distant future.

I have been asthmatic since the age of seven. It used to be quite bad as a child specially when I got a cold or a chest infection. But it has never really held me back or stopped me doing anything. As an adult it is very much under control. Although I still do require a couple of squirts of an inhaler every morning. Recently I had my annual check up. Where they simply have a chat about how you have been, check your blood pressure and note your weight. I had put on four kilograms since my last visit and the nurse then warned me that now I am in my forties I need to watch my weight, as it is easier to put it on apparently.

The final thing they do is make you blow in to a tube, so they can see how much puff you have got against their flow chart meter. I have always been rubbish at it. This is one of the reasons why I have never been able to blow up a balloon. I just cannot do it. It is always so annoying and frustrating. As when I do it I always feel like I have managed it brilliantly. Then they read you the score back and it turns out I have done badly. Every time I go I feel I am doing it better and every time the results are slightly worse. But this test does still prove I have asthma, so therefore it means I am eligible for a flu jab. Which I gratefully accepted. Anything that is free and that could stop me getting ill has got to be a good thing. So at the moment I feel invincible.

I have managed to squeeze in a couple of more trips to Wembley Stadium to see Tottenham Hotspur play. Firstly in the Premier League against Liverpool. Which I have to say was a very enjoyable game. We scored early on added a second soon after. We then conceded a goal and wobbled for a bit before going on to score two more goals and run out as comfortable four-one winners.

It was a game that I never felt we would lose. Which is still a new feeling that I am getting used to with Spurs. A very good mate of mine is a Liverpool fan and he was less than pleased with his team’s performance but I was delighted with mine.

I also managed to meet up with my friend Dez Kay for a beer before the game. Which is always good fun. He had been to the away game at Real Madrid, so I was getting all the details about that from him. I am looking forward to seeing the home game against them this coming Wednesday. At half time during the Liverpool game they brought out Diego Maradona. Who was at the game with our former player and fellow Argentinian Ossie Ardiles.

He actually played for Spurs in Ossie’s testimonial. Our Manger of course Mauricio Pochettino is also Argentine. In fact it was him who gave away that famous penalty David Beckham scored against Argentina in the 2002 World Cup. He had much longer hair then. Maradonna seemed very impressed by the team and also gave Harry Kane a bit of decent advice, while he was there to.

I took my dad to the League Cup game against West Ham United. And just like the previous round I managed to get some tickets to sit in the perfectly positioned and very comfortable Bobby Moore seats. Which seemed even more fitting bearing in mind who the opposition were. The manager juggled the squad around a bit, as I expected him to do. But I was very happy to see some players returning from injury and some others getting a run out.

Well at least I was at half time when we were two nil up and looking very comfortable. Then in the second half we stopped playing and they came back to win three-two. Which did sour what was very much otherwise a good evening. Going out of any cup competition is disappointing. But to lose after being two up and against another London club makes it even more annoying. As I said earlier I will be back at Wembley on Wednesday to cheer on Spurs against Real Madrid in the Champions League. That will be a good night whatever the result. But a win or even a draw would be brilliant.

It has been another couple of fun weeks working for the BBC in London. I watched the last series of W1A. It is slightly weird watching a comedy programme set in the exact place where you work. You are trying to relax and enjoy the programme but it does just remind me of being at work.

I have the same feeling when I am watching the news and they show shots of the people in the newsroom or the building, you can never really escape. That said it is always a great feeling when I arrive there and walk through those famous doors.

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil

Much Ado About Nothing

October 13, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really good couple of weeks. Mine have been very busy with loads of fun stuff going on. During my school days I never studied any Shakespeare. I did not get to read or see any of his plays. I did however visit Stratford-Upon-Avon for a weekend as a teenager with my Cousins and my Uncle and Auntie. While we were there we did go and see a few Shakespeare related tourist attractions. Then I will be honest I had kind of forgotten about him until Ben Elton did a sitcom based on him starring David Mitchell called Upstart Crow. I guess this kind of got him back in to my mind again. And started me thinking that as a lover of theatre and performance in general. That I should at the very least go and see one of his plays.

A few years ago I went on a tour of the Globe theatre in London. Which is a replica of the very theatre that he used to put his plays on in the capital during the early sixteen hundreds. I remembered from the tour that it was an inspirational and spectacular place. Since that visit it had been in my plans to see a show there. I put these two things together and I decided the only place to see a Shakespeare play for the first time should be the Globe Theatre. I went to see the current version of Much Ado About Nothing. Now the Globe does have basic wooden seating on three levels and also private balcony’s. Traditionally these were for the rich and even for Royalty. While peasants would stand up to watch the action in the yard area on the floor level. I decided that I wanted to do it traditionally this way. Plus I had never stood at the theatre before.

The tickets to stand and watch the play in the yard were just five pounds each. It is an open air theatre by the way, so if it rains you will definitely get wet seeing the show from there. I wanted to have as authentic experience as possible. There was a Mexican theme to this particular production so the staging, costumes and music were adapted for this. But everything else was pretty much directly from the script as written by the great man himself. It did take me a few minutes to adjust to the South American feel of things and to get in to the rhythm of the Shakespeare style speech patterns. But I have to say I absolutely loved it.

The whole cast were fantastic and it was all so cleverly and smoothly done. They pretty much used the whole theatre as their stage and walked amongst us poor people in the yard area, as they would have back when it was originally performed. The story line, plot twists and development of the saga were so good and very easy to follow. Plus it does contains so many laughs. Fair play to the “man” he did pack quite a bit of comedy in to this piece of work. As well as some nice drama and tension. I would without hesitation certainly go and see another performance there. Five pounds for nearly three hours of top class entertainment is exceptional value for money. I am now keen to see more of his work.

I took a trip out to the Brixton area of London with a friend the other week. It is not often I venture that far south of the river but I always think it is good to experience new places. We had a bit of a look round and found a very nice pub to have a pint in. By what looks like a really fancy new flat development. Then we decided to go and get some food. We stumbled across The Blues Kitchen. Which was a place I had heard of before but never been to. As there are actually not that many of them around.

They play Blues Soul and Funk music. And specialise in New Orleans style food. So we are talking lots of barbecue meats and fried chicken dishes. Which we of course took full advantage of. We had a starter that consisted of ribs, wings and sweet potato fries. Then for my main I had fried buttered chicken, which was lovely. Their portions are very generous. I was so full when I left there, I could hardly walk. Plus if you are into you Bourbon. They have the biggest selection there I have ever seen. I would certainly eat there again but they do only have places in Brixton, Camden and Shoreditch.

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As I have mentioned before Tony Law was the professional comedian who headlined my first ever stand up comedy gig. I had seen him perform a few times but only doing ten or fifteen minute slots. I had never seen one of his full length shows. I put this right last Monday. When I went to the Soho Theatre in London. To see him do his show from this year’s Edinburgh Festival called “Absurdity For The Common People”. It was my first time at this venue. It is a great place to watch comedy and also it seems to attract a lot of decent comics. When I was waiting in the bar before the show I spotted Alex Horne who had also been doing his show there earlier in the evening.

Tony Law kind of goes against almost every lesson I was taught in comedy school. He is so unique and has his own very well crafted style. You would have to go quite a long way to see such a surreal show covering so many random and historical facts. It is so out there, sometimes it is impossible to tell what he is completely making up and what if anything is actually true. But the important thing is that it is very funny. You are never quite sure where he is going to go and what he is going to do next. He always has on such strange outfits. Sometimes he will reference them and other times completely ignore them. He is a top man to and was very supportive and helpful during my first ever gig. It was great to get to finally see a full show of his.

I went to see the musical Kinky Boots recently. It was another one that had been on my radar for a while. Ever since I saw the cast perform two numbers from it during one of the Sunday Night At The Palladium recordings, I was at. I think I do vaguely remember seeing the film when it came out. Would you believe it was actually released back in 2005. And another fun fact Nick Frost was in it.

The music and lyrics for the musical version were written by Cindy Lauper. It originally opened on Broadway. Where it won a Tony Award. I have to say I thought it was brilliant. It has a great story behind it with a bit of pathos to it as all good plays do. It is very colourful and spectacular. The songs are brilliant. Plus the cast were fantastic. It received a well deserved standing ovation at the end of the performance.

I had a quality day out with friends at the annual Ascot Beer Festival Race Meeting. A full programme of races with an onsite selection of beverages from local brewers. I mean what is not to like? I had not seen all my mates together for a while, so that was brilliant for starters. It was so good to have a catch up and chat. While enjoying the racing and sampling a few of the ales on offer. Luckily for me they had two of my favourite local brewery’s there. So I did enjoy a couple of pints from Rebellion in Marlow and XT, who are from Long Crendon. I did also try an ale from another beer producer, who I had not heard of but who are based in Prestwood.

Mind you I had a terrible day for picking the winners. However I was not alone as we all struggled apart from one of us who managed to get a couple of wins. Two more had some placed horses, so got some money back. Although one of my friends who is not really a gambler managed to put on a five pounds each way bet, which he then got six pounds fifty back from, so despite coming second in the race and sort of winning. He was still three pounds fifty down there. Once the racing was over we just went to one of the pubs in Ascot and had a few more drinks. It was a fun day out with good friends. Which is always time well spent.

The day after the races I had been invited by another mate on his birthday outing. Which was a day trip on the Waverley, the last sea going paddle steamer in the World to Southend-On- Sea and back. I had to catch the boat from Tower Pier in London at nine thirty in the morning.

Which after a day out at the races the previous day was not as easy as it may sound. Anyway I got on board just after nine in the end. It really was an impressive sight as I walked up to the vessel and it looked great against the back drop of the Tower of London and Tower Bridge.

It has a restaurant, tea room and a couple of bars. On arrival the first thing I did was grab a bacon roll and a cup of tea. I then managed to find the rest of the group with the birthday boy. There were about fifteen of us in the end, I think. We set off down the Thames passing all of those great iconic sights. The boat is so big that they had to raise Tower Bridge for us so we could get under it. Which is possibly a once in a life time thing to pass under it in those circumstances.

There was commentary provided on the things to see as we headed down the river. It was very impressive I thought going through the Thames Barrier. I had never seen it that close up. Inside the ship there was a viewing area where you could go and watch the steam powered engine in action. That was hugely impressive. Its top speed is apparently around twenty-five miles per hour.

They do of course have toilets on board the ship. Now bearing in mind it was about a three and an half hour journey to Southend. I did have to use them a couple of times. I did not mind however as they had port holes in. So you could be at the urinal while looking out and enjoying the views along the river. It was almost therapeutic. When we docked on the pier at Southend and got off the boat.

We had about four hours there. So we tried to do as many sea side style things as possible. We took the train down the pier. Then had fish and chips on the beach overlooking the sea. Played a round of crazy golf. Had a couple of pints in a pub on the sea front. Got an ice-cream. And finally enjoyed a stroll down the pier on our way back to catching the boat.

During the journey back to London I enjoyed the hospitality of the bars on board. Got another fix of the toilets and admired the working steam engine. Making sure I was back on the top deck to enjoy coming up the Thames in the dark and seeing everything lit up. It was a great experience and a thoroughly enjoyable day.

I will be honest it is probably something I would have never of done had I not been invited to. Which would have been a shame, as I really enjoyed myself. After being on a cool boat all day, it made the train journey back from London to Buckinghamshire seem a bit dull.

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil

You Can’t Be Serious

September 30, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really good couple of weeks. Mine have been very busy with lots of fun stuff going on. I went to see a brand new radio comedy being recorded at the BBC Radio Theatre a few Friday’s ago. It is being produced by the brilliant Ed Morrish. Who has been behind lots of great radio shows over the years. It is called Welcome To Wherever You Are.

It is hosted by the Irish comedian Andrew Maxwell. It looks at the world of stand up comedy literally with guests from all over the world coming on for a chat. Then doing some of their stand up set to the audience via skype. Which all sounds very odd but it did all work brilliantly.

In the episode I saw we had Storm Xu a Japanese comedian who performed from Shanghai, Tats Nkonzo from South Africa who performed from Cape Town and finally we had Ari Eldjarn who is from Iceland and was performing from Reykjavic. All three of them were very funny.

It just proves how comedy is pretty much the same all over the world. They were all addressing the same subjects that you would expect from British comedians. But obviously putting their own country’s slant on things. It was great to see brand new comics for the first time to. I am not sure when the show will go out on the radio but I will let you know when I do, as it is well worth a listen.

While we are talking about radio comedy Newsjack is back for its latest series currently. It is a weekly topical comedy programme that anybody can write for. So you can submit your own jokes for it and if they make it in they will pay you for them. I have had some of my material used on it in the past.

I am sending in a few one liners this time round hoping that I can sneak something in. It is very funny and well put together. It always features an excellent cast led by the brilliant Angela Barnes. If I do get any of my jokes in the latest series, rest assured, I will let you know. It goes out Thursday’s at 10.30pm on BBC Radio 4 Extra.

I also went and witnessed the recording of another brand new comedy series for Radio 4. Once again at the BBC Radio Theatre earlier this week. It featured the excellent comedian Rhys James. Who I have seen perform a few times at the Old Rope Comedy Night’s. The show is called Rhys James is……There will be four episodes each taking a look at his life and his outlook on things. I saw all four of them recorded on the same evening.

It is being produced by the very experienced Carl Hooper. Who also works on such programmes as The Now Show and Just a Minute. It was a fun evening featuring some of Rhys’s stand up mixed in with clips of his parents talking about him and some other elements. It is due to go out some time in January next year. It is definitely worth keeping a ear out for. As he has some great jokes and a clever way at looking at the world, as most comics do. He basically got offered the show on the back of Carl Hooper seeing him performing at the Edinburgh Festival. Which shows the value and status of that place.

I always like discovering new and different places to have a drink in and around London. I stumbled upon one I really liked the other week. It is called the Phoenix Artists Bar. Which is predictably enough next to the Phoenix Theatre.

It is a downstairs bar with a nice selection of drinks and lots of theatre memorabilia on the walls. Including lots of posters and signed photos of performers. Plus they have a piano in there. I saw a poster advertising their sing-a-long-a-musical night. Which sounds brilliant. It is just a nice relaxing bar with a good vibe to it. I would say it is worth a visit, if you are in the area.

I have been to Wembley a lot to watch Tottenham recently. I went to my first Premier League game at the Stadium to see them play Swansea. I met a mate in The Arch pub for a drink before the game. Then headed in to the ground with every intention of having a cup of tea before the match. Until I walked past a pop up Real Ale stand and my plans immediately changed. I really do not have any will power.

The game itself was a bit frustrating but still quite an entertaining goalless draw. I then ended up going to the League Cup game on the Tuesday. They had reduced the tickets to ten pounds. Which is pretty good value for money.

Now having worked at Wembley I have a pretty good knowledge of the place, so I noticed they were even selling these cheap tickets for the best and comfiest seats in the stadium. They are called the Bobby Moore seats after England’s great World Cup winning captain. They are the ones by the players tunnel, behind the benches. Granted these seats normally come with full hospitality. So say for an FA Cup final they are probably around eight hundred pounds each.

Therefore to sit and watch a game there for a tenner was to good an opportunity to miss. Spurs won the game against Barnsley one nil with Dele Alli getting the goal. So it was a good night all round in the end.

I had never got round to going to Wimbledon and as tickets for the championships are very hard to get hold of to say the least. I decided to do the tour there. As at least that would mean I would be guaranteed to get inside. It turns out the nearest tube station is Southfields, so that is where I got off.

Despite these claims being totally true, it was still about a fifteen minute walk to get to the All England Club. The entrance to the tour brings you right in by Centre Court. You sign in at the shop, then there is a meeting point outside where the tour starts. They have all the order of play boards left up around the place from the previous event across all of the various competitions.

Wimbledon is a big international event and in this modern age digital and internet coverage demand is huge. So we started off in the media area. Before moving on to the TV Studios. Visiting the BBC one where Sue Barker presents from.

One thing that surprised me was how small the outer courts looked, Plus I did not realise how close quite a few of them were to the main show courts. How they get the extra seating in I have no idea. It looks like there is no room for them. The TV studio complex overlooks court eighteen.

Then we were taken to see the players entrance as well as the members and players areas. There are five hundred members of the club. You will not be to surprised to hear that there is a long waiting list and that it is incredibly hard to become a member.

In fact the easiest way to become a member is to win the singles title, as you instantly are then an honorary member. We then went to the press conference room, where all players are contracted to go and speak to the media after their matches. And lastly we were shown in to Centre Court. Which is such an iconic sporting arena.

The tour was very enjoyable and it was great to have a look around the place. It has definitely made me want to try and get tickets to see a match there. They also do have a museum. So I went and had a look around that. It is very educational about the origins of tennis and of Wimbledon itself. Plus they have a very clever hologram style video of John McEnroe.

As well as lots of great memorabilia from the players. Including many of their rackets and outfits. Judging by the clothing, some of those female tennis players must have been tiny. And finally you get to see the men’s and women’s trophy’s on display. They are probably two of the most recognisable awards in world sport.

I had been hearing very good things about Motown The Musical, so I thought I better get along to the Shaftesbury Theatre in London to check it out for myself. Which I did last Wednesday. I have never seen a theatre manage to hide their toilets so well. They were almost impossible to find. The show itself tells the story of the Motown Record Label and its founder Berry Gordy Junior. He had several standard dead end jobs before he started writing songs. In fact he wrote Reet Petite for Jackie Wilson. But when he did not feel that he was getting the money he deserved for his songs. He decided to start his own record label and sort of run it like the car plants he used to work in.

Smokey Robinson was the first artist he signed. He became a life-long friend of Gordy and a Motown stalwart through the years. When many artists jumped ship and left to earn more money with bigger labels. At one time The Supremes were the companies most successful group. Possibly not hindered by the fact that Diana Ross and the boss were an item for quite a while. Let us not forget they also gave us The Temptations, The Four Tops, Marvin Gale, The Marvelettes and of course Stevie Wonder to mention just a few. And Motown gave the Jackson Five their big break, so therefore set Michael on the route to super stardom.

It is a really good show helped by a brilliant soundtrack from the label that the whole thing is about. It does also cover a few big historical moments which happened during the time the story occurred. Which shaped their business and to a degree the world. The cast were great, they all had fantastic voices and they could all really move to. The dancing was sensational. It is very clever how it is constructed. As the starting point, is the end point and the story is told in the middle as a bridge between them. I thought I knew the story of it all pretty well. But I certainly learnt a few things that I didn’t know. It is well worth seeing. As with it containing all those great songs that it does, you can really not go wrong.

Mowtown The Musical — Motown The Musical

It has been quite good for spotting comedians around the BBC recently. I have seen Jack Whitehall with his dad, Angela Barnes and my old mate from the Tringe Festival Arthur Smith about the building over the last few weeks.

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil

Neil Quigley Presenter