Moving on

The post-Edinburgh blues have been typically difficult to digest. From going from being a proper, fully-fledged producer/playwright strutting around the greatest arts arena in the world, to being back in the office where the work is fun but I generally don't move my legs for 8 hours is difficult to adjust to. Still, I've been doing my best to keep busy, and the Edinburgh show itself isn't done with just yet, last night our production of 'With Arms Outstretched' ended up in the tiny village of Burwell. Burwell is an odd little place; just out of the way of Cambridge, past Lode but before you get to Fordham. Geography lesson aside, it really does have a nice little atmosphere going on. The venue felt like a school hall, and smelt of the WI, who are regulars there. More traditional am-dram rather than the dark indie theatre underworld scene I try to associate myself with, but a highly enjoyable evening all the same. 42 people in the crowd, taking the tally up to 341 people in total for this show so far, and that audience laughed at everything - just such a jolly bunch. More of that please, and I might actually start to think my work is actually funny...

I know I've said it before, but actors do amaze me. Last night they went straight back into the show after 2 weeks off, with no rehearsals and merely a quick line run whilst eating a takeaway. It was the best the play has ever looked - these guys are so fresh, so sharp, I get the feeling I could keep this run going for another 6 months and they'd still preform it with as much enthusiasm as the premiere. Colin, Kevin, Vaughan, Victoria - I salute you. London is the next destination for the show - and sadly the final destination, but fingers crossed we can end things on a real high note. We're at The Hen & Chickens Theatre in Islington. For the first time, I've not booked the venue - the venue have booked us. Our/my stock is rising, it's a genuine sign, I'm thrilled. We're there for 2 nights, and unlike the more unconventional venues we've have to produce the show in previously, this is a 'proper' theatre, with fixed, rigged seats, full lights, PA, it's what the guys deserve after all their hard work. This is also the venue where The Mighty Boosh got spotted, and where Frankie Boyle still performs on a regular basis. We're not in the big league yet, but we're edging closer to things that are just a bit better than what we've had before, which is really good for morale. To cap it all off, we didn't even get a slating from 3Weeks Magazine for our Edinburgh run, and lets face it - they slate me every year. We got a 3 star review from them, not flattering but hardly insulting either, which will do me for now. Although not sure if the term "mildly entertaining" will help sell the show if put on a flyer.

Writing-wise I've kept myself busy, still working hard on my debut novel, 'Johnny In The Real World', which seems to be working well, if in a long-winded-process kinda way. I've also finished a new play, 'Sugar Sugar', which is a typical Boy Richards awkward young man kind of affair, whilst dealing with the difficulties of diabetes at the same time (I sit next to a diabetic at work and get some really useful insights from him). I was really happy with the play, and then on the same day in which I'd finished the first draft I got an email from a London producer contact who was asking me about my latest work, I foolishly sent it to him. Foolish because I didn't stick to my 'four week rule' of coming back to a draft four weeks later and re-reading with fresh eyes. Two days after I submitted the script, I had a re-read and I'm not keen on it at all, in fact as a play it doesn't really work on many levels, and even on the bits where it does work structurally the dialogue just drags. Amazed I didn't spot this the first time round, and now concerned that I've just sent a very useful contact a pile of shite. Oh well, at least there's still the cabaret evenings coming up which I'm putting on; a cross between Vic Reeves' Big Night Out and Later With Jools Holland, with more than a hint of Generation Game thrown in, a glorious, bedazzling hour of entertainment that will both shock and excite at the same time, and all recorded for a weekly podcast. That show is called 'Jiggery Pokery Cabaret' and is going to run for 6 weeks in a Cambridge venue, very, very soon - going to sort out the exact dates tomorrow. Exciting - but coming up with 6 hours worth of entertainment is a hell of a challenge. I'm meeting up with fellow writer Gytha Lodge next week for an ideas session, and in a couple weeks time I'm also having a creative chat/piss-up with my old mucker Jack Gibson, so I'm not in this alone, at least. Looking forward to booking the bands and other acts to go with the show too, I think it's going to be absolutely brilliant.

Elswhere, my record label, Cracking Tunes, is set to be a proper label soon, we have a fancy logo and everything, and had dinner with the website designer on Thursday and crackingtunes.com should be live in a couple days time. Now just need a few more bands to my roster, signed my mate Bill Campbell last night though, whilst drinking whiskey, it's how all good deals are done. In the meantime, I've been doing a bit of Myspace promo work for one of my acts, The Matt Corrall Band, and the response has been more amazing than anything I've ever done before - turns out, right, everyone loves the blues, he's actually got proper 'fans' now, not just people wanting to get their friend stats up. Even more amazingly, Vinnie Zummo - former guitarist with Joe Jackson, has asked to collaborate with us! It's all gone a bit crazy, considering we're not actually a proper band, more the case of 5 hungover mates jamming in the studio and releasing the best bits, but if it takes off I guess none of us will say no to taking it a little further.

Musically in general actually I think things are getting back in shape after a slow few months; Eureka Stockade are supporting Charlotte Hatherley from Ash next month - I'm looking forward to this a lot, as well as talk of heading back into the studio, and we've got a few other gigs in the schedule too which is nice. With The Damsons I have a BBC radio session booked in, and elsewhere I've been offered a reasonably well-paid dep gig in October, and also a couple other studio projects, positivity all round.

So, Edinburgh might be done with for another year, but keeping the Edinburgh vibe going, in my head, at least, has proved a little easier than I had first feared. Hurrah!