TV Choice Awards 2011

"What's this?" you ask "Two posts in one day?"

What can I say, but that I am either having a creative, productive day or am avoiding housework... I'll let you decide!

Besides which, the generic media player is being kind and only playing good tunes today so I am not feeling the need to leave the office any time soon!

Voting is open for the TV Choice awards. Vote here for your choices.

I personally do not read the magazine - which is exactly why I feel it is my duty as a responsible citizen to bring an air of reality to the voting process. There are a startling number of soap categories, which I decided to skip altogether. Finding me in a different mood, I might just have negated my entire selection by making a glib "that's a good name" vote, but I figured voter apathy was preferable to a spoilt paper.

I did find the choice of "family drama" an odd one. Having to choose between Casualty, Merlin, Doctor Who and Waterloo Road leaving only one which I would actually consider a  family show at all. After all, Baby tends to hide through most of Doctor Who, Casualty leaves her afraid to set foot out of the house and Waterloo Road... well, hardly suited to an eight-year-old is it? So on the basis of it being a category of FAMILY drama, I had to make the sensible choice. I wonder if the magazine's audience have thought that deeply or whether they will simply choose their favourite show? It's like asking a child to choose their favourite dinner, isn't it - your choices are Pasta Bolognaise, Fish Pie, a Roast Chicken  Dinner or Ice Cream... then you wonder why the child is still hungry after their meal of three scoops of raspberry ripple. 

But anyway - do vote. Especially if you do not read the magazine - it is your duty to bring balance!

Mark Watson Free Ticket Giveaway

If you do not already (for shame!) you really should take a look at Mark Watson’s blog. It’s a great read and he posts pretty much daily.

He is currently running a competition to give away tickets to his DVD recording this coming Sunday (3rd July) in Bristol. To win the tickets, however, you do need to be travelling the furthest thus displaying the greatest determination to make it… and again, geography bites me in the ass as I am too near for this!

Find Mark's giveaway here

He is, of course, open to a persuasive argument, but as I do have tickets to see him here in town in November, it would feel rude to enter this giveaway.

I love to read his daily posts – he is one of few people to write exactly as he speaks and I defy anyone to read without affecting his accent.

No? Just me then…

Have a look anyway.

Tony Hawks: Round Ireland with a Fridge

This book narrates the eventful journey resulting from a drunken bet made by Tony Hawks that he could circumvent Ireland by hitch-hiking alone, whilst accompanied by a fridge.

Although an old book, to not include a review here would be at best remiss; especially given my recent re-acquaintance with it.

I absolutely love Hawks style; it flows well, unfaltering from one flourish to the next, assuming a level of intellect in his reader without leaving those lacking this feeling inadequate. This is an amazing skill, making this a book for all to read.

Hawks has to be admired for his honesty and openness also; revealing his own character flaws and writing freely about his inadequacies as well as sharing his joys and successes. This in itself creates a fabulous bond between reader and author in a way few other writers of travel works have managed.

This is also a book which causes introspect for the reader; as one reads about the stealing of an opportunity, of turning a moment of drunken madness into a life-changing adventure, you can’t help but to stop for just a moment and think about all the moments wasted, the opportunities lost forever.

Funny, insightful, thought-provoking; an excellent book I am glad to have reacquired after so many years have passed.

Gardening the Brazilian Way

I think we already established that I do not need any more books, but my constant will to rescue the needy and my inability to stand by and see an injustice made me stop in my tracks when attending baby’s school summer fayre last week. In glancing at the spread of books laid out (with great care, I must say!) I was horrified to see a copy of Tony Hawks’ “Round Ireland With A Fridge”. I first read this book too long ago to pin-point and my ownership of a copy had dissolved along with the friendship of the person who borrowed it. So technically, buying this book would not be adding to my collection at all, would it? And to see this piece on a table-top sale definitely qualified for inclusion in my rescue programme, even without having filled out a needs assessment form!

Oh, but look; more books with interesting titles and brooding cover pictures; more from those countless lists of books you should have read; and so it was that the “every item 50p” stall stole another £5 from me.

I immediately wanted to re-acquaint myself with the long-since-forgotten wisdom within so bumped the book I was part-way through to make a start on it. I won’t go into a detailed review of the book itself; that is for a whole separate post, because if you haven’t read it yet, you certainly should - but I will say that I am glad to have regained this particular piece.

Re-reading is not something I take lightly. It can often go so horribly wrong, as with watching a childhood television favourite. That horrific moment you discover the naivety with which you originally experienced the volume can leave one feeling cheated, vulnerable and a little ridiculous but in this case it worked out well. In fact, having changed my entire philosophy and life perspective since, there is so much more to be gained; least of all, the synchronicity of finding this book right now with its deeper messages calling out to me, regarding taking action, living your life and doing what you want to do.

And so it was, then, that on the first day of sunshine after around eight weeks of solid summer rain I found myself taking a short break from my gardening to read a quick chapter or two whilst drinking a deserved cup of tea. Four hours later; book read, too much tea consumed and a new skin tone slightly resembling a boiled ham and I realised I hadn’t made the best use of what could well be Summer. With so few of these days, it did not do to waste them and after all, reading was something one could do just as easily indoors in the rain, whilst gardening is much harder to do from the living room.

Not that the garden is a huge concern to me. Unfortunately my neighbours lack my vision and are not at all convinced by my attempts at suburban farming. Thus they cannot see the value in creating a beautiful hayfield of my lawn. I tried selling it as an issue of conservation- that these were all meadows once and for the sake of heritage we should all adopt this attitude, to no avail; neither are they embracing it with the same middle-class ecofriendly passion reserved for cycling, Hessian shopping bags and GYO vegetables in spite of my casual throwing around of words like ecosystem and natural habitat. So having frittered away much of the sunny day and with this one clouding over as I consume more time writing this, I now appear to have created an entirely new concept.

The little I achieved yesterday was a masterpiece of lawn edging. I skirted the mower around the outer boundary of the lawn itself, strimmed and trimmed the parts where grass meets border and am left with what my teens are calling a Brazilian garden; although with a centrepiece long enough in which to lose a small child, it seems more of a European armpit garden, but that does not have quite the same ring to it!

On Politics...

The life-plan of my oldest daughter has changed once again and she is now aiming to be a politician. She wants it for all the right reasons; like changing the world, ending bad stuff happening to good people, making sure unpleasant people are adequately punished for their actions and so on. This new tack, however, has made me realise just how politically ill-informed her generation truly are.

As I was growing up in the eighties, comedy was highly politically-charged and it was from this comedy that as a teen I gained most of my political education. From the anti-Thatcher rants of Ben Elton, to the almost documentary aspect of Yes Minister and all between, I learned about the inner workings of government, how the parties’ beliefs differed from (or often mirrored) one another and how easy it was for someone to make a stand against a regime one did not agree with.

Sunday evenings were a particularly special time, as I was allowed up beyond my bedtime to watch the fantastic Spitting Image. This show was possibly the most influential political comedy of its time. From the stand-ups and character-based satire of the time, we were drip-fed opinion and told how we should feel about something. The creators of Spitting Image, however, were far cleverer; they almost showed us the politicians just being themselves. But for the hideous puppetry, it could almost have been the original fly-on-the-wall docusoap, thus responsible for all the mind-numbing reality TV which has followed since. Ok, a little extreme, but I am sure you get my point. The show did not make cheap tawdry insults towards its subjects, nor did it seek to belittle simply on the grounds of political leaning; all politicians were targeted in the same way, regardless of party and whilst caricature was a vital part of the puppets’ design, this was not done in a particularly insulting way. From watching this show, I learned who the key politicians of the time were, which roles they held and what the positions entailed. Without this insight, today’s youth are unable to distinguish one politician from another. Case-in-point, I asked my daughter and a couple of her friends who the Chancellor of the Exchequer was and was met with blank looks, whilst asking who presented the budget half knew the right name, the others simply thought it was the Prime Minister.

In thinking about this a while ago, I desperately wanted the show to return. I felt it was so important to my own education that I could not bear the fact that my own children do not have this source. I realised, though, on listening to an interview with Armando Iannucci that it would never work. (I would link to it, because it is relevant to this topic, but unfortunately was on the BBC I-player, so is no longer available) He pointed out that the type of comedy that stemmed from the political situation in the eighties could never exist nowadays because of the lack of political personality. I hadn’t realised before (well, hadn’t thought about it too much, really!) but for the main, today’s government are career politicians, those who have been almost bred especially for the purpose. They do not have opinions of their own, merely ingrained party policies shared by every other member; they do not have quirks or idiosyncrasies, as they are considered a weakness; they do not say anything which has not been written by a team of nine and proof-read by fifteen for fear that something could be taken out of context or might represent another u-turn. Gone are the free-thinking, spirited politicians who can address an issue with the benefit of hindsight and experience, replaced by kids fresh out of university who have been shaped by their junior-party, moulded into the perfect little bundle to spout the same drivel as their predecessors. Time was that the right person leading a party really could change the world, but I have to wonder nowadays if it really matters any more.

So what of the future? Who will be the politicians of tomorrow?

In spite of government claims to the contrary, they will continue to be predominantly from the upper classes, as the lower classes feel for the most part that politics is wholly irrelevant to their own lives. Voter apathy is higher in lower-class areas for this very reason. The masses believe it doesn’t matter who is in power as all parties will screw you over in the end, so don’t think it worth the effort of voting. These people are not going to be looking to a career in politics as they feel that one person can no longer make a difference.

On books...

My children often mock my quirky attitudes towards certain things, but I think yesterday even I saw the peculiar side of my actions.

I headed out for a drive and there was a book lying in the road smack in the middle of a roundabout. It was laying face up; opened with the pages blowing in the breeze; rain-sodden, tattered and dishevelled.

I felt a tug at my heart in the way one would on seeing a wounded bird lying half-dead and I have to admit that for a moment I contemplated stopping to pick it up and did actually adjust my line to avoid running it over.

I spoke out “Aw, look at that poor book!”

All three girls scoffed – even baby who is usually on my side through everything; I didn’t dare admit that I had a lump in my throat too, there would have been no clawing back any respect after that!

I am sure I am not the only person to take books this seriously?

I remember whilst watching television reports on the Chinese earthquakes of 2008 (or 09, I can’t quite remember now) seeing an image depicting a stack of books amidst the pile of rubble which represented a family’s entire life. Someone had obviously rummaged through the debris to find all the books and carefully piled them up ready for rescue. That had been one of the most poignant images for me.

I often wonder if that might be my true vocation in life; to run a book rescue centre. I have boxfuls of tattered, unloved tomes in my garage which I have claimed at the end of a table-top sale or at the closing of a car boot sale. Words which cut into me;

“if I don’t sell these all in the next ten minutes, they will be in the recycle bin tomorrow”

I paid that guy £1 for a huge box filled with books I already knew I didn’t want as I’d been browsing through them long enough.

There is a shop here in town selling used books; I go there a lot always planning to just browse - after all, I really do not need more! In spite of the fact they only charge around £2 or £3 each, I have never yet spent less than forty there, sometimes for no other reason than a particular book has been in the shop for a while and it seemed it would never have a home.

Sick and elderly books cared for here!

One to think on!

Just an Observation....

Synchronicity is an odd thing indeed! Since the whole debacle over trying to get to Swansea I have had so many little subliminal events happen that I really think the universe is telling me something. A few months ago, even before the Swansea trip was mentioned, I woke one night from a dream with the true belief I was fluent in Welsh. I shirked it off as just another random dream, but it has happened several times since; once the day before an estate agent contacted me wanting to commission an article he could submit to a trade publication. I had to centre my research on his locale in order it would look as though he had written it himself and discovered that property prices in parts of Wales are quite amazing. After this, came an incident whilst my oldest was looking into universities and she asked where a particular place was: I remembered quite clearly a beautiful 5-bed detached house I was looking at a few days earlier (because we all know how my research heads off on a tangent from time to time!), whilst baby, geography really not being her strong point, had not even realised that this town was in Wales at all; this had also been pre-empted with the “I’m Welsh, me” dream. I also found myself randomly dreaming about two old school friends; my first crush at the grand age of nine or ten and a boy from my class when I was maybe seven or so. They had both moved from Wales to live in our home town and after a short time had returned. The dream itself had no geographical connotations but for their being Welsh, but combined with everything else is enough to make me stop and take note for just a moment. The thing is, it’s all very well asking for signs and noticing them; but what are you supposed to do then? It’s like the end of an episode of Bullseye: “Let’s ‘ave a look at what you coulda won!” There is no way we can move right now, with one in the midst of A-levels and one GCSE’s, so we wait…. And hope that when the time is right, that fabulous house is still for sale!

Hold off on buying houses in Wales for a while, please!

Simon's Cat - New Film

I love these films!

Not comedy in the true sense, I know - but they do make me laugh aloud, so that qualifies them for inclusion here!


I've often wondered how that random crap appears under the fridge. I drag mine out and clean under/behind it maybe twice a month and there can be books, spoons, various bolts and screws, pens, Barbie doll limbs and ALWAYS a mushroom! Who the hell puts it all there?

Enjoy Simon's Cat, anyway!

Walkman Woes!

Every once in a while, we have these little moments which remind us we are not as young as we would like to think.

So I drop my oldest daughter at college and as she gets out of the mum-bus I notice the wire of her earphones hanging off the shelf below the stereo. She was darting off, late as per usual, so there was no time to think too much about what I was saying, so I found myself yelling out the car window “Sweetie, your walkman!”

She came back to the car: “Mum that is shameful!” grabbing the Ipod and giving the students walking past that “God, my mum is so embarrassing” look before going on her way again.

Funniest thing is, I am sure she thought I had said it intentionally to show her up in front of her peers – truth is: yes, I am that old and at that moment it was the only word I could find.

Maybe driving her to college takes me back to my own college days and I was remembering trekking up the hill my girl is too sissy to walk up rocking out to Metallica, Megadeth and Fields of the Nephilim (or if I were in a good mood, Kiss!) with my walkman tucked neatly into the inside pocket of my leather biker jacket.

I have the last laugh, though – since my spellcheck can recognise the word walkman but not Ipod! So I am as up-to-date as the Microsoft corporation....hmmm....

By way of adding something fun, by some magic of synchronicity, this tune from my favourite album of college days happened to shuffle by on my generic media player as I ran out of things to type so adding it seems fitting!

I will warn you now that the gimicky ad takes you to the cassette version, since I was not lucky enough to own a CD until I was well out of college and because at heart I am a bit of a purist about these things!

Dawn Patrol by Megadeth

Leicester Council Criticised for Zombie Unpreparedness

The BBC report that a man (I assume it’s a man, anyway – maybe it isn’t – but most likely it is! Controversial me!) from Leicester has submitted an FOI request to learn how prepared his council are in the event of a zombie attack.

His conclusion: Not at all!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-13713798

He states in his letter of request that his concern stems from having watched “several” films, so surely he should know that there is no possibility of ever preparing oneself for such an attack!

For a start, depending on which movies you have seen the zombies may only attack at night or just maybe you could be caught by the daylight kind; some movies would have us believe the zombie has a weakness to a particular element, others that to simply immerse them in sunshine will cause them to collapse into a pile of dust; the source of the attack could be a virus or could be of alien origin – I could go on, but you get the point. We just don’t know what we are dealing with!

And what if the originators of the zombie infection were also those charged with enacting the preparedness plan? How would we the public know if the plan was being implemented or not?

I would also have to assume that this person has never worked a bureaucratic job. As someone who previously was responsible for preparing operating procedures and emergency procedures for a large company I cannot imagine the nightmarish contrivances involved in preparing for such an unknown element. It would need so many IF, UNLESS and EXCEPT-WHEN clauses it would be barely intelligible!

Seriously, pal – if you want to see a plan that badly, maybe you should write one up! I doubt anyone in the council has time (nor inclination) to watch all those movies, to develop the knowledge needed and then work out how to put it into “council speak”.

The funniest thing, by far, has to be the quote from the councillor given the task of dealing with the request. Obviously all requests have to be taken seriously, especially given that councils are so scared of offending a member of the public who could possibly have issues with their mental health or cognitive reasoning, but her words nevertheless were pure gold: 

Ms Wyeth said she was unaware of any specific reference to a zombie attack in the council's emergency plan, however some elements of it could be applied if the situation arose.

The cynic in me wants to suggest that rather than being a tongue-in-cheek statement, she is actually trying to ensure her council seat is upheld in the next election, but I would like to think it could have been a deliberate attempt at humour.

Luckily an expert in the field, Ed Thurlow of the zombie event organsing company Terror4fun has stated that such an attack is “unlikely”. So the people of Leicester can rest easy in their beds.

Although if I were Mr Thurlow I know where I would be arranging my next zombie-fest!

And unrelated, but because I love the song:

ZOMBIE by The Cranberries

Edinburgh 2011

The Scotsman reports today that there are record numbers of the usual big comedy names missing from this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, declaring this year one for the newcomer.

http://news.scotsman.com/entertainment/Edinburgh-Fringe-Kings-of-comedy.6782006.jp

At first thought, this trend can be seen as a negative one, but it will be quite exciting over the autumn to see what talent emerges.

It is of little surprise that the established acts are giving the show a miss this year, with the constantly increasing costs of accommodation, venue fees, registration costs etc many comedians have stated that they only do the festival at all for the pure love of it mostly taking a loss over their run.

One would have to wonder, though, at what will happen to the larger venues if the trend continues in future years. Whilst the newcomers can make better use of the fringe to get them seen and heard without being overshadowed by the more famous acts, they are unlikely to be able to afford or fill the larger venues.

With increasing costs, the audience are having to pay progressively more for shows and are finding themselves having to decide between watching one show of a known act or being able to attend two or more shows of someone with less standing. Because the established comedians are so heavily exposed right now through television and radio, many are taking the risk on an unknown act, hoping to find a surprise future star.

You have to wonder, too, if the audience are growing weary of seeing the same faces and hearing the same voices time and again. In the current era of the panel show, it can seem sometimes that the same dozen or so people are appearing on something every day.

Maybe we need a good wave of new talent crawling up through the ranks. I can think of a few comedians who whilst still capable of turning out funny material are getting quite lazy with the complacency of having so many outlets for their work. Perhaps having a few newcomers chasing at them may scare them into working a little harder for our laughs.

Maybe we as an audience will start to demand more from our entertainers!

All-in-all, though, an exciting summer ahead for the world of comedy.

The Funny Face of Death

There are some subjects which are always going to be hard to grab the laughs from.

By the weak-willed, these topics are largely ignored, but you have to admire the truly strong comic who meets them full-on, stares them square in the eyes and says “This is what I think of you!”

As an audience, we like to have our boundaries pushed from time to time; to challenge our own belief system as we make sense of our opinions on a topic. The skill of the great comic is in giving their audience the push they need whilst still keeping their material funny.

The biggest such subject would have to be death.

In the world of the serial comedy, it is inevitable that at some point a death will occur so how, then, do we choose to deal with it?

In some cases we see the death itself wimpishly skirted using such methods as commencing a new series with a funeral or someone will just mention in passing “since x died” but when the death becomes part of the show itself, the results will often surprise or even challenge the audience.

The most poignant example for most would have to be the death of Nana in the Royle Family.  
The moment Nana died, all in my home were sobbing, tear soaked and distraught and I doubt there was any household which was any different. This displayed perfectly not only the ballsy writing skills of Aherne and Cash but also the huge array of talent in their cast. It is a huge leap of faith to abandon the funny for any length of time, but one which handled well can pay huge dividends. In this episode, there was no punchline, no cheap laughs, just the pure rawness as every character was laid emotionally open for us.

If you decide to go for the laughs, it is vital you know what reaction you want from your audience.

I spoke a few weeks ago of having seen the brilliant Simon Munnery. I forget the exact joke, but at one point there was something about the death of one of his grandparents. I remember everyone had an immediate laugh, and then there was a lull as we had a collective realisation we were laughing at a very distressing moment in someone’s life. Whilst some comedians would worry at a sudden drop in laughter, a fleeting look of satisfaction went across Munnery’s face; we had played right into his hands and given the exact reaction he had wanted. In a larger theatre, I doubt the connection between audience and performer would have existed to the extent it did, so the joke would have just blended into the rest of his set and the look he gave would certainly have gone un-noticed but regardless, we were challenged to stop for just a moment and think about whether we truly thought it was okay to laugh at this or were we just laughing because all around us were.

What had me thinking about this subject was the latest episode of Psychoville. I didn’t ever watch the first series, as it seemed (obviously) a little too “League of Gentlemen” for my liking and I have never been able to see the funny in that show! I now find myself wishing I had made the effort, though, as series two has had me gripped from the outset; although I have to admit to feeling cheated on a few laughs as there seem to be some jokes brought forward from previous episodes.

This week, though, we saw the death of Maureen and I have to admit that whilst I harboured no real emotional connection with either character, I did well a little as she slipped away and her distraught son, David cried and kissed her.

Challenged again, as we are asked to invest emotion in characters we do not particularly like and strangely in spite of ourselves we fall into the trap.

Short-lived emotion, though, as he then carries her across the room, sits her on the floor and commences with her dying wish of dancing “Oops upside your head”.

That’s the clincher, isn’t it?

Hit your audience with the raw emotion, give them just enough time to invest in the moment and wonder how the survivor will cope, then body-slam them with an unexpected punchline. Verbal, physical or visual; it doesn’t really matter. What is really important is that there is time to digest the emotion before the hit.

Looking down the line at playing the real-life role of survivor in my own story, I think the latter will be my preferred method of coping. We have managed through ten years of illness by laughing through the hardships, so why would this be any different; when the time comes I shall be looking for my punchline.

Philosophy of a Reviewer

Following on from my recent comments regarding the attitude of reviewers, I was thinking a little about my own reviews. I genuinely find it impossible to write a negative report on anything; not out of sycophancy of course, but simply because the words flow better when I am happy and I am happy when things are good!

Maybe my mission for the next few days is to watch something I really do not find funny and review that….

I do hate the type of reviewers who seem to feel they should point out the negative in absolutely everything. You have to wonder sometimes as to their purpose. If I read thirty or so reviews by the same writer, all telling me how un-funny each item is, I start to wonder not is the future of comedy destined for an horrific melt-down, more: “Are you in the right job?” If your sense of humour is so utterly bad, maybe reviewing comedy isn’t for you… maybe look into more serious theatre or even reviewing coffins for Funeral Directors’ Monthly!

Swansea or Bust!

Geography is vexing me like a hard-assed mofo right now! It would be fab if I didn’t love everything about living in this region…. It’s just that all the cool stuff is so damned far away!! You would not believe how many free tickets I have had to pass up lately because of living where I do!

I managed to score a couple of tickets for the Swansea Comedy Festival and have been desperately trying to arrange the logistics because I so need some hearty laughs right now. I have wanted to see Andrew Lawrence for a while, having missed out for a variety of reasons when he performed nearby a few weeks ago. He had a fab radio series last year which irritated me mostly by being recorded as just fifteen minute episodes so I am looking forward to hearing more of what he has to say! Also on the bill is Lloyd Langford. I have to admit to feeling a little ambivalent towards him: although I do laugh at his few appearances on television and radio, he often appears more as a feeder to other comedians so I wonder how well his comedy stands alone. Reviews don’t bode well, but I have always been a free-thinker, so will be keeping an open mind and will be sure to let you all know once the event has passed! In fact, I have to say that I tend to want to like something more if it has a bad review just so as to stick it to the reviewer.

I just hope my own words don't meet with the same contempt!

Getting away is not without its issues of course! With a disabled hub-ling and three children to organise, getting a night out even on a weekend is tricky – and this one is a school night! Add to that my fear of driving motorways, my terror at the thought of dealing with the bloody bridge again, the cost of fuel and the fact that staying awake for a 3 hour drive there let alone home again is likely to prove difficult for me, I was veering towards public transport. This isn’t as simple as it should be, though! I thought the advantages were clear: a faster journey, lower costs, a more relaxed trip. The reality is something else altogether. This probably is nothing new to those among you who have good rail links so use trains regularly, but here the trains go to one place only and as it is not somewhere I ever need to go, I do not use trains. Ever. That said I do know that were I to drive it would take 50 minutes, whilst the train journey is a mere 15-20. Why, then, does my three hour drive to Swansea become a five hour train journey? Least of all because were I to take a ten minute drive to the next town, I can actually see the bloody place! And why is it that whilst I can get there for a mere £11.50, I am expected to cough up £45 for my return? In having a moan over facebook about this (as one must in such circumstances!) I commented, “Well that’s it – I shan’t go!” to which an old friend replied simply with “It seems to me, going isn’t the problem!” That gave me a little chuckle as I pondered over whether attending a comedy gig was reason enough to abandon my domestic duties altogether and set up a new life for myself.

The jury is still out on that one!

Luckily, I am blessed with the friendship of one of the most amazing people on the planet, who called me up and said “Don’t panic, I’ll borrow hubs car and drive you there!” Perfect, since I had a spare ticket anyway! So ROADTRIP!! Very much looking forward to it! Indeed!

Mostly for some quality time with my top girl! Not only that, but we both SO need to blow out the cobwebs right now!

So I was thinking “Where do we eat?” And I stumbled across this in a review which made me giggle! 

“if you want to occasionally be just a little sophisticated, without going to Cardiff”

Now, I hadn’t ever really considered Cardiff to be a hot-bed of sophistication so wonder what this tells us about where we are going – although my visits have been hospital ones, so I guess I have not seen the best of the city! But anyway, that was my little “laugh-out-loud” moment for today!

And incidentally, the venue looks to be right near the place it would be logical for the much awaited Devon/Swansea ferry to land so future visits should be far simpler…. That is, assuming the Welsh fix up a landing point fairly soon! Perhaps they aren’t as keen on joining the two nations as we are… something to think on!

Oh, and as an FYI: When looking for a good restaurant ALWAYS switch on safe-search before using your preferred search engine to find “Eating out in Swansea”….

As an addendum:

Believing as I do that a person should make up their own mind about things, I have spent some time hitting up You-tube. There are not a great deal of videos of Langford, but from what I have seen he is every bit as funny as many other comedians I have seen so I hope the nay-saying reviewers are hanging their heads in shame! In fact, of the few clips I found there were some which seemed to be from the very gigs referred to in the reviews I read. I sometimes wonder if the writers of negative reviews have simply thought up some great lines of derision and have to use them at any cost... something to think on, I guess! Anyway - roll on July!

More on this topic here!