Thursday 28th February 2019

Such a long day!

Up just after 6am, A kindly gave me a lift to her workplace in town - meaning I could then walk to the bus station and get an hour and a half bus over to the village, followed by a 20 minute walk, to pick up my car. Had to wait 40 minutes whilst they were finishing it - alongside the starter motor they found various other things wrong with it (coolant leak, bad tyre etc) but all fixed now. I've only had this car for four months - it cost me £900 to buy but I've already spent £400 in fixing it.

Drove home, picked up drums, then off to my regular Thursday school - made it just in time. Aggressive little students there, a few with attitude problems (but also quite a few who are really on it), always feels like hard work.

From there over to three private lessons, all of which were really strong today - lots of progress being made all round, lots of ideas, lots of proud parents.

Then from there onto a long FH rehearsal. I like it again now, I had my doubts earlier this year but you know what? This might all be okay, it's starting to gel a bit. Sara may be new and occasionally, understandably nervous but she does have a wry sense of humour and I think she'll be fun on tour (I dig at her horrid taste in country music, she digs at my love of football), whilst G remains the best bassist I've ever met - I often forget to appreciate just how good he is, but he makes things very easy for me as a drummer.

I've got so much to do, still - HOP arrives in Ireland next week for a couple of shows and there's accommodation issues; the contracts I'm on is for 'me' not my 'team' - not my choice, but the show is in my name. As a result, I'm in a swanky hotel all expenses paid but my three-person choir (Rachel, Mel, Dan) are currently without anywhere to stay. I'm being pushed all over the place for other admin requests too - press releases, details of a show I'm filming later in the month etc but look - I left the house at 6.30am, I got home just before midnight.

Maybe I've taken on too much?

It's nice to be in-demand, though, I think I would crave for these days if I didn't have them.

Wednesday 27th February 2019

Up early, refreshed, drove to the school, cracking lessons - One Step Beyond is a great tune to teach. It's fast, it's a struggle, but it's a fun struggle and I can get three weeks of lessons out of that one song.

Took Mum shopping, again - it's not about the shopping, it's about giving her company. She doesn't buy much, she just wants me around, and I wasn't around last week.

At Waitrose car park, my car broke down. Again. Third time this month. I kicked the shit out of it in frustration as Mum got a taxi home with the dog. Waited an hour, eventually called the AA. Starter motor has gone. Cancelled my college lesson, and one private lesson. This heap of shit is costing me so much money - don't ever buy a 17-year-old Renault Scenic. Awful, awful car. It was a risk that didn't pay off.

AA man got it going again but I wasn't allowed to turn the ignition off as the car wouldn't restart: it felt like a movie. Got to my favoured garage in time, they're fixing it tomorrow morning.

The garage is in the middle of nowhere; took a 90 minute bus back to Cambridge, manage to make it in time for what was my third lesson of the day but ended up being my first, and then did stand-up in a really awkward room where the audience looked angry and the other acts seemed upset by this. Not being arrogant or anything, but I fucking stormed it tonight.

Tuesday 26th February 2019

Having quite a lot of anxiety about HOP at the moment. Basically, one woman who didn't enjoy the show in Newcastle, messaged me some quite strong words about it. I sent some quite strong words back (in short saying, "what part of 'singalong' show did you not expect? You've turned up to a night that's advertised as a singalong show, what's not to get?" but I may have sworn, because she did, several times in her message to me). See, a majority of people that night loved it, and the Manchester one was a unanimously brilliant night in which I had over a hundred people embraced into what we're doing. Yet I still focus on that one woman who goes to the effort of messaging me.

Or maybe I'm just being negative because, you know, negative stuff in general.

The show is fine. The hotel they're putting me up in, in Belfast, is beyond my status as a performer, but it means we're getting somewhere.

Took Mum shopping and got stressed, and then taught three lessons which were all brilliant.

Got back and did some work on my HG script, it's on draft 5 now and it's a tense, powerful, really quite funny little 55 minutes that is by far the best thing I've ever written. I need to learn it, though, really sharpish and there's SO MANY WORDS.

Monday 25th February 2019

These are odd times. I know I should be happy - I walked around outside today (alarmingly sunny for a morning in February) and got excited about the summer barbeques A and myself will have, and the amazing future we are building together. My own 'business' is expanding beyond my initial plans to the extent I'm turning down work.

But then it keeps bugging me: somebody I used to be in a band with, who I considered to be a mentor, a close friend, somebody I looked up to, somebody I got drunk with, somebody I respected - is a paedophile. What the absolute fuck is going on? I've been physically sick twice after reading the newspaper article. I just can't compute this. Nobody knew he was like this...it's not like Saville, when you look back and go "ah yeah, actually he was a bit weird, wasn't he?" - this chap wasn't weird, he was 'normal'. I don't understand.

Work today was fine, taught 4 lessons, worked on a bit of Madness (One Step Beyond) and some composing work.

I feel exhausted.

Sunday 24th February 2019

Still just, well, gutted about that news from yesterday. How could we all have misjudged somebody so badly? What an utter piece of shit he actually is.

Anyway, confirmed another HOP performance, booked up a few more bits and bobs and found an amazing online grammar tool which allowed me to re-proof my novel. It's now re-released, void of any typos and a better cover...so basically a remastered version? Also collected together a bunch of monologues and duologues and released them as a book because, you know, I have this content knocking around it sells (roughly about 2 copies a month).

Feels like I'm on top of my to-do list for the first time in a month, but next week we're totally out of holiday mode and straight back into ridiculous busy stuff. No excuses, I've relaxed well and eat scarily healthy over the last week.

Saturday 23rd February 2019

Still slightly in holiday mode but, as much as it's been nice to have been away and all that, it's also great to get back at my PC and carry on writing.

Really productive day, working on a new show, replying to all necessary emails (of which there have been many building up over the last week) and getting myself in shape for a mega busy 6 weeks, which of course includes a bunch of shows over in Ireland.

Car started first time, which is a miracle. Booking up loads of gigs for the jazz band.

Day thrown totally by a newspaper article I was sent, regarding a former bandmate from many years ago. Somebody I considered to be a close friend, a mentor even (I was 19 at the time, joining a band where everyone else was in their thirties) but now I feel totally...well, empty, and gutted, and disgusted by what he has done/what he has become. At least he's been arrested for it but still, he's not somebody I wish to have in my life anymore. None of us saw this coming, we trusted him a lot.

Evening met up with another old bandmate, who's a great bloke, for his 40th birthday and we enjoyed the free bar, hog roast and retro computer games.

Monday 18th - Friday 22nd February 2019

Holiday time! After plugging the podcast I was a guest on, sending out a bunch of emails to book up some jazz gigs and trying to sort out all of the life admin possible, it was time for a quick jaunt over to Budapest with A for the half-term break. Both being teachers (she's a proper one, I get away with it), we rely a lot on these half-term breaks to actually see each other and this was totally lovely.

True, so I didn't totally stick to my strict 'phone off' rule - I have a lot of emails about a lot of shows coming in and all manner of new projects/ideas on the back of a couple of really lovely stand-up gigs recently, but I was mostly very relaxed.

We slept, a lot. In fact, today - Friday, was the only day we were up before 11am for breakfast. Long lie-ins in the cheap little hotel we booked up months ago, leisurely strolls along the waterside and, let's be honest, far too much alcohol. Both of my favourite things involved beer - the 'beer spa' in which we got to sit in what was effectively a hot bath for 45 minutes with as much beer to drink as we can, and also the famous ruin bars - which had a real Edinburgh Fringe caves vibe to it all.

I've really come out of my comfort zone during this trip, too. Like many, I'm not overly proud of my body, so going to be a big open spa where you are wearing nothing but your swimming trucks isn't something I would have chosen for 'pleasure' - I have a weird dip in my chest, odd marks on my back (long story, nothing weird) and massive bollocks. But it was all fine, all totally fine, and nobody was judging anyone else.

Also went to a castle and on a boat trip, which is proper tourist stuff. Had the finest steak and winced at the bill, and watched a frankly terrible jazz duo in an outdoor restaurant.

The main joy of it all, though, of course, was simply spending time together. On one of the nights we didn't even go out - just sat and played cards in our hotel room till the early hours. We get on, I'm very lucky, it's all wonderful.

Got back in good time and then I got back to editing the TS scripts for the BBC project, which is now finally done. Busy times ahead, already all that resting feels like a lifetime ago...

Sunday 17th February 2019

The finale to last night was so good, and it kind of justified us being there more. Wonderful. What a nice man he is to get us up like that to back him.

Taught a three-hour intensive drum lesson in the morning which was really cool - it's for the daughter of a friend of mine, the daughter could play already but I was brought in to work on a few songs with her. We all had a nice lunch and the three hours flew by. I later received a message of thanks, with the mum explaining how the daughter was having a tough time recently with anxiety and how this drumming course was the happiest she's seen her in ages...I'm doing a lot of good, here, I think.

Home for a bit to reply to a load of emails, all show admin stuff, then out to teach a new student who I really shouldn't be fitting in (I mean, it's another Sunday student, meaning when everything is full pelt I'll never have any time off) but who was really great, and then a lesson with one of my regulars.

Home, started booking jazz gigs...everything is very exciting. All of it.

Saturday 16th February 2019

Bit hungover, because my guest for the night (Matt) and I were drinking whisky into the early hours, whilst listening to jazz records. I've changed. I mean, we used to get drunk, but never in such a sophisticated way.

Over to Ely to be a guest on a podcast, which was great fun - Luke is a really decent host and I felt good being there.

Then dashed back to Cambridge for a jazz rehearsal. Half the band couldn't make it so we did it as a trio...it sounded the best it's ever been, to the extent we recorded some demos and are now seeking trio gigs. Less cluttered, less to go wrong. really nice stuff. I'm actually excited about it.

Then picked up Josie and off to the latest HOP show, where we met up with Mike, Dan and Mel. A different sort of gig because we were on a mixed bill, there was a sense that they were waiting for the headline act and it felt slightly awkward at the start but we got into them and made it work. The front row clearly felt confused by it all, but as I went further back down the room more and more people got involved. Not our best performance by any stretch, but we did a good job I think and lots of people said very nice things afterwards. The headliner was the guitarist from Tears for Fears and we ended up backing him for a particularly brilliant version of Shout. It was a wonderful moment, a proper rousing finale and it was fantastic to be involved.

Friday 15th February 2019

A nice day, helped by my car working again. Both schools were lovely, these two are my favourite schools and, although there's certainly moments where it can get repetitive teaching the same songs to 13 children in a row, they're all good characters and the day goes quick.

Not that you'd want the day to go too quickly, of course, because life is for living and all that, but you know what I mean.

My diary is getting mega full with all manner of gigs, a few with Greg are starting to creep in on top of all the other stuff. It'll be fine, they're all good gigs, I'm a lucky boy.

Double private lesson was cool, and then off to drink lots of beers with Matt, Alan and Phill in town.

Thursday 14th February 2019

The plan was simple - buy flowers for the girl and surprise her with them at her workplace as it's Valentines Day and all that.

Having turned up at the school where she teaches, I was told she was at a first aid course as their main school. Went there, got told it was at the other building just down the road. Car broke down, had to wait an hour for the AA as the flowers slowly started to dry out...eventually it was fixed (loose connection to the starter motor) but this car is starting to piss me off a bit. Lost 3 hours of teaching because of it. I see my old Volvo is for sale...

Both private lessons were absolute crackers today, really made progress with both of them.

Evening for Valentines Day was lovely, A knew the effort I had gone to. She cooked us up a lovely meal; steak and Prosecco nights are very much becoming a regular thing for us. I've changed.

Wednesday 13th February 2019

Annoyingly early start. I like teaching, but mostly because it often doesn't feel like it's a 'proper' job, but when I have to get up at 7am, it does.

The school was fine today, it's the week before half-term and everyone's a bit knackered - the students and the teachers, but I have enough ideas to get us through it.

Took Mum shopping and she talked so much about Dad's death that it really got me down. I appreciate it's been three years, only three years, and she is struggling with it, but it makes me struggle with it, too, when I didn't think I was.

Both private lessons were fine tonight. Not as exciting as yesterdays when I could see real flickers of imagination and the unexpected buzz of "wow, this is great progress" but that can't happen every day - I'm becoming a good teacher, but it can't all be glory. Today's lessons were fine, I was happy with how I structured them and both lessons overran because they were working hard.

Evening had a stand-up gig in town. New promoter, who maybe I got off on the wrong foot with initially in our FB messenger chat, but a great promoter who knows how to pack out a room. Weekly. Amazingly. I opened the second half and went down so well the promoter has now offered me a headline slot, and I'm also guesting on a podcast this weekend.

I'm falling in love with stand-up again, and it was nice to catch up with comedy chums Joe, Dan and Nessie, all of whom I like to just hang out with, let alone share a stage with.

The only slightly negative thing is that my 'tight ten' - my set which is going down the best, is mostly old stuff, at least 7 minutes of it is. I get I'm wrapped up in writing plays, but I probably need to be writing more stand-up-ee things soon.

Tuesday 12th February 2019

So many emails.

Worked on those, before popping out for an extra midday lesson at the college. The college is a 10 minute drive down the road which is handy.

Got back, home for 2 hours to do a little more work on the HG script (it's getting close) and then off out again for three private lessons. The first one was amazing, it's a student I've had for a few weeks now but has struggled for enthusiasm (just his parents are super keen) but today he was totally on it and now wants more than an hour a week, it was brilliant. The second lesson...well, the kid wasn't in. I called the Dad and he panicked, because the kid was supposed to be in. Nobody knows what happened there, but he seemed pretty freaked out by it all, understandably. The third lesson, with a student I've had for a year now, was a cracker.

Over to our regular monthly comedy night and, although we only had 7 in the audience, we were all totally on it tonight. I like stand-up again, and may have had a beer and applied for another fringe show because of this.

Monday 11th February 2019

3 and a bit hour drive home, which was mostly fine until I got to Cambridge and then the traffic was screwed, as normal.

Home by 1pm and felt overwhelmed by the amount of emails I have, some about teaching, some fringe stuff. Everything is so urgent, isn't it? I'm exhausted.

Slept.

First lesson of the day at 3.45pm with one of my regulars which was great, and then another one, and then another one, and then another two - a brother and sister lesson, whom I've had for about a year. You can see the sister is turning into a stroppy teenager and she hates everything, she'll stop wanting the lessons soon.

Then over to FH rehearsal, which went on till late. We've gone a bit country and lost a bit of edge, and I've gotten a bit grumpy about it all. I moaned to V about it a bit too much on the way home, but we've been here before, I'm sure.

Sunday 10th February 2019

Woke up so hungover. My room mate, Josie, made it onto her train back to Cambridge to sing with her choir there. I had a lazy breakfast in the hotel with James and we discussed the good and bad bits of last night. Dan was too hungover to join us.

3 hour drive down to Manchester, checked in at my hotel there and slept for a couple hours. Called A, replied to some emails, and then a short walk over to the venue.

A huge room, but on arrival I felt great. No cabaret seating, just a proper theatre. A proper soundguy. who cared and suggested that we move forwards so I can "get at" the audience. I only had two singers tonight (James, and Dan who was a bit drunk having met up with an old friend), and no Jenni to guest - it was just the three of us, for 90 minutes, in a big theatre, having to put on a show that was retailing at £12 a ticket.

Although we'd only sold a third of the venue out (so basically about a hundred tickets), I got the first laugh in quickly and you could just feel they were up for it. In the back row there was 10 girls; one of them had seen the show (twice) at the fringe, so got 9 mates down to join her. They knew what they were taking on. The front two rows had both sold out and they all WANTED to be part of the show, one them was even having his birthday at this gig so we had plenty to play with.

I worked my arse off tonight - I spent the whole show running up and down the aisles, I wanted every single person to be part of the show, whether it be for singing, being my dancers, being my percussionists, being my poets. Every single one of them joined in. Even the journalist. Manchester is totally a different beast, isn't it? I felt cocky and was adding more and more into the show as it went along, such as individually handing out pieces of percussion (running up and down the stairs to do so) as James and Dan sang "I'm feeling good vibrations" on repeat. I formed a girl band from the back row before shouting at them that this isn't a hen party. We performed the world's first ever percussion-led hip-hop version of 'Like a Bridge Over Troubled Water'. The audience started doing a conga after a misunderstanding.

Dan and James really grew into the show, too. My favourite moment being when we 'lost' Dan as he was still in the toilet, so James sang (beautifully, solo) 'I Will Survive' as Dan emerged behind him dressed as a shark.

I don't like to bring figures into this, but I got paid more than £700 for tonight, just for shouting at strangers and making them sing, but we totally deserved every penny of it - a top, top night that just worked. This can work. We needed this, after last night.

Had a pint with an old school friend who was in the audience, it was amazing to catch up, and then celebrated by eating a pizza alone in my hotel room whilst watching Family Guy.

Saturday 9th February 2019

Such a long day. Taught my regular Saturday lesson in the morning, then picked up Josie and the simple drive up to Newcastle. Four hours of solid chat, such is this growing friendship.

Got to the venue, dumped stuff off, checked in at the hotel and we met up with James and Dan who were also doing the show with us. The venue management were stressed about poor ticket sales and the show started badly - the layout of the room didn't help (cabaret style, I felt distant from the audience and couldn't really get into them), the front row looked like they didn't want to be there. I tried to get them to sing and, gradually, people started to walk out. It's a singalong show, it's advertised as that...what did they expect?

I had a guest act lined up for the second half, my mate Jenni, but I got her on midway in the first half because the audience were clearly sick of me and I needed to get myself and the choir backstage to quickly work out an action plan on how to turn this around, it felt that awkward. We got back on and did the last 15 minutes of the first half but, with the exception of a nice old man called Geoff and a lovely old lady called Heather, nobody was willing to join in and the whole show show felt horrible.

Sat in the dressing room in the interval I felt so low. Why am I even doing this? I have a nice career as a music teacher, why am I putting myself through this?

Walked back onstage for the second half, a few more had now left - in theory we'd only lost 6 audience members, but when there's only 40 tickets sold, you notice the gaps even more. I got everyone who came back to sit closer to the front and we went for it. The result was wonderful...everyone who was still there were there because they were onside, and we blasted the whole thing with a bit of punk energy. EVERYONE joined in, possibly because I was probably performing like a psychopath. An audience member shouted out (in relation to those who had left early), "now those fuckers have gone, we can enjoy ourselves."

The whole thing felt like an in-joke, a private party. This show certainly divides rooms, doesn't it? 34 people thinking it's the best night ever, 6 people so angry they were demanding a refund.

I enjoyed the second half a lot, I didn't bother with the microphone because I was so angry with those who left I was now in mega shouty mode and did the whole thing without amplification. The thing that struck me most was just how much those onstage with me - Dan, James, Josie, Jenni and my mate Ade (who joined us for the second half) believe in me, and what I do. It sounds cliched, I get that, but I could feel their support, it helped a lot.

With the show done, we packed away and went to the bar and got drunk with those who had stayed for the show, with them telling us how bemused they were regarding those who stormed out. The venue manager came over and was initially unhappy, as nobody likes to give refunds, after all, but then she apologised for the fact that some of her "people" didn't get it, and still paid me my (gottta be honest, excessive) fee as agreed and wished me all the best for the future. We won't be back again, clearly, but it could have been a lot worse.

Dan, James, Josie, Jenni, Jenni's mate and a random audience member called Liam (who's girlfriend is the sister of a friend of mine, oddly enough) then went to the pub next door. It was very much a 'locals only' pub but we were pissed anyway. On arrival, the landlady came over and told us that she "doesn't like crowds of strangers who I don't know, so be quiet or you'll have to leave." It was a bit intimidating.

Ended up having a lock-in, getting on well with the locals, eventually staggering out at 2.30am.

A bizarre night. So bizarre. Back to the hotel to finally sleep, before Josie woke me up by having a pizza delivered at 4am.

Friday 8th February 2019

Both schools were lovely today, as they usually are - it never feels like work in these places, especially now I'm in no rush so spend the gap listening to the radio version of Steptoe and Son.

In the college for an extra lesson (getting quite in demand there, that was never the plan) and then a cracking private lesson with one of my regulars after that.

Spent a bit of the evening fretting about the shows this weekend, both of which are huge, whilst trying to spend some time with A who I won't be seeing for a few days. Managed to do both successfully.

Thursday 7th February 2019

Have agreed to dep for yet another band, a year-long depping gig, too, as their drummer is otherwise engaged. FH are annoying me slightly, constantly rehearsing acoustically, I don't really feel like I'm part of it anymore.

Up early, finished the HOP show, then over to one of my colleges to hand in my timesheet (they don't like doing things by email even though it's 2019) and then off to teach at my 'other' primary school where the kids are aggressive and I never have fun, but it's a gloriously well paid 2 hours.

Home for an hour to reply to emails, then five private lessons in a row, including a particularly strange one in which the family had split and emotions were high (lots of tears, barely any drumming), which felt a bit awkward. Home by 10pm. That's a LOT of teaching. Too much?

Read through the HG script. It's still not right. Not yet.

Wednesday 6th February 2019

Teaching at the school in the morning (was late due to A14 being a bastard, as normal) and then took Mum shopping. Sat in Waitrose car park for over an hour, I started rewriting the HOP show ahead of the weekend's longer shows, adding more bits into it. Josie's joining us for the Newcastle show which is great as she can belt them out.

Two private lessons later, both fine (I know what I'm doing, the lessons are surprisingly well planned, it's easy) and then was up till 2am working on the HOP show.

Tuesday 5th February 2019

Long day of teaching, but considering I've spent loads recently (just expensive meals out for anniversaries, Joe Jackson tickets, tour accommodation etc) it's all needed.

Taught my close friend Marcus drums for 4 hours - an intense course and I'm worried I pretty much broke him by the end but he's now a drummer and much laughter was had.

From Earith, to Bottisham for the next lesson, then to Cambourne, then to Cottenham and finally home to Great Shelford. Drove over a hundred miles today just to teach my lessons...maybe there's a flaw in this plan.

Got back, did more work on the HG script. It must be really close now. Worryingly, it's 29 pages of solid dialogue that I need to learn.

Monday 4th February 2019

My 'easy' day of the week, but so much to do. I see there's plenty of great press for the HOP tour now, especially in Newcastle, but ticket sales are still a concern. We hit the road on Saturday for that one...it's a show that's always worked in Edinburgh but I'm a little worried about touring it elsewhere. Fringe audiences are different. We'll soon find out, I guess.

Today was mostly spent catching up on emails, and then spent a glorious 5 hours writing my HG script, even though it feels quite complete already. I keep raising the stakes for the character, it's certainly growing into something rather tasty. No idea how I'm going to learn it in time, though.

Due to a student being sick, just the four private lessons today, instead of the normal Monday five. All fine, all was well until my battery died on my car and I had to wait for the AA to come out. They were great and fixed it, but this car already feels like it has 'problems' - more than my trusty Volvo ever did. I miss that car.

Sunday 3rd February 2019

Yesterday was lovely but today it felt like it was all over too soon - at least for our next break (we've got Budapest coming up for half-term, having spotted some mega cheap flights) we're away for the week.

Today was lovely all the same, just about managed the check-out time of 10am (give or take 15 minutes...) and then we had a quick drive up to Sheringham for a quick stroll around and a bit of early lunch before heading home.

Back to a bunch of important emails about next week's HOP tour which can wait until tomorrow, and then I was off out teaching three private lessons, all of which were cool but the roads (well, the road closures) were a bastard tonight.

Next week looks ridiculous.

Saturday 2nd February 2019

As always, the danger of me being away is that my head is buzzing full of ideas with things I want to achieve but haven't done yet but probably can do this year, and my phone is buzzing with queries about tour accommodation and marketing and stuff even though people know I'm away. It can all wait.

Lovely day, lying in till nearly midday, huge brunch, walk along the frosty beach, 2p machines in the amusement arcades, fancy fish and chips and then the two of us sat in our little rented apartment playing card games and drinking till the early hours. Perfection. I've fallen on my feet here.

Friday 1st February 2019

Both schools were really lovely today - I like both of these schools and, given the option, I'd happily drop things to do more hours there. But I probably do enough, anyway. All the kids were on good form and the other teachers are really nice there, it's just so easy.

Got back, did a little writing and then A and I headed off for our little break away. We seem to be having a lot of 'holidays' but this one was different - a fan of the band bought each of FH a little break away voucher for Christmas, which was very lovely. I used up mine this weekend, taking A off to Cromer, where it's cold but the apartment was very lovely. Due to faffing, we eventually checked in at 11pm.

Thursday 31st January 2019

Promo for the shows is happening, but ticket sales still aren't.

Long late morning/early afternoon at the primary school I don't enjoy as much, but it's money, isn't it? Even if the kids are a bit aggressive.

Two cracking private lessons, and then off to dinner with A. A year ago today it was our second date, and the first time we kissed (on the first date she acted like she really didn't like me and jumped out of my car at the end...apparently it was just nerves), so we're calling this our 'anniversary'. Went to the most expensive restaurant in the world (probably not, but you know what I mean...I mean, £95 for two people, christ) and had a lovely time.

Got back and I panicked, realising I accidentally confirmed a show in Dublin about three months ago and had forgotten about it, but they're all excited. Seriously. It'll happen, though, it's the day before Belfast so it's logical at least, but fucks up our flights a bit.

Wednesday 30th January 2019

Last night was really cool, you know. I must stop acting like a tourist in these situations, though.

Back to reality today, back at the school which was fine, back to taking Mum shopping which was stressful, back at the college which was totally awesome and then two private lessons which was really great.

It's all good, I've got plenty of really lovely things happening right now.

Tuesday 29th January 2019

Another day of writing (and getting distracted by the cats, who just love it when there's someone in...). The HG show, which in my head is my 'big' show of the year, still feels like it's missing something. I mean, yeah, ultimately ten minutes of content, but also at the moment it just isn't quite clicking the way I hoped it would now I'm reading through it again...it has many really, really lovely moments in it, though. Not enough to make it a really, really lovely show just yet.

Spent a lot of time faffing about that today, without getting much done.

Evening I was up to Broadcasting House for a meeting at the BBC, which sounds awfully fancy. It's not, really, but equally it is. Ultimately, a bunch of BBC types run a club where they record stuff, and, as they're there already, it gets to be recorded in the world famous studios with great actors and everything and eventually just bunged online. Somehow they picked up my sitcom that I wrote seven years ago that I never did anything with at the time and wanted to chat more, so I nervously went over for a meeting and a read-through. They're quite harsh in places, picking up on even the most minor of flaws in the first episode (but unanimously they agreed that episode three was perfect) and they asked so many questions...yet, having written this seven years ago, I wasn't as familiar with the backstory of the characters as I should have been. Still, they were suitably impressed to agree to record all four episodes as soon as I get the tweaks done...they were lovely people, they just have slightly higher standards than what I'm used to. All being well, I can have 'BBC' on my fringe flyers this year.

Got drunk in the BBC bar afterwards which felt great.

Monday 28th January 2019

Things with the shows are about to get very real - lots of dates booked in, the only thing I haven't booked in is preview/rehearsal performances, which I'm reluctant to do because of all the band gigs (both FH and Greg) that are starting to fill my diary. Nice to be indemand, but equally I don't have full control over my schedule at the moment.

Today was mostly chilled, though, as it's my one 'proper' day off of the week. Wrote, a lot and totally blitzed my to-do list.

Taught three private lessons in the evening, all of which were awesome.