It's always a relief to get the DVD record of a show completed. It's stupid, I know, but when I am touring I fear I will die before I've got the thing on film and it will be lost forever. As if that would be the worst thing about dying. But on tour priorities get a little askew. I suppose it would be a small consolation if I did die now to know that people will still be able to watch Talking Cock. That would more than make up for all the being dead and not being able to see or kiss my wife or eat pizza any more.
Whatever - however dumb all that is it's still great to know that we've done the DVD record. And it was a pretty good one on the whole (the second half particularly). I was still a bit ill and had an annoying croak in my voice and had to stop to cough a couple of times. One of the disconcerting things about a DVD record is that the audience needs to be lit so that you can see their reaction when it cuts to them (and with a gofasterstripe production that is as likely to be a look of confusion as a laugh). It makes them slightly more self-conscious, but also means that the performer can see every reaction. And it will always be the more negative reactions that catch the performer's attention. Luckily it was mainly laughing today, though some people on the balcony took about four minutes to get out of their seats (I don't know if they were leaving or just visiting the loo) which pulled my focus for a while. And as the show is being filmed there's the added pressure of knowing that every line needs to be perfect and that any mistake will recorded for the ages (or at least for people watching this in the next decade) - it's hard to relax and perform naturally (not that any performance is entirely natural). Hopefully I held it together despite all this. I almost skipped quite a crucial joke but managed to reinstate it - or the reincorporation would have looked a bit odd.
In the second half though things felt much more relaxed all round. I went into the audience to film my traditional "myself in the audience" shot (which came about after Chris Evans accidentally edited me laughing at Tony Law into one of my DVDs. A woman lent me her pint of cider so it would look like I was enjoying my time in the audience of my own show. I had a sip. Maybe that's what relaxed me!
The emotional bits resonated and the crowd got behind all the shouting out and I think we have captured a good performance. Maybe not as good overall as last night's but that's always the way.
Chris Evans (not that one, or the one from the Avengers) and I discussed what extras we would have, but also our plans for filming the next series of RHLSTP - it's going to cost quite a lot so I hope that people will download it and help justify this rash decision (it will still be available on audio for free. We also have plans for a special gift for everyone who comes to see my Edinburgh show and an ambitious plan to record a monthly stand up show in the autumn and spring. Exciting and bankrupting times lie ahead for us. It's worth a little gamble I think. Although it's all a little dependent on what other work comes up this year.
I recorded some stuff about the willy brush and my renaming of the internal parts of the penis before the show as well as a surprise little topper for the very end. But we're also planning to record another frame of snooker and a few other bits and pieces next month. So it's going to be packed with value and I hope my ninth solo DVD will be available by July. You've got all the others, right?
you know where to go!
