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Coming off stage at the interval from my gig in Lincoln I turned straight to Twitter and was greeted with the news that Garry Shandling had died. What a kick in the teeth. The Larry Sanders Show was years ahead of its time and one of my top three sitcoms ever and the Garry Shandling show not only had the best theme song for any TV show ever, but created a whole new genre of comedy. His influence echoes through every major TV success since the 90s. 2016 isn't even three months old yet and we've lost some huge public figures. I don't know if it's a particularly bad year or if that kind of fame is a new thing and the first generation who achieved it are hitting their 60s and 70s.
Judging from Twitter I wasn't the only comedian coming off stage to find out the news. But we all had to go back on again and put it to the back of our minds. That's the comedians' way. But for me this was up there almost with Rik Mayall. I don't really care when it's rock stars who are dying. That's part of their ethos. But death should leave the comedians alone.
His recent stint on Jerry Seinfeld's Comedians in Cars is all the more poignant now, and death is a running theme of the chat. But it also really gets to the heart of his man and gives some great insight into his early years. It is called “It's great that Garry Shandling is still alive.†And it was. I may have to return to my Larry Sanders box set and watch it all again. Balls.
Better news was that due to loads of idiots thinking it's lucky to play multiple of 7s (and not realising that loads of other idiots are doing the same) the 5 ball match lottery prize was won by so many people that their share was only £15 - less than people who'd only matched 3 balls would be getting. Presumably had the numbers been the first six entries in the 7 times table then loads of people would have been excited to think they'd got the jackpot, only to find they'd got a few thousand quid. But 28 didn't come up (7,14,21,35 and 42 all did though). You have to be an idiot to play the lottery (I know because I have two lines in every draw), but you have to be a real idiot to play a set of numbers that are to such an obvious pattern. I was told on Twitter that if 1,2,3,4,5,6 ever comes up (and it's just as likely- or unlikely- as any other combination) then so many people are playing it that they'd get less than £100 each. They think they've spotted a clever loophole and that they're the only one bright enough to have realised that those numbers are possible. But they are actually not so clever, because like nearly all the rest of us they will never win, but if they do win they will get about the same as if they'd just put their £2 on an unfancied horse. If you're going to be an idiot, at least be a sensible idiot and play a random selection of numbers.
Back at home my daughter had just been fitted for her first pair of shoes (which I must keep if I am going to make her do her life time of shoes art project). Great to see photos of her looking proud of herself, but sad not to be there to congratulate her myself and share this milestone.
It's been a long time since I've performed in Lincoln so I was delighted that 200 people turned up to see me (I am pretty sure that's the biggest solo show audience I have had here) and aside from the sudden demise of comedy heroes it was a great night. I am a bit ill, to add to my tiredness and had had a short nap in the hotel when I'd got here. I am slightly concerned by the toll that this job is now taking on me. I had planned to keep touring as long as I was working, but I wonder if it will get too much to me (though the drives on this leg are ridiculously brutal - why couldn't we have played Chorley the day after Salford and Lincoln on the way between York and Norwich? Because we have to come to the theatres when they have a space for us and I'd have to be a much bigger star to be able to dictate my dates based on what was easy for me).
I had some fun memories of playing Lincoln on my return to stand up in 2005: being impressed by a bright new stand-up called Russell Howard and having a memorable, tricky gig trying out edgy material and being forced to stay in a horrendous B&B. Shaun who ran those gigs and was there again tonight also remembered that second one. I've come on some way since then, but those were exciting times.
