You Can’t Be Serious

September 30, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really good couple of weeks. Mine have been very busy with lots of fun stuff going on. I went to see a brand new radio comedy being recorded at the BBC Radio Theatre a few Friday’s ago. It is being produced by the brilliant Ed Morrish. Who has been behind lots of great radio shows over the years. It is called Welcome To Wherever You Are.

It is hosted by the Irish comedian Andrew Maxwell. It looks at the world of stand up comedy literally with guests from all over the world coming on for a chat. Then doing some of their stand up set to the audience via skype. Which all sounds very odd but it did all work brilliantly.

In the episode I saw we had Storm Xu a Japanese comedian who performed from Shanghai, Tats Nkonzo from South Africa who performed from Cape Town and finally we had Ari Eldjarn who is from Iceland and was performing from Reykjavic. All three of them were very funny.

It just proves how comedy is pretty much the same all over the world. They were all addressing the same subjects that you would expect from British comedians. But obviously putting their own country’s slant on things. It was great to see brand new comics for the first time to. I am not sure when the show will go out on the radio but I will let you know when I do, as it is well worth a listen.

While we are talking about radio comedy Newsjack is back for its latest series currently. It is a weekly topical comedy programme that anybody can write for. So you can submit your own jokes for it and if they make it in they will pay you for them. I have had some of my material used on it in the past.

I am sending in a few one liners this time round hoping that I can sneak something in. It is very funny and well put together. It always features an excellent cast led by the brilliant Angela Barnes. If I do get any of my jokes in the latest series, rest assured, I will let you know. It goes out Thursday’s at 10.30pm on BBC Radio 4 Extra.

I also went and witnessed the recording of another brand new comedy series for Radio 4. Once again at the BBC Radio Theatre earlier this week. It featured the excellent comedian Rhys James. Who I have seen perform a few times at the Old Rope Comedy Night’s. The show is called Rhys James is……There will be four episodes each taking a look at his life and his outlook on things. I saw all four of them recorded on the same evening.

It is being produced by the very experienced Carl Hooper. Who also works on such programmes as The Now Show and Just a Minute. It was a fun evening featuring some of Rhys’s stand up mixed in with clips of his parents talking about him and some other elements. It is due to go out some time in January next year. It is definitely worth keeping a ear out for. As he has some great jokes and a clever way at looking at the world, as most comics do. He basically got offered the show on the back of Carl Hooper seeing him performing at the Edinburgh Festival. Which shows the value and status of that place.

I always like discovering new and different places to have a drink in and around London. I stumbled upon one I really liked the other week. It is called the Phoenix Artists Bar. Which is predictably enough next to the Phoenix Theatre.

It is a downstairs bar with a nice selection of drinks and lots of theatre memorabilia on the walls. Including lots of posters and signed photos of performers. Plus they have a piano in there. I saw a poster advertising their sing-a-long-a-musical night. Which sounds brilliant. It is just a nice relaxing bar with a good vibe to it. I would say it is worth a visit, if you are in the area.

I have been to Wembley a lot to watch Tottenham recently. I went to my first Premier League game at the Stadium to see them play Swansea. I met a mate in The Arch pub for a drink before the game. Then headed in to the ground with every intention of having a cup of tea before the match. Until I walked past a pop up Real Ale stand and my plans immediately changed. I really do not have any will power.

The game itself was a bit frustrating but still quite an entertaining goalless draw. I then ended up going to the League Cup game on the Tuesday. They had reduced the tickets to ten pounds. Which is pretty good value for money.

Now having worked at Wembley I have a pretty good knowledge of the place, so I noticed they were even selling these cheap tickets for the best and comfiest seats in the stadium. They are called the Bobby Moore seats after England’s great World Cup winning captain. They are the ones by the players tunnel, behind the benches. Granted these seats normally come with full hospitality. So say for an FA Cup final they are probably around eight hundred pounds each.

Therefore to sit and watch a game there for a tenner was to good an opportunity to miss. Spurs won the game against Barnsley one nil with Dele Alli getting the goal. So it was a good night all round in the end.

I had never got round to going to Wimbledon and as tickets for the championships are very hard to get hold of to say the least. I decided to do the tour there. As at least that would mean I would be guaranteed to get inside. It turns out the nearest tube station is Southfields, so that is where I got off.

Despite these claims being totally true, it was still about a fifteen minute walk to get to the All England Club. The entrance to the tour brings you right in by Centre Court. You sign in at the shop, then there is a meeting point outside where the tour starts. They have all the order of play boards left up around the place from the previous event across all of the various competitions.

Wimbledon is a big international event and in this modern age digital and internet coverage demand is huge. So we started off in the media area. Before moving on to the TV Studios. Visiting the BBC one where Sue Barker presents from.

One thing that surprised me was how small the outer courts looked, Plus I did not realise how close quite a few of them were to the main show courts. How they get the extra seating in I have no idea. It looks like there is no room for them. The TV studio complex overlooks court eighteen.

Then we were taken to see the players entrance as well as the members and players areas. There are five hundred members of the club. You will not be to surprised to hear that there is a long waiting list and that it is incredibly hard to become a member.

In fact the easiest way to become a member is to win the singles title, as you instantly are then an honorary member. We then went to the press conference room, where all players are contracted to go and speak to the media after their matches. And lastly we were shown in to Centre Court. Which is such an iconic sporting arena.

The tour was very enjoyable and it was great to have a look around the place. It has definitely made me want to try and get tickets to see a match there. They also do have a museum. So I went and had a look around that. It is very educational about the origins of tennis and of Wimbledon itself. Plus they have a very clever hologram style video of John McEnroe.

As well as lots of great memorabilia from the players. Including many of their rackets and outfits. Judging by the clothing, some of those female tennis players must have been tiny. And finally you get to see the men’s and women’s trophy’s on display. They are probably two of the most recognisable awards in world sport.

I had been hearing very good things about Motown The Musical, so I thought I better get along to the Shaftesbury Theatre in London to check it out for myself. Which I did last Wednesday. I have never seen a theatre manage to hide their toilets so well. They were almost impossible to find. The show itself tells the story of the Motown Record Label and its founder Berry Gordy Junior. He had several standard dead end jobs before he started writing songs. In fact he wrote Reet Petite for Jackie Wilson. But when he did not feel that he was getting the money he deserved for his songs. He decided to start his own record label and sort of run it like the car plants he used to work in.

Smokey Robinson was the first artist he signed. He became a life-long friend of Gordy and a Motown stalwart through the years. When many artists jumped ship and left to earn more money with bigger labels. At one time The Supremes were the companies most successful group. Possibly not hindered by the fact that Diana Ross and the boss were an item for quite a while. Let us not forget they also gave us The Temptations, The Four Tops, Marvin Gale, The Marvelettes and of course Stevie Wonder to mention just a few. And Motown gave the Jackson Five their big break, so therefore set Michael on the route to super stardom.

It is a really good show helped by a brilliant soundtrack from the label that the whole thing is about. It does also cover a few big historical moments which happened during the time the story occurred. Which shaped their business and to a degree the world. The cast were great, they all had fantastic voices and they could all really move to. The dancing was sensational. It is very clever how it is constructed. As the starting point, is the end point and the story is told in the middle as a bridge between them. I thought I knew the story of it all pretty well. But I certainly learnt a few things that I didn’t know. It is well worth seeing. As with it containing all those great songs that it does, you can really not go wrong.

Mowtown The Musical — Motown The Musical

It has been quite good for spotting comedians around the BBC recently. I have seen Jack Whitehall with his dad, Angela Barnes and my old mate from the Tringe Festival Arthur Smith about the building over the last few weeks.

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil

Sweet Soul Music

September 16, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really nice couple of weeks. Mine have been lots of fun and very interesting. A couple of Friday nights ago now I went to the Royal Albert Hall to see the Stax Prom. Which was a special performance celebrating the music of the great soul record company of that name. It had so many amazing artists signed to it. It was part of the BBC’s Proms series. So it was also shown live on BBC 4.

It was fronted by Jools Holland along with his Rhythm and Blues Orchestra. Plus it featured three fantastic British singers. Who are all big fans of the genre. They were James Morrison, Beverley Knight and Sir Tom Jones. But then it got even better than that, as many of the original Stax performers were there to. And if that was not enough joining the band for the whole evening were Steve Cropper (the great guitarist who amongst many other things co wrote “Sitting on the Doc of the Bay” with Otis Redding) and one of the greatest organ players of all time Booker T Jones. The original Stax artists were Sam Moore, William Bell and Eddie Floyd. Who were singing the huge songs that made the record company and them stars. Some of them just on their own and some of them with the sensational British singers I mentioned earlier singing with them .

It was an amazing night. The Royal Albert Hall is such a great venue. I even got caught up in the moment and splendour of the event. So treated myself to a glass of champagne before the show started. From start to finish it was just great song after great song. The musicians and the singers were all fantastic. It is hard to pick my highlights, as the whole thing was so good. But there was something special about Sam Moore doing Soul Man, Eddie Floyd performing Knock on Wood, William Bell and Beverly Knight with Private Number and then Steve Cropper and Tom Jones doing a stripped down version of Sitting On The Doc of the Bay with just the guitar and vocals only.

It really was an exceptional night. I was so glad I was there to witness all those iconic performers in action. My only complaint is that the gig went so quickly. It is still available on the BBC I-player. If you are a fan of great music I would urge you to take a look at it, if you get chance.

I ticked off another thing from my massive to do list recently. I was a fan of the Channel 4 show Whose Line Is It Anyway. Which was basically born out of a group of people called the Comedy Store Players. Who are still going strong today and still have some recognisable names on their books. They perform every Sunday and Wednesday at the Comedy Store in London. So a few Sunday’s ago I went there with a mate to have a look. I do love going to the Comedy Store because as a genuine fan of comedy, there is so much history there. The pictures on the wall of the people who have performed at that venue is like a whose who in the world of international comedy. In case you have not guessed this was an improvisation night. Where the audience shout out suggestions and the cast have to use them to make up sketches and jokes on the spot.

The “players” on the night included Mike McShane, Josie Lawrence and Paul Merton. Who were all regulars on the old television show. Also joining them were long time members Neil Mullakey, Richard Vranch and Lee Simpson. It was an hilarious evening. They are so funny and clever in the way they bring things to life, interact with each other and just keep the whole evening flowing. They all look like they are having a ball to. I bet doing that regularly keeps them on their toes and match fit. Considering it is all totally made up on the spot. There were so many laugh out loud moments.

I am really glad I got to see it. I would happily go along to see them perform again, as it would be a completely new and different show. As it is every night. They were all equally brilliant although Josie Lawrence does really nail those musical numbers. Oh yes there are even improvised comedy songs. Mind you I do always like watching Paul Merton. He is a very talented and funny man.

I went to see the latest version of Annie in the West End at the Piccadilly Theatre. The main reason for my trip was to see Miranda Hart play Miss Hannigan. This did not go quite to plan though, as she was sadly ill on the day I went. So Annie Smith was on stage playing the alcoholic Orphanage Manager. Who for the record was fantastic she did a brilliant job. It is such a positive and uplifting story with some great songs and a nice sprinkling of comedy moments.

But every time I have seen this play and this time was no different, despite the whole cast being great the kids and the dog always steel the show. A great production of a classic. And another enjoyable night out at the theatre. Special praise must go to the woman behind the bar who managed to up sell me from a small glass of red wine to a large glass for an extra pound. I wondered if she was trying to get me drunk but then later I saw the drinks menu and realised this was a genuine deal.

Last weekend I was back up in Liverpool. That place is almost like a second home to me now. I visit so often. My Granddad grew up there and lived in the City until he was thirty, so I have always felt an infinity with the place. There were two reasons for my visit. To see my mate Jeff Nolan and to see Tottenham Hotspur play Everton. I arrived on the Friday and had a few beers with Jeff in the evening. So we could chat and catch up.

Then Saturday it was game day. I had managed to get a ticket in the Spurs end for the first time. So we met up before the game but then for the match Jeff went to his normal home season ticket seat and headed for the away end. From my point of view it was a brilliant match. As my team pretty much controlled the game. Harry Kane not only got off the mark for the season but got two goals and Christian Eriksen also got one in a three nil win. To be honest it could of and probably should have been more convincing. I personally think Goodison Park is a tough place to go, so I was delighted with the three points and the manner of the victory.

It is fair to say that Jeff was less delighted that he had just seen his team well beaten at home. There was some text banter during the game and we still met up after to head into the City Centre for a few drinks. Well I mean it was Saturday Night. We started off at a pub on Matthew Street, which is the same street that the famous original Cavern Club was in. We then went to the bar above Liverpool’s famous Parr Studios.

Then we popped in to The Jacaranda. Which was the bar in Liverpool where the Beatles played their very first gig. The music is always great in there. They have a jukebox which always has top tunes on it. We then just continued having a good time. Which at one point included having a few shots of Tequila. Which is something I had not done for years. After a few more bars we jumped in a taxi and called it a night. It was another brilliant weekend in a place where I do really enjoy visiting. I am sure it probably will not be too long before I am back there once again.

Now when I was booking the trains for Liverpool. I noticed that by getting them in advance the difference between say a normal and a first class ticket was twelve pounds. I have done a lot of train journeys over the years but I had never tried this option. So I thought it was about time that changed. Therefore I treated myself to see what it was like. And to see if it was worth it for future reference. It was just me travelling. I had asked for a window seat. Which ended up being just one seat all by itself. While still meeting my requirements. I have to confess it did feel kind of good walking into the first class carriage and sitting down in my reserved seat.

There was plenty of leg room and it was a decent comfy seat. There was complimentary water available. Then about twenty minutes in to the journey they offered a free snack pack. Which contained some sandwiches, pretzels, a chocolate cookie and a biscuit. Which as I very much wanted to get my money’s worth. I ate it all. Then about an hour or so in to the trip they came round offering tea or coffee. I enjoyed the experience and thought it was a very civilised way to travel. I must admit as long as there was a bit of a deal on it. I would happily give first class a go again. But only if my travel time was more than two hours. Anything less would be pointless, I think. It was a nice little bit of luxury to round off a fun weekend away.

The week has been very Tottenham Hotspur heavy as I went to see the Champions League game against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley Stadium on Wednesday. It was a brilliant performance from my team and a very good win against a very skillful and exciting side. It was one all inside the first ten minutes. With the way each team were attacking at that point I feared it might end up eight all. Spurs got on top, the whole team played well and we won three-one. Which is a massive three points to get in such a competitive and tough league. It was a perfect start to the campaign.

Fair play to the Dortmund fans they were excellent and did not stop singing and bouncing through the whole ninety minutes. It was also nice to get a good win at Wembley at last. I am looking forward to going to see them play Swansea this evening. When hopefully we will get that first league win at Wembley out of the way. That would really help get our domestic season properly kick started. Plus build momentum after that great win at Everton. Hopefully I will again prove to be a lucky mascot. As we go for three in a row.

I am still busy working in London for the BBC. The other day I found myself in a lift at Broadcasting House with the former England Cricket Captain Michael Vaughan. And while I was having a bite to eat in the canteen the Brexit Minister David Davis also just happened to walk past me. After he had finished having some Breakfast with Andrew Marr. Plus the other day the Killers were playing live outside the building. Which was pretty cool.

Finally just a quick reminder that you can still hear me for one more week on Red Kite Radio this Monday to Thursday 4pm – 7pm and Friday 4pm – 8pm . Listen Here

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil

Life Is The Name Of The Game

September 2, 2017 Neil

Hi there, how are you doing? I hope you have had a really good couple of weeks. Mine have been pretty busy with some fun stuff going on. Last week I went and had a long over due cup of tea and catch up with my good friend Dez Kay. We have known each other now for around twenty years, although neither of us look old enough. We first met when I was starting out at Stoke Mandeville Hospital Radio. We both used to do shows on a Tuesday night and from their our friendship blossomed. We also along with two other colleagues Merv Davidson and Nick Sievewright used to do a lot of discos together. We used to hire ourselves out to help raise money for the radio station. Which is a registered charity.

We had so many brilliant nights. I have not enjoyed doing gigs so much since. We were doing it for fun and because we wanted to. So it was just some mates having a good laugh. I mean it did help that we were very good and always went down a storm. We did used to put on a bit of a show. What started out as us just leading a few well known dances turned in to us having a routine of about four or five that we would all perform. Which towards the end did happen to involve outfits.

Happily I have never seen the evidence but we were videoed so many times that somewhere out there, I suspect there is some footage of the four of us doing the YMCA in costume. If you did ever happen to see us do it live. I can only apologise. We had a lot of fun together, which I never managed to recreate when I started doing gigs professionally. That is the trouble I guess, no matter how much you love doing something. When it changes from being your hobby to your actual job. It is never quite the same.

Anyway it was great to see Dez and talk about the present, as we both tend to keep ourselves very busy. He was about to go off and host a special Elvis Weekend to mark the 40th Anniversary of his death with another mate of ours Alvin Printwhistle. Then last weekend he was on stage at a big open air music event in Aylesbury working with lots of great bands. He still presents regularly on Stoke Mandeville Hospital Radio doing a couple of weekly shows.

It would be nice to do something together again. As I have not worked with him on anything for ages. We do have some pretty good rock and roll style stories from the good old days. Although details of any of these I am afraid will have to wait until I write a book. I could honestly just sit, drink tea and talk to people all day. In fact one weekend when I was visiting Yeovil. I think I did just that for about six hours straight in a coffee shop.

So sadly the legend that was Sir Bruce Forsyth is no longer with us. He died after a long illness at the age of eighty-nine recently. If you look back at his career and see what he achieved and also how he achieved it, you cannot fail to be impressed. He really was a great all round entertainer, who could do it all. But he was probably at his best when he had members of the public to talk to and an audience to entertain.

I remember watching him host the Generation Game. He would have me in stitches, when gently taking the rise out of the contestants. While they were playing and often failing badly during the games and challenges. Personally I always loved it when the very end game involved a small play. In which they would have to read their lines off props and ad-lib, as they went along. Bruce was great in that, showing off his acting skills. Perfect Saturday night family television.

I never got to meet him in person. But a few years ago I went to the launch show for Strictly Come Dancing. Which in the end happened to be the last full series he hosted. It was a recorded show. As normal with television shows they had a warm up, who came out told a few jokes and got the audience clapping and cheering. All ready to be a part of the show. Then before the cameras started rolling Bruce comes out and does about twenty minutes of chatting to the audience, some dancing and then he performed a song with the Strictly Band. Absolutely spell binding entertainment from the master. The audience loved it.

For me that was when he was at his best up on stage in front of a crowd with a band. He received some criticism towards the end about his reading of the auto cue on the show but that was never his thing really. Feeling the audience and responding to their energy was more his bag. He nearly quit show business completely when he was thirty. He had given himself five years to “Make it” and that time was almost up when he got selected to front Sunday Night At The Palladium and the rest as they say is history. RIP Brucie.

It has been a mixed start for my team Tottenham Hostpur in the Premier League. After a win in our first game away at Newcastle it was down to earth with a bump after we were beaten at our new temporary home Wembley by Chelsea. Which was followed by another home draw against Burnley. But it is still early days, so I remain positive. I have for the first time in years bought myself a current Spurs home shirt and because mentally I am still about ten years old. I had to have number ten and my surname on the back.

I am looking forward to wearing it to my first home game of the season against Swansea. I am also going to see them play Everton away next Saturday. Which has now become an annual event, basically so I can spend a weekend in Liverpool catching up with Jeff Nolan. I always have a good time up in that city seeing everyone. I think I have already seen Tottenham win, lose and draw at Goodison in the past, so I am prepared for anything. It will be a fun couple of days whatever happens with the football.

Staying with Football and Everton related things. Wayne Rooney has announced his retirement from the International set up. I have seen him play for his country several times at Wembley over the years. I could never fault his attitude and commitment. I was behind the goal the night he converted that penalty to become England’s all time record goal scorer, finally over taking Sir Bobby Charlton. Who had held that title for a very long time.

Although Gary Lineker was once close to taking his crown. Wayne also holds the record for the most caps for an outfield player. Which is also a brilliant achievement. Only Peter Shilton has played more games for England than him. Yet still people claim he is overrated.

What more could he do in his career apart from break all the records he has and win all the trophies that he has for his club side? If people are making this judgement on the fact that he never won the European Cup or The World Cup with his country. Then they are basically saying we have not had a decent player since 1966, which is clearly not the case. I still think he had more to offer and could have still played a part in next year’s World Cup.

I did say right at the start of this year that I would like to do a bit more radio presenting again. So now I am going to be appearing on Red Kite Radio for a bit. It is a new community radio station for Thame, Haddenham and the villages. Which launched around three months ago. It was set up and is run by quite a few people that I have worked with at Mix 96 over the years. Including the man who gave me my first ever on air gig Pete Simester.

So it is great to be working with so many familiar faces and voices again. I am on Monday to Thursday from 4pm – 7pm and Friday 4pm – 8pm looking after the Drive Time Show for a while. You can listen on 107.2 fm or online via the website which is http://www.redkiteradio.com/ It is lovely to be back on the radio in my home county once again.

I was out for a few drinks in London in the week which included a visit to the BBC Club. This is a bar area that is available only to employees of the Corporation. It is just a nice small room with some tables and chairs and a small stage area. As from time to time every month they put on various types of entertainment. It was only the third or fourth time that I have been in there. Though it seems in theory great to have somewhere cool to grab a quick drink after work so near by. In reality most days by the time I finish I just want to head home.

But somebody was moving departments and location so it was a good excuse to get together and have a few drinks. As well as the club we did visit a few other pubs in the area. Plus I managed to grab dinner with my cousin at an Italian Restaurant. Which was very nice, with friendly staff and good food.

I also treated myself to a glass of red wine with the meal. It was so nice I actually tried to find out which one it was but the waiter claimed you could not buy it anywhere and that they have a special deal with the supplier. Now I guess either he was telling the truth or it was just a cheap bottle of supermarket stuff and he did not want to tell me or I would see how big their mark up was on it. It was an enjoyable night all round.

I am really looking forward to going to see the current production of Annie in London, which stars Miranda Hart as Miss Hannigan. I saw a version of it many years ago at the Wycombe Swan with Su Pollard in that very role. As it happens I was there with my now fellow Red Kite Radio presenter Richard Carr.

I remember really enjoying the show. It is a beautiful and inspirational story. So I am curious to see this latest version. Plus I do just really enjoy a good night out at the theatre.

It has been another couple of interesting weeks at work in London. I walked past the unmistakable figure of Richard Osman near Marylebone Station the other day. He is kind of hard to miss because of his height. I was going to say hello, as he seems like a nice bloke but as I was about to speak I noticed he had his headphones in, so probably would not have heard me. Unless that is his cunning ploy to avoid talking to annoying people in the street.

I also saw Robbie Savage jog past me in the office having finished 606. I had to sit opposite Ian Wright for a bit just after Tottenham had been beaten by Chelsea, which was made worse by the fact as an ex Arsenal player. I could just sense he was enjoying that result. I also got to watch the brilliant Peter Allen and Jane Garvey do their Five Live Show, which was a fantastic experience.

Have fun and we will catch up again in a couple of weeks. Cheers Neil

Neil Quigley

Monthly Archives: September 2017

You Can’t Be Serious

Sweet Soul Music

Life Is The Name Of The Game

Neil Quigley Presenter