Hello again, I hope all is well with you. And that you have had a very good couple of weeks. My fortnight has flown by helped by the fun and interesting things that I have either attended or been directly involved in. At the moment I am right in the the middle of working with Regatta Radio supplying full race and behind the scenes coverage of this year’s Henley Royal Regatta. It has been a fantastic week so far with lots of excitement and some brilliant races from out on the Thames. Although I am very busy producing the live coverage and overseeing all of the website content including the daily Podcast’s for the event. I am having an absolutely ball. It certainly has a unique atmosphere. It really does attract its fair share of interesting characters both as competitors and as spectators. Tomorrow it is finals day which is always a spectacular occasion. As is the case with the whole of the Regatta week. It is a very colourful affair with a glittering array of bright and elaborate blazers on display from current and former rowers. Who are members of the many different rowing clubs that are represented. I have spent most of the time working away in the portable studios but I have managed to get down to the waterfront a couple of times and catch a little bit of the action. It is the 175th Anniversary of the annual event. During which. in certain areas of the course you can walk pass a ridiculous amount of Olympic Medal winners in the space of just a few seconds. I will tell you more about my time at the Henley Royal Regatta. Working with the great team at Regatta Radio. When I speak to you next in a few weeks time.

It really is an amazing summer of sport once again this year. With it all seemingly happening at the same time. As well as the Henley Regatta. It is also the Wimbledon Tennis Championship finals weekend, the British Grand Prix and we still have the small matter of the World Cup going on in Brazil. So starting with the tennis it was great to see the reaction Andy Murray got from the Centre Court crowd. When he walked out to start the defence of the men’s singles title he won last year. It was a really nice standing ovation he received before his first match, very well deserved for his efforts last year. Shame it did not quite work out for him this year. It would be nice to have a British winner of the Grand Prix this year. Which looking at the form guide so far this season. It would seem that Lewis Hamilton may well be our best hope of achieving this. The World Cup goes on without England of course. Who were out of the running after just two games. The team I got in the Wembley Stadium sweepstake did not fare much better. I had Honduras in the draw who were not good enough to win the whole event and win me the big money. As they were knocked out at the group stages. But annoyingly they were not even bad enough to win me any of the booby prizes that were on offer. For the first team to get knocked out of the competition or for the team who conceded the most goals in the group stage. I actually thought I might have had an outside chance with those two options but they were too good for them in the end. On the plus side the people that drew out Spain, Italy and Portugal all suffered the same fate as me.

Last Sunday it was the Tringe Festival Roving Comedy Night in Tring. This is the comedy event at which I made my stand up comedy debut a couple of years ago on the back of an eight week course with the comedy guru that is Logan Murray. The night always signals the start of the three week Tringe Comedy Festival. Which features performances from lots of excellent comedians. On the Roving Night the new trainee comedians do four different gigs in four different pubs around Tring. Accompanied by a professional comic. Who headlines their little section of the show. So the audience stays in the same pub all night and the comedians travel round to them at about half an hour intervals. It is a fantastic idea which works really well. Each pub is hosted by a comedian who was a trainee comedian themselves in a previous year. So as they have been through it themselves in the past. They are very sympathetic and supportive to all the newbies. As are the audience who know what the idea of the night is in advance. Plus many of them are often there to support someone they know who is performing. When I did it, it was one of the most fun experiences of my life. The buzz you get from getting your first laughs is amazing. And the excitement of travelling around and facing a new test with a new audience every half an hour. Certainly gives you a constant adrenalin rush for the whole of the evening. But it is all worth it for the feeling you get when you all meet up after to have a chat and a drink with the rest of your classmates. Who have all just shared the same amazing experience as you. I was on a high for the next week after I did it.

So for this year’s Roving Comedy Night I was an audience member at the Robin Hood Pub in Tring. The stage was set up at the back of the venue in their beer garden. I managed to get myself a seat right on the front row. It had been quite a nice pleasant and warm day. So I went along just wearing a shirt forgetting that I was going to be sat outside and that England is very much not a tropical country. Which meant by about half way through the evening. When the sun had gone in I was actually freezing. Which I have to admit did take the edge off the comedy a bit. Through no fault of the performers. Just because I was starting to shiver a bit. Luckily the mate who I was with had looked out a load of clothes to take to the charity shop. Which he had put in his car ready to drop off. So before the last group of comedians arrived he nipped out to his car and lent me a jacket. Which did mean I could stay outside and enjoy the whole of the show in more comfort. Well done to all the trainee comedians doing their first gigs. I thought they were all great. It is a really tough thing to do. I remember what I felt like before my first performances. So I could really feel what they were going through. I hope they all enjoyed the experience and would not be put off standing up and trying to make people laugh again. The four professional comics were all brilliant. It was great to see Arthur Smith and Silky perform again. They were both on the bill when I did The Roving Comedy Night. And they were once again both very funny. I also got to see two new performers, who I had not seen before Paul B Edwards and Gavin Webster. Who were both fantastic. It was a really great night and really made me want to get out and do some more stand up comedy. I really enjoyed watching but part of me wanted to just get up and do a little bit last night. A big well done to Ben Moorhouse and the team for organising a top night. And well done to everyone involved including the audiences for making it such a great success.

I mentioned Arthur Smith performing at the Roving Comedy Night. To do that he had travelled straight from the Glastonbury Festival. Where he was also performing. He did literally turn up in just the clothes he had from the Somerset event, including some of the Pilton farm mud still on his trousers.Taking into consideration that he was a man who I would guess had not had much sleep during the previous forty eight hours. He was still brilliant. The mark of a true performer. From what I have seen it does appear this year’s Glastonbury was as fantastic as ever. With some truly great sets played in front of tens of thousands of very content festival goers. Who did not let a couple of pretty big storms dampen their spirits. I have to confess I would have liked to have been there in that field to see Dolly Parton’s performance. I bet that it was pretty amazing and spectacularly odd in equal measure. When I was working down in Somerset I was lucky enough to be able to experience Glastonbury for myself. One year I went for the whole weekend, camping and hanging out in the backstage area. Which I have to say was pretty cool. The year after I managed to get down there for the Sunday only. It has a very unique vibe, atmosphere and energy to it. There is also so much to see and do there that it is impossible to even enjoy a tenth of what is on offer. You will end up missing lots of things you want to see. As they clash with other performances or because you will not have the time to walk round the site. From where you are to where you want to be. Me and my mate I went with must have spent a good three hours walking around the place and in doing so we probably only caught three or four brief appearances on the stages we were passing. The best thing about having backstage passes was that there was a special pathway from the bar to both the Pyramid and Other Stage. So it was easy to move between them quite quickly. So I could see a bit of the set of each of the two bands playing those stages at the same time. Which if you have ever been to the Festival you will know is impossible if you have to walk round between the stages.  As that is about a forty minute walk.

During my two trips to Glastonbury I have seen some great performances including sets from Arcade Fire, Kaiser Chiefs, Paul Weller, Manic Street Preachers, Lily Allen Amy Winehouse, Artic Monkeys, Killlers. The Who, Reverend and the Makers, Scouting for Girls and Mark Ronson. I am actually quite a fan of the Sunday afternoon slot where they tend to put on an artist you would not expect to appear there. Like this year Dolly Parton. In the two years I went to Glastonbury the two artists who performed in that slot were Shirley Bassey and Neil Diamond. Both were brilliant and the festival crowd really got in to the spirit of things and really embraced their shows. We all sung along with Neil’s big hits. And I remember the huge reception Shirley Bassey got when walking out on stage wearing a ball gown and a diamond covered pair of Wellington Boots. I have to confess I did not really watch much of the coverage of this year’s event. But that is only because if I did it would have just made me wish I was actually there enjoying it first hand for myself. I would love to go to it again at some point in the future. I have some great memories from the place including standing next to Will Young while having a drink, seeing Stephen Merchant, Dara O’Briain and Mark Owen walking around plus seeing Lily Allen walk right past me wearing an amazing Muppet Babies coat while her dad was standing behind her dressed as a mushroom. It is a crazy, wild, fun and brilliant event. It is even just worth staying in a tent for four nights for. Although if I do go back I might be tempted so see if I can get camper van this time. Just for a tiny bit more comfort.

I am dusting off my CD’s later tonight to DJ at my Uncle and Aunty’s Fortieth Wedding Anniversary at a local pub. It should be a fun party night. I have got lots of great tunes lined up and ready to play. My family to be fair do know how to let their hair down and enjoy themselves. Which with the general lack of hair within the family myself included. That is actually quite an achievement.

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