Dear Friends of German Comedy,
I write this bulletin on my way back from a weekend of comedy gigs in Liverpool. And what a weekend it has been.
A single cab ride to my accommodation confirmed every stereotype there is about Scousers. As I’m not ginger the cabbie immediately turned entertainer/tour guide and started pointing out sights: “This is Bootle Strand, where James Bulger got abducted.” “This roundabout is called 3 Banks, because there was a bank on each street corner. Nowadays there isn’t a single bank because they all got robbed.”
All delivered with a genuine pride that people of other cities have reserved for architectural masterpieces and the birthplaces of Nobel Prize winners.
Over breakfast I found out that I had also been overcharged by £5. Welcome to the European City of Culture 2008.
The day before I went up to Liverpool I had a gig in Brighton and spend all day on the beachfront. To my greatest delight I overheard a magnificent sound-bite of modern Englishness. ‘Nah, he can’t come to the pub. His missus lost their baby a few weeks back and tonight is their first shag again.’
The matter-of-factness almost came close to the mother of all conversations, witnessed by fellow stand-up Nik Coppin on a recent late-night train journey: two twenty-somethings discussing relationship problems. Woman A was distraught about a break-up and wanted to get back together with her ex. All pretty unexciting until B remarked: ‘I understand you. But he still shouldn’t have head-butted you.’
Who says romance is dead?
A big thank you to everybody who came to see 1000 Years of German Humour in Farringdon. The first preview was abysmal but following much improvement the show was almost mediocre by the end of the run.
It would be great if you could come and see the finished article at the Edinburgh Festival from 31 July – 24 August. Every night from 6.40pm at Underbelly on Cowgate.
Further information here: http://www.underbelly.co.uk/webpages/edinburgh/edinburgh-show.php?id=61:1212537375
Otto and I will also be performing an extended version of the show at Questors
Theatre Ealing from October 16-18. Please check www.questors.org.uk
nearer the time.
Have a great August and enjoy the start of the football season
Henning
