Oooh iiii, i just died on my arse tonight (must have been something i said) Gig53

My 8 spot for winning the Mr Bens gong show last time fell on a night when there were only about 14 people in so i had hoped for better for the 2nd one and indeed i got better, the place was full.
I would be sharing 8 spot duty with David Marshall who was doing his 7th gig and had once again brought a lot of mates to Mr Bens to support him.
on the bill were some great acts including Jed Salisbury, Andy Woolston, Jon Newell, and John Taylor.... oh yeah and Si Finnigan!

There was a nice buzz in the room and a boisterous audience seemed to be in laugh mode as they lapped Lewis Charlesworth's ever enjoyable MCing (remember my 1st gig when i said i didn't like him? well that doesn't count any more)
David asked me to go 1st citing that he had mates coming from London that were not here yet, clearly not true but i didn't mind going 1st and kinda thought i would do well especially when i hear Jed stormed it with his opening 15, 2 weeks back, i'm not saying i'm as good as Jed hell no but i am saying that i thought opens were very difficult but now i know you can do well.

So on i went, and i should have known i would struggle from the outset as there was lots of talking as i walked on and began. Talking yes but laughing.... sadly no, even my new improved chicken routine (often a banker) got little, i tried to ignore the lack of response and just gig through it but my delivery was starting to fail, i rushed out 2 jokes overstepped myself and had to reel it back in, i was die ing on my arse!! and not only that but i over ran too, time to get the hell off and go cry in a corner.
Oddly however i did not feel too worried when i came off, i just thought oh well, there will be next time.
David's set was full of derogatory jokes about women on dating sites and some self depreciating stuff, not the worst for only 7 gigs but he does sound like he is permanently pissed when delivering the lines, i'm sure he means well but he did tell me i need to find a voice and stop doing both one liners and stories..... ok i died tonight but 52 gigs v 7 i'll just carry on as i am for now thanks.

a brief run through of the gong show then, 1st up was Liverpudlian John Taylor, very funny opening set very dry delivery and some intelligent writing too, i saw John at CSCDDC and was pleased to see his stuff again, very much one to watch out for, Dave Tandy followed, Dave is still fairly new and he was better tonight than in Telford where i 1st saw him but still needs to polish up a little maybe? his jokes were nicely thought and he like John beat the gong. Next was Sam Price (hopefully i get the 2 Sams right way round) he was a young guy seemingly very new and did not take the opportunity to engage with an audience member who had a ridiculous delayed laugh, his stuff was ok but i think he had 2 cards and was perhaps fortunate to survive? this means that the next act will have to be really on it to survive as 3 acts through already and the audience were after a loo break, i think Andy Woolston knew this and i doubt he will mind me saying he lacked energy as a result, almost like he was consigned to the gong already, a shame as he has great stuff. the other Sam was next, he was doing anti jokes, they were unnecessarily wordy for me and his set while clever did not have enough jokes but he survived the gong.
After the break Jon Newell opened section 3, i missed the 1st min or so and arrived back to my seat to see him on his knees yelling damn you diabetes, Jon was nailing it tonight and looking more confident which was awesome, he did have a card go up but dealt with that and a heckler nicely.
Julie Jones followed, with 250+ gigs behind her she looked totally at ease in her character role as a chav, the audience loved it.
Dave Pollard followed, always hard to follow an act who did well and Dave struggled, i suspect he is very new too so i'm sure he will bounce back but this time it was a gong. Jed was next, normally so very reliable Jed was doing fine until a new bit didnt quite work and he seemed to be knocked off rhythm by that, normally ths would have been ok but there was a complete tool on the front carding almost everyone and not once laughing, he waited for Jed to turn away and carded him goading the others to card and annoyingly they obliged.
Si Finnigan was next, Si was going through the gears older stuff to new, he had just done a great bit about french lessons and was on to dating when a card went up again goaded by the tossbag in the front row, but Si launched into a brilliant response on why the ad went up and began bantering with the audience, it was awesome and more than enough to beat the gong.
The final act Keiron Casserly i did not see much of, but sadly he too was gonged and it was vote time.

The audience had already decided before the vote was being cast and Julie Jones went on to win.

i was able to reflect on my disaster of a performance and perfect it in time for Thursdays trip to Bolton.

Gong, Gong, Gone. Gigs50-52

Mr Bens is kind of becoming my comedy home ground so when i saw that they were again asking for gong acts i could not resist. it would mean that this week i would have 2 gong show gigs and a semi final of a talent show.

gig 50
Having finished work later than usual i was 1st on the scene at Mr B's having loitered in town until 7pm then wandered up to the comedy club. on the bill were Thom Milson and Lindsay Davies doing 8 spots and amongst the gong contestants some great talents such as Jon Newell, Chris Washington and Danny Cox. I was 1st on the list after swapping with Jon as he wanted to move back a slot to prepare, that was fine with me as i was taking a notepad on to the stage to road test some new and newish jokes. i also wanted to work on an older piece of material that i abandoned after 3 times testing it in my 1st 10 gigs or so. a decision had been made not to do the gong as there were only 16 people in so i was less apprehensive now about this approach. it went ok and i seemingly did 6 mins without overly boring anyone!
Jon Newell followed and was also more at ease without the worry of the gong, the irony being if he performed like this during the gong he may win it, it was still a nervous performance but that is what Jon does and the jokes flowed even when he knocked over a pint of water while leaning over an amused audience member Alison Grosser. Ciaran Mullins, Chris Washington and Edy Hurst completed the 1st half, Ciaran was charming and pleasant Chris was downright funny and just rapidly becoming at ease with this despite having a lull in his set, deffo a guy to watch out for and Edy.... well Edy just needs to keep going and working on his set, it was confusing at times what he was trying to do but there is something there for him to work with and when he has the finished set polished i'm sure it will be a surreal and funny show. Danny Cox, Beu Carter, and an impromptu performance from Rob James Alexander made up the 2nd half before Mark Haden had a rant about the hunger games that was full on and actually very funny. the night was not the same without the gong but still all good experience for me.

gig 51
Next gig was another gong show this time in Sheffield for Spikey Mike, a lot of names i know on the bill which was going to be fun, i had decided to bring my a game materiel and try to win it but given the quality i was up against this was going to be tough. there were 17 acts lined up to take part including 3 débutantes one aged 15, one aged 16 (not sure on the age of the other)
in the draw i was able to secure a fairly nice slot in 9th right in the middle of the middle section. the acts i was up against were Danny Cox, Ross Brierely, Rich Hodkin, Steve Goodall, Kappa Llewellyn, Josh Barker, Martin Hastie, Alison Grosser, and some i have not met like the newbies Scott Liversedge, Lucy Wardrobe and the 16 yr old lad whose name escaped me.
I wont say too much about the show as so many acts took part but i will say eventual winner Martin Hastie stormed it with his superb one liner act, i have mentioned before how great he would be when he gets better at performing and that is now proving true as he has such great writing. Danny Cox went 1st so dificult job for him and again as with Mr Bens on Monday he just looked at ease on stage, i always enjoy his set and one of the best jokes ever (the Scarface one for those who were there)
Steve Goodall was also in great form and also joined the aforementioned acts in the final, pretty much what i expet from steve, always great fun to see him in action. Josh Barker doing only his 4th gig got through too along with musical act Rajin Chowdry and finally myself, i went through oddly after being red glowsticked by one judge at the 1st vote then green at the 2nd and all the others keeping me green as i rambled through the silly routine i now have. i was not quite at the laugh rate of some of the others but i was on my way. The 16 yr old débutante also joined us in the final, a great effort on his 1st gig, the other 2 débutantes had odd openings, the 15 yr old girl while being filmed by her dad joked about giving her boyfriend a blowjob...... awkward! but the winner of worst 1st line ever was Scott Liversedge who opened with laugh or i'll fuck a child... in the mouth!!!! he then continued to dig his grave at one pint saying doing worry she's a lovely girl, as if peodophilic rape against lovely girls was ok? the guy at least stuck around to see how other acts do it and tried to get tips.

Gig 52
the Semi final at Burscough, 2 comedians made up part of the 10 strong semi final, myself and Kevin Connerely, Kevin is a large fella with a lovely Scottish accent and blutoe like beard, his jokes are well thought out and he includes singing in his acts too which is nice in this competition. i really enjoyed his set and felt a little disgruntled when he was told he had disappointed the judges for doing jokes they heard him do in the earlier round, this seemed unfair when singers were praised for doing covers or songs they had sung in previous rounds. Kevin however had done enough to get through and deservedly so for my money.
i went on immediately after what i would describe as a novelty singing act who was very very funny, the energy from his performance may be what i could ride off but there was to be a break 1st.
I did some of my new jokes, some additions to my existing set and my tried and tested 5 mins mixed in. The audience seemed to like it and laughed at key points but it was not enough as i discovered at the x factor style final vote i was one of the acts eliminated. a shame but just another learning curve as my performance must have lacked energy this time around.

Mr Bens again next for my 8 spot

Hull, Hudds then Hell gigs47-49

Another triple gig blog takes me from gig 46 to 49 as i edge towards 6 months in comedy. This was to be a week of difficult or poor performances from me starting and ending in Hull.

GIG 47

My previous 2 gigs in Hull had been excellent so i guess complacency may have crept in to my performance although i try to never allow that. The key to being booked would be to make sure that i can perform the same standard every time delivering every line perfectly each time while never forgetting a joke and always being self aware if i’m struggling or running over time. These of course are things i had picked up from the forums as im not anywhere near being booked yet (when i say booked i mean for paid gigs albeit i imagine if and when that happens it will be ad hoc). This next Hull gig was one that hammered home that i must remain consistent and not just assume a type of audience will react a certain way.

The gig was booked by Jed and Andy who i love performing with and coming along would also be Si Finnigan and Thom Milson with fantastic Billy Lowther and Rich Austin making the line up complete.

The room was small but quaint and looked very much like a reading room in a stately home. It was Hot up in there though and the heat played its part in the night. Jed would host and while he claims not to be a great MC his energy and likeability make him a good choice. Andy Woolston went on 1^st, he  was a little ring rusty but did a good job to an audience that for want of a better word were not comedy Savvy (ok thats 2 words). It’s not that they were a bad audience but i get the impression they weren’t too sure what was going on. Si Finnigan followed and he was doing some new stuff, it was a more composed i guess performance from Si and the best i had seen him with some great lines. We had a short break and re jigged the running order, Steve Rimmer went next with a very entertaining show, it was not full of punch lines or jokes but was still very engaging and the audience loved it, Billy Lowther went next and stuck steadfastly to his time limit and traditional comedy formula set up punchline after thought, his joke rate is brilliant and delivery is dry, he stormed it.

Thom followed Billy but although Billy did not over run it seemed we were behind schedule and the heat was becoming an issue for the audience so Thom had to work hard to keep the focus. He did better than he thinks at this but cut his set short sensing the desire to get air.

I went on after the break and just did not perform at all, it took me a god 5 mins to get going and my bankers did not land, but i figured suck it up and keep going so i did and began to get them back, as i did so i too went over my time by a 1 min 30 (a faux pas). I felt ok by the end but knew i had not performed too well. Rich Austin completed the evening with yet another headline performance that was nailed. Great stuff from him and i enjoyed my night overall.

GIG 48

Bar 122 Huddersfield was the venue for this, it is a gig run by the lovely Sally Jones. Sally competed at SYTYF and was the only lady in our heat, i was surprised she did not progress.  She would not be performing tonight but there were some familiar faces, Dave Rivers who was at Mr Bens on my debut night, Adam blaize and Joe White who were in Southport  plus David Marshall who was in Stockton with me, also performing was newbie Ian Wood a wheelchair bound act who struggles to get stage time due to so many comedy gigs being cellars or upstairs rooms, Peter Nicholson was doing his 1^st gig and also Graham Lee was doing an Edinburgh preview.

It was not too busy with only 6 in the audience plus the other acts but we all just did what we could. I followed Ian who went 1^st, it was hard work for such a new act and MC Lee Moore tried to whip a small crowd into a frenzy!! By the time i went on though it wa still quite flat, i ignored this and just practised delivering my jokes, there were muted giggles and the odd silence. I took as much from it as i could and came off feeling like i had done all i could.

From the other acts i enjoyed Dave Rivers and Graham Lee but i have limited time to review the whole night.

GIG 49

So i had said i like Hull.... i take it back!! This was a charity gig at a rugby club and was never going to be easy from the moment we arrived and saw the kids running around, but re wind a bit to the journey,

I travelled with 2 great acts and really great guys in Rich Hodkin and Ross Brierley and like with every car journey and despite the fact we are all total newbies to comedy who really know nothing we dissected comedy and put the comedy world to rights. We discussed how to deal with a bad gig or quiet gig, recently Ross and I had been at a bad gig (that i booked for so i take responsibility) and at this gig 2 of the acts referenced all of the negatives and were a bit dejected, now this is not criticism levelled at them but we discussed how to not do that when faced with that situation or rather how to make the best of it. The outcome was that no matter what we are faced with we figured just give it our best and do what we can, worst case scenario shorten the set down and get off!

Well little did we know how soon we would be faced with that difficult gig!, so forward to our arrival and i was already worried by the wall between the stage area and the audience, as MC for the night i thought i would need to get people forward of that wall. Rich Austin was waiting for us in the bar area, he had booked us but he was not responsible for the gig it was the rugby club who were to blame!! Billy Lowther was again on the bill. Im not sure really how to explain the events that unfolded, i went up to MC, it was hot, there were kids no older that 3 running around screaming, they were running on the stage and throwing balloons at me and all the other acts yet their parents cared not one bit, the sound system was awful, but also the rooms acoustics were and as i conversed with the audience i could not hear a thing they were saying back to me. It was just surreal, there was no laughter (i realise that could be due to my not being funny!) Billy started the night as an act and his brilliant set struggled, he was interrupted by children on the stage twice at least if not 3 or 4 times. An odd start! There was a birthday boy in the audience, a big lad called Liam, Rich Hodkin opened his set by hugging him which led nicely into his new stuff, Rich gets better every time i see him and dealt with this odd night well. We were meant to have a break now but decided to plow through, although the next act Ross was in the shitter as he was suffering from gastroenteritis or something similar!! I had to introduce him to the stage straight from the toilet! This got some laughter finally for me and Ross as usual improvised his set to incorporate the dicky tummy, oh and to mention how i somehow wound up in a rugby club gay off (basically 2 rugby guys were doing press ups to prove who was gayest, so i adopted a camp walk to join in but they just ran away... odd??)

A new audience member had joined us before Ross came on, he had 4 teeth, a beard, scruffy balding hair, he was a slight looking guy but he had a crazy stare.... despite having both shoes on he had a converse trainer in his hand... which he began talking to, then he thought it was a phone... then he told me he was Elvis...... what the fuck is going on!!!

The heat driving most of the audience outside Rich Austin came on to headline to about 14 people.. the ones who were listening. He did yet another flawless job and i took heart from the fact that laughter for him was not out loud so given his qualities i felt better.

And at last the end!! I tried to thank a few of the audience members but one said if i came near her she would hit me?? Not sure why but she looked like she meant it, but birthday boy liam looked like he had had fun although midway through the night i was handed a pint to give him for his birthday... it was pure spirit one of everything from the top shelf..... he might be dead now and i contributed somehow!!

Ah well, next up a little stint at Mr Bens Gong show!

Is Tupilow really a place? Gig46

A new experience was waiting for me in my 46^th gig, performing on a stage the size of my coffee table, but a stage is a stage and it was not as much an issue for me as it was for Dave McAndrew who fell off it!! This gig was Southport at a lovely little venue called Bar Humbug. Once again my travel buddy Dave was in the car but just the 2 of us this time, no Ben Gibson needing a wee for 10 miles, no Quinny stopping off and having a massive all day breakfast and No Jed and Andy passing in a separate car waving at us but still plenty of journey banter.

This gig is run by Kirst Murdoch who’s husband Bobby, Dave and I gigged with in Tyldesley. I believe they also run other gigs but neither would be present for this one instead Sean Riley would be looking after us/the gig

The drive was around 1 hour 45 mins the journey bathed in sunshine and most of the way there the conversation was based around gigs past and where we are going or want to go in comedy. It was during this chat the reality that i want to go into pro comedy began to show in my head, a million miles away from achieving this if i even ever do but i now know what i want from performing comedy. But part of the chat was about would it be as much fun if i relied on this for a living? Would i enjoy long road trips if they were not a hobby? Well lets be honest... how much do i enjoy answering phones for Debenhams as per my current job? (nothing against that as a job but its not enjoyable by definition).

We also chatted about possibly going to Edinburgh next year for experience, i will most definitely still be an open spot act next year but one with more experience and confidence.

On arrival at the gig i lost the tenner Dave gave me for fuel and made an arse of parking the car but we like children decided we must go see the Sea after the gig (not sure why)so there was that to look forward to.

The venue was small but cute if that makes sense, there were no punters though but we were assured there would be some so Dave tagged along as i went and bought myself some seaside grilled chicken to prevent me from doing my standard mcdonalds stop off. By the time i returned my old school pal Ian Adamczyk who now lives and works in the north west arrived to support which was awesome, Chiki as he was known was a great footballer, fast runner and general mischief causer at school, but it was the mischief he was best known for!! He was now a business owner and a genuine hard working guy, very nice to see him, not least because he doubled the audience!! 2 girls who just ambled in making the rest of the audience of 4 at this stage and it seemed the gig would be called off, but Dave and i wanted to do it despite the other 2 acts having not turned up (they turned up but a little late in the end)

After the MC said he would pull the gig if we wanted we were worried it would not be on so talked him into allowing us to do it one way or another either just myself and Dave doing 20 min spots or the other 2 guys turn up and we all do 10 (they did turn up as mentioned) so Sean was happy for us to go ahead. The door was closed, blinds pulled down, curtains shut and off we went with Dave Mac going 1^st, he was doing his ugly bastard bit which is funny enough as it is but added to it by mentioning no need to close doors curtains and blinds!! Brilliant! Dave’s set saw him fall off the tiny stage as mentioned above and involved him talking to a guy who had just been on holiday in Tupilow, i had decided to use that when i go on and some how make a 2 pillow joke (i opted to suggest it must be nice to holiday in Tupilow as where i go you struggle to get a second bed sheet never mind 2 pillows!! Not great but it worked)

I just attacked my set as if the place was full, the other acts and the 6 staff members (they were off duty but came to support i guess) made the room busier. I added some ad libs referencing the curtains behind the stage that looked like fitting room curtains. There were not laughs a plenty and it was not my greatest hour but i guess i did all i could so was not too worried.

Like the ignorant prat i am i neglected to note the name of the next act, he was seemingly newer than Dave and I but had some nice stuff, he just seemed to lack conviction which i can empathise with. I’m sure that wont last long as he had good jokes.

Next on the final act was a guy i had seen about 3 times called Adam Blaize, he was laid back in his approach and his delivery was nice with material that worked well. It rounded off the night nicely.

So with the gig over Dave and i decided to mooch across the pier to see what was going on (turned out nothing but we did get to see the sea... its still wet) however we were chatting but it ended up in us just taking the piss out of everything ever!! As always i laughed more after the gig, if ever you meet dave ask him about the work he does with adults with learning difficulties and in particular a shower incident!! Hilarious!!

Next gig for me would have been MCing the George but as i have had complications with the venue that is off which is a shame as Danny Razzle, Martin Hastie and the legend that is fingerless Nick (even though he is fully fingered... wait i worded that wrong, he has all his fingers!!) would all have been joining me.  I’ll re schedule asap

Next for me is Hull

A bit early for buggery Gig45

I'm beginning to trust my set at the moment which is  huge step forward for me, i'm under no illusion that i'm suddenly a great act but with each gig and each subsequent blog i feel a touch more confident that i can really turn my set into a solid 20 mins that would work for a club crowd. I am not however sure if  can ever become a decent MC so to be invited to MC in Hull was both a pleasure and a challenge for me. This gig would also officially become my 1st paid gig, i have had expenses at a couple but this was a small profit so i would have to earn it and not let them down.
Jed Salisbury booked me, i hadn't gigged with him for a while and was looking forward to seeing him in action again as he is one of my favourite acts at the moment.

So i set of to Hull in the Yorkshire sunshine mulling over in my head how much of my set i will need and how much will be crowd work. there are a few basic rules to MCing that i know of, rules like have lots of energy, talk to the audience and bring them in to the night, explain the laws of comedy and really just make sure each act is coming on to a warm reception.
Ideas popped in and out of my head during the journey of things i could use to improv from and ways i could engage with the Hull crowd, i tried scrawling some of the ideas down on a bit of scrap paper while driving but that proved fruitless as the notes were barely legible when i finally got to read them.
When i arrived in Hull i was greeted by Jed and event organiser (i think) Steve, they explained the charity bit i would need to do and how the night would run as well as general chit chat while waiting for the band to finish. I bought myself a drink (energy drink of course) and sat down pondering my approach. Things were running through my head at a million miles an hour (say this, try that, do the other) but my early gig nerves that i used to get were no where near as strong, i was still nervous of course (because inside my head is a car crash of self doubt) but the obvious fear like sweaty pits, shaking and standing cross legged cos i need to pee are al gone and on to the stage  i went (i'm lying as there was no stage)
I started off by essentially talking bollocks at a bemused crowd for about 3 or 4 mins, the place was full with only standing room at the back and they were all sat attentively listening to me. I knew i was not starting well but the trick was to keep cool and not let them know i knew which seemed to work as i began to get a reaction from them. sensing i was getting somewhere i went though the big Julie routine..... yeah bit early in the night for tales of buggery but i figured i would get an idea of the level in the room for the acts who were following me on. It seemed to go well and after about 10 mins (i think) MCing i got Adam Rushton on stage.
Adam was opening with a 20 min spot and he went on stage with confidence and an almost casual sense that he would be liked, and why not? he continued in an MC format for a moment further working the Audience before moving into his set which includes a great Tv license story. Adam was warmly applauded by the crowd as he left the stage and we went into 1st break.
2nd section and i just leapt in with jokes from my set mixed in with a bit of chatting with the crowd and highlighting one of my more bizarre twitter followers as i winged it. I wound up doing 8 mins so i had overdone my time and had to get Rich Austin on, and what a great set from Rich, he stormed through his 1st 5 mins as every joke landed having the audience in tears, all this while maintaining a real dead pan style. it was great fun watching the crowds laughter from my vantage point. it seemed his set ended too early as he was cheered from all corners at the end. next on was Katy Truelove doing just a short spot, she was quick to turn up the filthometer and was working it well. Katy ended with a poem that had everyone joining in and filling in the odd blank, she delivered her set nicely although afterwards claimed she had messed up (but i dont think anyone except her knew this)
Another short break and it was time for the headline act, there was no more time for me to ramble on so i rapidly brought Jed to the stage (again i lie when i say stage)
Jed was in tip top form tonight, he ripped the room apart from beginning to end of his set which included new bits or bits i have not head before. Jed's delivery was perfect his energy was infectious and his timing to a tee, i have not seen him this on form before (Hi Jed, i suspect he will be reading and i would have written this anyway) one of the jokes (sadly i forget which one) had one girl at the back of the room literally crying with laughter! an awesome end to yet another great gig in Hull.

Next for me Southport

l'm Jim Hardcock gig44

Gig 44 was a new one for me, it was a talent contest gig that i had been given a heads up about via txt, i thought why the hell not lets enter this and see how it goes. When i entered i was swiftly contacted by the organiser Trixxi who sent me details and rules. Basically there will be up to 8 acts performing music, singing, dancing, comedy or Magic and one will go through, there will then be a 2^nd and 3^rd place awarded and those 2 will go against each other for a the other qualification place in a semi final. As a comedy act i was to do 10 mins (or less) and 5 mins in the play off if i make it.

When it came time to do the gig which was in Burscough (still no idea where that is but nearest big city is Liverpool) i really could not be bothered to motivate myself to set off. I sat for about 10 mins in my living room with no desire to move, but i’m not one to book a gig and just not turn up the one time i have done that there were extenuating circumstances and i don’t think cant be arsed is a valid reason so i set off. My mind full of thoughts that were negative and pre conceptions of what the gig would be like, i had no perception that i would do well and figured i would use the gig as practice for stage presence as i still think that needs work and it was one of the judging criteria although worded as overall performance along with technical ability (of which i have almost none) personality (which i have a little) and originality (well i’m rapidly learning a lot of my jokes exist already so my most original bits are the true stories but im working on this too) so taking all those things on board i had no real hope of progressing.

The drive seemed to take far too long and along the journey which took me through some very rural areas i half expected a kid with a banjo to be sat in his rocking chair at one of the petrol stations i passed.

I arrived and was pleased to see a familiar face in Pat Devine, i had not really met Pat to chat to before but i just kinda pinned the poor guy into a conversation and he was too polite to tell me to fuck off!

Pat knows plenty about comedy and could easily have forgotten more than i know! We discussed the competition and what to expect and mid way through the conversation the MC for the night came up to see if who would go 1^st as there would only be 2 comedy acts, a singer and a musician.

The 2 comedians were up 1^st but there would be no warm up for the comedy as the Mc would sing a sort of karaoke style opening. Pat offered to go 1^st as the more experienced act and i was more than happy that he offered this, i would have gone 1^st no worries but at least now i would get a chance to see how the night would pan out and what kind of crowd they are.

So the show began and following a brief intro Pat was on, he had to spend the 1^st 4 mins or so working the audience and trying to up the energy, i personally thought he was being underappreciated as the audience seemed almost afraid to laugh. Pat went through the gears and eventually brought the room round in particular with his cartoon material and his Girls aloud stuff, but the theme of the night revaled itself as midway through Pat’s set 2 blokes entered the gig, the door is right next to the stage and the 2 guys stopped so Pat interacted with them as he tried to regain a professional aspect to the night but the bloke uttered some barely audible long winded response to the question whats your name then followed up with, but you can call me Pat and this got the laughter fully flowing, they all know each other and we were outsiders. But Mr Devine did a superb job and his time was up, he was about to leave the stage as you would at the end of the gig but was stopped by the 3 judges and in an x factor style given feedback!!! Oh dear i was not expecting that! One of the judges is a talent booker and she spoke sense but the other judges seemed to cite nerves as to why Pat struggled at the start rather than realising it was a cold room.

My turn next, i was nervous but i did not want to show it. The Mc mentioned how last week he could not read a comedians name and called said Hardcock instead of Murdoch for an acts surname so with me he would just say my 1^st name.... bingo, my nerve settler, i went on announced simply as Jim and said hi i’m Jim Hardcock... luckily this got a laugh and i was ok to roll through the jokes.

My 1^st 5 mins was working a treat, i was getting plenty of laughter from the cheap jokes and really using the momentum that Pat had given me, i also had 2 moments where i could buy time as mid set a girl screamed so i referenced that and during my granddad bit a bloke answered his phone so i was able to bounce off that, i was now in flow and enjoying myself so it was disappointing when i went flat towards the end of the set with 3 mins getting me minimal laughs and needing much work. My final minute or so pulled it back slightly but i was not happy and my time was up.

To my surprise the judges were very complimentary of my performance and had nice things to say, i’m not sure if they were a comedy specific judging panel that they would have been quite so flattering but it was nice to get comments such as,” your presence on stage is engaging and we wanted to like you”  “your jokes are funny but your ability to think quickly was even better” you have some clever (yes clever???) jokes and i thought you were fantastic”

It was lovely to hear this and it seemed i was in with a chance. Following the comedy was the beautiful singer Bryony and then a talented young man called Cameron doing a solo guitar acoustic singing set (there is most likely a more technical name for this!)

After they had performed the judges made their decision and it was singer Bryony who won in what was described as a close vote. The surprise being that all 3 of the other acts myself, Pat and Cameron were level and were all to perform in the2nd place playoff, so 5 more mins for pat and i and 1 more song for Cameron. Pat used it as a bit of a practice, he was not prepared really to make this stage not because he did not do well but because he went 1^st and dealt with a cold room. He kind of had the same again as he was 1^st after the break to perform in the playoff but he seemed to ease through is set. Cameron followed with his song but i was phased out while he was on and didn’t hear it. Me next... 5 mins and i really have nothing!!! I tried to reference things from the night, details from around the room and how Cameron had done well despite having an unpopular name and i’m glad i’m not called Clegg!! I then did a little bit of material from my original set from the early days. The 5 mins went slow and i even mentioned the wicker man and pub from American werewolf in London that this pub seemed like which was always mentioned at the royalty when i was running the nights there, Pat had also mentioned that observation.

And so my 2^nd 5 mins were up and it was time for final votes, judge 1 was a talent scout and booker from the Liverpool area, she voted for me, judge 2 a singer from Ireland and the event organiser who voted Cameron, so it was the venue manger who was to have the final vote, he thought about it for a moment before voting for me. It was lovely to prove popular and i would now be returning in 2 weeks for a semi final against yet more talented Cabaret acts.

Next gig for me is a MC spot in Hull, can’t wait i love the Hull audience i performed in front of last time and hope its similar.