No one says anything

So I mentioned last week I was going to have a change of pace in this blog, find some fun topical stories and be all witty maybe even finding some future material in the process, but having sat staring at my screen for 45 minutes (which has at least meant I've not been paying attention to Leeds Uniteds woeful offering) I've decided to sack that off and just stick to my usual word vomit.

I had an eventful weekend, travelling to Bristol for a gig I decided to hang around post performance and see the headliner in action, chat with the organiser and just take my time... Errrrrrror!

Got back to the car along with one liner merchant Jack Shanik to find it locked in a car park overnight, I took it well and definitely didn't kick a wall in anger. I support there are worse situations I could have found myself in, for a start having someone to shar the cost of the hotel helped (£42 each but they tried to charge us £3 each more the cheeky monkeys)

I could have not had any money, or my phone, or instead of Jack with me it could have been a rabid goat with a toothache, which we all know could happen!

Blatant yet weak attempt at being funny aside it was frustrating but as things in comedy go it's not the most frustrating.

Following on from last week Cheggersgate I remember someone mentioning to me that I joke I do is very similar to one that's being done already... Now the guy saying it was not trying to be helpful to me as I was an open spot nobody at the time (as opposed to the paid work nobody I've become today)

Either way I stopped doing the joke despite finding out the original was different (And I call it the original because it was out 1st, this terminology is not intended to incriminate your honour)

Thing is I saw an act do a "step ladder, not my real ladder" joke and I didn't want to be that dick that's says something, the act may not know its a Harry hill one... But then again he never will if no one says anything.

I was MCing a new act comp not long back and the guy who won it did a lot of unoriginal jokes, I mentioned this to the organiser who said he hadn't heard the jokes before so no issue. 

In fact many of the acts I see at pro and new level do things that are similar or the same as what some others do... So, how do we resolve it? Well for a start more people need to be THAT GUY (or girl) and just mention it. All acts need to agree if someone says they have heard your stuff before then it's worth googling to see if it's out there.

Maybe this comedy guild thing may help? I don't know much about it and I'm certain it's designed to protect pro acts but perhaps if you join there could be a way to date stamp and protect your jokes.

In fact maybe something like the guild should be a minimum standard that all promoters and acts should aspire too, if you don't have a guild standard (or something similar) you can still perform but having it proves you are meeting certain chriteria (not steeling jokes, running a well organised gig)

For someone new to performing like myself (I've been involved in comedy for 10 years this year) who now earns about 65% of my income from comedy it would be nice to have a way of saying I've hit a certain standard not artistically but in terms of my conduct that makes me, for example, a guild standard act, the artistic side of course is subjective.

I'm not sure how something like this would work but in an ideal world comedy would have a standard and a kind of governing body.

For now, just a load of attention whores fighting for the scraps of a once busier industry.

J x