My life is a simple one, in a professional sense of the word, anyway. I make people laugh in return for money. An unusual transaction and not an essential one, like being a surgeon – but there is a demand for laughs and since I have jokes and stories… But this does not mean my…
The way that live comedy has developed – gigs are on-line nowadays for comics to fight over in public – putting their name down and hoping – and often for gigs which pay less than they did 20 years ago… My favourite alert of late was – “Ipswich – on-stage 8.50. 20 minutes. £80. Ideally,…
Bit of a landmark for team Holland today with my twins, Sam and Harry marking 20 years on planet earth. This is Motorola and Ericsson to the anyone who remembers my old stand-up routine. “Nokia (Tom) – he’s hands free now… obviously.” I remember doing that routine so clearly at The Comedy Store and elsewhere…
Dinner last evening with one of my oldest comedy mates. Not a funny man like me? This sounds terribly arrogant and also rude? But what I mean is, he is not a comedian. He is a sound man and in more ways than one. As well as a sound engineer, Graham is in charge of…
This week on BBC R4’s The Today Programme, was a lovely tribute to Seamus Heaney – with the presenters speaking in hushed and suitably referential tones about the great writer. And it struck me how fortunate I am to have met the revered poet. (The Hay Literature festival, back in the day when my books…
Having been away for three weeks and not gigged for a month, my first gigs back were this weekend at The Comedy Store – which is a little foreboding and might garner some sympathy – albeit this might evaporate when I reveal that our weeks away included Namibia and Hawaii. The Comedy Store is the…
Anyone setting out in show-biz will dream of seeing their name in lights. On Broadway, the West-End, a billboard… The Comedy Store in London doesn’t have a thrilling Front of House… But for comics, it remains the club to play and the benchmark we set ourselves with the five show weekend including two late shows….
I guess that stand up comedy fits in to the category of things that should not be attempted. This is because it is difficult and most people will fail – and fail painfully. There is no unpainful way to stand on stage to silence when there should be laughter. Stand-up comedy I can do – as proven…
