GICF Comedy Gala. King's Theatre, Glasgow. Saturday 30th March, 2024

Another solo gig for me, with my wife still recuperating from Covid. When I arrived, the auditorium was not yet open, so I made for the upstairs bar. Looking around, I noticed the walls had framed photos of famous actors and signs indicating the year they performed at the venue. For example, Michael Caine trod the boards there in 1959. Not a lot of people know that. I meant to snap a few of them to post here, but it was too busy. 

I had plenty of legroom on the front row of the Grand Circle, not just because of my missing wife. There was one seat free on my right and two more on my left. I must have appeared like a right Jonny No Mates, which was why it felt so good to notice a former colleague also on the Grand Circle. At the interval, I texted to confirm it was her, and then we chatted at the back. It's always nice to see a friendly face.

Susie McCabe was the gala's host. In the first half, she introduced Billy Kirkwood, Kiri Pritchard-McLean, Stuart McPherson, Jin-Hao Li, Susan Riddell, and Craig Hill. They each received five-minute slots, and all performed well (although many of them opened with How are you doing, Glasgow? - Were they not listening to our previous answer?). I was most impressed by Jin-Hao Li, who has a great delivery and a unique style. One to watch (and listen to, obviously).  

The second half featured Luisa Omielan, Zara Gladman, Rosco McClelland, Raymond Mearns, and Janey Godley (last year's recipient of the Sir Billy Connolly Spirit of Glasgow Award). Luisa came across well, with some excellent material. It was harder to get into Zara Gladman as she is a character act, and I didn't know her work. Janey has always been a force of nature, but now, with her cancer diagnosis, she is totally unleashed and terrifyingly funny. The top act of the afternoon, in my opinion. 

The afternoon finished with the presentation of this year's Spirit of Glasgow Award. After an introduction by the festival organiser, Elaine C Smith announced the winner, with Janey Godley handing the award to Susie McCabe. There was a touching video from Sir Billy, which made Susie quite emotional. We left the gala with the PA system playing If It Wisnae fur yer Wellies, which brought another smile to the crowd's faces. 

Susie, with the other nominees.

I was surprised to learn that the festival is run by a core team of just five people. Maybe once I retire, I should investigate how to get involved. With a staff discount, I could save a fortune on tickets.

Ticket Price: £24.10 each plus £3.95 transaction fee from ATG.         

Rhys Darby, 25 Years. Glasgow Pavilion, Tuesday 7th November, 2023

This Kiwi comic was another one on my bucket list. I'd never caught him during his Edinburgh Fringe days and, now that his acting career has taken off, he doesn't tour much so I jumped at the chance to see him in Glasgow. Knowing this was a best-of retrospective, I deliberately didn't rewatch any of his old shows, not wanting to be overfamiliar with the material.   

It's been a long time since I've been in the stalls at The Pavilion. The last time was probably to see Goodbye Mr Mackenzie back in the days when Shirley Manson was singing with them (I particularly remember her gyrating on her knees on the stage - can't think why). Back then, I was at Uni and probably didn't sit in my seat for very long. I certainly don't recall the seat being snug. Tonight, the armrests are gripping my love handles. When I have to rise to let a latecomer into the row, I have to make an effort to remove myself from the chair. I pitied the poor folk who were bigger than me, with their shoulders scrunched up, wedged between the people on either side. One larger gentleman appeared to have booked himself two seats and even then had to sit at an angle otherwise he would have smothered the young lady on his left. What I'm saying is Pavilion, you're going to need to modernise and give us bigger seats. We ain't getting any smaller.

The show opened with Janey Godley who did a fifteen-minute slot much to the appreciation of her home crowd. She may have terminal cancer but she's still got remarkable comedy chops and doesn't give a f*ck. She then introduced the first act, Steve Wrigley, another friend of Rhys and a fellow Kiwi. I'd never heard of him but he was good. The audience loved his humour.

Then we had an interval so the Pavilion could sell us fatties more confectionary and ice cream. How very Glasgow, providing more calories to people who already could barely fit into their seats. Actually, it could be more Glasgow. Here's a tip for your suggestion box, Pavilion management, add deep-fried Mars bars to the menu. 

Janey returned to introduce her old pal, Rhys Darby. If you don't know his comedy, his style is similar to Eddie Izzard, acting out increasingly outlandish scenarios and relating the characters' surreal and silly exchanges (only he does it in more sensible shoes and with less lipstick). He's a great physical comedian who also does sounds: the 'robot', three different types of doors and even the beep made by a self-checkout till. Themes and characters recur for comic effect building a strong set, despite it being cribbed from all of his shows over the years. 

The audience was obviously huge fans of his work and showed it with frequent cheers and rounds of applause but never to the extent of ruining the show. It was a fabulous night of comedy made all the more special by overrunning by a good half hour.

The drive home was an ordeal. Road closures and multiple car accidents added to the chaos. I did spot a man eating his pizza out of the box at a bus stop and thought, he looks like he's playing Battleships because of the way the lid was angled. Then we nearly decorated the car's radiator with a fox stole when the animal heard the first part of the joke "Why did the chicken cross the road?" and decided to look for itself. 

Janey Godley

Steve Wrigley

Rhys Darby

Ticket Price: £37.85 (direct from venue)

Promo blurb:

Rhys Darby: 25 Years

2023 marks Rhys Darby’s silver jubilee in standup comedy, so he has been taking a look at all his favourite material for the past quarter century. Rhys will be bringing this retrospective show to the UK this year!.

When asked about it Rhys said, “You’ve seen my standup, now see it again!”

Darby is one of NZ’s most successful comedy exports. Starting in Christchurch in the 90s, he has performed his unique style of storytelling all over the world. Ten years into his career North Americans discovered him via Flight of the Conchords. He has starred in blockbusters like the Jumanji franchise, indie hits like Hunt for the Wilderpeople and is currently starring in Our Flag Means Death with long-time collaborator Taika Waititi.

Rhys is never far from his standup roots. He has released five comedy specials and this show will draw from all five of them. In addition to stand-up and acting, he has also written four books, This Way to Spaceship, a loosely autobiographical novel, and three kids' books about his alter ego Buttons McGinty. He also has an irregular podcast, The Cryptid Factor which is all about cryptozoology, the science of hidden animals.