Bonfest, Main Festival Site, Kirriemuir. Saturday 3rd May, 2025

I can't say I've truly experienced Bonfest because I never made it as far as Kirriemuir, stopping to park at the festival site and not exploring beyond (I've still not seen the Bon Scott statue - another time, perhaps). This was mainly due to timing. I couldn't leave the house before lunch and couldn't check into my hotel room until 3 pm. My incentive to attend, though, was not to see the many AC/DC tribute acts but to catch The Hot Damn! and These Wicked Rivers (Girlschool being an added bonus).

Parking at the event was straightforward. I drove down a massive grass field and was directed to a parking space by an attendant. He then informed me the main site wasn't open until 5 p.m. and that I'd missed the now-closed ticket office in town. I could catch the free happy bus into Kirriemuir if I wanted, but all the pubs would be rammed. I decided to hang around.

Clutching my ticket printout, I wandered down the car park field for a reconnaissance. The campsite tents were on the right, and beyond them, lines of camper vans. On the left stood a large white tent, with food vans, a seating area and a line of toilet cubicles in the gap. The massive arena tent dominated the back.

Main Arena tent and benches

The fencing beside the food vendors was open, so I wandered in, with no security around to stop me. The Hot Damn! were playing their soundcheck in the arena tent so I ordered a bratwurst and sat at a bench to listen (the arena tent was officially closed). As I lifted the sub roll from the card container, the paper napkin it rested upon went flying, such was the strength of the freezing wind blowing through the festival. I was so glad I'd decided to wear extra layers, despite the weather back home not requiring them.

After I finished my food, I explored the rest of the area, peeking into the beer tent, which was still being set up, and then into the merch hall, where drink tokens could be purchased for £5 a pop. I showed the guy behind the counter my ticket printout and was told they weren't ready yet, but to hang around. A second steward then politely told me I needed to leave as I didn't have a wristband. I went to exit the way I came in, only to discover the fence had been put back in place. I was trapped inside, so I had to find yet another security person to let me out. I realise this makes it sound like the organisation was poor, but it wasn't. My innocent exploration highlighted a glitch in their setup. The open fence should have had a security person present to prevent me from wandering in. 

Anyway, I waited outside for another ten minutes, had my ticket scanned, and received a wristband and a free merch patch. I bought a programme and messaged an old school pal, whom I knew was also attending the fest, to see if we could meet up. 

High Voltage, an AC/DC tribute act, started up in the VIP tent. I hadn't paid for VIP, but I didn't need to, as they were so loud they could be easily heard from the food area. Shortly before 5 p.m., I spotted others heading into the main arena, so I joined them, managing to snag a position at the front on the right. Away from the sun, the place was freezing.

The Hot Damn! were superb, despite how cold it was. The set they played was similar to the one they played supporting These Wicked Rivers, including the Merch Song to the tune of Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz? I love the energy, attitude and party atmosphere the girls create for their shows. I was surprised by how small the crowd was to start, not realising how many fans were not yet on site.

After this, I finally got to see These Wicked Rivers, having missed them twice: the first time, after they called off for Maid of Stone; and then after my pal took ill before their 10th Birthday Bash. This time, I wasn't disappointed. I knew most of the songs and enjoyed their stage presence and powerful performance. Early on in the set, the singer faceplanted the stage, tripping over a cable. I thought the way he fell was odd, like a felled tree. He had to be helped up by a roadie. Only later, when I spotted him heading for the merch tent, did I realise he had mobility issues. 

Having seen the two bands I most wanted to catch, I made my way out of the tent to find my school pal. I messaged him asking for a whereabouts update, and while I waited for his reply, I nipped back to my car for a snack and the opportunity to warm up. Getting his message, we finally met up for the first time in nearly thirty years. After a few failed attempts, his wife managed to capture the moment for posterity. 

We missed the start of Girlschool's set as we were still chatting, but what I saw was good. The music felt a bit retro, especially the Motorhead cover, but I enjoyed their set. I was nowhere near the front and got to see just how drunk many of the attendees were, blissfully staggering to and from the tent. 

I did my best to enjoy the day's final act, Sin City, but left after about half an hour, saying goodbye to Kev on the way out. Sin City played songs I liked, but it felt a bit too 'pantomime', with 'Bon' in a frightful wig and a plump 'Angus' in a bright red school uniform, replete with devil horn cap. 

I drove back to the hotel as dusk fell. Little did I realise how tired I was and how little sleep I would get at the Premier Inn, thanks to the repeated clunking of a busy internal security door. I won't go into too much detail about the post-breakfast spicy diarrhoea episode that nearly derailed my journey home, other than to say it felt like someone was operating a bicycle pump on my intestines, persistent but growing weaker with every subsequent squirt.     

The Hot Damn! Setlist (As far as I can remember).

Fizz Buzz Crash
Dance Around
About Last Night
Jukebox on the Radio
Live Laugh Love
Loud and Clear
Merch Song
Going Down
I Didn't Like You Anyway

These Wicked Rivers Setlist (not sure if I've missed any or the order they were played in)

Force of Nature

Shine On

Evergreen

When the War Is Won

Old Willow Tree

Black Gold

Horse To Water

Don't Pray For Me

Dance Around

I Didn't Like You Anyway

Old Willow Tree     

The Riverboat Man

Don't Pray For Me

 

The view before the show

Someone used a selfie stick to film up close and personal.

These Wicked Rivers

Girlschool

Sin City

 

Ticket Price:
BONFEST 2025 - Saturday Single Ticket (FOR MAIN ARENA AND TOWN HALL)
£45.00 GBP
Service charge
£5.24 GBP 
Total £50.24 GBP from Universe (a Ticketmaster company)

Derren Brown "Only Human". King's Theatre, Glasgow. Thursday 1st May, 2025

The show theme is about how the human mind relates to probabilities and predictions (and how it can be manipulated). 

Spoilers prevent me from detailing anything that occurred. 

He was mind-bogglingly clever. I had no clue how he pulled off some of the predictions. 

Props:

Laughing gas canisters.

A4 cards, yellow on one side, green on the other. He knows what we'll pick.

Divining rods.

Phones.

A five-pound note.

Electric shock equipment.

Playing cards.

Photographs.

Smarties.

Audience suggestions on coloured post-it notes.

A suit of a particular colour.

Before the show, he played videos of people for whom previous predictions had come true, three separate things manifesting in one place at one time.

The message was that if you tell humans the future, they'll seek out the signs to confirm the prediction. Nostradamus would be spinning in his grave.   

 

Ticket Price: £45 x 2 (Grand Circle Row E) plus £3.95 Transaction Fee = £93.95 

Sari Schorr "The Unbreakable Tour". Stereo, Glasgow. Wednesday 30th April 2025

 

It has been a glorious sunny day in Glasgow, the warmest of the year so far. My pal and I are heading to a rock gig by a singer I'm not that familiar with. Her records sound great, though. As a vocalist, she has a great set of pipes on her.  

As we arrive at Stereo, descending the stone steps and passing the merchandise stall where the staff member checks the tickets and uses a marker to put a cross on the back of one of our hands, I note how grim the venue appears. Dimly lit, the walls have peeling plaster or bare brickwork, and the floor is sticky as hell. Still, this kind of dive is the rockbed of live music. We buy some drinks, then squeak our way to the front. 

By the time the support act takes the stage, the term 'crowd' is a misnomer: there are five of us at the front, all old men, with maybe a score more around the room. What local lass Roisin McCarney delivers is not what we are expecting. Dressed in red tartan pantaloons with a black cummerbund, a half-shirt and plastic tie combo that exposes her midriff, and wearing massive golden loop earrings which push through her blonde bangs, this songstress performs high-energy pop music to a backing track, pulling out all her best dance moves as if she's at a sexually charged spin class. Not the rock 'n' roll blues that we are expecting. I wonder if I've stumbled into the wrong hall, arriving at an open audition for 7th Heaven (other strip joints are available). That would explain the sticky floor.

To her credit, though, Roisin delivers an energetic performance, never losing confidence, despite the audience's lack of response. I felt uncomfortable, standing so close to the stage, unsure of where to look, feeling like a dirty old man as she gyrated in front of me. When she followed through on her threat to come down into the audience, I wanted to die of embarrassment. Fortunately, she remained in the middle, so death by shyness didn't occur.

She performed one song without a backing track, which showcased her vocal capabilities and acoustic guitar playing skills. More of that would have been welcome and appropriate. 

The only photo that's not a blur during her backing track set

I'd never heard of Sari Schorr prior to the announcement of this gig (she's also playing Maid of Stone later this year). An American singer of rock blues in the style of Janis Joplin, she performs with a trio of talented musicians. Due to the support pole on the left of the stage, the bassist had to perform on the rear tier of the stage beside the drummer, leaving Sari and her guitarist at the front. 

The longer the show went on, the more I tired of listening. Sari has a tremendous vocal range and a pleasant demeanour, but I grew to dislike the way she favoured hitting the notes rather than singing the lyrics, a style perhaps adopted over the years on the road. In a larger venue, this would have been less noticeable; however, up close, it sounded lazy. The drums were also too loud, imbalancing the performance. 

Towards the end, having played lots of new, unreleased material, Sari gave us choices over what we'd like to hear next, under the pretext that they were short of time due to the curfew. That struck me as unprofessional. Granted, they sometimes ended up playing both choices, but come on, you time your show to include all your memorable material. You don't stiff the audience by cutting out the good stuff in favour of new songs.  

My disappointment was compounded when I filmed the final song, only to accidentally stop recording halfway while trying to zoom in on the guitarist during his solo. Even the camera thought I should give up on this show.

There is no setlist available because even the database website I use didn't register this date of the tour. It's somewhat disheartening that the most memorable aspect of the gig was the support act, but for all the wrong reasons. 

It's good to support live music and music venues (even if they don't always wash their floor). Not every show can be a winner, though.

Ticket Price £28, though Bob only took £25.

The Prat Pack UK Tour 2025, Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow. Monday 28th April 2025

My wife wanted to see this show, but I didn't book the tickets when they went on sale because we had planned to be away the weekend before the gig. Then we got Poppy, and those plans fell through, but unfortunately, the show had already sold out. 

After numerous searches on Ticketmaster for resale tickets, I managed to acquire one ticket, accepting that I would have to pay the double booking fee, which refunds the original seller's costs and pays the new purchase fees. Then, late one night (in the early morning, actually), I happened upon the Glasgow Life website and spotted eight tickets available in the arena. To my surprise, I was able to add two of these production release seats to my basket. Result! 

I then sold the resale ticket on Twickets, but for thirty pounds less than I paid. Dems de breaks!

We drove in early, parked for free on the street and went for a drink in Walkabout. We headed to the venue at 7 o'clock, and the lines in the foyer were already long. Lots of older types were slowly shuffling forward while the younger ones queued at the bar (until they announced there were more bars inside). 

We took our seats. The view was good. I hadn't bought a programme, but it looked full of engaging content, as much as I could tell, viewing it over someone's shoulder.

The fifteen-piece band took to the stage (all male, as it was, back in the day), and then the mayhem began. Bradley's introduction brought us both Brad and Brian, the latter claiming to be the former, which he proved by flattening his nose with the help of a roll of sellotape around his head. Shane was then brought on along with 'Squeaky', who didn't know why he was there, as he couldn't sing.

    

Bradley, who had instigated the show, performed hosting duties as much as he was allowed by the three reprobates. Rehearsed and unrehearsed banter bounced back and forth as they made each other corpse (natural and fake). Rarely were any of the numbers performed entirely straight, with the others chipping in with gags or comic interruptions. They all got to perform individually, singing, telling jokes and interacting with the audience (Bradley's attempts to get us to do a Mexican wave didn't really work). More often than not, though, the lifelong friends were together on stage, having a blast.  

Not everything ran smoothly. At one point early on, Bradley's braces broke; later, Shane forgot the lyrics to "Mack the Knife" and had to lean over the pianist to read them from his music. I enjoyed Joe "Squeaky" Pasquale's contributions, especially his prop gags. Brian Conley, who's sixty-three, dressed up in a Gladiator leotard, calling himself "Thrust", for a skit on the Brad-hosted TV show. I wouldn't have wanted to be near the front during the water pistol bit ("Now this is a water pistol), as one woman in particular bore the brunt of the increasingly larger water cannons. Squeaky came to her rescue with a leaf blower toilet roll dispenser, blowing the entire roll at her, reminding me of a Blue Man Group bit.  

It was a fun night, filled with jokes about erectile dysfunction and the audience's age. The little music they actually performed was sung well, and everyone had a good time. Special mention should go to the Concert Hall security, who were tenacious in preventing photography and filming, even getting one row to stand up so the usher could get close enough to berate the culprit sitting in the centre. Whenever a flash went off, it triggered their attention. One woman in front of me even received a warning during the interval not to use her phone again. I only managed to snap this one at the very end. 

On the way home, we stopped at a Tim Hortons, which was surprisingly busy with students on their laptops, even though it was after ten o'clock. It felt like we were witnessing a whole subculture of society. The honey cruller and hot chocolate were nice.

 

Ticket Price: £85.50 each from GlasgowLife.

Blurb:

Four of the country’s greatest comedy entertainers will tour the UK in 2025 with their own special take on the Rat Pack – Bradley Walsh (The Chase, Gladiators), Brian Conley (The Brian Conley Show, EastEnders), Shane Richie (EastEnders, I’m a Celebrity…) and Joe Pasquale (I’m a Celebrity…, Dancing On Ice) are ‘THE PRAT PACK’.

Inspired by the performances of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr, Joey Bishop and Peter Lawford, the UK stars are hitting the road (with Pasquale at the wheel of the tour bus). Tickets go on sale at 10am on Friday 29 November.

Packed with laughs and songs, backed by a 15-piece band, the show will let the audience in on the banter between some of television’s best-loved stars – who are also very close friends.

Bradley Walsh says: “People are starved of our type of entertainment – songs, stories, jokes – and banter! It’s an homage to the Rat Pack but brought up to the modern day, and it’s a fantastic night. We are just thrilled. We all share the same dressing room – we’re mates. We’ve known each other for so long now – and the show is about warmth and family – because we are. It’s great, really great.”

Fans can expect an evening packed with jokes that can only come from the chemistry of such seasoned entertainers. Walsh, Conley and Richie were all Pontins Bluecoats earlier in their careers and Pasquale was a Warner’s Greencoat, giving them all a grounding in variety before decades-long careers at the very top of entertainment.

Bradley Walsh says: “The show harks back to the 1950s and ‘60s – the Rat Pack era of Sinatra and the gang. The four of us have been mates for over 40 years now and we have a combined age of around 250 years, so a quarter of a millennium. The only time we were on the same show was in 1993 for the Royal Variety Performance. I’ve been desperate to put something together like this for so long.”

Those Damn Crows "Instore Mega Tour". Assai Records, Glasgow. Monday 21st April 2025

Those Damn Crows achieved their first UK No 1 Album these week, with me contributing three sales to their total: signed, alternate cover CD, KiT album (with download) & Indie Clear Colour Vinyl LP (yeah, I  love this band a lot).

Notice on the door

We arrived about fifteen minutes before the record store doors opened for this sellout, in-store performance. The queue was already the length of the record store along Blytheswood Street. By the time we got in, the area in front of the performance space was packed, and since there was no stage, I gave up on the idea of taking photos or videos.

In case we hadn't read the notice on the door

The band performed four songs, with Shane singing and playing the last one solo. I felt this was a bit stingy compared to the 45 minutes we got from Ricky Warwick. The sound was great, though, and it was nice to hear the acoustic versions of the album's songs. 

With no direct view, this was as good as it got.
.

Setlist

Let's go Psycho!

Dreaming

Glass Heart

Still

Then we all got papped outside to queue again for the signing. 

The record store set up a long table, which only had space for four stools, so guitarist Ian had to stand. The signing was well-organised, with staff on hand to help with photo duties. This part was relaxed with everyone getting a chance to talk with the band, shake hands and get a photo if they wanted one. I didn't feel rushed and even asked them a question. Reply: Yes, they'd love to play the Barrowland. 

I wish the performance had been longer, but given the number of fans in attendance, I can understand why the band opted to spend more time signing. There were plenty of happy fans afterwards.  

My goodies:

Photos from the KiT album signed

Vinyl album insert signed

Signed CD

Ticket Price: Indies Clear Colour Vinyl LP + 1 Priority Entry £30 

Breaking The News BBC Recording, Drygate, Glasgow. Thursday 17th April, 2025

Another visit to Drygate for the recording of Breaking The News, the last in the current series.

We arrived earlier than last time at 11.30 am, way earlier than we needed to, ending up sixth in the queue on a wet and dismal Glasgow morning. At least we were under cover while we waited.  

At noon, the production team let us in, issuing us numbered stickers that dictated the sequence in which the audience was allowed into the recording.  

This time we noticed, thanks to this blackboard, that the coffee wasn't actually free. Whoops! We snagged a cushioned booth and ate our lunch, watching sports on the big screens and reading on our Kindle apps. With no telephone reception and only weak WiFi internet, we had no contact with the outside world for a whole hour, so I couldn't look up who the fourth, unadvertised panellist was going to be. It turned out to be Welshman Robin Morgan.

The show was slicker than last time, with fewer tangents and digressions that were unusable for broadcast. It was still incredibly funny. Raymond and Felicity tussled even though they were on the same team. Des held it all together marvellously, not needing as many pickups this time. Best joke: "Amazon boss, Jeff Bezos, insisted on taking a photograph of the six beautiful ladies on his Blue Origin spaceflight upon their safe return to earth... as proof of delivery." 

Or that's how I remembered it.

The actual joke went: "When the crew landed, Amazon boss Jeff Bezos took a photograph of them partly to commemorate the occasion, but mainly as proof of delivery." 

On the way back to the station, this mural caught my eye. Does anyone else think this mural resembles comedian Bill Maher? I have no idea who it is supposed to be.

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Ticket Price: Free 

Greg Davies "Full Fat Legend" 2025 Stand-Up Tour, SEC Armadillo, Glasgow. Sat 12th April, 2025

My wife enjoyed him. So did the majority of the three thousand punters who packed the Armadillo tonight. I was very much in the minority.

I didn't warm to the support act, Barry Castagnola. His crowd work was lame, consisting of asking the men their first name to see how dull it was in comparison to his own. It led to a comic dead end. That he had to announce after the fact that spraying himself with beer was his closer says it all. 

So, why didn't I enjoy Greg? 

Was it because I'd been awake at stupid o'clock this morning, seemingly in sympathy with the vinyl junkies queuing for Record Store Day? Probably. I was weary.

Was it because we were at the back of the front circle, far enough away not to be able to see his facial expressions properly? That played a part. Comedy is funnier close up. I couldn't even tell if he had hair on his head.

Was it because Greg telegraphed his punchlines? He's already told us his phone is in his pants. Now, he can hear voices. I wonder where they're coming from, for example.

Was it because he consistently sniggered as if the next thing he was about to say was so hilarious he couldn't help himself? He does it all the time. It's not spontaneous. It's scripted and grates when you recognise what he's doing. 

Was it because he appears to have a photographic memory for every funny line anyone has ever said to him, because 'he'll never forget what they said'? Only partially, because what they said was certainly funny and memorable. e.g. "Not finished." 

Was it because the humour was hack? Yes. Silly voices, foreign accents, drinking his own urine, wanking to the Freemans catalogue, Dick dialling an ex girlfriend. Tick. Tick. Tick. No boom, boom. 

I can forgive the juvenile humour. He's already admitted he's a fifty-six-year-old man who's really twelve inside. His "ten times funnier with this line" was indeed ten times funnier each time he used it. 

I'd say his set justified the title Full Fat, but it was not a thing of Legend.  

Three stars, because I did laugh.      

Ticket Price:
2 Full Price Tickets £45.00 x2 = £90.00
Per Item Fees £6.10 (Service Charge Full Price Ticket) x2 & £1.70 (Facility Charge Full Price Ticket) x2 = £15.60
Order Processing Fees Handling Fee (£2.00) £2.00
Total £107.60 from Ticketmaster

There were only £6 fridge magnets left by the end of the show