Anyway, I didn’t want to go up and do my show for one or two weeks, or a few days, if I was going to do it – I wanted to do it properly. Full run or no run. This wasn't possible. However, the fact that I can’t do it this year hasn’t made me as despondent as it could have done. Because, as a result of my determined state at the tail end of August, I had already started to write my show, and booked myself into perform it at three festivals – The Kingston and Leicester Comedy Festivals and the Brighton Fringe. In Kingston I performed what I had to about 10 people whilst several people in the pub ignored me and got more and more drunk whilst a techo version of Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” played. I didn’t take much away from that gig. In Leicester however, it was bloody brilliant. Full room, people engaged, laughing, generous donations in the bucket at the end. Two married women took selfies with me and the girl behind the bar described the show as “jokes” which is was nice as those are the fundamentals of any comedy show. So that performance has given me confidence, - confidence that I can make a room full of strangers laugh for around an hour. I’m happy with the general narrative and structure of the show, but now I have an extra year to, laziness permitting, improve that even further: writing even more of the aforementioned jokes, tightening up the structure and generally making it the best damn show I can.
Another reason a delay could be good to is that my show has a slight political bent to it. If I did Edinburgh this year, it would be after the election. With a new government in power, who knows the sorts of problems that will throw up? My jokes about Nick Clegg will almost certainly be redundant, the Tories might be out meaning the easiest target to rally against would be gone. Or we could be a few months into Farage’s Reich, where the only comedy allowed is that of Andrew Lawrence and Roy 'Chubby' Brown.
I do still want to go up to Edinburgh this year, because I love it. Despite the horrendous cost, stress, anxiety and everything else that goes with it. I really love it. Myself and two other comics, realising we were all in a bit of an Edinburgh limbo hastily, belatedly and in a panicked state fired off applications to the Free Festivals. We just got a rejection email from Freestival, whom I went with last year. Although disappointing, it’s fine, and completely understandable. The fringe isn’t going to miss a triple header of middiling comics doing 20 minute sets each for only a few days. There were probably more worthy applicants. However, I’ve heard a few rumblings of people saying they have also not been accepted into a fringe venue this year. The Free Fringe, in all its guises, has flourished over the last couple of years and has ushered in a bit of a sea-change, with several shows from the model being nominated – and winning – the main awards, as well as getting audiences, reviews and money to compete with the traditional venues. So bigger acts are, quite justifiably, looking at their huge publicity and venue hire bills, having a rethink and jumping ship to the Free Fringe, I hope that this doesn’t lead to the model becoming so populated with more established acts that it then leaves no room for newer comics breaking through, that would be a tragedy – and defeat somewhat the original purpose of the free fringe movement. Ultimately, lets hope the growth of the Free Fringe will pressure the big venues to lower their fees so things become more affordable on all wrungs of the ladder. I don’t know – this is a discussion for another time and will no doubt be had by many comics in the oncoming months.
Also, when my Edinburgh dreams were sailing further and further up the swanny, I booked a holiday. Sarah, my girlfriend, and I have been wanting a holiday for ages, she is a teacher so August is the only time she gets off. So when we realised I wouldn’t be doing the fringe, we decided to bite the bullet and book the holiday we’ve been talking about for ages this year. It’s going to be wonderful, that before I, hopefully, jump on the return-with-a –new-show-every-year cycle, I’ll have a summer where I drink wine and eat pasta in the Italian sun instead of downing a Fosters tinny in the Edinburgh rain
In the mean time, I shall be performing my show at the Brighton Fringe (FREE tickets here http://boxoffice.brightonfringe.org/comedy/7778/nathan-willcock-s-cross-in-a-box), plus a one off performance in Norwich and two days (23/24th August) at the Camden Fringe.
And hopefully, Edinburgh 2016! Unless we all die in some horrible war.