Mach Fest: Day 3
I had a leisurely walk around Aberystywyth on Sunday morning with Dasha, about three hours after she had got up. We have very different views on what constitutes a lie in. But I'm glad we went and had a look round the castle ruins and took in the picturesque coastline. I do enjoy being by the sea, I find it peaceful. I saw a piece of graffiti reading "Don't Cry For Me Aberystwyth". I later discovered that it was the title of a novel by a Welsh author. A shame as I had already filed it away as a potential title for a follow up show in Machynlleth.
Dasha departed for another heroically long car journey as I headed back for more comedy. First I caught Gavin Osborn for half an hour in the Big Top. I've written about his music before and I always enjoy seeing him live. There was a rendition of old favourite "Jamie Cook" to honour the player's retirement from football this week, alongside some newer material focusing on governmental attitudes to music teaching and perhaps more predictably, Brexit. He remains a witty, charming lyricist and I hope he's back round London way soon.
It was then back to the Owain Glyndyr centre for Tom Parry's solo show. He took to the stage as Owain Glyndyr himself, in the costume that looked suspiciously similar to the one he used to portray Kelly Jones from the Stereophonics in his last show. Several ludicrous references to the life of Glyndyr followed. It's the sort of daftness that has become characteristic of his work with the sketch group Pappy's and just makes me laugh like a drain. He's just one of those naturally funny people who are a joy to watch live. Near the end, he hinted at some personal issues during the past year that he meant to cover but didn't get around to. I expect the "tears of a clown" act isn't quite Parry's style. But this was one of the funniest hours at the festival.
Desiree Burch was up next. I knew very little about her going into the show but came out of it a convert. I enjoyed hearing her experiences about being a 38 year old black American woman living in the UK and found her material to be distinctive and sharp. Her description of her "pendulous Negro titties" will stay with me for quite some time.
Back to the Mach Arena for Stewart Lee's Content Provider. I'm pleased to see Lee make a return with a full length stand-up show after the cancellation of Comedy Vehicle last year after four series. This was Lee back to somewhere near his best, a combination of knowing self-referential material, audience condescension and some salient points about the modern world. The BBC's loss is our gain.
My festival drew to a close with Alun Cochrane's work in progress show. The Yorkshireman is a quietly charming stage presence who ruminates on the areas of life that some would consider inconsequential. He excels particularly in describing life as a 40 something Dad who has to schedule intimate time with his wife. A nice finale to a lovely weekend.
Dasha departed for another heroically long car journey as I headed back for more comedy. First I caught Gavin Osborn for half an hour in the Big Top. I've written about his music before and I always enjoy seeing him live. There was a rendition of old favourite "Jamie Cook" to honour the player's retirement from football this week, alongside some newer material focusing on governmental attitudes to music teaching and perhaps more predictably, Brexit. He remains a witty, charming lyricist and I hope he's back round London way soon.
It was then back to the Owain Glyndyr centre for Tom Parry's solo show. He took to the stage as Owain Glyndyr himself, in the costume that looked suspiciously similar to the one he used to portray Kelly Jones from the Stereophonics in his last show. Several ludicrous references to the life of Glyndyr followed. It's the sort of daftness that has become characteristic of his work with the sketch group Pappy's and just makes me laugh like a drain. He's just one of those naturally funny people who are a joy to watch live. Near the end, he hinted at some personal issues during the past year that he meant to cover but didn't get around to. I expect the "tears of a clown" act isn't quite Parry's style. But this was one of the funniest hours at the festival.
Desiree Burch was up next. I knew very little about her going into the show but came out of it a convert. I enjoyed hearing her experiences about being a 38 year old black American woman living in the UK and found her material to be distinctive and sharp. Her description of her "pendulous Negro titties" will stay with me for quite some time.
Back to the Mach Arena for Stewart Lee's Content Provider. I'm pleased to see Lee make a return with a full length stand-up show after the cancellation of Comedy Vehicle last year after four series. This was Lee back to somewhere near his best, a combination of knowing self-referential material, audience condescension and some salient points about the modern world. The BBC's loss is our gain.
My festival drew to a close with Alun Cochrane's work in progress show. The Yorkshireman is a quietly charming stage presence who ruminates on the areas of life that some would consider inconsequential. He excels particularly in describing life as a 40 something Dad who has to schedule intimate time with his wife. A nice finale to a lovely weekend.
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