In
the Autumn of 2009 Dave Gorman went on a bike ride taking in the
southernmost, westernmost, northernmost and easternmost points of the
UK. And on his way he did a stand up gig every night. The shows happened
in everything from 2000 seat theatres to village halls and even in an
old railway carriage. The show proved so popular that it was extended to
include more towns and bigger venues...but logistically (and
practically) there was no way Dave could still do the cycling part of
the tour. As he pointed out at the show in Glasgow, Dave had been in
Aberdeen the night before that, and at home in London the night before
so you can kind of see his point! Apart from the title, the show has
nothing to do with cycling anyway, so how Gorman gets to the gigs is
largely irrelevant.
Dave Gorman started out as a stand-up comedian and did quite well at it
for six or seven years, at which point he got a bit fed up and decided
to try something new. And it was at this point in his career that he
came up with the story-telling style of shows for which he really made
his name - particularly with the hugely successful shows (and books) Are
You Dave Gorman? and Googlewack Adventure. After touring the Googlewack
show all over the world for three years, Dave decided to take a bit of a
break from live performance. In 2007 he decided to drive across America
without giving any money to 'The Man' - and produced a typically
interesting, and funny documentary and book in the process. It was
whilst doing book readings for America Unchained that Gorman once again
got a taste for live performance and decided to return to his stand-up
roots. And that's where we come in to the story.
On Thursday night, I was in the 1500 seat King's Theatre in Glasgow to
see Dave Gorman's show in its latest incarnation. The show was a part of
the Glasgow Comedy Festival, but as Dave pointed out to one fan on
Twitter - when you are doing a 37 date tour, it doesn't make much
difference if one show is part of a comedy festival. I'm a big fan of
Dave's previous work, and I'd seen him do a book reading and Q&A as
part of the 2009 Edinburgh International Book Festival. I'm also a
regular listener to the Sunday morning radio show he presents on
Absolute Radio with Martin White and Danielle Ward (the organisers of
Karaoke Circus). However, I wasn't really sure what to expect from 'Dave
Gorman - Stand-up Comedian'.
I needn't have worried. Although the show is
more straight stand-up than his previous outings, and covers a whole
range of material from his relationship with his Dad to unusual dealings
with Royal Mail, Dave sticks to the story-telling style he is known for.
The sell-out crowd really warmed to Mr Gorman and for what it's worth he
seemed to be having a great time up on stage too. I was certainly
entertained and was wiping away the tears at one point which is always a
good sign. The show had its fair share of surprises too, and I would
definitely recommend you catch it if you can to find out what they are!
Despite having to rush off after the show to catch the sleeper train
back to London, Dave took the time to hang around after the show to meet
those of the audience who hadn't been put off by having to queue outside
on the freezing streets of Glasgow. He was very gracious and
signed lots of books, DVDs and tickets for people (I suppose if people
are paying full whack for merchandise on the night the least you can do
is hang around and sign it for them!). I didn't have anything for Dave
to sign but he did oblige by posing for photo with me, and I got a
chance to tell him how much I'd enjoyed the show. And how much I'd
enjoyed his performance of Blur's Song 2 at Karaoke Circus last year.
Hopefully, I'll get to see more of this very funny man again before too
long.
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