Back at the etc, above a busy football matched pub in a room that smelt of feet from an audience member from the previous show.
I felt more prepared this time round and was full of beans as I donned my silly trousers again. More audience in tonight, though still mainly people I know and their friends.
It started nicely I’d done a lot of work on structure and and learning more of the show since my last outing. I flicked into some banter about my silly boots for openers, was left feeling after the last show that I’d not warmed them up enough. There was normal stand up laughter levels before I tore into the show proper.
And it was a huge improvement on the last time. Relying on solely a list of things to talk about I’d cut a lot of fat from the show and added a bit more in. But much less umming and ahhing and much more of the story I have to tell.
My mini disc, like the evil cunt that it is, decided to pack up after about half an hour, but listening back to that first section fills me with more confidence. Still a long way to go, but the show is definitely growing up.
The story, despite being cut to three pages is STILL too long, not helped by my old flatmate Oscar giving me wild hand/watch type gestures during it which I found odd and considering my paranoia about its length (the story, nothing else) made me cut it even shorter. Turns out he was in fact just scratching his wrist.
As for the conclusion, well, I got to it this time and I think it hit home, like everything it needs refining, but this time around I think I made my point. And again, judging from feedback I think some people were hit by my point.