The John Robins Vibemail - Issue #20
Current Mood: Johnnies Off For The Big Ding Dong!
Well then everyone, it has been a rather long time since I was in touch! Have we all woken up with an #AttitudeOfGratitude? I certainly have! Despite missing out on an item I bid on in the Freddie Mercury auction by a mere £689,500 the sunrise this morning was a BELTER. I hope you can accept the sunrises in your life whilst letting go of the ‘Silver Snake Bangles as worn in the Bohemian Rhapsody video, 1975’. Sometimes we have to let things float down the river of life!
A lot has happened since last we digitally met, and you may be wondering why I’m not on a PR OFFENSIVE ahead of my tour. Well, Edinburgh was something of an intense period of working, worrying and napping. Over forty shows in twenty five days was a big ask, but it was necessary to prepare for the tour, and most importantly I did it sober as a J! (Judge)
I will give a brief Edinburgh debrief below, and also provide a final call for tickets for the tour. The next Freddie auction begins soon and I look forward to having yet more hopes and dreams destroyed by any number of hedge / sovereign wealth funds. But what can you do? As Freddie always said “We live in a market economy dear! You have to trust the markets!”
Members Present
Esteemed Sergeant of The Most Venerable Guards Of Honour, Johnny ‘JR’ Robins III DSO DSC
Present!
Edinburgh
Well we did it! Thank you to every one of you who came to watch Howl and my Work In Progress. Depending on what show you saw you may have seen some of my finest performances at the festival / me forgetting a crucial chunk and sitting down on the stage calling myself the c-word. GOOD. TIMES.
These two shows are currently being merged together (like in The Fly) for performance on the tour, and there’s nothing like Edinburgh Fringe to really get that gear popping! Reviewers have a tendency to leave old dogs like me be during August, I ‘spose I’ve had my fill of stars and younger bucks must rut on the moorland. However I did get this absolute HUMDINGER from a publication called The Student Newspaper. I don’t know if they’ve reviewed me before, but, aside from the fact it’s bigging up old bug-a-lugs here, I was stuck by what a good piece of writing it is. Alas it came out after the festival ended so getting it tattooed onto my face hasn’t quite had the impact I’d hoped. But here it is
https://studentnewspaper.org/fringe-2023-john-robins-howl/
I was also honoured to be asked to present the Edinburgh Comedy Awards at the end of the festival. Most especially memorable was the panel prize going to ‘A Show For Gareth Richards’. Gareth was a comedian and friend of mine who tragically died in a road accident earlier this year. He had booked his slot at the festival and through the tireless work of Mark Simmonds and Danny Ward, the slot was filled throughout the month with a roster of wonderful comedians. Here is a pic of us all on stage with Gareth looking on.
Credit DMLK VIDEO
The speech I hastily rustled up over bagels and coffee also went down well, with industry TREND SETTER Chortle even asking for a transcript to put on their website. You can read it here (typos not my own)
So there you have it. It will be a long time until I’m back in Edinburgh performing, and this was a very satisfying way to bow out for now. But the show must go on!…
Howl Tour 2023
Yes! In two days (mega gulp) I will be hauling this old bag o’ bones on the road. Kicking off in Norwich on the 13th September and ending in Bristol on the 15th December. Tickets for any of you with a more Elis approach to organisation are available here
https://www.johnrobins.com/howl-2023-tour/
One spanner in the works is the news from Northampton Royal & Derngate that they have discovered everyone’s favourite type of concrete, RAAC, in their foyer. So the show in Northampton on the 29th September is cancelled. I know as much as they have said in their statement here but we will look to reschedule the date, and if that’s not possible we will put in a date in 2024 near as mustard to the venue.
I look forward to having a good old laugh/scream with/at you all soon!
Any Other Business
I’m pretty much tour-focussed from here on in. Friday shows on 5Live will continue with Elis throughout, apart from one week that was just too full on, for which no doubt a superb Robins-substitute will be found. I might even find time to do a couple of episodes of Beef’s Golf Club over the coming months, but, alas, my golf game has been the real victim of this period of creative fervour. That said I DID get to play a round with all-round hero, golf sensei and youtuber Golf Sidekick, though only his shots were filmed. You might get a glimpse of Johnny JR tending the flag when he releases the video from Leven Links.
That reminds me! A new Bad golf video has gone up just this weekend! Do check it out! It’s the climax to a scramble with Mia Baker and Tom Price.
That reminds me! I was on Tom Price’s podcast ‘My Mate Bought A Toaster’ telling the story of my life through Amazon purchases. Here is a link https://podfollow.com/1462168683/view
That reminds me! I was on Kathy Burke’s podcast ‘Where There’s A Will There’s A Wake’! Kathy Burke is one of the all time greatest people and you can listen to it here: https://podfollow.com/1654059310/view
That reminds me! I was on Rich Wilson’s podcast ‘Insane in the Menbrain’ talking about alcoholism and recovery and all things spirit and self. I' really enjoyed listening back to this and think I was able to articulate a good few things I’ve been experiencing if chat about sobriety and insanity are of any interest to you. Do listen here https://podfollow.com/menbrain/view
Been on PR drive John? Just a bit mate! I’m also gonna be on Ed Byrne’s new podcast ‘Ed Byrne Needs A Hobby’ where I took him for a crossfit session and after we chatted about fitness and sobriety. It’s not out yet but have a look at what he’s released so far here. Good. Times.
Well that surely must be it?! I’m gonna get back to arranging my thoughts to share with you at those regional arts centres who had the decency to use PROPER CONCRETE. And then onwards! Before long we shall be stepping into the vast emerald beyond of 2024 where I hope to take a break and meditate by a loch or chase a mountain goat through the woodlands of tomorrow!
Love you BYE!
That eloquently written review has wetted my appetite for Howl even more. Can't wait to see you in Portsmouth. Over the years you have made me laugh uncontrollably, weep openly and think deeply. Here's to the vibe!
Hello - the Student News link was broken but here is the current link to the review: https://thestudentnews.co.uk/2023/08/27/fringe-2023-john-robins-howl/
Howl was the most astonishing and wonderful piece of spoken word I have ever listened to - thank you for your courage