#53 A whole, entire year
Issue #53 A whole, entire year
15th March 2023
Hello.
I can't believe I'm writing this.
It's Issue #53.
Which means this newsletter has come out every week for a whole, entire year.
It's been a mammoth task to craft. On average it takes me a full working day per issue. But it's a labour of love - I adore hearing from people each week. I always get a handful of replies when an article I've written or something I've recommended strikes a chord with someone. Former students, fellow improvisers, old school friends, people I've only met once at a festival.
I'm so proud of the little slice of community that this newsletter has fostered.
Please know I'm always at the other end of the Reply button if you'd like to say hi!
And I'm obviously incredibly grateful to the people who continue to make it all financially viable by taking out a monthly subscription.
In other news, I'm elated to announce that I successfully auditioned for a place in Mixed Omens, The Improvised Play's new show based around the work of Neil Gaiman. I couldn't be more thrilled to be part of an ensemble once again. Especially one whose craft and values resonate so closely with my own.
Speaking of which...
Rule of three
[Book] Neil Gaiman short stories
Neil Gaiman is my all-time favourite writer. I started re-reading all his short stories for the audition. May I recommend the following:
A Study in Emerald
We Can Get Them For You Wholesale
The Price
[TV] Bad Sisters
Sharon Horgan is a goddess. As brilliant a writer as she is an actor. I loved everything about Catastrophe. I thought she was spectacular in This Way Up. But Bad Sisters on Apple TV is perhaps the best showcase of her multitudinous talents. Great title sequence too.
[Article] How old are you in your head?
I loved this article about getting older and the age we are in our heads. Much of it rings true for me. I hate the perception that most of my story has been told and viscerally feel the allure of finding the peak combined vigour-maturity index. Plus, the idea of 75 year olds in Japan learning electric slide guitar made me smile. As ever, copy & paste the URL into 12ft ladder to defeat the paywall.
Spotlight
My improv intensive weekend sold out in under 4 hours. I couldn't believe it. I have six people on the waiting list, so if anyone else is interested, please sign up and I'll arrange more weekend dates. My Mockumentary Now! course starts in two weeks and there are still a few places available on that. I'm also going to be doing an online version so watch this space for more details. Improv!
Longform thoughts
"The healing place stood at the edge of the village, the other buildings standing apart from it, seemingly clustered together in fear and respect. Instead of stone, the walls were made from animal hides and there were symbols scrawled in the dirt around it - radiating out in all directions like an earth-bound sun. Birds covered the roof of the hut in unnatural groups. Corvids sitting with sparrows beside kites and songbirds and owls. As one, they turned their heads to look at the traveller as he approached."
To celebrate the newsletter's anniversary, I'm releasing one of my Improv Fables (previously only available to premium subscribers). It's called The Girl Who Heard Wolf, it's about the importance of listening and it came to me fully-formed in a dream. Which has never happened before.
Radio days
Radio likes to sit with his front paws on my knees.
He is still overwhelmingly the most popular section of the newsletter. Here he is failing to catch a prawn.