Back from Edinburgh...

Back from the quick-ish trip to Edinburgh for the Fringe/Comedy festival...was stacks of fun and a lack of sleep was had...mainly because I caught the megabus up which consisted of the following things: 1. lack of sleep; 2. lack of comfort; 3. a man was snoring really really loudly a row across; 4. it was boiling in the bus and freezing outside; 5. it was a BUS!!!!

But the worst thing was that we got into Edinburgh on 4 hours or so of sleep, stowed our luggage for a few hours so we could go on a free walking tour, checked into the place that we were staying in, and then headed to the first of 11 (including the military tattoo, a 24 hour show - yes you read right - and another couple of shows we added on) - jon richardson at the pleasance courtyard. Was brilliant as usual...anyway, here's a run down of the shows and the review I'm going to give them.

Monday 17th
1. Jon Richardson @ Pleasance Courtyard - always a funny guy, and I completely sympathises with his gripes because I have similar likes and dislikes. I didn't know who he was until last year, my sis is a huge fan of his radio show, so I'd only heard snatches of what he was like.
2. Lloyd Langford @ Pleasance Courtyard - one of the comedians I didn't really know about before going to the show. Again, my sis is a huge fan of comedy and she got the tickets to this show. Funny funny guy, and I loved his stories about his squeamishness.

Tuesday 18th
1. Mark Watson's Last Ever 24 Hour show @ Pleasance dome/Pleasance Cabaret/George IV theatre - Yes that's right a 24 hours show. He's done 7 so far. I've only heard about them previously, and my sis had streamed bits and pieces of his last one in Melbourne. And I must say it was so much fun - a new time zone was created, there was a triple jump competition, a mission was created to get Bono from U2 or the proclaimers to make an appearance, comedians dropping in all the time, comedian Sammy J going to the airport to inform the public of New Scottish time, and the singing of Christmas carols at the end of each hour. So much fun, so little time.

Wednesday 19th (besides recovering from the 24 hour show)
1. Tom Basden @ Pleasance Courtyard - another comedian I have never really heard of, but was actually a little bit of a surprise. Kinda like a UK version of Dimitri Martin, but with not as many slides and more songs.
2. Edinburgh Military Tattoo @ Castle Esplanade - not technically part of the fringe, but we had to do this. The flat we rented looked up to the castle, and we heard the fireworks every night that the show was on. And lucky for us, they had a group called the Top Secret Drum Corps from Basel in Switzerland. These guys are AMAZING. Look them up on You Tube - seriously.

Thursday 20th
1. Adam Hills @ Assembly Rooms - Australian comedian that I've seen on TV a countless number of times and I think it is pretty close to my fave of the festival. How fast he is with comebacks and the way he interacts with the crowd is what makes it so enjoyable. Plus he's just so damn likeable.

Friday 21st
1. Mark Watson's The Hotel @ Queen Street - this was really really good. Part performance, part comedy, part improv; it was a little bit of a surprise package. When we were looking up tickets we found out that originally it was only supposed to be on in the afternoons at 4.15pm, but the demand was so high they put on extra shows at 6.15pm. Its bascially a disfunctional hotel that has some weird and wonderful pieces and you explore it all on your own. Apparently, its coming to Brighton and London, so go and see it if you can.
2. Jason Byrne @ Assembly Hall - Previously, I'd only seen him do the Melbourne comedy gala on TV, so I wasnt really a big fan, until I saw him with Adam Hills in Adam, Jason and Friends - and he was hilarious! Completely not what I had expected, and this was definately the same with his solo show. Slightly bonkers and crazy stories about his youth were hilarious :)

saturday 22nd
1. Sammy J's 1999 @ Underbelly - This was one of the shows that we originally didnt plan on seeing but I'm glad we did. I'd never heard of him previously, and only see him at Mark Watson's 24 hour show, so I didnt know what to expect. This is a musical of sorts, with a 15 year old Sammy J in high school. Complete with songs and some slightly disturbing dance sequences, it was absolutely hilarious. Definately an unexpected little piece of hilarity.
2. Rhod Gilbert @ Pleasance Courtyard - this was the one show that was a big disappointment. I had expected more from him, but it was all shouty ranting and raving and although parts were funny, he kinda went on a little bit too much about certain things - mainly the reviewers.
3. David O'Doherty @ Pleasance Courtyard - Another comedian that I'd only seen on galas but was actually hilarious. I thought that his show was going to be all about silly songs on his casio, but it turned out to be mostly stand up with a few songs dropped in. Great little show in a really strange venue.

Sunday 23rd
1. Mark Watson's Earth Summit @ GRV - this was great. It was a lecture on the environment (when you boiled it down), but delivered in a comedic manner. Huge fan of Mark Watson's, and knowing that he's been trying to do his bit for the environment lately through some of the stuff that my sister has been reading by him. This presentation made me realise how bad Australia is in relation to environmental issues. He made me open my eyes
2. Dan Atkinson @ Pleasance Courtyard - Another angry young man, but not as annoyingly shouty as Rhod Gilbert was. And another comedian that I had never heard of before. He was at Mark Watson's 24 hour show as well, and this show was about his anger at the stupid people that call up radio talkback shows.
3. Night of comedy for Ray hosted by Michael McIntyre @ Assembly Rooms - Another great night because all the comedians were doing this for a great cause and because there were no reviewers the comedians were letting their hair down. It was a VERY long show but was absolutely hilarious.

I think I've missed a show or two there (cos I know I saw someone else the same day that Adam Hills was on).

Photos will follow....

The Grammar of Ornament

A few weeks ago, I went to the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) with my sister as the weather wasn't looking too great, and I'd been meaning to go here for a while now. It's described in the guide books as 'England's attic'. And I have to say they have it pretty much spot on. It is MASSIVE. There is so much stuff here that it's not funny. And it's hugely inspirational. There's everything from iron work (keys, locks, fences) to ceramic plates, musical instruments and even a room full of hanging persian carpets. Pretty amazing stuff.

There were two things that I absolutely loved there.

The first was a room that had all different periods of furniture, and right down the end they had Art Nouveau posters, handles and chairs. I love art nouveau, and I was left starting at a particular chair that I wish I could own.

The second thing was a room that I walked into that had a whole stack of prints and books in cabinets. These belong to a guy named Owen Jones. They are the most amazing designs I have ever seen. He was an architect working in the 1800s, and he wrote an amazing book called 'The Grammar of Ornament'. But that's not the best part. The prints on the walls were all these designs that he had copied from the Alhambra in Spain. Amazingly intricate geometric designs in all shades of the rainbow. Some were unfinished, and all were hand drawn. You could even see the pencil marks.

I was absolutely in awe and amazed by the skill of this guy. I love symmetrical and geometrical designs and this guy was a goldmine. I only wish I could get a copy of his book from 1856 (of which a copy sits in the V&A and which I was studying with amazement). Hopefully, I'll be able to find a reprint or something of it.

If you want to draw inspiration from it, have a look here. There's also some amazing plates here on the V&A website.

Album artwork

Muse have released the artwork for their new album, 'The Resistance' and I quite like it. It reminds me of the artwork for Origin of Symmetry...question is whether the singles will have similar artwork, or completely different like on 'Black holes and revelations'.