In The Words Of

Is it me, or are things starting to return to some normality? Who knows, but I get that feeling when I am out-and-about in Cardiff this last week or so. We can all but only hope.

As mentioned last month, my good friend and contributor to Cardiff Times, Alan Coulthard, passed away. His funeral was in Barry, and I attended along with his family and many of his friends from the music industry. It was a lovely sunny day, too—an excellent send-off for him and those that attended.

REVIEWS [Rant]

I have - like you have - been watching a lot of TV, even though it’s been so many programmes via a streaming service. I am fortunate to pay for Disney+, Sky, Amazon Prime, Netflix and Apple. [Although I am sure I have missed one out!] I spend about 95% of my time watching such services, with the only thing I watch on the BBC being Vigil. This is a good show, albeit a bit [a lot] far-fetched with the realism of the submarine - it’s too big - and all the military chit chatter and chain of command and personalities, but hey, it’s TV and the BBC! So disregarding my comments, it is a good show and available on iPlayer.

So why my rant about only watching 5% of standard TV that we all are forced to pay for by law, yet the content on the other providers is proving more superior and at a far lower cost per month. I just don’t get it. And who watches Eastenders? I don’t know anyone that watches it - then again, I don’t live in ‘the’ London.

On Disney+, you will find an excellent comedymurder mystery called Only Murders In The Building. Starring Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez, it’s proper binge-worthy material, and the writing is by far some of the best I have seen in a TV show. Six episodes are available, with more coming weekly [I am not yet sure how many!] Also on the same service is the last season of The Walking Dead and Y The Last Man. Both on a similar vibe of post-apocalyptic events, albeit one is more future set - in its current last series - after the world goes zombie; the other is about a man being ‘that’ only male left, with the rest being female, hence the Y in the title: Y chromosome.

I also need to mention Apple TV+ - it is a streaming service that was in its infancy when I subscribed [free 12 months membership], and then it became accessible again as I took the music service. Still, I forgot I had it, and worse, I didn’t realise what new stuff they had, and also, the 4k picture quality on my big TV is mindblowing from this streamer! On Apple TV+, a new series called Foundation is starting to air - weekly drops. Based on the Isaac Asimov books, the first episode is what you’d expect if you are a fan of the books. It won’t spoon-feed you; you have to be switched on to understand it. But…, it is so worth it.

Keep looking after yourselves, (and remember, all of those streaming services are cheaper than your TV licence - even some price-wise combined!)

by Carl Marsh

Carl Marsh Twitter - @InTheWordsOf_CM Facebook - @InTheWordsOf YouTube - InTheWordsOf

You may recall northern psychic Clinton Baptiste from Peter Kay’s Phoenix Nights; if so, well, he’s back and soon to be appearing at the Glee Club in Cardiff Bay on Tuesday 5th October. Clinton is a character performed by Alex Lowe, and I got to chat with him ahead of this comedy tour.

Carl Marsh

I bet your character Clinton could not have predicted the last 18 months we’ve just had?

Alex Lowe

Yeah, yeah, well, that’s right, out of all the predictions, that was the worst thing. It always gets a big laugh if ever I do you know like you know I’ve done bits on BBC Radio 6 Music and Radio X where they say “Clinton you know, some of your predictions!” and I always say to everyone [in Clinton’s voice] “Yeah, all right, I’ll admit that 2020 was… and I know I said it was going to be a better”, but it’s just been universally terrible for everybody.

I cannot wait to get back and get on the stage and do it again; it’s been so miserable. I hope people want to see - as I say, it’s nothing complex about what I do - old fashioned comedy yet which I sort of think that I’m slightly hurt by that because I think ‘is it old fashioned to do jokes’ and have a setup and a punch line, and you might return to something. I think it’s kind of universally funny, and I don’t think it’s particularly old fashioned. Maybe it’s old fashioned in that it’s puerile double entendres.

Carl Marsh

But for me, the old fashioned stuff is funny. Whereas most of the new stuff isn’t funny, or it goes too far politically, whereas your act with Clinton Baptiste is, and with it originating from Peter Kay’s Phoenix Nights, it’s timeless. I can’t think that there has been anything better - comedy-wise - on the TV - The Office would be, but that I know it was around the same time. And Peter Kay’s creation of Clinton Baptiste - and we are here 20 years later - is still as popular.

Alex Lowe

Oh, well, that’s nice. I think it could be because it comes from Phoenix Nights. And it’s very much the end of the pier cabaret character. You know my dad used to play in dance bands, so we went around social clubs, you know when I was a kid to go and watch him. It would be ridiculous if I tried to do, as I say, reinvent the wheel and make Clinton something he isn’t; he very much is that end of the pier. It reminds me of when we used to have a hypnotist come to freshers’ week when I was at Leicester Polytechnic doing that terrible “What are you doing, Alex? You’ve eaten an onion!” You know, just crap [laughter]. “You’re conducting an orchestra?” it’s like, rubbish. But that’s what it is. It’s an honest-to-goodness local cabaret fair. And people recognise that. It’s got a sort of Northern appeal to it. And it’s embarrassing because when people meet me - I’m from Northwest London - and I couldn’t be from a more middle-class area. But my family are sort of old Cockneys, and they were steeped in that… My uncle was a pub pianist. And my dad played the saxophone in his dance bands. Jokes and comedy and sitcoms, and cabaret were very much respected in my family. So I do get it, you know, I understand where it comes from.

Catch ‘Clinton Baptiste’ at the Glee Club in Cardiff Bay on 5th October.

BOOK REVIEW

Tails of the Unexpected - John Donoghue

Whenever I see a book that is written by a fellow ex-Soldier: I am sold! And then I saw the cover of John Donoghue’s book - Tails of the Unexpected - how could anyone not fall in love with it! I know the powers and healing abilities that having a dog can and does do to anyone. I love my dogs, perhaps more than most humans in my life; the love is unconditional, and that welcome I get from nipping to the garage for five mins, every time, fills me with joy.

The book created so many ‘laugh out loud’ moments for me that I did lose count. I love the authors’ sense of humour, proper old-school, proper military type, which I possess too, yet it might not appeal to a lot of the new generation, but they are missing out. I want people to have fun; I want people to see comedy for what it is, ‘comedy’. So if you don’t laugh when reading this book, then, well…

And Barney the dog! The star of the book. And the locations visited!

Please, get this book.

Tails of the Unexpected - John Donoghue - Available now on Amazon!