Firing through the rain soaked streets, shoes drenched, pocket full of scribbled notes, dodging the craziness of Sauchiehall, pausing only to watch a girl charging head first at her soon to be ex-boyfriend while swinging her shoes high above her head and screaming "Rambo", I pound the pavement on my way to my third gig of the night. I’m looking like a cross between a stand up comedian and a monkey that's fallen out a tree but wearing a smile a mile wide.... such is the madness of the Glasgow Comedy Festival and I love it."Aye that'll get it right up that Fringe lot eh pal?" beams a taxi driver, cheerfully nodding at the banner splattered bus.
"You like stand up do you mate?" I reply with my mock 'big boy' voice.
"Oh aye” he fires back “Especially when it’s dirty stuff, likes fannies n that".
"God" I think to myself.
I love this city and would totally let it get to second base one the first date.
As a boy from the coast I’ve become besotted with the special buzz my adopted city holds for 18 days every March. The Dear Green Place opens its streets, pubs, clubs, buses, theatre, trains and everywhere in-between to comics and punters alike from all around the globe, inviting them to bring their comic mojo…..and ready to let you know if you left it at home that day.
The cous cous becomes a fish supper, the red wine the can of Tennent’s. The pretentious pomp and circumstance that sanitises and dulls the fun of other comedy festivals is nowhere to be seen at Glasgow, you’ve not come here to waste your money, you’ve come to have some fun and a bloody good laugh.
What's that? Finally got a rumbling in your funny tummy? Well why not tuck into the buffet of awesomeness coming at this year’s festival it's bloody scrumptious! From phenomenal talents of your “El Diablo” Mark Nelson, Raymond Means, Scott Agnew and (soon to be huge) sketch group How do I get up there?, to the big household names like Paul Merton, Jerry Sadowitz, Lee Mack, Dave Gorman, Bill Burr, Lucy Porter and ahem…..Billy Kirkwood (cough - that one is awesome - cough).
With the orange glow of the Magners Glasgow International Comedy Festival starting to sparkle on the horizon, I can't help but get once more terrified and excited in equal measure. Gigging everywhere and anywhere the festival will have me with a variety of comics I can’t wait to see perform, even just as a fan. The comedy festival is book-ended with my own new solo show "Comedy Fizzbomb" at Gilmorehillg12 on Friday 12th and something a little different with my live comedy podcast show "Seven Different Shades of Wrong" with Messer’s Molland and Buckley at Capitol on Saturday 27th.
So the party is just gearing up mofo, and the music of comedy has never sounded better, so I got to ask.......you dancing?
Find Billy online at www.billykirkwood.co.uk
Billy will be performing his solo show Comedy Fizzbomb at Gilmorehillg12 on Friday 12th and his live comedy podcast Seven Different Shades of Wrong with Rick Molland and Phil Buckley at Capitol on Saturday 27th March.
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