The Story so far.
Friday, 4 January 2008
Last year was a pretty good year. My first half-hour animated pilot Stairlift To Heaven was broadcast to CBBC, which I directed, animated, co-wrote (with Chris Chantler) and voiced. Okay, I voiced the dog. The other characters were voiced by Richard Briers, Una Stubbs, Rik Mayall, Mark Gattis and Mona Hammond.
Our first Radio 4 series Peacefully In Their Sleeps was broadcast, which I co-wrote with Chris. The original Ford Prefect Geoff McGivern starred and guest included Richard Briers, Rula Lenska, Bill Maynard, Paul Putner and Markus Brigstock. It was chosen as pick of the day in the Guardian, The Observer, The Times, The Telegraph and Time Out.
My new family Little Howard Show, Little Howard and the Magic Pencil of Life and Death sold out at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, got marvelous reviews and kicked off a national tour which is still going on.
I got married.
A week before I was due to get married I was asked to perform on The Royal Variety Performance. So I spent my last days as a single man sitting at my desk, writing jokes about The Queen.
Finally in the dying moments of 2007 my first children’s book was published. Little Howard’s Unpleasant Lullaby went on sale two days before christmas (not intentionally, there was a printing error, it could have come out in October).
So far 2008 is finding hard to catch up.
I’ve grown a beard, my 14 month old son has developed an almost pathological attachment to my leg, and my girlfriend (who is my wife, but I can’t write that without feeling like a 1970’s working men’s club comic) dyed my hair bright yellow yesterday, the arm of my glasses finally fell off, my phone’s battery’s died, my laptop’s charger has bust, the baby has managed to change the time on every other clock in the house and I think it’s way past my bedtime, but I can’t be sure.
This year does hold a few things in store. We’re taking The Magic Pencil to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, in Australia, and it looks like The New Zealand International Comedy Festival is interested too. It’s possible that the Royal Variety might lead to Little Howard and I being part of an ITV sketch show, and CBBC are interested in developing a sitcom with Little Howard and I.
2008 will be a bad hair year.
