Ellis after fake Fringe street attack (photograph by Lewis Schaffer)
There was some reaction to the early Malcolm Hardee ‘Pound Of Flesh’ Award yesterday.
It was awarded to Ellis (with Richard Rose of Ellis & Rose) for their stunt (revealed first in my blog yesterday) in which Rose punched Ellis in the face four times so they could claim he had been attacked in the street and get some publicity for their shows Ellis & Rose: Big in Denmark and Jimmy Savile: The Punch and Judy Show.
In yesterday’s reactions comedian/writer/photographer Ian Fox, in particular, was mentioned.
At last year’s Edinburgh Fringe, he really WAS attacked in the street and left with injuries which took several months to mend. I blogged about it at the time.
Ian Fox after a real Edinburgh street attack last year (photograph courtesy of Ian Fox)
American comic Craig Shaynak @craigshaynak Tweeted: “Ian Fox should get an award for actually getting beat up! (and for being VERY funny while getting beaten)”
Comedian Janey Godley @JaneyGodley Tweeted: “Comics at Fringe who pretend to be attacked for press attention ? Who the fuck does that? Check @thejohnfleming blog”
And Mike Finlay @MikeFinlayComic mysteriously Tweeted: “A singer who I won’t name was apparently abducted and nearly killed conveniently after announcing his new band”
Jimmy Savile: The Punch and Judy Show
Meanwhile, the Chortle website (whose review of Jimmy Savile: The Punch and Judy Show had been blamed for the non-existent street attack on Ellis) wrote: “Even by the standard of Edinburgh publicity stunts, it’s pretty extreme.”
Chortle’s Steve Bennett said: “I felt pretty awful when I first thought something I’d written might have ended in someone being physically attacked. No performer deserves that… But I would never have thought that they would have gone to such lengths to deliberately hurt themselves just to get into the paper. I suppose it’s apt, though, the appalling Jimmy Savile show is pretty much a self-inflicted wound on their own comedy career.”
When Ellis phoned me about the Chortle reaction, I told him he should use the line ELLIS & ROSE: “a self-inflicted wound on their comedy career” (Chortle) on their posters.
The Edinburgh Fringe is all about cheap publicity.
Both Chortle and Scots comedy promoter Alan Anderson commented that comedian Shawn Hitchens was notable by his absence from the increasingly prestigious Malcolm Hardee Cunning Stunt shortlist. He had organised a ‘ginger pride’ march through the streets of Edinburgh, attracting worldwide headlines from the BBC, CNN, the Daily Mirror, the Bangkok Post, Canada.com, the Daily Mail, the Irish Independent, the Times Of Malta and French outlet 7sur7 among others.
Fair enough, a stunt. But not really that cunning.
The increasingly prestigious three Malcolm Hardee Awards
The best cunning stunts play with and ideally play a confidence trick on the media or twist an idea in an original way.
We did very seriously consider nominating the fake Ellis beating as a Cunning Stunt. But – as we were not going to give an ‘Act Most Likely To Make a Million Quid’ Award this year so had a spare trophy – we decided we could, in effect, award two Cunning Stunts this year (there have been lots of good stunts around) and we would award the Ellis & Rose one – called the Pound of Flesh Award – early because we were frightened their con would be revealed by someone other than us… and because, by giving an early award, we could drum up some publicity for the increasingly prestigious Malcolm Hardee Comedy Awards Show this Friday night.
The Edinburgh Fringe is all about cheap publicity: something the increasingly prestigious Malcolm Hardee Awards have always strived to encourage, as a tribute to Malcolm’s increasingly prestigious reputation.
At my Edinburgh chat show today in Bob’s Bookshop, I have booked English eccentric adventurer Tim Fitzhigham who cannot get there for the start because he is finishing off his own show at the Pleasance Courtyard. So, before him on the bill, I have perhaps foolishly booked Geordie-Irish-Iranian comedian Patrick Monahan who perhaps has not the most consistent time-keeping record.
My co-host, Scotsman comedy critic Kate Copstick, has promised to pole dance to fill in any time before Patrick arrives, so I am now attempting to get hold of Patrick to ensure he is late.
The chat shows seem to be going well.
Fat man, Arthur Smith and Kate Copstick chatted on Monday (photograph by Brian Higgins)
On Monday, Copstick was there to defend her reported criticisms of comedian Sarah Millican and, it seemed to me, merely ended up slagging-off at least three other female comedians.
Then Arthur Smith arrived, on his way to Waverley station to get a train to see his mother-in-law in Sunderland… and shared some bizarre tales.
I had intended to blog extracts from these chat shows, but the Ellis & Rose ‘fake beaten up’ story took precedence yesterday and saved me having to listen to 60 minutes of iPhone recording and much longer transcribing hell.
Juliette Burton, Jorik Mol & Laura Levites chatted yesterday (photograph by Brian Higgins)
Yesterday’s chat show seemed to me to be equally fascinating with critic Kate Copstick and comedians Juliette Burton, Laura Levites and Jorik Mol sharing their thoughts on – and memories of – mental hospitals, suicide bids and drugs. Juliette Burton, whose show When I Grow Up I had just seen for the third time – it was a rock-solid 5-star show in a totally sold-out venue – seemed to have had the longest list of mental problems but was the only one not currently on medication. What one deduces from that I do not know.
With luck and more time to transcribe, extracts may appear in this blog at a later date.
Yesterday seemed to be a Juliette Burton day because, after I saw Charlie Chuck’s new show Charlie Chuck’s Grande Night Out – new tartan suit, new jokes and a rousingly-rockingly-sung See You Later Alligator – I went to see John Lloyd’s late-night BBC chat show and, blow me, Juliette was on the bill there again.
But, returning to Bob’s Bookshop – the location of my own daily chat shows – Bob Slayer issued a press release yesterday which said:
Publicity-seeking foxy blondes outside Bob’s Bookshop include Bob Slayer (left) and Adrienne Truscott (second from right)
“Being an intimate venue that has become increasingly popular we have been forced to introduce a plan to control the numbers. Starting today our door policy will be FOXY BLONDES ONLY. Non Blondes will not be allowed after 9pm.”
This seemed to be just an excuse for him to dress up in a blonde wig with multi-award-nominated Adrienne Truscott and others.
The Edinburgh Fringe is all about cheap publicity, but it can only be a coincidence that Bob’s Bookshop is sponsored by the Scottish Border Brewery and one of their brews is called Foxy Blonde.
I rounded off my day yesterday by going with comic Lewis Schaffer to Bob Slayer’s Midnight Mayhem show at the Bookshop. When we arrived, one member of the audience was asking: “Has anybody here NOT read dolphin sex books?”
This was never fully explained to my satisfaction and I left after an hour, leaving Lewis Schaffer holding the microphone and telling people he was Lewis Schaffer.
40 minutes later, I got a text from Lewis saying:
“Bob tossed a beer at me.”
It was a quiet, mostly uneventful day at the Edinburgh Fringe.
SO IT GOES - John Fleming's blog 