December 2016 - The Diary

Back to touring duties on our panto with a trip to Townhead Village Hall and 2 more at Penilee Community Centre, which went down really well. Sarah McCardie joined the cast for these gigs which were all sold out! As was Barrowfield Community Centre the following day and a fine end to a busy but brilliant week of our ALADDIN tour, in which we performed for the Homeless as well as a group of 20 kids from the Calais refugee camp and the feedback from audiences has been great.

Next up was Barlanark Community Centre for two sold out shows, before moving to Netherton in Temple for another double-header. Every venue has been packed thus far and the audiences very vocal and supportive of our efforts! Had friends and family at this gig and again the following night

at the Geoff Shaw Centre In Toryglen who had a great time! Brilliant audience and nice to catch up with familiar faces from my previous 'SINGIN I'M NO A BILLY, HE'S A TIM' tour in 2006! On the move again and a really funny show and audience at Bellcraig Community Centre and some brilliant audience interaction and hard work from this fantastic and talented cast in which I have found myself! As a team we have bonded brilliantly and having the most fun ever on a touring theatre job! Some of which is reflected in the photos below!!

So it may not be glamorous but it is so rewarding doing this tour and bringing good quality, affordable popular theatre to communities who may be priced out of the larger venues in Glasgow City Centre. And with this brilliant cast it has been side-splittingly funny every single day so far, as seen here with Andrew Fraser and Dame George Docherty trying to keep out the cold between shows!

Also this week I was in Glasgow's Film City at Savalas Studios recording ADR work on an upcoming feature film, more of which next month! And so it was onwards to Drumchapel Community Centre and another sold out venue and vocal and engaged audience!

Managed to squeeze in another Student Film shoot at the wonderful Grand Ole Opry in Tradeston for Stephen Mott's FilmProjects4U.com with a lovely team of young filmmakers and a fun shoot in a brilliant location, before a return to touring duties and gigs at Darnley Community Centre, followed by Possilpoint and Pollock Community Centres. Here's a wee shot from set (below). Great fun!

Delighted also this month to appear in ITV/World Productions IN PLAIN SIGHT Episode 2, in which I play gangster Charlie Tallis in a gritty scene with the marvellous Martin Compston. (Below). The series has gone down very well indeed and was a thrill just to be a part of such a stellar cast.

Then back for our final ALADDIN gigs at Possilpoint, Castlemilk and Shettleston Community Centres and just the best laugh was had by all. We finished up our 22 show run on the 17th of December and wonderful to have the whole crew as well as friends and family in the audience.

Loved this job so much and honestly never laughed so much in any company before! Huge thanks to Bill Wright for casting me as 'Evil Abanazer' and to Producer John Pope from Glasgow Life and to my brilliant cast-mates Mo Carr, Sarah McCardie, Andrew Fraser & George Docherty.

Also managed to squeeze in another Feature Film appearance in David Wilde's COLD-BLOODED KILLERS, which we shot in the lovely island of Arran and nice to team up with the crew from our previous collaboration, the CRIMELORD webseries earlier in the year.

Hot-footed it off the island fast when these Wanted posters (below) started popping up all over Arran, back on the ferry to Ardrossan and back to Glasgow, finishing off a busy and hugely enjoyable month...And year!!

And so ends another great year in which I have managed to work in film, television, theatre, radio and corporates and added worked with some fantastic and talented people. I have lots still to come out in 2017 and looking forward to building on the success of the last three years of solid graft!