James Loveridge talks about his new show, Castles in the Sand.
Tell us about your Fringe show
It's all about a really embarrassing memory that I'd suppressed for 20 years. It came back to me last year and I was so mortified by it that I figured the only to deal with it was to write a show about it and make people laugh. I figure that if you can laugh at something, it no longer is embarrassing so I have this show and I also encourage the audience to share some of theirs. So far the submissions have been great!
Best thing about the Fringe?
Being surrounded by so much comedy, you get to see stuff you'd never normally get a chance to. Also it's a platform for comedians to try something they couldn't do in a normal club environment. I think it brings out the best in comedy.
Worst thing about the Fringe?
Bit cliché but amateur student drama productions on the Royal Mile. If I meet one more 18 year old telling me they’re a playwright I'm going to scream.
How many years have you been coming to the Fringe?
This will be my sixth. It's my second solo hour but by the end of this run I'll have been an Edinburgh resident for 6 months of my life which makes me happy.
Favourite Fringe venue?
I really love where my show is, The Hanover Tap (formerly the Jekyll & Hyde). It's where I have put on all of my month long shows and I know many of the locals and the bar staff are lovely. Other than that, the Underbelly where I host Spank is just one big drunk dysfunctional family.
Best Fringe memory?
Hosting Spank last year and during the naked promo four people got naked, including Bobby Mair and we raised £700 for a bone marrow charity in aid of a girl in the audience who'd lost a finger to bone cancer. The audience were chanting "F**k Cancer!", proving you can be crass and classy at the same time.
Best heckle?
Oddly enough I don't get heckled that often, although there was one time that was pretty crazy...
Craziest on stage experience?
A man once tried to glass me on stage, the video is on YouTube. I was hosting a night in London and mentioned being from Essex, a man in the audience took umbrage to that despite also being from Essex. Needless to say he couldn't take a joke and threw a glass at my head as he was being escorted out. Luckily no one was injured and the night carried on regardless, but that was pretty crazy.
What’s on your rider?
Earl Grey Tea or Gin. Both are the best drinks in the world.
James Loveridge's show Castles in the Sand is on at Laughing Horse at Hanover Tap (formerly Jekyll & Hyde) until August 27 (except 15th). For more info and tickets, visit https://tickets.edfringe.com
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here