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michael jackson

Friday 26th June 2009

It's a couple of hours now since the news broke - or rather gradually fractured - about the death of Michael Jackson.  While unexpected, it's not exactly a complete shock, and I've found myself wondering why I'm not feeling sadder than I am.  Just a few minutes ago Clara figured it out - she'd been feeling the same way, and it dawned on her that the reason Jackson's actual death hasn't made us feel especially sad is that we were ALREADY pretty gutted about Michael Jackson -and what had become of him - while he was still alive...

The sense of loss at seeing the reams of footage currently being broadcast across the news channels of Jackson at his astonishing best back in the early to mid 80s is no more acute than the sense of loss I've been experiencing for years now, whenever that poor frightened skeletal creature that was all that remained of him was hauled out blinking into the glare of the public gaze.  The Michael Jackson who thrilled and amazed the world has, let's face it, been gone for a long time.  I'm not sure I can miss him anymore now than I already did.

It's all very sad. RIP.

On a (I hope) lighter note, I'm off to Glastonbury now, whence blogging may be problematic.  Back on Monday.  Meanwhile I can still tweet from my phone, so the Tweeps among you may keep tabs on me that way.  Those of you going to Glasto, or already there, I'm on the Cabaret Stage at 7.30pm Saturday and 9.30pm Sunday.  Wonder how many maudlin Michael Jackson covers I'm going to hear over the weekend...

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oops

Tuesday 23rd June 2009

DID weigh myself yesterday but things are so frantic at the moment forgot to post it. 21 2 again - ok considering it was Father's Day on Sunday.

I'm still trying to meet several writing deadlines AND work on the new album; the fact that it's Glastonbury this weekend has also required a bit of preparation. To misquote a phrase, we're gonna need a bigger tent.

Reckon we've got all  the tour dates in for the autumn - I'll try and get those up on the gigs page in the next day or so.

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weight

Monday 15th June 2009

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twitted

Sunday 14th June 2009

If anybody's wondering how the Twitter gig went last Monday, the whole thing has been painstakingly transcribed here.

Meanwhile, I'm sorry I've been quiet this week, but I've got a bunch of writing deadlines to meet - as in writing writing-type writing.  Having never had a word published heretofore, I've suddenly got bits of at least two and possibly three books coming out at Christmas. There's the long awaited Now Show book (more details as & when appropriate); I'm contributing to The Atheist's Guide To Christmas as edited by Ariane ("There Is No God" bus adverts) Sherine, and I'm writing HALF of another book about which I hope to be able to tell you more very shortly.

In addition to this I've been making a start on the new album, and taking and approving photos for the CD inlay and tour poster.  So while I'm sorry if I've been neglecting you a bit it hasn't been out of sheer indolence, just disorganisation and general crapness as usual.

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there!

Monday 8th June 2009

Ha! It's Monday morning (well, early afternoon) and I'm posting my weight! On time and everything! That shocked you!

21 2 and a half, so that's good I suppose. There was one of those "Ten Things You Need To Know About Losing Weight" type shows on the telly a week or so ago; there wasn't much I didn't already know but the few bits that were new to me were quite intriguing; protein switches off the hunger centres in your brain, and while if you eat solids and drink liquids the liquids pass straight through your stomach leaving just a few lumps of solid, but if you eat thick soup the whole thing stays in your stomach for ages - so the secret to feeling full all day is eggs for breakfast and soup for lunch. Tried it a couple of times and it seems to work.

I hope you're all ready for the Twitter Comedy Club this evening...

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arse!

Thursday 4th June 2009

As a few of you have been pointing out in exasperated fashion, I didn't post my weight this week - I'm sorry, but the South Bank gig has required so much preparation I've been running round ever since Monday morning, when I DID in fact weigh myself and then thought nothing more of it, sorry. 21 3 again; I think it's safe to say I'm in a bit of a rut here, but steps are being made to move things up a notch.

Meanwhile, I don't know if you've seen this already, although it is all over the net right now... As a from-birth Beatles nut I somehow feel I should be offended by this or at the very least witheringly cynical about it, but I'm afraid I can't help smiling every time I see it...

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hiding and writing

Thursday 28th May 2009

It's quite an odd feeling; I'm staying in a hotel in Edinburgh. I've never done that before. Edinburgh still feels as much like home as anywhere (I get the never-been-away feeling as soon as I'm off the train) so to be essentially a tourist here feels rather unsettling.

I'm staying here as a sort of base of operations for this little Scottish mini-tour I'm on, although oddly I'm not doing any gigs in Edinburgh itself.

I'm using the time to get some writing done - as ever, I appear to have over-committed myself. There's a Now Show book coming out at Christmas, of which I'm writing a chunk; my friend Ariane Sherine (brains behind the There Is No God bus adverts) is compiling The Atheists' Guide To Christmas, to which I'm contributing, and there's another book I'm working on with someone else you all know but which I don't want to be too specific about as it's a peach of an idea but one which anyone could nick.  

All of these have deadlines of in-a-couple-of-weeks, so I've gone from someone who's never written any sort of book to someone who has to write bits of three books All At Once Right Now.  It's all good though.

Anyway, must dash, Aberdeen beckons with its big granitey fingers. 

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I suck

Wednesday 27th May 2009

So, having forgotten to tell everybody I was planning on posting my weight on Tuesday rather than Monday, I then weighed myself on Tuesday and forgot to post it (possibly because it was Tuesday).  I am utterly useless and I apologise.

21 3 again; been good food-wise but have had no time to exercise. I'm off to Edinburgh for a few days now; hazardous in terms of food possibilities (I do like haggis a LOT) but as anybody who's been there will know, simply BEING in Edinburgh is exercise. Honestly.  It's like spending all day on a Stairmaster.

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wait (get it?)

Monday 25th May 2009

I was in Inverness this morning, so I'll post my weight tomorrow if it's all the same to everybody - sorry I didn't remember to let you know beforehand that this would be the case.

On a related topic, much amusing silliness over on Twitter - somebody set up a "Vote For Mr. Twitterverse" site a few days ago; in what I can only assume was a fit of boredom and mischief, Neil Gaiman - who I'd remind you has knocking on for half a million "followers" - commanded all his faithful legions to vote for me, and, moreover, to raid the internet for pictures of me in order to create "Vote For Mitch" posters.  Such is the awe and deference Neil commands in Twitterspace that many have complied, and you can see some of the results here, here, here (steel yourself for that one) and here (Clara's favourite).

Those of you as yet un-Twittered, you too can watch the daftness continue to unfold (as doubtless it will) if you sign up... One of us! One of us! One of us!

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rip up your playlists

Thursday 21st May 2009

Ran into Simon Mayo at a BBC do yesterday afternoon; after a brief amusing prologue during which we communicated by phone-borne Twitter messages despite standing five feet apart (those of you following both of us on Twitter may even have seen this) I mentioned that I'd noticed (on Twitter, of course - no, it's not taking over my life, why do you ask) that he'd been on a playlist panel for Radio 2, deciding which forthcoming singles the station would favour and which not.  He confessed regret at having disclosed this information; now everyone with a record in the works is on his case about getting it playlisted. 

I was reminded of this a minute ago when I found this on YouTube - hard to believe it'll be five years in October.  Thanks to "infocado" for putting this together.

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