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YouTubeFiled under: Blog | Tags: Blog, Concert, Drake, Drizzy, Manchester, Show, Will Manning
If you heard any of my Hits shows recently you’ll know that it was allllll about Drizzy for me this week!
One of the perks of the job is free tickets, so I was invited along to his show on Tuesday night in Manchester, or so I was told. When reaching the door to get into the venue I was told the tickets didn’t “work” on the machine, hmmmm, on closer inspection I saw the word “Wednesday” – DOH. Listen to me explaining this on the radio here…
Anyway, Wednesday came and the show did not fail! The Weeknd kicked things off with Crew Love and the rest was all a blur, just hit after hit – ok there were a few album fillers, oh and 40 minutes worth of crowd shout outs whilst walking around on a hanging walkway, but still.
Started From The Bottom finished it off in style.
Filed under: Blog | Tags: Amanda Holden, Nigel Harman, Nigel Lindsay, Performance, Show, Shrek The Musical, Westend
On Friday night I went to see Shrek The Musical, not before demolishing an amazing pizza at Fire and Stone in Covent Garden, seriously delish.
I had mixed feelings towards the musical initially, how could they take one of my favourite films, disney films at that and make it a great musical. Well they did, this was one of the best musicals I had ever seen and I’ve seen a fair few. The set and lighting was mind blowing, it moved it pieced together in ways I couldn’t have guessed it would and it visually looked amazing. Characterisation was spot on with all the main characters featured, Lord Farquaad being my favourite played by Nigel Harman who is just hilarious. Amanda Holden plays princess Fiona with Nigel Lindsay as Shrek, all execute their roles to the fullest, it was just so brilliant to watch, I honestly didn’t know Amanda Holden could act or sing like that.
All the music was original which worked so well, it told the story and it added a lot of humour. The closing song was I’m A Believer which had everyone on their feet, it was just so fun, I’ve never felt so much energy come off a westend stage.
If you have any doubt, put it behind you. Shrek The Musical goes straight into my top 3.
Filed under: Blog | Tags: Cirque Du Soleil, Royal Albert Hall, Show, Totem
Last night my family and I went to the Royal Albert Hall in London to watch the amazing Cirque Du Soleil show Totem. This show, unlike all the others is very new and only began last year.
It was (naturally) brilliant, only about 1 or 2 of the acts were a bit samey. The set, the lighting, costumes and the music were all mind blowing. I just leave shows like that thinking “oh my god.”
Filed under: Blog | Tags: Comedy, Ricky Gervais, Science, Show, Stand Up, Wembley Arena
Last night I went to see my first ever stand up show at Wembley arenaArena to see my comic idol – Ricky Gervais. Since watching ‘The Office’ I have been a massive fan of Ricky, people even say I act like him sometimes, never really sure how to take that but I think he’s hilarious obviously so I guess it’s a compliment (in a way) so last night I got on a train to Wembley arena with my best mate – a fellow Gervais fan. I was soo excited and hyped up and I wasn’t let down in any way, I can’t remember the last time I laughed so hard sober.
His delivery, facial expressions, tone of voice and of course jokes are all on point. Yes he tells jokes which some may deem "offensive" but in the right context I think its all okay and he's only joking around, seems a lot of critics can't understand that.
Now is it really about Science? Well no. But there is a lose connection with some logical explantations to some jokes which he can pass off as Science so we can let him off.
Well worth the £47 ticket.
Filed under: Blog | Tags: 1Xtra Live, BBC, Concert, Sheffield Arena, Show
It’s that time of the year again when 1Xtra shuts down a city and puts on a massive music event. This year its Sheffield’s turn to host the massive 1Xtra Live show with 100% homegrown artists including Jay Sean, Chipmunk, JLS, Taio Cruz, Sugababes, N-Dubz, Tinchy Stryder and Dizzee Rascal headlining!
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On the 1Xtra site:
* From 4pm, the 1Xtra Live website will have a LIVE backstage feed switched on – this will consist of a general view of backstage action that will flip to specific artist interviews when they happen. It will also feature footage of our DJs playing games with artists.
* From 7pm, the website will have a front of stage camera switched on as well, with live and direct footage of the entire 1Xtra Live gig, in it’s entirety – every act, every track. That’s right.
* From 7pm til 11pm you will be able to SWITCH between the front and backstage cameras as you please. HANDY.
* Both camera feeds are accompanied by a LIVE CHAT window so that the audience can jump online to ask questions to artists backstage, chat with other 1Xtra listeners, get hyped about the event and revel in the fact that they have AAA access to backstage .
* If you’re not actually at 1Xtra Live, it doesn’t matter, you can still get the best access available, online. www.bbc.co.uk/1xtra/1xtralive
Filed under: Blog, Things I'm Feeling | Tags: Blog, Christmas Lights, Hull, Mini Viva, Show, Will Manning
Just got in from another Christmas Lights show, this time in Hull, Yorkshire.
It has now become a standard procedure that as soon as I get into the car I am wound up like theres no tomorrow, this continues in the dressing room and then again on the journey back home. In all today it was about 10 hours worth. To top it all off the girls put my overgrown mop into bunches and said that I had to go on stage with them in.
The performance was a weird one, it was on a balcony overlooking a square in the city. It was freezing and very windy, on top of that there was a fog machine to my right where I was facing which was spurting out dry ice into my eyes every 30 seconds resulting in me laughing a lot.
Our last Christmas Lights performance is on Sunday in Sheffield with Beverley Knight and Little Boots!
Will Manning 