Machester was lovely: the first night in Salford’s Lowry Theatre complex involved me trying to get up to speed: the combination of a day off and a hotel massage (turned out to be just head and shoulders etc but appreciated nonetheless) left me rather too chilled. The second night I was on better form, an the run there felt pretty good.

Last night we were in a huge barn of a conference centre in Harrogate, a beautiful Yorkshire town that is entirely new to me. It was a tricky room to play, lacked a lot of atmosphere in comparison to previous nights, but all was good. The start was marred by my mic pack dying on me, so Coops had to come out and replace the deficient piece of technology, which involved all sorts of untuckings and inelegancies. Shame, as it kicked the show off with a struggle, and it’s very hard getting the pace and tone back to where it should be if you start off like that.

Am just leaving the delightful Hotel du Vin in Harrogate, sadly having not had the opportunity to visit the famous Betty’s Tea Shop over the road, which I’m sure would appeal to every red-blooded male amongst you.

My throat has been tricky, as I do have a tendency to shout when I don’t need to (on stage at least). Been swigging lots of hot water and all the right things. Seem to be getting better.

Right, off to Blackpool in the drizzle. Nice.
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