Crown Court Hotel, Inverness, 10 February 2007

Craig Hill

CRAIG HILL burst on to the Crown Court stage with all the joy and vigour of a genie freed from a bottle. He danced, sang and gyrated as if suddenly enjoying his freedom after a thousand years of captivity. From the first moment he stepped on to the stage you knew you were in for a riotous night of comedy.

Craig’s grin is visible from space, and he immediately lifted the audience with the best entrance (Oh please no, don’t go there!) I have ever seen in comedy. It was full of theatre and fun, and he instantly delighted the capacity crowd at the Crown Court.

I talked to Craig a few hours before his performance when I interviewed him for Purple Comedy. “I really enjoy my comedy,” he explained, “I get as much out of it as the audience.” That attitude was certainly in evidence on Saturday night.

Craig’s camp performance is firmly in the tradition of Frankie Howerd and Kenneth Williams. He teases the audience, remarks on the women’s bad hair days, and undermines the men’s sexuality, but no one minds because it is impossible not to like Craig – he simply exudes hilarity.

“As a gay comedian I can say things straight comedians couldn’t get away with,” Craig told me, “What would be really offensive coming from a straight man is just a bit of casual comment coming from me.”

Originally an actor, Craig was a reluctant convert to Stand Up. “A friend of mine worked in the Gilded Balloon and she kept saying to me I was funnier than most of the acts she hired. I was terrified to try it but she booked me a spot although I felt like pulling out right up to the last minute.”

“Before I went on I just thought about what made my friends laugh and decided to do that. I was amazed when the crowd responded to me and I discovered what a wonderful feeling it is when you say something and an audience laughs.”

With seven one-man Edinburgh Fringe shows behind him, Craig has packed a lot into a relatively short career. The thought of standing alone on stage for an hour is pretty daunting to most comedians but Craig produced his first solo show after only a year as a stand up simply because he didn’t know how long it took most acts to build up to their first Edinburgh show.

“People said how brave I was and I didn’t know what they meant,” Craig says, laughing, “but I did the show and it went well so it’s was a good move in the end.”

Unlike most comedians Craig is not a student of comedy. He has never seen videos of the greats like Bill Hicks or Britain’s own surreal master Eddie Izzard, so what you get on stage is the pure undiluted Craig Hill, and that is a pretty heady brew.

Craig maintained the pace beautifully, getting to know the audience in the first half of the show then coming back after the interval and delivering some very polished material.

Craig makes his comedy appear effortless, and that bears witness to the work he has put into it, as it takes a lot of preparation to appear that spontaneous.

“I’m beginning to take my comedy more seriously,” he told me before the show. “I used to be very undisciplined but that’s changing, and I’m making myself spend a couple of hours writing each day.”

Craig sings a lot in his act, performing parodies of popular songs, and these give high points to a performance that is already soaring. He explained to me that his singing often left him tired after shows and as a result he has not seen as many other comedians perform, as he would have liked.

Craig regards the Edinburgh Fringe as an important showcase being the focal point of his year’s work. It is only recently that he has begun to tour his Edinburgh shows, and his Crown Court performance came from his new found enthusiasm for touring.

“I suddenly realised what a waste it was to spend almost a month on stage refining a performance during the Fringe and then put the show to bed after that. I first took my show to the Lemon Tree in Aberdeen and I was a little nervous at how the show would go away from Edinburgh, but I shouldn’t have worried – I got a great reception.”

The capacity crowd in the Crown Court Hotel certainly seemed to have taken this lively and engaging comedian to their hearts. It is to Eden Court’s credit that they are bringing such first class comedians as Craig Hill up to Inverness.

The theatre’s stage crew had transformed the venue into a perfect stage for Craig, with the show superbly lit and great sound quality. This show was the best in Eden Court’s series of stand up performances that have grown out of their commitment to continue providing entertainment whilst the theatre is closed for refurbishment.

Craig told me he has ambitions to voice over a cartoon character and also to play a serious and menacing character to allow him to demonstrate that he has talents outside comedy.

I hope that Craig returns to Inverness to play in the refurbished theatre, as I am sure he could easily cope with the main auditorium, and after Saturday’s performance I think that many who were there would be keen to see him again.

Let’s hope no one ever manages to put this genie back into the bottle and that he continues to grant our wish for laughter for a long time to come.

© John Burns, 2007

Link

• Purple Comedy interview with Craig Hill