Northings | John Burns | Activity

John Burns wrote a new post, Northings Podcast 1: Rody Gorman on translating the songs of Bob Dylan into Gaelic, on the site Northings

Thu, 16 May 2013 08:47:48 +0000

JOHN BURNS speaks to writer and poet RODY GORMAN about his project to translate the songs of Bob Dylan into the Gaelic language. Recorded in January 2008 on location on the Isle of Skye.

John Burns wrote a new post, Highland Lives, on the site Northings

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 08:57:15 +0000

Highland Lives, Highland Voices
JOHN BURNS signed up to take part in the BBC Scotland’s Highland Lives project. In the first of three articles tracing his progress, John wonders exactly what he has gotten himself […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Speakout: Blogs, on the site Northings

Thu, 16 Aug 2012 10:49:50 +0000

Blog On
JOHN BURNS looks at the burgeoning world-wide lure of the blog.
IT’S THE figures that scare me. One hundred million on-line blogs, with 100,000 new blogs every day. The biggest blog in the world, by […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Andrew Lawrence, on the site Northings

Wed, 18 Jul 2012 13:45:49 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 18 April 2012
SOME comedians are instantly recognisable by their voice alone.

FOR example Joe Pasquale, sounding like a budgie on helium. Reginald D Hunter, with his […]

John Burns commented on the post, Highland Author Wins Mountain Writing Competition, on the site Northings

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 18:11:32 +0000

Check out my new Blog.

The Unacceptable Voice of Hill Walking
Mountains, middle age and much much more.

http://johndburns.wordpress.com/

John Burns wrote a new post, Podcasting, on the site Northings

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 15:19:39 +0000

Here Comes the Revolution
JOHN BURNS recommends joining the Podcast revolution

PEOPLE ARE TALKING – in bedrooms, in kitchens, in garages, fields, garden sheds and just about anywhere else you can think of. […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Speakout: The Creative Office, on the site Northings

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:02:02 +0000

Creative Thinking in the Business World
JOHN BURNS ponders the relevance of creativity in the hard-nosed world of business.
RECENTLY I was sitting in a Royal Bank of Scotland seminar about creativity in business […]

John Burns wrote a new post, The Perfect Spot 2, on the site Northings

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 09:26:37 +0000

Can you tell what it is yet?
JOHN BURNS reflects on HI~Arts Showcase and the Edinburgh Fringe

I KEEP ASKING myself the question, “Why am doing this?”. It is the evening of the last day of the Edinburgh […]

John Burns wrote a new post, The Boy With Tape On His Face, on the site Northings

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 09:17:47 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 4 June 2012
THE DROLL Northern comedian, Bernard Manning, one said, “Once you are on stage all you’ve got is that,” pointing to his mouth.

SAM WILLS has taken the […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Happyness, on the site Northings

Mon, 28 May 2012 15:14:44 +0000

Inverness, 23-2 May 2012
SOONER or later there had to be an eruption. Bill Bailey is a comedy volcano.

OVER the last four or five years the build-up of comedy in the Highlands has been steady and unrelenting […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Choman Hardi, on the site Northings

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:30:44 +0000

A Poet in Exile
CHOMAN HARDI is the first poet in residence at the Moniack Mhor Writer’s Centre. JOHN BURNS profiles the poet and her role within the new developments taking place at the centre.
ALL WRITERS are […]

John Burns wrote a new post, A Comic's Tale, on the site Northings

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 13:54:56 +0000

Stepping into the Light
JOHN BURNS dispenses some sage advice on handling the fear factor inherent in the business of stand up comedy, and reflects on what it all means.
I AM LEANING against a wall in a small, […]

John Burns commented on the post, Ana, on the site Northings

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 09:54:56 +0000

Saw Ana last night at Eden Court, I thought it was fantastic. One of the most stunning performances of theatre I’ve seen for a long time. Such a pity it didn’t get the audience it deserved.

John Burns wrote a new post, Rich Hall, on the site Northings

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 09:20:43 +0000

Empire Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 15 March 2012 RICH HALL’s genius for being grumpy was much in evidence as the dead pan comedian took to the stage at Eden Court. HE HAS developed his irascible bad temper into an art form that fits perfectly with his laid back southern drawl. He delivers his act with the air of mid west gas station […]

John Burns commented on the post, Hush Comedy Club, on the site Northings

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 09:27:24 +0000

Hi Stu,

Thanks for that, you earned every word of that. Hope the long drive back to the central belt went okay.

John

John Burns wrote a new post, Hush Comedy Club, on the site Northings

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 12:43:17 +0000

Just Laugh, Hush Comedy Club, Inverness, 2 February 2012 EVERY now and again I go to a comedy gig that reminds me why I watch and, sometimes, perform stand up. IT’S because, when it works, there is nothing quite like it, and on Thursday night at Hush it worked superbly. Bruce Fummey has been emceeing stand up […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Getting The Right Direction, on the site Northings

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 10:13:08 +0000

JOHN BURNS updates Northings on progress – and the value of a good director – on his one-man show about Aleister Crowley THE wheel turns a full circle when I bring my one-man show about Aleister Crowley, A Passion for Evil, back to the Little Theatre in Nairn on 30 September, the venue where it was first performed two […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Al Murray Pub Landlord, on the site Northings

Mon, 25 Jul 2011 09:54:34 +0000

Ironworks, Inverness, 23 July 2011 AL MURRAY burst on to the stage at the Ironworks in a shower of lager. Throughout the whole show he drenched both himself and any members of the audience who were unfortunate enough to come within range with pints of his beloved golden nectar. For those in the front row Murray was […]

John Burns commented on the post, RockNess Comedy Tent, on the site Northings

Fri, 17 Jun 2011 16:36:52 +0000

And you a happily married man. Who’d have thought it! Always a pleasure Mr Star

John Burns wrote a new post, RockNess Comedy Tent, on the site Northings

Wed, 15 Jun 2011 08:04:41 +0000

Dores, Loch Ness, 10-12 June 2011 I ALWAYS thought that comedy didn’t belong outdoors. I imagined comedy like something you kept in the dark, preferably in a cellar, in case it escaped and went streaking through an old folk’s home. Stand up is usually best when it’s hidden, like some guilty secret, away from the light of […]

John Burns commented on the post, Ed Byrne, on the site Northings

Wed, 04 May 2011 19:23:55 +0000

I’m absolutley certain that the man in question was not a plant. For one thing I was just behind him in the que. The only comedian I know who uses plants is Brendan Burns and he makes it very obvious that that is exactly what they are at the end of his show, they even […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Ed Byrne, on the site Northings

Fri, 29 Apr 2011 14:31:37 +0000

Inverness Leisure Centre, Inverness, 28 April 2011 ED Byrne has lost it. He stops in the middle of his act and addresses a large man sitting in the front row, centre stage, “Are you enjoying this?” he asks. “No,” comes the reply. “If I give you your money back will you fuck off then?” “Yes.” I’m on […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Craig Campbell, on the site Northings

Mon, 14 Mar 2011 09:23:47 +0000

The Ironworks, Inverness, 11 March 2011 AS I approached the Ironworks for comedian Craig Campbell’s gig I was met with a strange sight. Outside the venue it appeared that a small group of protesters had gathered, for there, in the icy cold, were an assortment of folk swathed in duvets and sleeping bags sitting as though in […]

John Burns commented on the post, Tom Stade and Ro Campbell, on the site Northings

Mon, 28 Feb 2011 09:22:32 +0000

That sounds a great idea. I’m sure we can sort something out. A facebook group would demonstrate support for the gig. Music to any promoters ears.

John Burns wrote a new post, Tom Stade and Ro Campbell, on the site Northings

Mon, 21 Feb 2011 09:35:04 +0000

Ironworks, Inverness, 17 February 2011 IT’S PROBABLY best if I just confess at the outset… Canadian comedian Tom Stade is a mystery to me. I’ve searched the internet for his biography and have only found six facts about him I can include in this piece. Usually comedians are bursting with information about their early lives, what […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Daniel Sloss, on the site Northings

Mon, 31 Jan 2011 09:26:13 +0000

One Touch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 28 January 2011 THIS IS a tale of two Daniels. Or maybe a review in two halves, or two reviews bolted together, I’ll let you decide. As Monty Python mused, many years ago in a song about Eric, the half a bee, “Is half a bee, philosophically, not a bee?” So […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Julian Clary, on the site Northings

Sun, 14 Nov 2010 16:32:53 +0000

The Ironworks, Inverness, 10 November 2010 IT HAS ALL been done before, the allusions to male hens, a thousand pseudonyms for the male orgasm, but there is no doubt that Clary is the master of innuendo. He has turned it into an art form, and his wit and charm shone through at the Ironworks. Clary is the unlikely […]

John Burns and are now friends

Sun, 07 Nov 2010 14:53:10 +0000

John Burns wrote a new post, John Hegley, on the site Northings

Wed, 03 Nov 2010 08:31:28 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 31 October 2010 IS IT A BIRD? Is it a plane? Actually no, and it’s not Superman either, it is John Hegley, who is a musician, a poet…or is he a stand up comedian? Frankly it’s very hard to tell, but the Eden Court audience didn’t care – they loved the Luton […]

John Burns commented on the post, Aleister and Me, on the site Northings

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 11:09:14 +0000

I’m performing my first after dinner engagement as Crowley on the 20th of November at the King’s House Hotel for Edinburgh Junior Mountaineering Club. Wish me luck!

John Burns and are now friends

Thu, 21 Oct 2010 10:02:11 +0000

John Burns wrote a new post, Danny Bhoy, on the site Northings

Thu, 16 Sep 2010 22:10:58 +0000

DANNY BHOY sauntered on to the stage of Eden Court’s Empire theatre as though he was walking back into his lounge after putting the kettle on. You half expect him to ask if you want a chocolate biscuit. He is beyond doubt the most relaxed stand up performing today. If that relaxed attitude is an act, […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Aleister and Me, on the site Northings

Sun, 05 Sep 2010 10:00:14 +0000

THE TRAVAILS of taking a one man show about Aleister Crowley to the Fringe. It’s own fault, I have no one else to blame for the predicament I’m in. I’m standing in the darkness backstage in a makeshift theatre at the Edinburgh Fringe. In just a moment I will be pulling back the curtain and stepping on […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Dara O'Briain / Terry Alderton, on the site Northings

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 09:56:56 +0000

Empire Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 8 March 2010 OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 7 March 2010 DARA O’BRIAIN makes a big impression as he walks on stage, if only because he is a big comedian in every sense of the word. At six foot four he is probably the biggest comedian in the UK right now […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Stewart Lee, on the site Northings

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:41:07 +0000

Empire Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 11 November 2009 STEWART LEE is the vindaloo of stand up comedy – he is spicy and sometimes hard to swallow. You know what you are in for, the slug line of his show tells it all: If you wanted a milder comedian you should have asked. Lee has you squirming in […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Des Clarke: Live!, on the site Northings

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:03:37 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 23 October 2009 I FIRST MET Des Clarke over refreshments backstage at a gig in North Berwick. In case the glamour of that setting sounds overwhelming, I had better clarify the situation. This was a small room at the back of a pub, the “back stage area” was a curtain illegally […]

John Burns wrote a new post, DAVE GORMAN: SIT DOWN, PEDAL, PEDAL, STOP AND STAND UP (The Ironworks, Inverness, 28 September 2009), on the site Northings

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 13:13:18 +0000

JOHN BURNS is sworn to secrecy, but reckons comedian Dave Gorman is a bit special anyway I DON’T KNOW what has got into stand up comedians recently. You knew where you were with the likes of Bernard Manning, Phil Jupitus or Johnny Vegas. Back then comedians were the antithesis of everything good for you, they were […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Scaramouche Jones or The Seven White Masks, on the site Northings

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 14:29:16 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 11 September 2009 THERE IS an unmistakable poignancy about the white faced clown as the audience laughs at his pratfalls, oblivious of the agony behind the mask. In this one-man play Gordon Russell charts the life of one such clown. His life follows the history of the 20th century as he […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Peer Gynt, on the site Northings

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 22:57:32 +0000

Empire Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 10 June 2009 THEY SAY ignorance is bliss and this certainly turned out to be the case for me when I witnessed the National Theatre of Scotland & Dundee Rep’s co-production of Peer Gynt . I knew nothing about the play when I walked into the theatre, and that meant that was I […]

John Burns wrote a new post, 'Allo 'Allo, on the site Northings

Tue, 19 May 2009 18:16:34 +0000

Empire Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 18 May 2009 ‘ALLO ‘ALLO is an essentially British sitcom despite the fact that it is set in wartime France. The humour comes direct from the kind of seaside postcards that were sent home from Blackpool a generation ago. Sausages feature highly in the comic material of the play. There are […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Paul Merton's Silent Clowns, on the site Northings

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 18:24:07 +0000

Empire Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 19 April 2009 COMEDY is perhaps the most fleeting of all art forms, laughter hangs in the air for a moment and then evaporates leaving little trace on the memory. Unlike music, where a particular piece can evoke emotion time and time again, comedy looses its initial impact when viewed again. […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Jerry Sadowitz, on the site Northings

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 19:15:13 +0000

Empire Theatre, Eden Court, 31 March 2009 WHEN I was a small boy on the Wirral my Gran used to take me to see the Punch and Judy show on the sea front at New Brighton. I was always a little scared of Mr Punch, with his hooked nose, starring eyes and violent temper he was […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Ross Noble: Things, on the site Northings

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 21:27:40 +0000

Empire Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness,18 March 2009 IT IS ALMOST impossible to capture in words the energy of Ross Noble possesses on stage. If you could harness the power of this man’s imagination you could power a city or possibly a small underdeveloped country. From the moment he stepped on stage comic ideas began to explode […]

John Burns wrote a new post, John Cooper Clarke, on the site Northings

Thu, 05 Mar 2009 22:03:14 +0000

Hootananny, Inverness, 2 March 2009 WHAT IS the last thing you would expect to see in Inverness on a dreary wet Monday night? The Loch Ness monster buying fish and chips in Church Street? A small army of dwarfs performing a conga around Falcon square? In Hootananny’s Mad Hatter’s venue I saw something far more surprising […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Phil Nichol, on the site Northings

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:58:58 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 27 February 2009 COMEDIAN Phil Nichol erupted on to the stage like a comic genie escaping after thousands of years trapped in a bottle. His energy level was frenetic from the outset and never dipped for the whole of his hour-long performance as he rampaged about the stage, easily switching from […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Jason Manford, on the site Northings

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 23:00:33 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 11 January 2009 FROM THE moment Jason Manford stepped on to the stage of Eden Court’s One Touch theatre his self-assurance and ease with the capacity audience was evident. His warm manner immediately relaxed the audience, giving the over-riding impression that you were listening to a mate in the pub…[Read more]

John Burns wrote a new post, Elizabeth and Raleigh - Late But Live, on the site Northings

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 21:36:13 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 26 October 2008 COMEDIANS Miles Jupp and Simon Munnery took a trip on the time machine of Stuart Lee’s mind on to the stage of Eden Court’s One Touch Theatre. This was another historical production from Lee’s pen, following in the footsteps of his hilarious romp through Scotland with Boswell and […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Dylan Moran, on the site Northings

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 19:41:06 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, 25 September 2008 I’D HAD my ticket for Moran’s show stuck to the fridge for months. I’m not sure why I chose the fridge apart from the fact that I’m in there every day and if it went missing I’d notice. The purpose of the fridge ploy was to ensure that there […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Victor Spinetti , on the site Northings

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 21:30:33 +0000

OneTouch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 9 September 2008 WHEN Victor Spinetti stepped on to the stage at on the first night of a UK tour, he was trying to turn back time. Here was a man attempting to go back almost 20 years and to revive a one-man show that had lain on the shelf a […]

John Burns wrote a new post, Jim Jeffries, on the site Northings

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 20:57:31 +0000

One Touch Theatre, Eden Court, Inverness, 27 August 2008 WHEN Jim Jeffries swaggers on to the stage you know what you are going to get. This uncompromising Aussie comic exudes an air of comfortable anarchy. His obvious command of the audience is reminiscent of the chilling authority of Hicks, while the wicked twinkle in his eye […]