Joking Around
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to try being a Stand Up Comedian?  Well I have.  Joking Around is my audio diary of my journey into the crazy underworld of London’s Open Mic Stand Up Comedy scene.  Join me as I first decide to try it, then see how I get on on my first gig and share my thoughts and experiences in this totally self indulgent project.

4am CAB – sitcom and sketch show
In 2009, I wanted to start a new radio show.  I’d been working in radio for about 10 years making all kinds of programmes; from Student and Hospital radio music based shows, to radio drama, to News programmes, and I wanted to do something a bit different.  I had recently created a podcast called The Freetime Podcast which was a long form interview based “what’s on” show for Hertfordshire where I live.  What I really wanted to try was comedy.

So, I began thinking about what exactly I wanted to make. That thinking took almost three years.  The breakthrough come after stumbling across a BBC Radio 4 Extra show called Newsjack.  I tried writing a few topical sketches and one liners to submit to the programme.  Despite feeling like I understood what they were looking for (and getting it a bit wrong sometimes), I didn’t really get anywhere and none of my jokes were used.  I figured that I didn’t really want to submit my ideas to someone else to validate if they were good enough.  I then decided to produce my own show.  I dropped the topicality that Newsjack has at it’s heart and added a lot more production, in terms of music and the overall sound of the show and 4amcab (as it was then known) was born.

Since the first episode back in May of 2012, the show has evolved from a somewhat surreal staccato production into more of a sitcom with sketches in between.  In 2014, for Series 3, 4amcab became 4am CAB, or to give it it’s full title: The 4am Creative Advertising Bureau.

However, the best way to really understand the show is to listen to it.  You can start your 4am CAB journey here