I believe the youngsters write abbreviated exclamations these days and one that I might use when I realise that it is December already is WTAF! Where did this year go?
During December I will be performing Christmas storytelling shows at the following venues:
Library of Birmingham, 2pm-3pm Saturdays 2nd/9th/16th/23rd
Malt Cross, Nottingham (A Christmas Carol and Finding Scrooge), 2pm-4pm Sundays 3rd/10th/17th
Beamish Museum, County Durham (A Christmas Carol) Thursday and Friday 7th/8th/14th/15th/21st/22nd
Also on a festive note, I have released some more audio books:
A Christmas Story Collection available from here
Christmas Day in the Workhouse (poem by George Robert Sims) available from here
The third in the trilogy, Yet Another Ka3oo Christmas with Steve Oliver is the soundtrack to your present opening morning and the festive lunch and it is available from here.
There is another album coming out soon when Nottingham band Lorna release a new musical version of A Christmas Carol that I have done the spoken word for. My part was recorded on a hot day in June.
Looking at my to-do list for the year that I wrote in January, I have hardly managed to accomplish any of it and it is mainly due to funding issues. Crowd funding only works as a two way street, you have to donate in order for me to create things. After I have created the thing, be it a podcast, music video, comedy sketch or whatever, I will make it available online completely free of charge. Everyone is a winner. It is worth pointing out that I am providing you with a weekly new music podcast, a monthly audio podcast of The Random Sessions, a weekly Random Sessions video, the occasional comedy sketch and other stuff besides. All this content is free and the reason I have upped my output by re-releasing new versions of the live performances on my radio show under the title The Sunday Alternative Radio Sessions among other things is to further encourage donations to help me make bigger and better things. Aside from documentaries and comedy, with more money feeding into the PayPal account I can start to look at more ambitious projects.
My traditional hourly update tweets on the Sunday the clocks change went ahead, but I was disappointed that I didn't sell more advertising as I thought that I was on to a good idea. The money I would have made from a full weekend of sponsored tweets would have helped me finish a low budget film which would have gone out for free after a round of film festivals. Alas, thanks to yet again coming up with an idea that people don't quite understand has been my downfall. Hopefully I can get small businesses to understand by the time the clocks go forward.
With Christmas on the way, if you have not donated before then why not make a Christmas present? It all helps towards the cause and helps entertain everybody who wants to be entertained, so if everyone who reads this newsletter donates a throwaway amount, say a pound or a fiver, then you will be helping a great deal.
I have some plans already made for 2018 and will continue to provide free entertainment. During the first few months of the year I will be plundering my archive and making some hitherto unseen footage available on YouTube and making new stuff alongside it. However, there are some things that need a serious injection of money so although nothing I intend to make is massively big-budget, I can't make it for nothing. Everyone will get the opportunity to see it for free and you could play a part in that so please remember me during your Christmas generosity - you tip the postman and the binmen after all so think of it that way.
Merry Christmas and here's to our collaboration coming to fruition at last.