August 1, 2005
MONDAY 1st AUGUST
It’s a miserable day in London as my brother and I load my gear into the car we’ve rented for the trip to Edinburgh. This is my first time at the festival in any capacity so I’ve no idea what to expect. As a result the car is stuffed with all kinds of crap I will probably never need including my bike. “Surely you don’t need a bike, Edinburgh’s only about 2 miles across isn’t it?†says my brother who seems to believe everywhere outside London is constructed mainly from Lego.
The drive ends up taking about 7 hours, the last two of which take us through some amazing countryside. We play very loud indie pop music to maintain our city based aloofness but it’s no good. Soon we’re exchanged words like ‘breathtaking’ and ‘extraordinary’ like two monkeys who’ve just had their first banana. As we drive through Edinburgh in the orangey early evening light I’m properly excited for the first time. This is what I always imagined it would be like going to university somewhere like Oxford or Cambridge. Or Edinburgh. A car full of undergraduate crap and a heart full of anticipation about pints in great pubs and casual sex! Well, I’ll definitely have a few pints, the casual sex may cause problems with my wife and children.
By 10pm we’ve found the appropriately studenty flat I’m renting, dropped of my gear at the Pleasance where I’m performing, and returned the rental car to the Edinburgh office. I’m amazed we’ve made it so easily! We’re the kings!