It has been so long since I wrote a blog, I’ve had trouble remembering how you even get into the website. A far cry from the days when I set out with the (silly) aim of maintaining a 10-year blog, and successfully put together a run of over 500 consecutive days. Actually, the ten-year thing was not so far-fetched: I plan to come back to this at various points up until my 40th birthday, and there may well be more periods of frantic activity like in the old days. As well as more periods of drought. Who knows? Nobody knows.
But at the very least I aim to keep this semi-regularly updated in the year to come, because I’ll be (a) not doing as much stand-up and (b) announcing a number of interesting projects made possible by the easing up of stand-up. Over 2011 and 2012, I (accompanied throughout by the extraordinary Jeeves-like figure of tour manager Giles Wakely) racked up 248 tour and festival shows, nearly all of them without a support act; not to mention all the radio shows and TV stuff and corporate gigs and whatnot. Not as tiring as a job on an oil rig or chasing criminals, but hard in its own way (if you came to the last two London shows, you’ll recall I was almost completely bonkers at that stage) and more to the point time-consuming. Can’t really complain about time being consumed by the thing that provides your livelihood/status in the world and so on, but the moment has come to develop other areas of my career a bit and see my family, friends, go to barbecues etc.
So, books: I’ve got an exciting piece of news – exciting for me, anyway – next week about the book I’m working on right now. It will come out in 2014, and even before then, the graphic novel which I’m doing with an illustrator will see the light of day. Yep. Two books next year. One the year after. Good. As I said, more on that shortly. And if you haven’t read ‘The Knot’, last year’s wedding-photographer-with-awful-secret saga, or if you have read it but think ‘that would have been better if they cut some of it and a guy from ‘The Green Wing’ read it very nicely to me’, it’s being serialised right now on Radio 4’s Book At Bedtime. You’ve missed less than half. Get involved. It’s at bedtime (unless you’re a student).
And now, the main reason I reconvened this blog. It’s time to give notice of something I’ve not done for a while: a MASSIVE, OVERAMBITIOUS, STUPID SHOW.
You’ll know that I have, in the past, been known to do 24-hour shows, even going to 33 and 36 hours on occasion. I’ve done five in Edinburgh and two in Melbourne, to be precise. They come up in every interview and they helped me make my name, and although I am constantly trying to change the subject, they’re probably the thing in my comedy life that I’m proudest of. Even the ones that were a bit shit for periods of up to 15 hours. They engendered feats of cooperation, created an atmosphere, and provided slightly hallucinogenic memories on a scale which I wouldn’t be able to achieve in a normal show.
I wound up the long-show franchise in 2009 with what now seems the prima donna-ishly titled ‘Last Ever 24 Hour Show’, thinking it was better to quit while ahead than to keep pulling off the stunt with diminishing returns until it became almost meaningless, like Big Brother.
But now…
It’s Comic Relief’s fault. You can’t really turn Comic Relief down. It is their 25th anniversary this year; they asked for a 25-hour show. Featuring challenges by members of the public and audience members alike, being broadcast on various radio stations and streamed online, and all in all making money for good causes. You can see it from my position: I’d be pretty fucking furious if someone else did it. So I’m doing it.
25 hours. Jesus. I’m getting too old for this.
This is what will happen. It will be at the Pleasance Islington (the Pleasance being one of the big traditional supporters of the long show), in North London, starting at eleven pm on February 28 – Thursday night – and going through till midnight the following day, that is, Friday 1st March. We wanted to do it on a weekend, but Comic Relief wanted a weeknight as it’s easier to get publicity and so forth, and, well, it’s their gig really. So as a compromise it’s going over a Friday. I hope this means interested parties might be able to swing a day off work a bit more easily. I don’t know why I’m assuming Friday would be any easier to bunk than any other day. I guess I’d know if I had a job.
I am looking for comedy superfans who fall into two categories:
1. PEOPLE TO COME AND SEE THIS GODDAMN THING. Although people are always able to drop in and out, 24-hour shows have traditionally attracted a hardcore of lunatics who watch the entire thing. It’s definitely the best way to experience it… if you have a day of your life when nothing else needs to be accomplished, that is. The record for ‘lifers’ is, I think, 112 or something. But we’ve always had at least thirty to forty. These people are the lifeblood of the long show. If you think this could be you, I want to know about you. (You do get to eat and leave the room for the toilet, by the way. And even sleep, if you want.)
2. PEOPLE TO DO CHALLENGES. The idea of this is not only to raise money by being sponsored to do the show and various things during the show, etc, but also to get people around the country doing their own 25-hour challenges. Sponsored silence, sponsored eating bread, sponsored shouting at strangers, unicycling, fudge-making, fact-learning, football-juggling: whatever. Outlandish/difficult/newsworthy is good, but it could equally be something very small, yet difficult for you. Something you could realistically do for 25 hours, even it has to be fitted around your normal work/uni day. We’ll help you to get sponsorship, too, by publicising them all together, so don’t be deterred by thinking all your friends are poor. There is no limit on the number of these, but I’d like to incorporate some of them into the show. This doesn’t mean you have to come to London – you can just be in touch during the proceedings. Have a think about this and either leave a comment, or tweet me (@watsoncomedian), or tweet the person whose problem the long shows are (@CorryShawComedy).
I will be banging on about this event every week or so from now until it happens, so keep checking back here. And please let me know if you could get involved with this, either watching or doing something divvy for charity. LET’S BE HAVING YOU! as Delia Smith once famously yelled. It wasn’t her proudest moment, but it worked. I’m hoping I might end up saying something similar about this.
Sounds brilliant, definitely would love to come to the show – and I have fridays off anyway so it’s perfect! How do I get tickets?
I would flipping love to watch 25 hours of this and I’ll hopefully bring along a friend or 5
We’re all students so we’re pretty used to all nighters! How do we get tickets or whatever? 
Hi Mark,
I’ve popped into 4 of your mammoth shows in Edinburgh but never managed to make it all the way through. Now I’ve got another chance! Where do I get tickets? I’m sure I can think of some odd challenge to put myself forward for. Thanks, Danny
how about 25hrs to learn a language.Small gropus accept challenges of diff languages. One group – one langauge. Needs one member who can be teacher of course.
Could play games – bingo is a school level starter, twister (Alex Horne does a great crowd twister e.g. put your left leg on shoulder of person to your right) but in a different language – so you could tell who wasn;t getting it.
Sing songs in diff language
tell jokes (Eddie Izzard style)
Probably rubbish – but maybe an idea you can make something out of. Not sure how it rasies funds.
Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! Just show me the tickets, and in return, I’ll get my challenge on!
And hey, I’ve stayed awake for over 25 hours before, should be fine, as long as I drink my own body weight in energy drinks…
What a fantastic idea, how do i get there?
Hooray. This news fills me with glee and day off is now gleaming in our holiday diary.
Eyes peeled and ready for ticket info.
Eyes have remained open throughout before (although the last one was 24 so maybe the extra hour will see me off) and I’m feeling confident.
This is fantastic, I thought I’d missed my chance to see one of the notorious 24 hour shows!
I’d be really interested in being a lifer – I have some time at work left to take off and I couldn’t imagine a better way to spend it
I’m a wordy type so I would be more than happy to be a sponsored rhyming verse writer throughout the process – I can imagine them only getting more and more ludicrous as I got more and more tired. That’s just a suggestion though, if I could make myself more useful any other way I’d be well up for that too 
I could totally make fudge if the pleasance is fitted with a stove. More likely, I could make fudge a day before and just bring it for the audience…
I am, of course, up for this. I will be there. I will take any challenge that comes my way.
Pip pip.
Managing to “life” the 24 hour show to save the planet back in 2007 has been the highlight of the Edinburgh festivals for me. My only regret was not getting more involved with the goings on, beyond some stellar tree planting I basically allowed the whole wonderful thing to spin around me. It’d be wonderful to do more this time.
I’d really love to come along and watch, I’ll even give it my all to do the whole thing (without sleeping!) and I’m sure I can kidnap at least one friend to push me on through it.
I’ll be more than happy to partake in some sort of eating challenge. In fact, I’ll take a leaf out of Violet from Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory’s book and eat the same piece of chewing gum for 25 hours
Hey,
Oh cool, you get fed?! What a shame I’m in Australia. Ah good luck with it. I’m sure you can ramble on for that long!
Seeing as I can’t miss the Friday at uni, I’ll be stuck in Salford. First I decided that I would stay up and listen to the whole thing, then I decided to offer to be the Salford correspondent and stand outside the BBC studios all night.
Finally, I seem to have settled on making 25 individual models of myself and having them watch the show for me. Oh dear.
As someone who was at the ‘last ever’ 24 hour show, I was hoping you might be persuaded to do another!
Fingers crossed I can get the time off work, would bloody love to be a part of this (even though I might be too chicken to do a challenge)
Ah this is very exciting! I think I am the sort of comedy fanatic you require, as I proved in Edinburgh by allowing comedians to pelt fruit at my head. And I think I can probably get away with missing the 1 hour of lectures I have on a Friday. So count me in!
This feels a bit like we’re getting the old gang back together.
It’s lovely!
Defo gonna give it some thought, hopefully can though!!
I certainly want to come and see this. I am 17, so would I be able to come and see this? I hope so, just sometimes there are age restrictions depending on where you go and see comedians. I saw you at Sheffield and 1 hour 30 just wasn’t enough!
I do a radio show and would happily do a 25 hour broadcast that was sponsored, and I could try and do it blindfold!
Have always wanted to see one of your long shows! How do we get tickets? Can’t wait!
Hi Mark, this sounda amazing and myself and boyfriend would love to attend for the full 25hours and even stay awake through the whole thing. We saw you in Warrington last year and even got your ‘Shame on you Paul Goddard’ t-shirt which we took to the darts at Alexandra Palace. How do we get tickets for this? Thanks.
I would love to be a lifer (in the audience, not in prison)
Oh Mark i’m so excited.
Update on the challenge I e.mailed you about Mark. Thanks to Misha and a few others, this is, through Zoe’s FB event page, looking like it might be quite successful. Or we might fail by falling asleep. One or the other. :/
Yay….welcome back!!!I’d love to be there – gonna go n check my school term dates…sounds fab!Jx
I don’t know if I’m more excited about the 25-hour comedy or the books, but we shall definitely be making an effort to come down from Edinburgh for it! Woooop!
Fantastic! I am gonna try and book the Friday off work to be there, though I can’t book the Sat off so will be a tad tired at work Sat am!
I’m also more than willing to be involved in any audience challenges, though I don’t have any ideas myself, but am happy to be involved in anyone else’s idea!
This sounds like fun, in a sort of macabre way…so I’m up for sitting on my butt and trying to get it laughed off.
Doh! Can’t make it . We live miles away and have a young baby but I’m a big fan , any way you can broadcast it ? Live !
Or ring people up live , or Skype, or twit face, or satellite link, so we can join in or listen? No pressure , well yes lots of pressure actually. Roy
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Oh how I wish I could come. I am definitely capable of travelling to London and staying up for unreasonably long periods of time. But alas I have a dissertation and seminars and finals and other scary things which unfortunately make it impossible to take a day off. I would imagine I’ll be joining in online then.
I’ll do what I can, except flyering.
Gutted gutted gutted! I won’t be able to come back for it… it seems very weird that you’re doing a long show and I won’t be there!
Maybe I can get involved in some sort of challenge though.
xx
Can’t wait for this, just wish I could think of something exciting to do to raise money. I’m stuck on Key in a bath full of baked beans…. ..I’ll keep thinking…
Hopefully we’ll get to take part in some way anyway x
This sounds brilliant! I’ve been looking for a way to do something for comic relief that didn’t involve getting fit!
I love the idea of being a lifer, and reckon I can drag a few friends along too..
I’m not sure if this would work, but I have a “skill” that people seem to find entertaining..
I can speak, and spell backwards – It’s been a while since I’ve done it, but if I can spell it, I can generally say it & spell it backwards without hesitation..
I could charge say 50p a go – people can give me a word, or a person’s name, and I will say it backwards immediately, and write it backwards (if u give me a clip board and a shed load of paper!)
If I get it wrong – and you’re really mean – you can have your money back.. (Tends to end up with people racking their brains to find a word I can’t do..)
I could keep a list – In 25 hours I’m sure we’d come up with a some funny results, particularly after a few drinks!
Not sure if you think it would work, but happy to do it and will get practicing!
Tel em wonk fi uoy kniht s’ti a doog aedi !
Tom
I am pretty confident that I can sit in a chair and watch you being silly for 25 hours, count me in!