"Flying" in Edinburgh.
It's dangerous for the street performers; the fliers and posters peel off the walls, water runs down the necks of the people working outside trying to grab the week when their earning potential is high and it eventually becomes frustrating.
We have been putting posters around a kind of totem pole in the middle of The Royal Mile and they stay up for maybe an hour before people put posters over the top of them. One of the days last week when it rained really hard for 24 hours most of the posters were washed off the walls, the hoardings and our totem pole – which is one of about eight I might add.
As the posters peeled to the floor, to be taken away later by council sweepers, one of my posters from the last day without rain appeared under the sludge like the grand masters appeared under the sewers of Rome for that brief second in Felinni's film Rome. As with what happened in that film my poster disappeared soon thereafter by someone putting something over it.
So it was a welcome bit of sun on Saturday when I headed towards The Royal Mile to stand in front of some posters of myself and hand out postcards.
In Edinburgh at the moment there are approximately two thousand people handing out fliers; they do not work very well as most of them end up in a bin at the top or the bottom of The Royal Mile. Also people doing half of their show in the open or going around dressed as a character from it are not cost affective; it's a bit of fun but that's it.
People are constantly told to be selective as to whom they are giving fliers to but they are not, hence the full bins and the 100 thousand wet fliers in the bins.
The one thing I did not notice on Saturday were any official 'paid for' posters of my show in any place apart from the exterior of The Surgeon's Hall where I am appearing; I called the poster company a few times and sent them a few emails but I had yet to see even one.
So when I saw a couple of guys putting posters up on my way to The Royal Mile I stopped and had a chat with one of them; he was Jimmy from Liverpool and I told him I hadn't seen any so he asked me for a post card and when I showed him one he said he had seen some of my posters and would put them out 'tomorrow – where do you want them?' I said 'around here.'
We exchanged phone numbers and he said he would let me know.
Around the corner from Jimmy I went through a crowd of leaflets and fliers and as I passed one of the venues I saw Trevor Nunn going in – he had walked through many people giving out their stuff and they didn't recognise him so left him flierless.
I didn't realise till that moment that he was about the same size as me but . . . he was dressed almost the same as I was too – dark blue cotton jacket, jeans and a pair of pumps; he is heavy around the eyes, like me but he has a beard. Unerving!! Maybe he was the version of me on the road that I didn't take and I was the other version of him? Who knows?
Let me add for people who don't know, that Trevor Nunn is one of the most influential people in the British Theatre – in fact the International theatre having directed on Broadway and The West End and he was one of the artistic directors of the RSC – The Royal Shakespeare Company.
Trevor Nunn, the one guy who could change any of their lives with the offer of a great acting job, was not even approached by a single person giving out fliers – as for me??? I should have had a post card in my hand and as he climbed the steps of the venue I should have shouted gently 'Trevor?' and as he turned around I could have put a flyer into his hand; but I didn't!! L'esprit de l'escalier; – or more like L'esprit le boulevard??
So I went up to The Royal Mile and as you can see above I held my hand up and waited for people to come and take them from me hoping they might be more interested in coming to see the show if they took a post card from me instead of having one forced into their little mitt; I did this for about an hour.
On the way back I saw, coming the other way, Trevor Nunn and he passed me again. But I wasn't having Le spre l'escallier again so I ran into the middle of the road and passed him. Then when I got to two telephone boxes I dodged ever nonchalantly between them hoping to be walking the other way from him but this time with a post card in my hand but as I did this he had the same idea of going between the two boxes and I put my post card straight into his hand – 'there we are' I said ' I recognise you but you don't recognise me!'
'What's this?' he said – then he saw it 'Ah!' he said ' best of luck with this' and gave me a hug!!!
No he didn't give me a hug but gave me two pats on the back from the front – nearly a hug!
I didn't think I would hear from Jimmy from Liverpool again but when I walked up the street on Sunday the streets were full of my posters; Jimmy turned out be genuine and even called me to ask for more posters and he did it for the oldest reason in the world; he recognised me! Unlike Trevor!!
So Trevor, my terrible twin, might see one of the posters or even read the post card I gave him and come and see my show; but I doubt it.
By the way – no I don't know why they call it The Royal Mile but that's what it's called so I call it that too.
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