Nathan gets vexed while hoping for the sweet smell of success
Guildhall Studio, Portsmouth Wednesday, May 11 portsmouthguildhall.org.uk/
Should the comedy career end tomorrow (not that there’s any reason why it should...) Nathan Caton could find himself alternative employment as a marketing man for scented candles.
Collecting the smelly treats became a firm favourite of the award-winning stand-up, a habit he developed during lockdown, as he reveals in his new show, Let’s Talk About Vex.
For instance, ask him his favourite, and he waxes at great length: ‘I can't just give you one – it depends on the time of the year for me.
‘I'm quite a connoisseur when it comes to scented candles. During Christmas time you've got to go for the spiced cinnamon/apple kind of scents, or the mulled wine scent. At spring time – like at the moment – fresh linen works, Spring Awakens, maybe even a bit of Summer Breeze because it gives you a hint that the season's changing. In summer time I go more for the tropical scents – pomegranate's a good one, citrus-y ones, or even something simple like vanilla cupcake – during the summer it really works.’
It was Caton’s girlfriend who inadvertently got him hooked: ‘When we first started dating she was more into scented candles than I was, and I was like: “I don’t care about candles – I've got air freshener, it's fine!” But she won me over, and I've taken the baton and run with it.
‘Now I think she wakes up some mornings and thinks: “If I smell one more scented candle...”’
Nathan’s has appeared on Live at the Apollo, Mock The Week, Don’t Hate The Playaz, Channel 4’s Comedy Gala, Russell Howard’s Good News, Sorry I Didn’t Know, House of Games and his own series, Gran Jury.
His last show was called The Pursuit of Happiness, but a lot has changed since then and Let’s Talk About Vex finds him in a less positive frame of mind.
‘I'm normally a laid back guy,’ he explains, ‘but the last few years have been testing my patience very much so. I’m just angry, frustrated, easily annoyed at things that normally I wouldn't – especially during lockdown and stuck at home. I was just getting really irritable at the most minor things that I would normally brush over. Things were intensified.
‘It all coincided with when my girlfriend moved in – I'm not saying she's the reason...’ he laughs.
He also adds that she did move in as the pandemic took off and just before lockdown began, so the two may not be entirely connected.’
When asked how he got through the pandemic, he deadpans: ‘Lots of Fifa on the PlayStation. Lots of scented candles. Oh, and a lot of alcohol as well. I was drinking rum punch for breakfast at one point because I had literally nothing else to do.’
That’s not entirely true though, Nathan was an early adopter of the online and Zoom comedy gig while traditional touring was off the cards and comedy clubs were closed.
‘I did a lot of Zoom gigs. It's not the same as being in front of a live audience at a comedy club, but it was as close to the real thing as I could get, which was a massive relief.
‘I had a few where people aren't as tech savvy who realise they can be heard – I did one where I heard a random voice say,’ he adopts a plummy voice: ‘”What is he? Some sort of rapper?” while I was performing.
‘Those kind of things do give you more material - but it was a different skill set to being in a comedy club, but it was one that I enjoyed.
‘I started doing Zoom gigs quite early on in the pandemic, so by the end of 2020 I felt like a seasoned Zoom comedian.
‘I'm not saying I only want to do Zoom gigs! But there are benefits, as soon as I logged off I was “home”.
‘And I could do gigs in my pants because no one saw below my waist. Luckily I've got wheels on my chair, so I could slide around without ever having to get up...
‘But nothing will ever beat being in a club and having an audience right there with you.’