The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
An evening with Phil Differ
Byre Theatre, St Andrews, April 23
Comedy writer, producer and director Phil Differ is enjoying a walk in the sunshine – his morning constitutional – when The Courier calls.
It’s a beautiful day but he’s still feeling sore after a “tough weekend” which saw his football team Celtic beaten by Rangers in the Scottish Cup.
Kilsyth-raised Phil certainly knows a thing or two about a game of two halves. One of his most famous – and admittedly his favourite – of these creations is the BBC Scotland football send-up show Only an Excuse? which this year celebrates its 30th anniversary.
However, it will be an evening of two halves the stand-up comedian embarks upon when he brings his An Evening With show to the Byre Theatre this weekend.
The first half promises traditional stand-up comedy inspired by his observations of life and “running about silly” in recent months. The second half will be more about himself.
There will be trips down memory lane recalling tales from childhood and his showbiz career, from the first joke he wrote in 1980 to his observations on modern life from the point of view of a man who can’t believe he’s almost 60.
Phil will reminisce on his misspent youth and discuss “the problems of being a middle-aged man trapped in a 22-year-old’s body”.
Phil is one of the most experienced and sought-after comedy writers in the country. He started off writing for Naked Radio, A Kick Up the Eighties, Not the Nine O’Clock News and Spitting Image before joining BBC Scotland’s Comedy Unit, the department responsible for producing the likes of Naked Video, Rab C. Nesbitt, Scotch and Wry and City Lights.
However, it was only relatively recently –around 12 years ago – that he made the move into stand-up. “I was a judge in a stand-up competition,” he said, recalling his epiphany moment.
“I was sitting there and, having done everything else, I realised I’d rather be up there being judged. I wondered what it would be like.
“Then my friend Fred MacAuley called my bluff. He was doing a show in Edinburgh and he said ‘right you’re going up there to do five minutes’.
“It was the longest five minutes of my life. Quite traumatic. But I realised it was what I wanted to do.”
Phil is particularly looking forward to returning to St Andrews. He used to holiday there as a child, staying at the Kinkell Braes caravan park and has previously been to the Byre.
He added: “I never tire of visiting there. When you get to Cupar you know you are almost there. Then when you drive up out of Guardbridge and see the silhouette of the town. It’s just magnificent.”