thejohnfleming

[thejohnfleming]

Kim Wells: Vulgarity and the similarity between striptease and comedy

My previous two blog posts were me having a chat with Earth Exchange comedy/cabaret founder Kim Wells. It concludes here. BEWARE! There are four-letter words in this post… JOHN: So, the Earth Exchange finished in 1989. KIM: Yeah.  JOHN: And since then you haven’t dabbled too much?  KIM: Well, I did go back to comedy with Bob Flag and we did some mind-reading. We did it first of all in the…

[thejohnfleming]

Kim Wells on magic, mind-reading and some very bizarre British comedy acts

Yesterday’s blog was a conversation (not really an interview) with Kim Wells, founder of the legendary Earth Exchange cabaret/comedy club, which ran in London 1980-1989. He was also a performer… Now read on… JOHN: You were saying you did a mind-reading act with Bob Flag. How did that come about? KIM: Well, it came partly from my father. My father was quite a good amateur magician. He used to do…

[thejohnfleming]

Who is British comedy's Kim Wells?

Kim Wells sitting in my back garden next to my all-seeing gnome Last month, I ran a blog written by Kim Wells, founder of the Earth Exchange cabaret/comedy club, which ran in London 1980-1989. He has written extensive pieces on the early days of British Alternative Comedy for the Chortle comedy website. But what was/is Kim like as a person? So I chatted to him. The art of a good interview is to…

[thejohnfleming]

Mad inventor John Ward and his homemade bomb at the supermarket

Sometimes in this blog, I have referred to Malcolm Hardee Comedy Award designer, weekly newspaper columnist and occasional after-dinner speaker John Ward as a “mad inventor”.  This seldom goes down well with him, but I think the description is arguable. I could cite his bra warmer, the road-worthy Woganmobile and his musical frying pan. John Ward and his Woganmobile Today I got this message from…

[thejohnfleming]

Kim Wells on the never less than oddball British comedian Bob Flag

The legendary Earth Exchange and founder Kim Wells (Photo by Maha Roberts) Yesterday, I received a message from Kim Wells, triggered by a blog I posted about mad inventor John  Ward. Apparently, there is a Chinese saying “No coincidence, no story”. Who knows if that’s true? But the Chinese have sayings for everything. They have had a long time to work them out. Kim Wells established and ran the…

[thejohnfleming]

Anthony (Tony) Thomas Green RIP 27th August 1953-2nd June 2025

English performer Tony Green, remembered below by his friend Charmian Hughes… This week I went to Edinburgh just for one day to attend the funeral of Tony Green. That’s the kind of chap he was, a man who inspired admiration, loyalty and affection – and exasperation. I was surpassed in effort by one of the several Steves in attendance, who came from Kuala Lumpur, while Hugh, a founder of the…

[thejohnfleming]

Why burglars should not mess with people 'of a certain age' in England…

Burglars should not mess with people of a certain age in England – particularly if they happen to be inventor/designer John Ward… Lateral-thinking and (I say this with respect) madcap inventor John Ward, who designed the supremely prestigious Malcolm Hardee Comedy Awards, tells me he is now “at a ’vulnerable’ age as deemed by a section of some busybody local government department.” So they…

[thejohnfleming]

This week's funeral of UK performer Tony Green will be carried online...

British performer Tony Green’s funeral will be carried online this Thursday, 19th June, starting at 1600 UK time … Funeral online Watching Live & On Demand: Website https://watch.obitus.com Username taka3673 Password 108263 VENUE: Seafield Crematorium Chapel, The Lodge, Seafield Place, 40 Seafield Road, Edinburgh EH6 7LD

[thejohnfleming]

Extreme language, Jesus and possibly a little bit of racism on a London train...

I’m interested in language, the way spoken sentences and conversations are structured and in people and incidents which don’t get reported, but… WARNING: There is extreme swearing quoted in this blog from the start. If you are likely to be offended by extensive and extreme four-letter words (and blasphemy), seriously, read no further. Over two years ago, I was on a train in London when an…

[thejohnfleming]

Tribute to Tony Green aka Sir Gideon Vein... by the 'other' Anthony Green

I guess I met the late and decidedly unique performer Tony Green aka Sir Gideon Vein last century. Although maybe he was more of a figure from the 19th century. I first blogged about his death, around a week ago, HERE. Anyway, a few years after I met him, I was in a London pub with Anthony aka Tony aka Sir Gideon Vein and an ‘other’ Anthony Green. Yes, there were two people called Anthony Green…

[thejohnfleming]

Some memories of the late performer Tony Green aka Sir Gideon Vein...

Tony Green in his natural environment and plumage My last blog featured “sustainable nihilist” Jon Seagrave aka Jonny Fluffypunk‘s memories of performer Tony Green aka Sir Gideon Vein, who died this week.  Tony appeared occasionally in this blog over the years and I guess a piece I wrote ten years ago (May 2014) pretty much epitomises his world: “Memories of Early Alternative Comedy: Malcolm…

[thejohnfleming]

The death of unique UK performer Sir Gideon Vein aka Tony Green...

Over the years, performer Tony Green aka Sir Gideon Vein as appeared in this blog, usually monologuing. The last time was in April, when he was in the cancer ward of an Edinburgh Hospital in palliative care. He ended with “Hopefully I will be around for a few more weeks.” A few weeks have now passed. This morning Jon Seagrove, aka Jonny Fluffypunk, stand-up poet and “sustainable nihilist”…

[thejohnfleming]

A Vampyr film of 1984 - the year - plus Sir Gideon Vein and Anna/Annie Smith

Last month, I posted a blog from performer Tony Green aka Sir Gideon Vein, currently in palliative care in an Edinburgh hospital. Last week, I received a message from Anna Smith, this blog’s Vancouver-based occasional Canadian correspondent… with a link to Bad Blood for the Vampyr, a 20-minute movie currently on YouTube. Anna knows I am interested in… erm… originality… Bad Blood For The…

[thejohnfleming]

That time I tried to persuade comic Malcolm Hardee to fake his own death

Malcolm Hardee in his iconic spectacles In December 2021, Barry Ferns interviewed me for his Angel Comedy Club’s podcast. I recently posted a couple of transcripts from the start of that chat – largely about the changes in UK comedy since the 1980s – slightly tidied up to avoid my wittering. This is how the chat continued… JOHN: The heckling at Malcolm Hardee’s clubs was often as good as the…

[thejohnfleming]

In what state does AI think America will be left after Donald Trump...?

I asked ChatGPT: In 750 words, tell me what will happen to society in the USA after President Donald Trump leaves office… This was the response… When former President Donald Trump leaves the political stage—whether voluntarily or due to legal, electoral, or personal reasons—the United States will likely undergo a significant transition, both socially and politically. His time in office and…

[thejohnfleming]

AppleTV+ being mis-sold by a bunch of shysters in dodgy UK Apple Stores?

If you can’t use your own blog to whinge, what’s the point? I’m a great lover of Apple devices. Great devices and – normally – great service. Until now. Apple offered me 3 months of AppleTV+ at the reduced rate of £3.99 per month.  I accepted this because I specifically wanted to see their series “The Studio”. As part of my subscription – which Apple offered me – I could allow five friends to…

[thejohnfleming]

Sir Gideon: "in the Cancer Ward of an Edinburgh Hospital in palliative care"

The Pope died this morning. A few hours after that, I received a message from performer Tony Green.Over the years, he has occasionally popped up in this blog. Tony Green, not the Pope. Tony’s performing alter ego is Sir Gideon Vein.  This was the message: How are you, John? I am not too well myself.  This is perhaps an understatement on my part.  I am in the Cancer Ward of an Edinburgh Hospital…