Fringe 2024 – Davro talks about his toughest gig
Comedian Bobby Davro has told an audience in Edinburgh how one of his toughest ever gigs was for Rangers fans when he turned up wearing a lime green jacket at Ibrox.
The comic and former Eastenders star, 65, said his friend, comedian and celebrity Gers fan Andy Cameron, invited him to do a half hour stand up set at Ibrox.
He said he hadn’t fully understood the extent of Glasgow’s football divisions however, and ended up dodging bread rolls and haggis hurled from the audience.
Davro told the BBC’s Off The Ball podcast, live from the Edinburgh Festival: “A bad one I had was for Glasgow Rangers.
“Andy Cameron is a friend of mine and very kindly gave me this job entertaining Glasgow Rangers, and it was the day that Scotland beat England in the rugby so I knew I was going to be on a hiding to nothing straight away.
“I get up there and Andy goes on and does the warm up and then he puts me on and I think they had it in for me anyway, I don’t know what it was.
“At the end I thought ‘I’ve done about half an hour, that’s all I was booked for’, and I thought I’ll get off with a song, just like the old trooper that I am.
“I do Hey Jude in my act occasionally and put on my Sergeant Pepper jacket and of course what colour is it? It’s lime green and they were throwing bread rolls and bits of haggis at me.”
He added: “I didn’t understand the football mentality up here. It’s not quite as bad [down south]. I’m a Spurs fan myself, for what it’s worth.”
Davro is currently performing at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, with his stand up show “Everything Is Funny If You Can Laugh At It”.
He said walking in the hills around Edinburgh had helped him recuperate after he suffered a stroke following a performance at a comedy club in London in January.
He said: “I’m just getting over a stroke. I’ve been up and down the hills so I think I’ve got my strength back. I’m getting there, I’m about 80% completely recovered.
“I was very lucky. The thing it has done, it’s made me a little bit fearful because I did a comedy club and I came off the stage and bumped into a table for some reason and I didn’t realise I was having a stroke.
“I’m fully recovered really I’d like to think… Some of the impressions I’m doing have been affected by the stroke — some of the voices — if I do Alan Carr for instance it’s a certain pitch and you can hear the middle of the voice, it’s the middle to top range which is not working as well as it used to and it’s something to do with the stroke. I’m going to go and see someone.”
The comic, who has been performing comedy for 47 years, is doing his first full run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe after putting on two sell-out shows last year.
He said he was loving performing nightly at Frankenstein’s Pub – Bier Keller.
He said: “I did two performances last year and they seemed to like me. They had me back this year and I’ve done a whole run at Frankenstein’s which is going really well.
“It’s not a huge venue, only around 120 or 130 people but it’s been packed every night. I’ve loved it – really enjoyed it.
“It’s been quite hard work. Everywhere is up a hill here so my legs are a little bit sore. They need building up a bit. But I’m getting my strength back.”
- BOBBY DAVRO:EVERYTHING IS FUNNY IF YOU CAN LAUGH AT IT
- August 2 – 25
- 21:00 hrs (60 mins)
FRANKENSTEIN PUB
BIER KELLER
26 George IV Bridge, EH1 1EN
http://www.frankensteinedinburgh.co.uk
+44 (0)131 226 0000
Tickets £18.50
