Tag: talks

REVIEW – Devizes Arts Festival – Dr. Phil Hammond @ Corn Exchange  3rd June 2024

by Andy Fawthrop

The Doctor Will See You Now!

Devizes Arts Festival has already got off to a storming start over this last weekend, with performances on Friday from Jolly Roger, Saturday from Lady Nade, and on Sunday from Adam Alexander and Eddy Allen. Some of these we’ve already reviewed here.

So now it’s rolled round to Monday, and it’s time to head out into the first mid-week dates, with a whole variety of stuff to choose from.  Last night, and first up of the spoken word big hitters, it was the turn of Dr. Phil Hammond at The Corn Exchange.

I wasn’t sure if was a comment on the current difficulty of getting a GP appointment, but Dr. Phil’s waiting room was pretty full, with people eagerly awaiting a consultation with the famous doctor.

Phil is an NHS doctor, journalist, broadcaster, speaker, campaigner and comedian. He currently works at the Bath RUH in a specialist NHS team for young people with long Covid.  Born in the NHS (a slogan emblazoned on his t-shirt, and frequently referenced throughput the set), and brought up in Australia (the Ozzie twang was unmistakeable), he worked in general practice for over twenty years, and has also worked in sexual health. A familiar voice on BBC Radio 4, he has also presented five series of “Trust Me, I’m a Doctor” on BBC2, encouraging patients to be more involved, assertive and questioning. And finally (a major feather in his cap in my book) he’s also Private Eye’s medical correspondent, where he broke the story of the Bristol heart scandal in 1992.

Phil’s “surgery” consisted of two sets – “How To Fix The NHS”’ and “The Ins And Outs Of Pleasure”. 

The first half consisted of both commentary on the NHS, and Dr. Phil’s ideas on how it might be improved.  Using both his own and patient-generated ideas, the best of which was “force all MPs and Health Service professionals receive all their treatment in the worst-performing hospitals”, and plenty of enthusiastic audience participation, he addressed current issues in a positive light.  His key messages were “prevention rather than cure” (more investment needed upstream) and our individual responsibility for personal health.  His model, and mnemonic for the night was (of all things) CLANGERS, which provides daily prompts on healthy behaviour.  I might be making it sound a little dry, but it was very far from it.  He often had the audience in stitches (is this allowed? – Ed. Ed’s note; any passing tumbleweeds are your own responsibility, Andy!), with his “hierarchy of cricketing euphemisms” for death (“taken the short walk to the pavilion”), and a gob-smacking tale of “euthanasia by cling-film”. 

The delivery was fast, yet calm, with a take-no-prisoners attitude.  He was self-deprecating, often admitting to his own mistakes (predicting that Covid would cause less deaths than people falling down the stairs) and failures (pronouncing a patient to be dead, who subsequently turned out to be very much alive).  There were plenty of anecdotes from his times as a trainee and a junior whilst at Medical School, quite enough to shock the bejesus out of the audience.

If anything, the second half was even better.  Having posted a trigger warning that it would be quite a bit more graphic and near the bone, it did not disappoint.  “The Ins and Outs of Pleasure” did what it said on the tin, and addressed issues of sex, orgasms, masturbation and self-pleasuring.  The language was fruity and devoid of euphemism, and soon had the audience squirming with embarrassed nervous laughter.  Being a consummate professional performer, the doctor correctly “read the room” and sensing that he was perhaps pushing a Monday night audience in D-Town a little too far, very subtly applied the brakes to some of the tougher stuff.  Side-stepping his material via some more personal history, we were soon transitioned into the slightly safer territory of “consensual cannibalism”, the value of having a dog for good mental self-pleasuring, and the joy of “fuck-it Fridays”.  But there was still plenty of time on the side for useful medical advice on the use of cock-rings (get the ones with handles), and things not to put into human orifices.

The general prescription issued last night was for taking control of, and responsibility for, your own mental and physical health.  And my personal takeaway arrived almost at the end of the set– “laughter is the best medicine – unless you have syphilis, in which case penicillin is a better bet”.  Priceless.

A cracking night’s entertainment – informative, interesting, and absolutely hilarious.  Another great choice by DAF to bring such performing talent to our town.

If you’d like more info, you can find it at www.drphilhammond.com

The Devizes Arts Festival continues until Sunday 16th June at various venues around the town. 

Tickets can be booked at Devizes Books or online at www.devizesartsfestival.org.uk 

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Devizes Arts Festival Reveal Full Line-Up for 2024

After a larger quantity of social media teasers than previous years, Devizes Arts Festival has today revealed their full line-up for 2024. Better take a peaky sneaky gander at it, keep in their good books, because it looks rather special! Based on previous experience they usually range from pretty awesome to super-duper lights are gonna find me awesome…so here goes……

The festival runs from Friday 31st May to Sunday 16th June, and never fails to bring us a diverse programme of separate events within the arts, music and theatre, but also takes in talks and walks. Some come with a worthy price tag, but there’s lots of free fringe events also. All it takes is for you to support it.

I don’t know about you, but the first one I got excited about when I heard, was Bristol’s soulful indie-folk singer-songstress Lady Nade, who plays the Corn Exchange on Saturday 1st June. I put this Lady on my must-see list after fondly reviewing her album Willing back in 2021. I’ve not yet had the opportunity to see her live. Yet it is not for that reason I’m grateful to the Arts Festival for booking Lady Nade, rather in contemplation of the elevated sentimentality channelled through her Americana-fuelled songs.

I summed up the album at the time, with “written during the pandemic, there’s a secluded ambience echoing through these eleven sublime three-minute plus stories of friendship, love and loneliness lost and found, reflecting the fact it was recorded in multiple studios and engineered by all the musicians in isolation. Yet to hear it will hold you spellbound in a single place, till its conclusion.”

If that doesn’t tempt you I don’t know what will! But Lady Nade is not before a high-energy Penzance sea-punk grand opening to the festival, with Golden Gnome award winning Jolly Roger, at the Corn Exchange on Friday 31st May; blistering barnacles, Captain Haddock, that sure sounds like some swashbuckling shenanigans.

History of Market Lavington, anyone? Sunday 2nd has a festival walk, followed by the first two free fringe events, consummate story-teller Adam Alexander’s Seed Detective at The Peppermill from 2pm, and a solo loop pedal show with Eddy Allen, 7pm at the Cellar Bar.

Likely the best known name on the roster, comedian Lucy Porter comes to Devizes on Thursday 6th June, and I’m sure you’re all aware of her distinctive, bouncy, feel-good comedy from TV and radio panel shows, and being victorious on Celebrity Mastermind.

Lucy Porter

Prior to this headliner, NHS doctor, journalist, broadcaster, speaker, campaigner and comedian Dr Phil Hammond on Monday 3rd June presents ‘How to Fix the NHS’ and ‘The Ins and Outs of Pleasure…’ I’ve my own suggestions on the subject, don’t get me started, but maybe add Prime Minister to Phil’s already impressive résumé!

Wiltshire based multi‐instrumentalist, the Edward Cross Quintet at the Assembly Rooms on Tuesday 4th June. Liz Grand’s superb, funny, moving, sensitive and informative portrayal of Clementine Churchill, also on Tuesday at the Merchant Suite.

Wednesday 5th June sees English naturalist, ecologist, author and broadcaster Mike Dilger, known as the wildlife reporter on The One Show, doing a talk on One Thousand Shades of Green, his quest to find 1000 different British plants in a calendar year and assess how our flora is faring in modern Britain. Geneticist, author and broadcaster, Adam Rutherford, who frequently appears on science programmes on both radio and TV, also gives an engaging, provocative and informative talk the Arts Festival promises to be unmissable.

Hollie McNish. Image: Kat Gollock

Poet and author Hollie McNish presents her Lobster Tour on Thursday 6th June at the Town Hall; I’m just chatting about her with the legend who is Kieran J Moore, seems Hollie played Bath Komedia recently, he recommends, and you can’t get a better local recommendation than that. 

The weekend sees a blues, skiffle, calypso and rockabilly mesh, apparently with a sweeping vaudeville twist, which sounds like a beguiling and exhaustive blend I must say! Jo Carley and the Old Dry Skulls are at the Corn Exchange Friday 7th June.

Jo Carley and the Old Dry Skulls

London’s Cable Street Collective headline Saturday, an intriguing one, their sound mixes African-influenced guitars and beats with soulful female vocals, socially conscious lyrics and western melodies, creating an idiosyncratic alt-pop sound that’s all their own.

Sunday 9th June sees a Festival Walk into the West Woods; Sarsens, Soldiers and Sawpits. Two free fringe events, an Americana band from West Midlands called Rumour, from 2pm at the Three Crowns, and a fresh and lively approach to jazz at St John’s Church from 7pm with the Annie Parker Trio.

The final week of the festival sees world-renowned concert pianist, Ida Pellicciolo on Monday 10th June at the Town Hall. Belinda Kirk, world-record holding explorer, researcher and a leading campaigner promoting the benefits of adventure on wellbeing, talks at the Town Hall on Tuesday, along with intrepid Antarctic explorer Tom Crean’s story brought to life in a dramatic and humorous solo performance by Aidan Dooley from Play On Words Theatre Company, at the Wharf Theatre.

Two best-selling Wiltshire-based authors, Kate Webb and Jon Stock, discuss their craft at The Peppermill Hotel on Wednesday 12th June, and there’s a remarkable intimate solo guitar performance from Martin Simpson at the Corn Exchange.

Duo Tutti, a classically-trained flutist and pianist duo who combine well-known classical tunes with interesting sounds to create a unique concert that is accessible to all, at the Town Hall on Thursday. Terry Quinney’s Sound Of Blue Note accurately recreates jazz and the aesthetics which defines Blue Note Records, also on Thursday 13th June at the Town Hall.

Friday 14th June there’s an organ recital at St John’s with award-winning organist and conductor Huw Williams, and we have the intriguingly titled Slambovian Circus of Dreams at the Corn Exchange, an electrifying live performance of moody but upbeat alt-roots rock.

The final Saturday of the Arts Festival, 15th June, we have something altogether different, hypnotist Matt Hale presents an 80s Spectacular, where Matt promises to have you partying like it’s 1985, humm, whether you like it or not. I’m not sure about hypnotists, I might stand at the back!

Matt Hale. Image: DG-Imagery-3

Soulful and electrifying rhythm and blues band The Junco Shakers at the The British Lion on

Sunday 16th June at 2pm, and Clive Oseman and Nick Lovell, creators of Oooh Beehive, the number one spoken word and poetry open-mic night in Swindon, have a Wham! Bam! Poetry Slam 6pm at The Wharf Theatre; two free fringe events polishing off another spectacular Devizes Arts Festival. 

Box Office is now open, details and tickets HERE, hope to see you there! 

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