CityLife

Dave Spikey

PAWS FOR THOUGHT: Spikey

DAVE Spikey knows funny. He knows a great deal about the north west too; its places and people. He also knows a startling amount about human blood.

In March of this year, as a thousand celebrities were stepping up to draw attention to Those Less Fortunate as part of Comic Relief, the double British Comedy Award winner simply picked up where he left off; supporting the causes and people close to his heart any way he can – mostly by being expertly funny.

The encounter with Paws for Kids was a chance one, orchestrated as it was by Comic Relief, but Spikey was quickly hooked; staying long after the requisite piece to camera was complete. “As an animal lover and someone who has been involved in a range of charity work in the UK and beyond, I was surprised to find such a great little charity in my own back yard.”

Paws for Kids is a charity based in Bolton which provides support for women, children and their pets escaping domestic violence and abuse across the North West.

To help raise funds and awareness, and just seven weeks later, Spikey has filled the impressive new Middleton Arena on a Sunday night (“thanks for missing Heartbeat”).

“Having met the volunteers and some of the people they support, I found out that their Comic Relief funding was coming to an end and I was keen to do something.”

And it seems that no time was wasted. “The quick turnaround on the gig was ambitious but I’m glad we’re able to do it. People and children in abusive relationships or households becoming separated from family pets, that in some instances they’ve had half their lives, is a very real issue and I wanted to help.”

Repeat Prescription

The performance is part of an additional leg of the sold-out Best Medicine tour, branded Repeat Prescription; both titles referencing Spikey’s lengthy career in the blood labs of the NHS.

The Phoenix Nights co-writer finally gave up the day job in 2000. It cannot have been said all that often that haematology’s loss is entertainment’s gain.

The comedy is, as always, first class and the insight offered by a long career in the health service is put to good use although some of the enlightening tales from those days sounds dangerously (and hilariously) close to the sort of thing Panorama ‘looks into’.

But there is much more to enjoy than just NHS gags. At times, Spikey’s stand-up is simply good old fashioned joke telling and he is a master of the art.

At others, it is a wolf in sheep’s clothing; fast-paced and exquisitely timed yet with a warmth and gentleness that belies the scalpel-sharp wit within. But for the almost continuous and, at times, deafening laughter, the evening could so easily feel like a relaxed and intimate chat with an extremely funny friend and expert storyteller.

For the audience, like so many Dave Spikey performances, the night cannot go on long enough, not that their aching ribs can take much more after two straight hours of top class comedy.

But the impressive Middleton Arena has been christened with laughter, Paws For Kids is substantially better off and the day’s work is done.

But not for Dave Spikey; the next leg of the UK tour, a DVD, two books and more quietly effective charity work beckons. He may have left the NHS labs behind but working hard and giving generously, like comedy, is in his blood.