John Bishop makes history by becoming the first official act to take the stage at the new £135 million Swansea Arena.
The Liverpudlian stand-up filled the venue with laughter, as he brought with him his hugely popular observational comedy routine.
It almost goes without saying, there is a lot of serious stuff going on in the world right now, not to mention the last 24 months. So, it was nice to take a step back with John Bishop and say ‘f**king ell, what are we doing’.
In what can only be described as the first normal gig since the pandemic, it was nice to see the comedian engaging with fans once again. For someone that has gone to do great things including playing Dan on Dr Who and TV series’ of his own, it was great to see that fame hasn’t gone to the comedian’s head. In fact, fans will take great delight in knowing that John is still John, and continues to pass on his life lessons in his own very unique way.
In fact, we heard that John had spent the day walking around the arena before opening, and had commented on how well the staff had done to get the venue ready for the show, specifically pointing out the drive way had been tarmacked only hours before and the wrapping had just come off the brand new seats.
His routine includes a wide variety of topics, his relationship with his wife, lockdown and coping with the pandemic and his wife going through menopause to name a few things. As expected, John had the audience laughing alongside him at every moment.
Warming things up for John Bishop is Ray Bradshaw, and what an extremely talented and funny Scotsman he is.
He was born to parents who are both deaf and as a result he learned sign language and often interpreted for them. He relays stories of growing up with deaf parents and coming from a family where 80% of his relatives are also deaf. You often hear stories of people being unfairly judged, even laughed at for having a disability, but Ray does an excellent job of busting these stereotypes. You will have to go along to fully appreciate the talents of this man.
Ray has been public speaking (as an interpreter for his parents) from a very young age, it showed with how comfortable he was on stage in front of an audience. After discovering that events such as the Edinburgh fringe festive had so very few performances with sign interpretation, he went on to perform the world’s first comedy show in English and sign simultaneously. Impressive, huh.
You will find Ray Bradshaw accompanying John on this tour but he will be hosting his very own tour later in the year, so definitely watch out for him.
Located in the heart of city, you will find the 3,500-capacity Swansea Arena and the coastal park, which includes plenty of new greenery, benches, soft play areas and other facilities. The arena itself is managed by the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) and is one of 58 venues that the organisation manages across the UK, the US and Germany. On-site car parking and easy access to the M4 makes things accessible for those visiting. You can also walk and cycle across the new bridge over Oystermouth Road.
Both the coastal park and arena are now open to the public and are part of the £135m Copr Bay phase one district being developed by Swansea Council.
We have no doubts that this building is sure to have a positive impact for Swansea, bringing with it many big shows and performances in the future. The theatre is so versatile with the ability to split into two separate areas with sound proofing, and a number of other meeting rooms available, which makes it somewhat unique in the region.
You can catch John Bishop at other venues including Cardiff, as he continues his tour across the UK, Europe and Canada.
