MrBiffo
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THANK YOU!
🕑 Added 2020-09-11 08:19:41 +0000 UTCLike most of you, I've got a kind of background anxiety these days. Feels like we're all just waiting for things to get better, and for Covid to go away. Even though it probably won't.
But... and here's the really weird thing... I feel oddly free. For at least 10 years - slightly more, in fact - I've been working on the same handful of shows. Dani's House ran for five series... at the tail-end of that, 4 O'Clock Club happened and ran for 10 series, then early on Dani's House got a spin-off that ran for several series... then I ended up doing Almost Never. We're writing series 3 of that right now.
I've been very lucky in that I've had four shows of my own run for multiple seasons. I couldn't have dreamed of that ever happening. At the same time... they also kept the wolf from the dining table, and so I kind of never felt brave enough to step away from them and do new things. And, in all honesty, I got comfortable, and stopped taking the sort of risks that led to, among other things, Biffovision and various other pilots.
Now, thanks to Covid, that security blanket has been ripped away.
I'm still writing Almost Never, but there are no guarantees that this next series will even get made. Last week I got the bombshell that the three-part 4 O'Clock Club finale, which had come within 10 days of filming back in March, only to be pushed to next spring, has now been officially axed (taking a huge chunk of income with it). I've no idea whether that could happen with Almost Never; the added costs that come with Covid - and they're huge - could prove insurmountable. I just don't know, because none of us know anything anymore.
You'd think I'd be in a foetal ball because of all this, but weirdly... I'm not. Not yet anyway. Yes, I do have that niggling anxiety, yes I worry about next year... but for the first time in a long time I feel like my options are wide open.
A big part of that is you lot, for supporting me. You've given me a baseline that - while it doesn't quite cover all the bills - helps massively. Also, I have to say that HMRC have been very understanding this year, for once. It has all given me space to be creative. So, thank you.
I'm loving making the YouTube videos right now, I'm really loving doing the podcast, I'm making music... I feel creatively fulfilled like I haven't done in... forever. Also, I've even pitched an original idea to Adult Swim - I mean, I don't expect to hear back, but the fact I've had the time and brain space to do that is huge for me. Though their VP of development thinks Mr Biffo's Found Footage "is great"...!
The kids' shows I've had on CBBC have been pitched to me to develop, rather than ideas I've come up with from scratch. And they've all be projects where I'm writing to please the producers, to be honest. What you've done for me over the past few years is remind me that I can work on things that I enjoy, that I can be driven by what I want to do, not what others want me to do.
There are other projects I otherwise never would've done that I'd do that I've now been asking my agent to put me forwards for - jobs that don't bring in a lot of money, that I want to do because I want to do them... rather than feeling I have to.
This week, I've put out two podcasts, two videos, and a 16 minute-long single. And I've loved doing all of them like I cannot express. To the point that I'm well aware that I'm neglecting my day job, which suddenly feels like it's much less important!
It can't be unfortunately. I still need it, to keep a roof over our heads. Literally. When I got divorced, I bought my ex out of her share of the house, which meant remortgaging, which means my monthly mortgage is, frankly, eyewatering. But... we're now even working towards paying off things like credit cards, so that I can remortgage at a lower interest rate, and that might take off even more pressure.
Sorry. Boring grown-up stuff. But the less financial drain I have, the more free I am to take creative risks.
Heck I even updated my LinkedIn for the first time in years, and realised I could add all these extra skills - Final Cut, Logic Pro, etc. - that I didn't have until the last few years. And immediately, an American producer I worked with some years ago reached out to me. So, that's nice.
Again, that's because you've trusted me to follow my instincts. So, thank you again. So very very much. Y'know.
Paul
Comments
Jason Salisbury
Thanks to you and Sanja for helping to keep us all occupied and smiling during all this mess. It would have been much harder without some lovely stories and funny videos to watch. Glad we are able to help out a bit in return.
Kelvin Green
No, Biffster, thank you. Disruption everywhere, but Digi has carried on and kept us smiling throughout.
Sanja Rose
Thank you for your lovely message, Pixel Rated. I'm so glad that you are still here, and in a better place than you were back in May. These are uncertain times, no doubt, and thank goodness that we have the internet to connect us all. It almost feels like we're all sitting around a big, electronic, campfire together, listening to each others stories, and sharing our own. And I guess what I'm trying to say is, that it is lovely that you are still here, sitting around the campfire with us.
Chris Bell
This makes for very happy reading indeed. Tough times without question, but itβs really heartening that itβs had such an upside for you. Viva Biffo!
Craig Hall
Good on ya Paul! It's a lucky person who hasn't had a tough year this year in some way. It seems all my friends are suffering from some kind of mental health issue, mostly depression and / or anxiety. It's hit me too, going into the apocalyptic ultravirus pandemic I was already teetering on the edge with numerous personal things really pushing me, covid was the final straw and without getting too personal or morbid thanks to the amazing and frankly heroic NHS staff I'm in a substantially better place now mentally than I was back in May. Anyway, I just want to say that this post genuinely brings a very large smile to my ugly mug - it's been difficult hearing the things you've been going trough the last few months Biffo, most prominent of all was the hate filled campaign that person instigated against you, the comms they sent you were nothing short of brainless anger and the bizarre act of engineering dislikes on your YouTube content demonstrates their twisted jealous venom. What I still can't comprehend is why you of all people would be a target of such behaviour. I get that your comedy is certainly not to everybody's taste, fine, but in terms of personality, both yourself and Sanja (and for that matter, every person you have on Digi) are down to earth, the epitome of non-offensive, but mostly are completely endearing, whether that's through passion for the subject matter, amazing interpersonal chemistry or even just terrible puns, you've compiled a lovely bunch of people to co-present with and at the top of that pile of pundits is yourself. I've gone on a mini rant here, sorry about that, I'll cut to the point. It's brilliant to read that you're in such a positive place and that your creative fires are burning brightly! I am very much looking forward to whatever your next project is, I'm sure everyone here has everything crossed for your Adult Swim venture. Much love to all at Team Digi!
John Veness
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