2021

Only one update last year, which isn’t that surprising really. That’s not to say there wasn’t plenty to do, but there are only so many ways you can tell the story of waking up, making coffee and then tapping away at Final Cut Pro until it’s time to go to bed. It might stretch to a short series if you gave some air time to discovering Zoom quizzes, falling out with Zoom quizzes and included the crowd-pleasing banana bread episode, but overall 2020 was a bit of a non-starter. 

Shot on a self-timer over lunch break, November 2020.

Having said that, while there may not have been many landmark nights out, I did manage to knock some sizeable items off the long-term to-do list. With the help of television legends, Solus Productions, I was able to sit down on Christmas Eve and watch a programme I made on the BBC, which was extremely satisfying. Television amateurs, Inyal, recorded a new single and shot a music video for it which looked the part and showed no signs of being a project conceived, executed and completed in lockdown. Perhaps most importantly of all, I added a second monitor to my editing setup, doubling the volume of screens available for me to stare at throughout the day and increasing my chances of coming down with glaucoma tenfold. 

Double monitors for double bad eyesight.

De-rigging in Edinburgh, November 2020.

The coming twelve months are already showing the hallmarks of being a much more exciting year, and one which will allow me to slowly improve on the ghostly complexion which I’ve been sporting since April. In the last month I’ve been out on location filming bands, have delivered several pieces of long-form content (here, and here also) and still had plenty time to tour the local Paisley landmarks while out hitting my step count. The striking outlines of the local Taco Bell, tower blocks and steel fabrication yard are now all firmly imprinted on my mind, for better or worse.

On location filming Gaelic supergroup, Sian. Photograph by Elly Lucas.

“We don’t start recording until you let me join the band.”

For now, I am content to quietly work away on a few projects which I’m very exited about, safe in the knowledge that if we stay in lockdown there are still so many things to help me through which I’ve never tried. To this day, I haven’t pushed the coffee table out the way to try a Joe Wicks, thrown a virtual cocktail party or seen any of Normal People. Should the current restrictions remain in force, I think I’ll be able to comfortably last another six months – nine, even, if Paul Mescal is as good looking as the reports suggest.