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Discworld fans will love this five-star comedy show from Marc Burrows, author of The Magic Of Terry Pratchett
Marc Burrows isn’t just your average Sir Terry Pratchett fan. The award-winning author, musician and comedian has written and toured his book The Magic of Terry Pratchett extensively and will be gracing the stage at George Square for his hit show that is far more than your ordinary book tour. And, you don’t even have to be a Pratchett superfan to enjoy it. We caught up with Marc to find out more about his love for the legendary fantasy writer.
Hello Marc! You’ve just finished a UK tour of this show, right? How did that go?
I’m actually only about halfway through it! — The initial tour was booked across the spring, but it’s taken on a life of its own and now I’ve got another 34 shows before the end of the year. The dream was to get to 66 performances — one for every year of Terry’s life. I think we’re about there if you count the festivals and convention appearances. And we’re already booking up 2025!
What’s lovely is that we’re ending the year in Salisbury, just before Christmas. That’s hallowed ground for Terry, he lived just down the road for the last 20 years of his life. I’m in a constant state of shock at how well the tour and the show in general have gone. There’s something incredibly special about people coming together to celebrate Terry’s life and work. Some of the shows have been incredibly emotional, some have been riotously funny and unhinged, most have had an element of both. I never get tired of performing it, whether it's been in wonderful, grand old theatres to 400 people or the preview I did to 25 fans in a library during working hours, meaning I had to compete with someone yelling at a photocopier.
Why have you decided to bring the show back to the Fringe?
I felt like it deserved a victory lap! 2023 was the best Fringe I’ve ever had, and I’ve been performing there on and off since 2008, but it was incredibly hard work. I did the full run of The Magic of Terry Pratchett, with a bonus “extras” show straight afterwards, every day, for big fans that I called ’The Footnotes’; then I was doing a late-night show of my club stand-up plus spots on mixed-bill shows. I did something like 60 performances at that Fringe, including three hours of solo shows a day. It’s great fun but it about killed me. I decided that this year I’d bring the Pratchett show back for a limited run and just do that. No extra shows, no spots (well … probably one or two).
I didn’t get to properly enjoy how successful the show was last year because I was so busy and so exhausted. This is a chance to take the whole experience in properly, and just concentrate on the one thing. Plus, the show has sharpened and grown as I’ve toured it — I genuinely think it’s a much better show than it was this time last year, and I’m looking forward to performing it in its evolved form ... Also, I couldn’t be bothered to write a new one.
What’s your favourite Pratchett book, and why?
It honestly changes on a daily basis. My go-to comfort listen is Witches Abroad, something about the mix of brilliant character writing, subversive storytelling and silliness makes it fresh every time. That said, I’d go to bat for Night Watch or Nation as the best of Terry’s books, both are so dark and so angry but also manage have a lightness of touch. What’s genuinely surprising, even after writing a book about him and a stand-up show and talking about Terry almost constantly for two years now, I still don’t get bored of his work. There are still new jokes to find. Still more to marvel at.
For the younger generation who may not know of Pratchett’s work, how would you describe it and encourage them to pick up one of his books?
The most gracious mix of the fantastically silly and the fantastically profound and the plain fantastical. No-one has ever made talking rats, dwarfs and goblins so absolutely and completely human. No-one has ever made funny so serious and serious so funny. He works on so, so many levels. And while I know there’s an intimidating amount of books to dive into, honestly … pick one at random and dig in, because basically they’re all good. Er … don’t start at the Colour of Magic though. Why? Look, I haven’t got time for that here. Tweet me.
What do you think the works of Terry Pratchett have taught you?
That human is as human does, that funny and serious aren’t mutually exclusive, that stories are what separates us from apes, and to always get the young man’s name and address.
The Magic of Terry Pratchett will be performed at 5.10pm in Assembly George Square Studios (Studio Two) from 5th – 18th August
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