Unexpected Visitor, Vic & Bob and the First Shutout During the warm summer of the first year of the new millennium, my life was transformed in ways I never imagined possible by an unexpected visitor. On a Saturday afternoon in July 2000, as I sat in the living room reading The Guardian, there was an […]
Read moreCategory Archives: The Bernician Chronicles
The Bernician Chronicles is the fifty year journal of the life and times of Michael O’Bernicia, which is being serialized on this blog for subscribers only, taking in his years spent on the London stand-up comedy circuit, fringe theatre circles and the hip indie movie scene, as well as the largely successful career he had under a different name, as a critically acclaimed comedian, playwright and filmmaker.
In addition, the Chronicles document The Bernician’s brief dalliance with mainstream fame, his blacklisting as a potential subversive and his rise from the ashes of his former life, as the nemesis of the rigged system which tried and failed to destroy him.
Nevertheless, it must be stressed that the Chronicles can only be properly understood if all of the chapters are read from the beginning. Otherwise, the extraordinary events they describe will simply not make sense.
In other words, start here and read on in sequence.
Amsterdam Beckons, Cannes Return and Christopher Walken | Chapter Fourteen of The Bernician Chronicles
Amsterdam Beckons, Cannes Return and Christopher Walken Probably the best birthday present I have ever received was the trip to Amsterdam for CR and I, which was very generously bought and paid for by her lovely mother, M. The trip was a thirtieth birthday gift, which we took in the sunny spring of 1999. Chillin’ […]
Read moreMaking Roadkill, Pitching Nefarious and Mr ICM – Chapter Thirteen of The Bernician Chronicles
Making Roadkill, Pitching Nefarious and Mr ICM Production in the Breacon Beacons We shot ‘Roadkill’ in the Breacon Beacons over five production days, during the first week of November 1998. For most of that time we were working in gale force winds and horizontal rain, which made recording clean sound very problematic. Notwithstanding the extreme […]
Read moreManic Depression, High Times and Roadkill: Chapter Twelve of The Bernician Chronicles
Manic Depression, High Times and Roadkill Despite the giddy highs I felt after graduating from the Dov Simens 2 Day Film School in November 1997, by the turn of the year I had sunk into what I considered to be a form of manic depression. This occurred primarily because I forced myself to accept that […]
Read moreVic Naylor’s, Heady Daze and Dov Simens – Chapter Eleven of The Bernician Chronicles
Vic Naylor’s, Hazy Daze and Dov Simens Having literally visited thousands of bars during the course of my life, I have no hesitation is saying that Vic Naylor’s Bar and Grill on St. John’s Street, Farringdon, was without doubt my favourite. However, it wasn’t the incredible assortment of drinks from all around the world, the […]
Read moreKino-Eye, Little England and Cannes ’96 – Chapter Ten of The Bernician Chronicles
Kino-Eye, Little England and Cannes ’96 When Ray Brady and Chris Read from Kino-Eye Films asked me to develop ‘The Truth Game’ into a screenplay, I honestly thought my film career was about to take off. Ray and Chris, along with their friend and business partner, Jim Crosbie, had caused quite a stir in the […]
Read moreBlind Faith, Fringe Hits and The Workshop – Chapter Nine of The Bernician Chronicles
Blind Faith, Fringe Hits and The Workshop ‘Blind Faith’ was a parody of my experiences on the stand-up circuit, which I wrote as a stage play, during the summer of 1993. Essentially, it was a play about a terrible comedian, who finally finds his comic persona in the pit of his own despair, after years […]
Read moreLondon Calling, Svejk and Tragic Events – Chapter Eight of The Bernician Chronicles
London Calling Following the completions of my degree, I headed north to my parents’ house in Morpeth, knowing that London was calling me south, one way or another. Nevertheless, just a week after leaving Leicester in July 1991, I booked a fifteen minute try-out spot, at the lovely Dave Johns’ Cheeky Chappies Comedy Cafe, on […]
Read moreStand-Up, Le Mans and a Pyrrhic Victory – Chapter Seven of The Bernician Chronicles
STAND-UP, LE MANS AND LONDON CALLING Whilst I always knew I would become a stand-up comedian, I was to a certain extent motivated to do so at the earliest juncture, by events that transpired during the final year of my degree. Despite the arty farty nonsense permeating our experience of the first two years, in […]
Read moreLeicester Poly, Rights of Passage and Eviction – Chapter Six of The Bernician Chronicles
Leicester Poly, Rights of Passage and Eviction On the morning of my last A level exam, I had absolutely no idea that within a year I would be heading to the midlands, where I would spend the better part of the next three years on a performing arts degree at Leicester Polytechnic. In fact, I […]
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