Friendship

The claim of being owner of ‘the best friends in the world’ is thrown about with abandon constantly by many people of my age, and this overuse has decimated the true gravitas of this statement. Especially as I am about to make that claim for myself, and I require the full meaning from these words.

As I’m sure you will know, Tuesday night hosted the opening (and, sadly, closing) of Jono: The Musical which showcased the amazing talents of four very gifted people. For the past 6 months George Putland, Zachary Hunt and Ian Fleming and written this show from scratch and, with help from Josie Lewis, have transferred this wonderful in-joke onto the stage.  Not only did I have the opportunity to watch as this show grew and became real, but I had the privilege of watching their considerable talents create the songs and script needed for the night.

The show itself was a massive success. I sat in the audience, surrounded by my best friends while my life was played out on stage in front of us and almost 200 others. These friends who laughed with me on that night are the most amazing lot, without whom I wouldn’t have a head full of unforgettable memories and I simply wouldn’t be who I am today. It is also thanks to these people that my otherwise menial life was made possible to be converted into a show worthy of drawing an instant standing ovation.

These people and, obviously, the talents being showcased on-stage are without a doubt the greatest rabble of people to walk the planet. From the free periods spent at school to the drunken field-parties, I have spent many of the best hours of my life with these people, and sitting in the audience of Jono: The Musical was an amazing experience to add to the many others.

The night itself was, if you hadn’t already guessed, a fantastic success. The laughs started at 7:30pm when Nasi, the cockney urchin poked his head around the side of the stage and only finished two hours later when I was dragged up onto stage and the five of us left to a barrage of whoops and cheers. I’ve heard the show described as ‘faultless’, ‘the best show ever at The Sinden’ and ‘outstanding’, with many more adoring quotations to be found very easily.

These guys have immortalised my life in theatre and I love every line of mockery, every derogatory joke towards me and every embarrassing moment mentioned. Every line in Jono: The Musical will be in my mind forever and I will continue to bore everyone I meet in the future with how spectacular the show was.

I can’t think of anything more amazing that friends can do than to come together in this way and create an unforgettable show to describe the past few years of my life. And for this, I love these guys more than I can imagine anyone else would adore their best friends. I am so lucky to have grown up with these talented, hilarious, remarkable people and I wish to thank them for simply being themselves.

If you are reading this and you are not sure if you fall under than bracket, then it’s likely that you don’t. To those who know I am addressing them; thank you, I love you, I miss you and see you soon.

For Jono: The Musical memorabilia contact me for CDs (or download the album online here) and keep your eyes open on here and Facebook for the DVDs which have begun production today after 2 long days of uploading video footage. Also, thank you all you brilliant people who came on the night (and others who donated to the cause) we raised a fantastic £666.27 for The Mouth Cancer Foundation. Well done George, Zak, Ian and Josie. You did a bloody good job.