Since 1985, a band called The Wedding Present have been pleasing the ears of anyone with a great taste in music all over the world. With 9 studio albums under their belts which spawned 18 top 40 singles in the UK charts, this band has gone on to create some stunning albums that have truly stood the test of time. The late, great John Peel was an early and avid supporter of the band, inviting them into the studio to record 9 Peel Sessions spanning 1986 – 2004, I’m unsure if this is a record but if not, it bloomin’ well should be!

David Gedge was once approached by a publishing house who asked if he had considered writing an autobiography, he turned them down thinking that only famous people wrote autobiographies and then an idea pinged into his head, why not draw upon his love of comic books and use that to create his very own, illustrated story of his life? The result was ‘Go Out and Get ’Em, Boy! – Tales From The Wedding Present: Volume 1’ which was released by Scopitones Books on 27 November 2020. David writes ‘Tales From The Wedding Present’ together with long-time musical associate Terry de Castro and the stories are illustrated by virtuoso artist Lee Thacker. The three of them have been working steadily – with editing help from Jessica McMillan – relating David’s life and adventures, for almost ten years.

Nearly 2 years to the date, David decided it was time to unleash the second instalment of his comic book autobiography into the world, ‘Something and Nothing – Tales From The Wedding Present: Volume 2’ was set to be released on 11 November 2022.

This brings us to a UK tour where David is joined by Terry de Castro and artist Lee Thacker where they take part in an onstage Q&A, followed by a live semi-acoustic performance of hits spanning the band’s back catalogue.

The first night of the tour was booked at The New Lion Brewery in Dartington, a small village on the outskirts of Totnes which quickly sold out owing to the amount of interest it generated in this rich and wholesome creative area within the South Hams. Arriving early on the night, many people had decided to do the same, the bar was packed and so too was Pizzalogica, the in-house pizza parlour who were frantically knocking out their delicious creations for the masses.

At 7:30 sharp, David, Lee and Terry took to the stage where Terry explained how the night would run and launched into an Indepth Q&A covering the roots of the comic book project as well as other interesting topics. Terry asked David how his parents felt about being included in the book and what feedback they had given to him after reading it, David replied saying that he never asked them what they had thought about the book so assumed that they accepted it for what it was and carried on with their lives. He did laugh when recalling a time when he decided that rather being the ‘golden boy’ and using his degree to secure a ‘proper job’, he would kick all of that into touch and become a pop star, signing on in the process to seal the deal. Terry asked if his parents were insulted by his behaviour at the time and he said that they still ask him when he’s going to get a normal job! Seeing as David is close to retirement age, this made him smile and raised a laugh around the room.

Terry recalled that she has been working with David as a member of his side project Cinerama since 1998 and more recently, assisting him in getting the information together for the comic book series. She recalls a time when she visited David who had books full of clippings from just about every music tabloid available, cover shots, reviews, tour adverts and even diaries from the early years which were all pored over for hours, teasing out nuggets of information in the hope that more information would come from David’s memory banks to aid them in their quest.

Lee Thacker was asked about his favourite stories in the books and he said that he most enjoyed illustrating the relationships that David found himself in over the years, David added that whilst he loves the comic book heroes (Spiderman etc) he was often drawn to the girlfriends of them instead of focussing on the main character and wanted to ensure that his comic book allowed people to enjoy a similar feeling when reading them.

It was interesting to learn that David never really planned a lifelong career as the frontman of one of the most exciting and dynamic bands in history, early plans were to just put out a few singles, maybe an EP along the way, but here they are, 37 years later with over 300 tracks to their name.

Asked about how he gained clearance from the characters used in the book, David explained that he contacted past partners and friends who were very supportive of the project and gave him their blessing when it came to depicting their stories in comic-book form. One of the hardest things for Lee Thacker to get right was how these characters looked and he used many photographs of people from back in the day to ensure that their likeness from the 80’s was as true to form in print. Lee laughed when he said that everyone in the books wears the same clothes apart from David who would clearly be seen in different clothing as the story unfolded, there were even comments from David at the proofing stage that some characters appeared ‘bigger boned’ than they were in the day and Lee put’s this down to being heavily influenced by an artist who depicts women as full figured and strong but did manage to adjust his work, lightening their physiques after David’s request.

Questions from the audience were very engaging and you could tell that some people had been dying to ask David their questions for many years, one that tickled me was around David being a Manchester City fan and why he chose George Best as the subject for The Wedding Present’s debut album in 1987. David replied that the reference to George Best was never about football but more around his style and attitude to his work, he would often skip training sessions after partying with Miss World and regularly turn up late to events which somehow appealed to David, not that I’m saying that David has ever turned up late to anything, I guess it was his general defiance to fit into the mould that society had created for him and stand out from the rest, something that David has always managed to achieve with The Wedding Present.

Another interesting question came in the form of a request to explain the term ‘Gedgitarianism’ which raised a few laughs around the room. David explained that this was a term that he had created which defined his approach to his dietary requirements, whilst he refuses to eat red meat as he feels that these animals are a lot closer to humans, he does like fish and chicken and said that the term does appear on his tour rider which often kicks off questions from confused venue staff who double check prior to hitting the Harrods food hall for sustenance to get David and his team through the night!

A question was asked about an early gig in Ilfracombe and whether David remembers it, with a wry smile, he explained that you do remember the early days and tours because they were the first time you were on the road and memories are strong, he admitted that he didn’t recall the Ilfracombe gig in particular but did joke about saying that at some early shows, the band would often be nowhere to be found owing to attendance at football matches, leaving David to call upon the talents of his then sound engineer and his girlfriend to come along and play guitar and bass on the night.

After the Q&A, there was a brief intermission to relieve bladders and refresh drinks before David was joined onstage by Terry (guitar) and Melanie (bass) for a 45-minute run through of the crème de la crème of the band’s back catalogue including some magnificently paired back semi-acoustic versions of ‘Crushed’, ‘Brassneck’, ‘You Should Always Keep in Touch with Your Friends’ and ended with a rousing version of ‘My Favourite Dress’.

Looking around the room whilst the performance took place, it was refreshing to see people looking on attentively rather than through the screen of an iPhone, this felt a lot more engaging than other shows I have attended and I felt that the band really connected well with the room.

After the live show, David, Lee and Terry settled down to meet fans, sign books and chat about their music, the fans purchased books and LP’s and eagerly awaited their turn to meet their hero and enjoy their 15 seconds in his company.

Tonight was incredible, hosted in a lovely building with some great people, it was a chance for music fans to meet, chat, drink and laugh about the ‘good old days’ and enjoy time with a band that have long since become firm favourites and hopefully, will continue to produce engaging, exciting and loveable music in the future.

Catch David Lewis Gedge on tour alongside Terry de Castro and Lee Thacker around the country until 20th November (all dates and venues below). His latest book ‘Something and Nothing – Tales from The Wedding present Volume 2’ is available to purchase from 11th November via www.merchandise.scopitones.co.uk

Live Dates

10: Cardiff - Acapela Studio

11: Manchester - the Louder Than Words festival at the Innside Hotel

12: Newcastle upon Tyne - Gosforth Civic Theatre

13: Glasgow - Glee Club

14: Leeds - Brudenell Social Club

15: Wolverhampton - Bilston Town Hall

16: Nottingham - Metronome

17: Walthamstow - Rock 'N' Roll Book Club at the Trades Hall

18: Stowmarket - John Peel Centre

19: Kingston upon Thames - PRYZM

20: Southampton - Turner Sims