Actor James Greaves seeks out sun, sea and donuts

The Finding Joy van finally rolls into Brighton after a long drive from Goole in the North of England. Our sat nav immediately gets us in to trouble by steering us down a very narrow, car lined street that has been unexpectedly blocked off at its far end by road works. A few minutes of head scratching, cursing, chin rubbing, hackles rising, not to mention a nifty eight point turn we are out and free again to check in to our digs; a rather nice apartment over a not so nice shop.

The weather is sunny and blustery. A gusty stroll down to the seafront reveals massive waves crashing in to the beach and sea walls. One unsuspecting youth gets a vicious drenching whilst standing on the pier. I assume he thought he was safe. He wasn't!

We are playing The Warren venue as part of the Brighton Fringe Festival - you can always tell a festival from the presence of 'The Lady Boys of Bangkok' ensconced in a huge tent in a park somewhere - and the venue is up an unassuming street behind a shopping centre. Expectation falls but rises again as you turn in to the courtyard. Beer tent, food stall and all the usual accoutrements of a festival are there and it's all rather lovely. It all feels rather like Edinburgh.

Tomorrow we start work at 9am. We have to get the set into the space, lit, sound checked and practise moving the whole thing in and out of the wings in double quick time. (There are shows either side of our slot that need a clear stage - preparation is everything, we can't afford to start late or run over our time; people get tetchy when that happens).

What to do in the meantime? Brighton luckily has a plethora of inviting drinking establishments, eateries and a high density of donut outlets. There's also a festival on. I may just be seen nipping furtively in to see 'The Lady Boys of Bangkok'.


James x