Why Aggers is going from double act in York to solo show at Pocklington

DUE to unforeseen circumstances, An Evening with Aggers & Tuffers at the Grand Opera House, York, is being postponed from tomorrow until October 14 2019.

"The producer, Aggers and Tuffers would like to apologise profusely for any inconvenience caused, and hope you can join them for the new date," said a statement from the Cumberland Street theatre.

"Those who have booked will be contacted by their point of sale soon to be moved over to the new date or fully refunded. The company would like to thank you for your understanding."

Please note, Aggers' solo show at Pocklington Arts Centre on October 2 will go ahead as planned. 

AFTER one of the great Test series on English soil ended with James Anderson's record-breaking 564th wicket on Tuesday at The Oval, BBC cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew swaps the commentary box for the York stage tomorrow.

Aggers will be forming a well-grooved double act with bad-boy spinner, home-spun philosopher, Test Match Special commentary co-pilot and A Question Of Sport team captain Phil "Tuffers" Tufnell for An Evening With Aggers & Tuffers at the Grand Opera House.

That, however, tells only half the story because Agnew is launching another show, to go with his An Evening With Boycott & Aggers and aforementioned Tuffers nights of banter, memories and question-and-answer sessions. Not to mention the same format with spinner Graeme Swann, Indian’s "Little Master", Sunil Gavaskar and Sky Sports' ebullient cricket commentator David "Bumble" Lloyd.

An Evening With Aggers is not a radical departure in terms of a tried and tested title, but it finds Agnew flying solo, as the former Leicestershire and England pace bowler turned BBC broadcaster mounts his first ever solo tour, stopping off at Pocklington Arts Centre on October 2, armed with anecdotes from home series and tours abroad.

Recollections of his Test Match Special guest slot, A View From The Boundary, will feature too as he reflects on his interviews with stars of stage, screen and beyond, from two prime ministers, several rock stars and film legends, to writers, comedians and a boy wizard.

More of that later, but first An Evening with Aggers & Tuffers, a stage partnership between the Commentator and The Cat that began in 2016. How does Tuffers contrast with acerbic Yorkshire sage Geoffrey Boycott, so often prodded into a response by Agnew's teasing probing. "Geoffrey is funnier than most people expect him to be, but Philip is naturally funny, a comedian, a brilliant storyteller, a cheeky-chappie who never settles down, but is up out of his chair more than he's in it, often with a bat, which is a bit scary!

Double act: Tuffers and Aggers talk cricket at the Grand Opera House, York, tomorrow

"He's just very, very funny, and with Tuffers I feel I can just wind him up and let him go. With Geoffrey, I just try to agitate him! With Tuffers too, I think the audiences tend to be younger because of the other shows he's done [ I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here, The Jump, Strictly Come Dancing]."

Aggers is a masterful tactician at bringing out the best in Tuffers, Boycott and "Bumble" Lloyd ("he goes into slightly different areas because of his zany humour," says Agnew) in his role as the interviewer in his shared evenings, but his new venture, An Evening With Aggers, takes him into the solo spotlight.

"I'm quite nervous about it, up there on my own," he admits, although Aggers has always exuded an urbane calm. "It's a chance to talk about how I got to where I am now; the people I've met and worked with. I've put some lovely material together and I'm looking forward to getting it going, starting on Sunday (September 16)."

Aggers is no stranger to telling stories. "Well, yes, I do public speaking engagements at charity dinners, so I'm used to getting up and speaking for 40 minutes, but that's a fairly set patter that you can bring out anywhere. This will be different," he says. "There'll be film footage, even some of me getting Test wickets. It will go down memory lane, but there will be stories that people haven't before about how I began on Test Match Special, as well as some new funny recollections of working with Brian Johnston.

"I really want people to come along and have a good time, and learn more about what this job entails, which people don't get an insight to normally: the other side to it than rolling up and having a laugh."

An Evening With Aggers & Tuffers, Grand Opera House, York, tomorrow, 7.30pm, POSTPONED; An Evening With Aggers, Pocklington Arts Centre, October 2, 7.30pm. Box office: York, 0844 871 3024 or at atgtickets.com/york; Pocklington, 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk

Did you know?

Aggers' shows raise money for the Professional Cricket Association (PCA) Benevolent Fund, a charity that supporting past and present players and their dependents during times of illness or hardship.