My voice was screwed.

The combination of a low-level Fringe cold and shouting on stage most days had taken its toll and I was starting to lose the ability to speak. It’s an ability I took thoughtlessly for granted. Turns out it’s a pretty key skill when it comes to doing stand-up in Edinburgh.

Although I was croaky, the show went well and I was able to catch up with a number of friends from the audience over a pint afterwards. In an attempt to add tuberculosis to my vocal problems, I then headed down to the dankness of the Caves to see Danny Pensive. Not that I’d have got tuberculosis as I demonstrated immunity when tested at school. Take that, BCG losers.

I had three reasons for seeing Danny Pensive’s Map of Britain: he was a scream at Comedy Countdown; a friend recommended his show; and he’s a Doctor Who fan.

There are quite a few fanboys (it’s a non-gender-specific term) performing in Edinburgh. I’ve been trying to make a list – obviously, because that’s what fanboys do. And here I don’t mean people who like Doctor Who a bit; I mean people who like Doctor Who a lot. People who have the DVDs and actually watch the DVD extras. People who subscribe to Doctor Who Magazine. People who know their Sagacity from their City of Death.

So far I’ve got me and Dan from Three Man Roast (of course); John Cooper (aka Danny Pensive); Michael Legge; Tom Neenan from off of the Gentleman of Leisure (the old GOL); Andrew O’Neill; John Henry Falle from the Beta Males; Marc Burrows (from The 90s in Half an Hour); and Mitch Benn. Stuart Goldsmith and John-Luke Roberts from The Behemoth have question marks next to their names. Do grab them in the street and check. (Update: Luke Roberts – I don’t know why I doubted it. But I foolishly overlooked Colin Hoult and Tom Bell.)

Any more for any more? That list is, surprise surprise, uniformly male so far.

I’m not going to round these people up or anything. Although the Nazis probably said that too to begin with.

The evening’s entertainment was the middle show in the three-day run of the glorious Karaoke Circus. Nathan the Trombonist let me put my name down for all of the songs, as is my foolish way. It was particularly foolish on this occasion with my fading voice managing a workable singing range of around half an octave. I knocked back some Covonia and hoped for the best.

It was another marvellous night. Highlights included Robin Ince’s Two Little Boys (not a euphemism); Tim Vine’s disturbing one-piece PVC jumpsuit as Plastic Elvis; and Nadia Kamil and Joe Lycett performing Cee Lo Green’s uncensored big hit that may not be named (this is a family blog, we don’t say “fuck” here). I landed the last audience open spot.

Some of the songs would have been OK. Some of the songs didn’t have two many notes. Unfortunately, I was summoned to sing Come on Eileen. This, it turns out, has all of the notes and if your voice is a bit weak, it has the potential to sound the laryngal death knell.

I fear Eileen will have been less spurred on and more scared off.

Still, I got to show off my new Karaoke Circus t-shirt, as snapped by Isabelle:

What I learnt today: When you have a weak voice, rest it, you idiot.

Recommended show: Danny Pensive’s Map of Britain

Obligatory plug: I’m in Three Man Roast (★★★★ – whatsonstage.com), 2.35pm weekdays at Finnegan’s Wake on Victoria Street – free entry.

Another nice show (I know I keep saying that but thankfully we have had a lot of nice shows). It was also the second outing for my as-yet-unmentioned new cardigan, which, it has to be said, is getting pretty much the same reaction as my old cardigan (nothing – it’s just a bit of knitwear).

One of my uni mates was in the audience so I spent the rest of the afternoon catching up with her before heading to Helen Arney, Matt Parker and Steve Mould’s comedy science show Festival of the Spoken Nerd.

I’ve been to several editions of FotSN in London, in a lovely but cramped room above a pub. The Edinburgh “Best of” show was in a much, much larger room – and still cramped, as nerds from across the city poured in, attracted by the promise of maths, physics and fact-checked jokes.

I found a spot right at the back of the room where I could see the screen (not wanting to miss a single graph) and ended up sat on the bar for the duration of what was (unsurprisingly, based on previous experience), a funny and educashunal show. And I’m now one Helen Arney CD heavier – hurrah.

(I use parentheses too much in these posts, don’t I? It probably says something deep about how my mind works. And the lack of redrafting.)

The day concluded with the antidote to Edinburgh, the always fun Comedy Countdown.

Dan Atkinson’s misanthropic hosting is a joy; James Sherwood makes a wonderfully scatological Susie Dent; Paul Sinha was in suitably abusive form, especially when the audience shouted down his solution to one of the numbers rounds, which was frankly much more elegant than theirs; and Danny Pensive nearly had me on the floor with laughter when he reached into a Poundland bag and pulled out a homemade Wordy outfit.

What I learnt today: How super-absorbent polymers work. And how to spell “objector”.

Recommended show: Comedy Countdown (again)

Obligatory plug: I’m in Three Man Roast, 2.35pm weekdays and Saturday 20th at Finnegan’s Wake on Victoria Street – free entry. Also at the Amused Moose Comedy Awards Showcase at the Pleasance Dome, 4pm on August 17th (book online).