You are walking along a lovely, leafy canal, listening to the birdsong and the aural soundscape of canals gently lapping. You hear Cannibal Corpse blasting out of a waterside barge, so you headbang or get the air guitar out in rock unity. Then you must surely be in the vicinity of the Robbie Cumming and the Naughty Lass, literally the Canal Boat that rocks.
One of the standout series on our telly boxes, the Canal Boat Diaries, is a huge ratings success as the intrepid star of Britain’s waterways, Robbie Cumming, takes us along on his journeys. It has become such a must-see show that we are all ‘bilge-watching’ it.
From falling into canals, to rescuing barges, to losing cameras, meeting famous boaters, visiting rock shrines and negotiating tricky locks, Robbie Cumming has done it all. It has not all been plain sailing, and Robbie has a real story to tell.
We chatted last year about life on the Naughty Lass, and so many of you reached out to say how much you enjoyed our interview. So much so, welcome to part deux. But are we going to need a bigger boat?
The latest series Robbie Cumming takes the Naughty Lass and two other boats on an adventure around Wales and North West England, serving us viewers heritage, history, hilarious moments, as well as playing his music and revealing all about life on board a barge.
As a TV producer, I am always intrigued by the filming of this epic journey, all filmed on Robbie’s iPhone and a drone. “We film it in a punk rock style,” Robbie says. “Very anarchic, just me and my cameras and some aerial shots.”
Canal Boat Diaries is all put together on a sound bed of acoustic guitar. “One bloke said to me that we love watching the show as it’s boring,” Cumming laughs. Yes, you might think the idea of one man and his boat pootling around stunning scenery is boring, but to us fans and the millions that tune in, it is far from that.
So much so, the latest episode made it onto Channel 4’s Celebrity Gogglebox as Robbie Cumming slipped into a dank, dark canal, all captured on camera. My other highlight was when he walked for miles to buy new boxers to get all the way back to the boat and find they were all too small. He had to resort to the inside-out, back-to-front situation.
Last year Robbie filmed at some of the most iconic rock shrines around the UK on his barge travels from Black Sabbath’s infamous album cover at Mapledurham Mill to Pink Floyd legend Dave Gilmour’s floating recording studio. This year, he visits the homes of his comedian heroes from Steve Coogan to the late, great Eric Morecambe.
With the huge success of the series, Robbie Cumming has been on a sell-out tour where he brings the TV series to the stage and I cannot wait to go along and see him live and in person.
“It’s a one-man show,” Robbie says, “so I keep it really simple. There are never-before-seen video clips, behind-the-scenes photos, stories from my years on the water and a Q&A session, which is both the best part and the worst part in terms of what questions I’ll face.
“The live show also features a few tracks from songs I’m working on. It’s a really laid-back show, which changes all the time depending on where I am.”
The Naughty Lass has become the Love Boat, as Robbie often talked in the past of meeting a lovely lass in series past. Now he has with Metal-loving Lyndsey, who also joined me for a chat. “We met at rock pub,” she says, “and I hadn’t heard about Canal Boat Diaries and did not know who he was before we met.”
“Which helped,” Robbie smiles.
Lyndsey loves her Thrash Metal like me, from Kreator to Cannibal Corpse, and the couple are currently enjoying going to every venue near the Naughty Lass’s mooring and experiencing the best of live music.
I love that Robbie Cumming loves a bit of the Diet Coke rock like Babymetal, so it’s a match made in Metal heaven. I ask the Metal loving couple for their recommendations for a pint and good music, and here is their rocking hitlist:
The Dove and Rainbow, Sheffield. “This is where Lyndsey and I met during a break from filming series 7,” Robbie says.
Ye Olde Salutation, Nottingham. “The legendary rock pub and arguably the oldest in the country. Has caves beneath.”
The Flapper, Birmingham. “Literally has a balcony overlooking the canal and boats.”
Rufus T Firefly, Glasgow. “Great staff, friendly atmosphere, good mix of rock and Metal being played.
The World’s End, Camden. “Massive bar area, great for if you’re on your own, and loads of space throughout for meeting up in a group before a gig/night out.”
Blind Pig, Sowerby Bridge. “Where Lyndsey and I went to celebrate filming the ending of series 7.”
Grand Central, Manchester. “Unpretentious, unpredictable. A good place to chat to randoms and watch small bands.”
Any gigs or festivals they would like to go to, I ask? The response is Download. Andy Copping or Kamran, are you reading this?
“Where does Robbie get the inspiration for writing his own music? “I get my inspiration for my own music from my surroundings,” he says, “and the sound of water, the chug chug chug of my Lister engine.”
There is so much going on in Robbie’s life. He recently had his ADHD diagnosis, has a book on the go, another series of Canal Boat diaries, plenty of gigs and is now living and loving life with Lyndsey.
So are they going to need a bigger boat? “With us and then a film crew, it does get a bit cramped,” he smiles. “But we love the Naughty Lass, so no. It can be quite awkward when we are chilling out, making a cup of tea and we get people knocking and shouting in from the outside ‘HELLO??!! ARE YOU THERE ROBBIE?’
“We love blasting out a bit of Metal from the boat, and currently it’s the ’90s/’00s Nu Metal that has the boat rocking.”
There will be plenty more adventures coming from Robbie, Lyndsey and the Naughty Lass, so as they say, jump on board and share this epic adventure celebrating all things Canals.
Until then, as Robbie says, “Keep cranking.”
The Canal Boat Diaries TV series is streaming now on U, Channel 4 (who also feature the show in the latest series of Celebrity Gogglebox) and BBC iPlayer.
Channel 4’s Celebrity Gogglebox. For tour info, visit the Facebook page.
