Winter Goodwill 2014: #4: The AhhGee team

I have recently been ordering, packing, and posting Christmas pressies to a small number of friends. Due to financial reasons, I have had to cut back the number of presents I am buying this year; however, when I look back at 2014, there are more people than ever that I want to express my gratitude towards. That is why I have decided to start a series of blogs entitled Winter Goodwill. In each blog, I will write about a certain person or group, championing them and their impact on my year, as a means of thanking them for being good to me. Hopefully this will put a smile on their faces over the Christmas period, while also celebrating the goodwill that people do across the year, not just over Christmas.

The blogs will cover a variety of people; some are people I have known throughout the year, while others I have only known for a matter of months. Some are close friends, while others are acquaintances - but ones that I hope will one day become a good friend.

The AhhGee team consists of Andy Harland, Grax, and Michael Bell. First and foremost, they do a podcast, but they have also branched out into YouTube videos and live performance throughout this year. I spent a fair bit of time in their company during the Edinburgh Festival, and it was a pleasure getting to know the former two, as well as spending time with Mike, who I've known for a couple of years. Firstly, I want to say thanks to them for letting me crash in their Edinburgh flat for a couple of days so I could stay for longer - thanks guys! They also gave me a spot during one of their Edinburgh shows, so thanks again for that, too.

I am going to start with Mike, as I've known him for longest. Throughout the year, there have been times where we've exchanged late-night ramblings, countless Simpsons quotes, and drinks. One of the most awesome things about Mike; he's the only person who, when I send a text that only reads "It stinks! It stinks! It stinks!", will know that it is a Simpsons quote from the 90s. Throw in a shared love of The Muppets and comedy, and there's the foundations of a good friendship. He's also been really lovely about this blogs, so thanks so much, mate. We're going to push ourselves to blog and make videos more come 2015, but I'll reveal more details about that in the new year. I'm really looking forward to it!

Grax is a very nice man. One thing that sums up how nice he is is some of his YouTube videos, which you can see here. The most viewed one involves him having every single hair on his body waxed/shaved, in aid of Leukemia and Lymphoma research. Considering the fact my Dad has Lymphoma cancer, seeing he had done this really touched me personally, and it epitomises the fact that Grax is a decent guy who wants to do a lot of good. There are also videos of him taking part in Run Or Dye, videos of him before and after he ran the London Marathon, and one of him dressing as a giant purple cat for World Polio Day. I really admire how much he has done to raise money for charity, and I respect him hugely for it. 

Finally, Andy. Throughout the last handful of months of 2014, every time I've put a status or Twitter out about being nervous due to a big gig, I've received a post/tweet from Andy simply saying "I believe in Tom Mayhew". I can't recall how it started, or why, but it's always a really nice thing to read, something that has helped me kick the nerves and put a smile on my face. Andy, like his two co-members of AhhGee, is also a lovely guy, which is summed up by his video I featured in the blog, in which he talks about his work with London band The Autistix.

Basically, all 3 of them are proper lovely guys, who have been nothing but friendly and kind to me over this past year. If you wish to follow them on Twitter, @AhhGeeProd is their group account, on which you can fairly easily find links to their 3 personal accounts.

Thanks for reading,

Tom.

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