Ant Middleton
*****
St David’s Hall, Cardiff
Fri 31 Aug, 2018
Ant Middleton is what every guy wants to be (possibly); he has a certain presence about him, whether that be on the TV in SAS: Who Dares Wins, Mutiny or Escape, from reading his book First Man In or onstage during his tour – that you just can’t fail to respect this real-life action man.
For his first night tour opener in Cardiff, when Ant Middleton walked on the stage, you could have heard a pin drop. When he spoke, you could have heard a pin drop. When the few late comers were berated and ordered by him to do some physical exercise as punishment, you definitely heard a pin drop! Only when Ant laughed, so then did the audience, and lastly so did the late comers before sitting down with relief. This just shows the power that the guy has with his words and how he commands your upmost concentration. He has wit, intelligence, calmness and a never-give-up attitude to everything he does, an ability to hold the attention of the audience with every word that comes out of his mouth. Don’t assume that this is a show just containing action-based anecdotes about his time in the military or funny anecdotes connected to one of the TV shows he is part of (although we are rewarded with both); he intersperses it all with how a powerful mindset helped him then, and still now.
By bringing you into his world, you can take this knowledge and translate it into your own, regardless of your own circumstances. One of the mindset tools Ant uses is what he calls the “Fear Bubble”. He raised the house with laughter when he spoke about going from one “Fear Bubble” to the next whilst in Afghanistan, even though what he was doing at the time (no spoilers here!), will have you reflecting on what he had just said, sending a shiver down the spine at the surreal incomprehensibility of it all to anyone not walking in his boots at that given time!
The show will leave you feeling motivated, driving you to tackle whatever challenge life is, has or will be throwing at you. You don’t need to have been carrying a rifle in the military to walk away from this show without having been gripped, smiling and motivated to succeed in anything you wish to do.
So much so was the night enjoyed that I would recommend a second viewing due to the vastness and scope of what Ant talks about, just in case anything was missed by the ticket purchaser first time around.
words Carl Marsh
Tour continues until 16th September. Info: www.antmiddleton.com