The Holy Vible

I first started listening to Elis and John’s Radio 5 show about a year ago, a magazine show where Elis and John create funny segments and features and it quickly became my favourite weekly podcast. A few times in the podcast I’d hear them mention the Vible - a book published some seven years ago, so on a long flight I decided to pick it up on Audible, and sat through it in almost one sitting.

For fans of Elis and John’s humour there’s a lot here to enjoy. Along with the origins of some of the secret-language-phrases used on the show and by fans of the show, each chapter is a descriptor of a certain subject - A-Z - taken on by one or both of the comics. These range from the very silly to the very serious - as those familiar with the show will know - and cover music and sport, as well as shame, grief, love, pubs, the Welsh language, and of course stand-up.

It would be easy for this book to be a total phone-in without much substance, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. In some ways, it’s like a really long episode of the podcast - which has gone from strength to strength since then - or perhaps multiple episodes on certain topics. It’s charming, funny, sensitive and sweet.

I regret not owning a hard-copy of the book to enjoy the pictures, but likewise I really think it benefits from their delivery and patterns. Perhaps this was one of those read-while-you-listen types. I’d love for Elis and John to do another book, perhaps filled with things that have become important in the intervening years, children, relationships, the unique way the BBC is funded, Elis’ podcast empire, John’s… Eye climbing? They have value. This book has value.