- The start of the show with the Barbies and dioramas is so funny and creative. They explain the lore of Dan and Phil in eras represented by diorama's of the places they lived in so it's like Phil's room at his parent's house, Manchester flat(s), firs London flat etc. While telling the story they not so subtly smash the Barbies together at some points or bent over the Manchester breakfast bar. It's a really good intro to the rest of the show, preparing you for the tone and the level of not giving a fuck you're gonna get. PJ and Sophie made the diorama's and they look incredible.
- We got to the conspiracy theories waaaaay earlier in the shoow than I had expected. It is introduced like one of those iceberg tier memes, with 4 levels. Every level gives the audience the choice between two theories only identified by keywords like 'pumpkin' versus ''toilet'. Based on what the audience screams loudest for, they explain the conspiracy theory and then confirm whether it's true or not. The ones chosen were: Them Having Couple Toiulets in the Phouse (not true but was also more of a joke on twt than a legit conspiracy video), Phil's Sleepness Night videos being fake (true but not all of them i think), them sharing the big bed in the TATINOF tour bus (true and one of the most insane reveals of the show, explain they did the rock paper scisssors and dan crawling out of that bunk for content and they probably wouldn't have made it a big deal if YouTube hadn't been there filming), and last but not least They Got Married in Japan or 2022 (not true, Dan goes on a mini rant about being opposed to weddings because they're traditions and Phil tells the audience Dan has commitment issues).
Now I really hope they're not doing the same 8 'conspiracies' for the whole tour because that'd be boring, but also because not all of them are winners. There's much better stuff out there. The TATINOF bus bed reveal is huge of course, but unless there are more pumpkin SPICED theories I am not aware Phil obviously not being the dancing pumpkin guy is boring and has already been addressed at some point I think. Similarly 'wedding' as a keyword sounds very juicy, which will probably make people (who avoid spoilers) scream for it more, but that theory was always deeply unserious. (note: this apparently happened in copenhagen and i really hope we're not dealing with cake scene 2.0.)
The bed reveal was really such a big thing though, I can't get over it. They said it somewhat casually and the crowd literally gasped and it was completely silent for a second it was AMAZING.
- Role Model or No Role Model. This strongly reminded me of Interactive Introverts and it was fine but I honestly don't remember much about it. There's a reason for that. In 2017 I made a niche joke about Phil obviously being the one dealing with sponsorships and such on Twitter. Honestly I don't quite remember how it came to be and the tweet I was replying to is deleted now, but I tweeted this:
I brought the joke to IDB and friends from here used it too, but at some point it broke containment and started spreading on Twitter and Tumblr as well (not always in a nice way tbh). Dan and Phil acknowledging Phil's reputation and the capitalism jokes has gone on for a while now but they've never actually said the phrase Capita£ester. Until now. I am not even kidding when I say I blacked out for 10 seconds, like it was UNREAL to me just sitting there in that audience. If I ever meet them again I'm bringing a print out of that tweet for them to sign (and apologize to Phil maybe lol).
- After this they talked about having done it all on YouTube and what they would even do if they'd continue. Phil mentions that in December it will mark 15 years of Dan and Phil. This is significant because it proves a theory about their real anniversary being in December. He definitely did not say October. He said December. As we all know (seriously if not how did yout get here) that Dan and Phil met on October 19th 2009 and obviously they really hit it off, so that's what the phandom celebrates and they have always just let us have that. But over the years, with the help from the iconic
Phan Timeline, a theory emerged that a certain period in late November and early December seemed more significant for them. So that's confirmed now I guess? WIld.
- Anyway back to DnP's future on YouTube. They name some nowadays popular genres of online content like Vtubers, family vlogging and Onlyfans. They reenact some potential content aaaaand I kinda don't remember what else happened here until BOXING. They had boxing robes over their stage outfits and had boxing gloves on, a referee appears and when they start 'fighting' the referee drags Phil's off stage and Dan storms off by himself.
And then starts the 15 minute break. I left the room at this point, but during that staff set up a fake boxing ring and some people in the audience got given those little foam fingers that sports fans have to support their team or whatever.
- After the break DnP return to the stage in boxing outfits, with Phil 'shirtless' aka wearing silicone abs. They do a incredibly choreographed and incredibly homoerotic fight, complete with questionable positions and hair pulling. I could say a lot about it, but somehow I am still speechless so it needs to be seen to be believed I fear. (I'm guessing this is how Phil hurt his ribs.)
- Uhhh more stuff that I don't remember very clearly happens, I think they ask the audience for subjects to do a monologue about and it was about feet? Dan rants about relatability a bit here too I think, but while he's doing that Phil gets bored and starts playing Subway Surfers on the screen. As Dan keeps talking the game sound gets louder and louder until his yelling gets drowned out completely by the music and he leaves the stage.
- Phil's monologue! I really liked this part. It seemed very real and sincere. He talked about how long he's been doing YouTube and asked whether there are any (near) 18 year olds in the audience 'cause that's how old his channel is turning soon. He explained that he has always really believed in the power of light content like the stuff he makes (though at the same time he also said his content is mid NOOOOO), but he then praises Dan for making more serious content about topics like depression and his sexuality and says that Dan inspired him which is sweet. He also talks about burnout and how the hiatus affected him. It's not the obvious choice to let Phil be the center of a serious part of a show, but such a good one. Loved it.
- Dan appears back on stage after the monologue. Or should I say Sister Daniel makes her debut? I don't wanna know how many of those costumes they've had to buy as backups lol. She pranced around the stage like the hot girl she is and dropped a crucifix, which she picked back up by suggestively bending over in front of Phil, making it look like a lap dance. Phil changed into Father Philip and they were then ready to hear confessions from the audience. They spray the audience with holy water so heads up if you're in the first 4 or 5 rows; you're in the splash zone.
- They then went off stage to change back into their usual stage outfits, you hear sounds and dialogue of them changing but out of context it sounds like they're having sex.
- Back to something more serious, they talked about coming out, coming back etc. Central in this part is the relationship with their audience, the pros and cons, and how it has evolved. Dan said that fans trying to guess/expose his sexuality back then reminded him of getting bullied at school, Phil gave an example of being outed to his brother by invasive fans. And there was no precedent on how to handle online fanbases like theirs, so they really just had to figure it out while dealing with the trauma that came with it. But also, that by the time they were ready to come out the phandom had created an inclusive community of fellow LGBTQ+ people and allies in which they felt save. And they were very appreciative of that. I'm not doing this part justice at all, but it was such a great and satisfactory note to end this how. So SO good.
- They end the show by dropping the Song Of The Year. Also I want an interview with their dance teacher / choreographer.
We were then waiting outside for over an hour and it was drizzling for a bit so not ideal, but then the nervousness went away. It was so fun to see so many phannies everywhere as I never met one in the wild before.
I really hope this one wasn't just made up because it's too hilarious.