With 29 months left on the clock to sell out the O2 Arena, Dave gets real about the realities of running a solo media production, The anxiety of upcoming gigs, and how a lesson in pottery is changing his approach to content creation. Plus, The best Festival stories you've never heard, the truth behind JaackMaate and the MGK viral story from a first hand experience plus the day 50 Cent came to Reading and Dave's absolute refusal to tolerate spiders or wasps.

Episode 10 - Two and a half years left to sell out an arena, and it’s time to pivot. This week, Dave announces his slot opening Download Festival with a chaotic new game show, shares the brutal reality of having a TV concept stolen early in his career, and revisits some wild backstage advice from Michael Starr. Expect rants on overpriced festival food, weird Viking weekend security guards, and why staying nice in a cutthroat industry is harder than it looks.

In this episode of The Big Dream, Smiley Dave checks in on his progress toward selling out the O2 Arena. He shares updates on his "May Challenge" to secure podcast sponsors and reflects on a busy week in comedy, from the "Netflix is a Joke" festival to his own experiences performing at Comedy Bingo, where he spent ten minutes reading off the wrong bingo card.

Dave also dives into the world of impressions, discussing his favorites like John Mulaney and Mark Heap, while asking listeners for suggestions on who he should learn next. Between stories of questionable school assemblies involving towel-flicking "ninjas" and the financial hurdles of festivals like the Edinburgh Fringe, Dave teases a massive, "game-changing" announcement coming this Friday that has been 14 years in the making.