Thought you were going to say 'Big in Japan'. Great news Nick and cheered me up after a bloody awful Monday.
Doctor Who, Dalek I Loved You, Dalek, Memoir, Nick Griffiths, Gollancz, Orion, seventies childhood, david bowie, matt smith, radio times, tom baker, david tennant, jon pertwee, patrick troughton, william hartnell, peter davison, colin baker, sylvester mccoy, christopher eccleston, harrison dextrose
Bob the Blog
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(Posted on 2010-03-09 19:35:00 by )
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Big in China
Just signed a rights agreement to allow the Daredevil Book for Cats to be published in China by the (state-owned) Radio & Television Publishing House. Will be in Chinese script. Cool!
(Posted on 2010-03-09 12:40:00 by ) -
Was being silly.
(Posted on 2010-03-09 10:19:00 by ) -
Nope its the one that is also on the cover of this months mag.
(Posted on 2010-03-08 18:55:00 by ) -
National Tour my foot - they're only visiting 5 towns - and none of them are near me!! *sulks*
(Posted on 2010-03-08 17:17:00 by ) -
What? This one?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKGlpdNParM
Would concur!
(Posted on 2010-03-08 15:30:00 by ) -
Anyone else found the new 'eye of the storm' trailer a bit pants? I know it is intended to be viewed in 3d, but it looks a bit crap on terrestrial.
(Posted on 2010-03-08 13:17:00 by ) -
Just received this from the Who PR people:
London, 8 March 2010: It has been announced today that Doctor Who will begin an exciting national tour across the UK in March, introducing the new Doctor to fans of the series in five different locations spanning the length and breadth of the British Isles.
The tour will introduce the Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith, and his Companion, Karen Gillan, to fans of the show and offer them a unique chance to meet the stars. Each location will also host a regional premiere of episode one, The Eleventh Hour, for local children, working alongside BBC Outreach to enable kids to get a first look at the new Doctor in action.
Click on the blue spot for the full PR.
(Posted on 2010-03-08 11:11:00 by ) -
"Facebook wants to be your one true login"
Enjoyed the user comments in this story: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2010/feb/11/facebook-readwriteweb
(Posted on 2010-03-06 17:10:00 by ) -
I may be able to topthe banana idea with Wiki's genuine How To of today. They seem to be currently mining a richly bonkers vein. Ready?
11 Tips for Managing Hayfever as a Buddhist
(Posted on 2010-03-05 09:59:00 by ) -
Hi Nick. Would that be like 'How To Defend Yourself Against Someone Armed With A Banana'? The Pythons would be so pleased if it was...
Totally agree re: James Corden. As a somewhat rotund gentleman myself he does us no favours whatsoever! As for that sketch show he did with his mate - Dear oh dear!
Right then, I'm off down the park after a long day chinning cows to drink meths & Cherry B, scream at passersby & fight my own reflection coz I'm right bastard hard, I am!
(Posted on 2010-03-04 19:18:00 by ) -
I have Wikipedia's How To of the Day on my iGoogle homepage and used to laugh at them and occasionally read them, until I got bored. Until today! I'm not going to click on the link because it may well be genuinely practical. Just savour the title:
How to Keep Car Windows Fog Free Using a Potato
(Posted on 2010-03-04 14:36:00 by ) -
Nice work, Royston (including not knowing who James Corden is). He's in Gaving and Stacey and the gut-wrenchingly unfunny Corden and Horne (whom I have time for) "sketch" "show". Right, I'm off to slap a rabbit.
(Posted on 2010-03-04 12:15:00 by ) -
Nah cooked it after I doused myself in Brut aftershave, idly inking in my 'Death or Glory' tattoo, talking to my mates on the phone about footie and while slapping She Who Must...for not doing the ironing. All man me.
Who is James Corden btw?
(Posted on 2010-03-03 06:18:00 by ) -
http://blogtorwho.blogspot.com/2010/03/james-corden-confirms-who-role.html
Christ, I can't bear James Corden. Oooh look at his tummy! Hear him squeal! Look, he's kissing a man! Tosser.
(Posted on 2010-03-02 21:02:00 by ) -
God, we're all so metrosexual.
(Posted on 2010-03-02 20:59:00 by ) -
The wooden spoon would be handy as I too do the cooking-Sunday lucnh was pan fried pheasant breats, shittake mushrooms in butter, with sweet potato mash.
(Posted on 2010-03-02 13:07:00 by ) -
PS Hi, Mal.
(Posted on 2010-03-01 17:11:00 by ) -
I only rewatched that about a month ago! So how come I didn't remember it? (Rhetorical.)
(Posted on 2010-03-01 17:11:00 by ) -
..."Chocolate covered cotton"...easy.
(Posted on 2010-03-01 14:47:00 by ) -
.....Jeff Bridges....the Big Lebowski.....Dude....
(Posted on 2010-03-01 14:38:00 by ) -
Sorry, forgot your quote, Ade (as explained previously, once I start to input my own text I can't see anything previously written, which is no boon given my memory). Anyway, the Seamus quote... I'm afraid has me stumped. Anyone else?
(Posted on 2010-03-01 10:34:00 by ) -
Ade, most correct (though I must disagree re Control, which I enjoyed very much, however I prefer the funnier 24Hr PP). Royston, for you ze wooden spoon - but do not be downhearted; as the chef in our family, I use a wooden spoon on almost a daily basis, and would not turn my nose up at a new one. So think on.
(Posted on 2010-03-01 10:32:00 by ) -
Withnail?
(Posted on 2010-02-28 19:58:00 by ) -
Would that be '24 Hour Party People'? Very enjoyable but not nearly as good as 'Control' or the actual Joy Division documentary film.
Here's one back:
"I'm a brother Seamus!".
"What? Like an Irish monk?!?".
Over to you...
(Posted on 2010-02-27 23:00:00 by ) -
Just rewatched a very amusing film that contains one of my fave ever exchanges:
"What do you remember about the canals from those days?"
"Very little."
Anyone?
(Posted on 2010-02-27 18:20:00 by ) -
"...and - ahem - that'll be £1,320 please! [snigger]"
(Posted on 2010-02-27 14:49:00 by ) -
I can imagine the joy of the collector pitching up to collect his prized Brontopurchase 'Here you are Sir in five boxes and one envelope as we think we got most of the rest up when we swept the floor.Oh and please observe the 'dont touch it for christssakes' recommendation on the certificate of sale.'
(Posted on 2010-02-26 21:08:00 by ) -
Mrs Dextrose update
Just passed the 30,000-word mark. Plan is to write between 65 and 70K - ideal for a comic novel, I was told by someone who knows. Deadline: mid-April. Lordy, but it's going to be tight.
(Posted on 2010-02-26 09:16:00 by ) -
PS I can tell you have not read Harrison Dextrose. Shame on you!
(Posted on 2010-02-25 11:19:00 by ) -
Ah, Royston, funnily enough I have just been reading about the Bonhams sale and was here to post some links. Here's one: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1253515/Doctor-Who-auction-exterminates-recession-props-sell-thousands.html
I've yet to see the full list of winning bids. hold on.... The Sea Devil went for (to my mind, 'only') £2,040! I'd have killed to own that! And the Pyramids of Mars sarcophagus a more portly £4,800. Ditto, though I imagine Sinead would have had something to say. And wonderful as the object is, that price hardly feels like 'a snip'. Royston, your bronto fetched (to my mind, 'a bonkers') £1,320. Odd given that it looked like it would fall apart if stared at by Paddington.
Here's the full list: http://www.bonhams.com/cgi-bin/public.sh/pubweb/publicSite.r?sContinent=EUR&screen=ResultsXML&iSaleNo=18192
Sob.
(Posted on 2010-02-25 11:17:00 by ) -
Bit cryptic Nick-you found one? Or has your good lady discovered you were the winning bidder for the 20k+ Dalek?
(Posted on 2010-02-25 07:26:00 by ) -
Turd in a box.
(Posted on 2010-02-23 19:00:00 by ) -
PPS I notice the shortlist is drawn up from the author with most nominations - which surely turns it into a Who's the Saddest Facebook/Twitter Self-Publicising Nerd Compo, when surely it should be purely about blog content? But there you go, them's the rules, so the more the merrier nomination-wise, if you wouldn't mind... (I'll post reminders nearer the opening date.)
(Posted on 2010-02-22 14:47:00 by ) -
PS Would anyone care to nominate Bob the Blog for the below, once nominations open on 8 March? I wouldn't remotely expect to come anywhere, but it's all exposure, which cannot hurt. http://www.completelynovel.com/win-free-books/author-blog-awards
(Posted on 2010-02-22 14:44:00 by ) -
I well remember Mike Flowers Pops, as I was into the similar-ish, far better My Life Story(equally kitsch, not reliant upon covers) at the time, though would have loved to hear his Ashes. Equally do I recall England v Spain in Euro 96, as I was at Wembley to watch the game, and felt sorry for the Spanish who were robbed by the ref - however not sorry enough that I did not remain in the stadium for ages after the game, Waddle/Hoddle-dancing to Three Lions over the PA, in delirius celebration. Great days.
(Posted on 2010-02-22 14:42:00 by ) -
Haven't heard the Midge Ure version of 'The Man Who Sold The World'. Must check it out. I still swear by the Nirvana Unplugged version.
I once saw The Mike Flowers Pops (remember them?) do a version of 'Ashes to Ashes' live on stage at Madness's Madstock 96 all-dayer at Finsbury Park. Very funny but done with a lot of affection for the original. A top day was had by all that day as Squeeze were the main support act & in between bands, the P.A. was turned into a giant radio live from Wembley where England beat Spain on penalties in Euro 96. Brings a warm, rosy glow on a cold day when thinking about this...
P.s. Those Dalek gimp suits are just plain wrong on so many levels!
(Posted on 2010-02-22 12:41:00 by ) -
Oh Sweet Jesus
This is even funnier! http://www.adultshalloweencostumes.com/adult-fancy-dress-costumes/male-adult-costumes/adult-official-brown-dalek-costume.html
Have added to the "Black Dalek" page.
(Posted on 2010-02-22 12:16:00 by ) -
I have Santa Monica on LP from eons ago, and play it a lot. But I think my fave Bowie live album - controversy ahoy - is Live itself. Sadly am not enough of a Gabriel fan (actually am not a fan at all) to buy his album for Heroes, but I'll try to source it on Spotify. (PS have you heard Midge Ure's cover of MWSTW? Really good. If you have Spotify also check out Tubalcain's Andy Warhol from the wonderful Goth Oddity: A Tribute to David Bowie... by a series of goths.)
(Posted on 2010-02-22 12:16:00 by ) -
Bloody hell! That costume is worthy of a whole episode of 'Trisha'... but let's not get into that again!
I have got 'Bowie at the Beeb' - the live disc is fantastic. As is 'Live at Santa Monica 72'. Alright, the sound is a bit patchy on occasion & they do make the odd cock-up but sometimes that's what good gigs are made of.
Have you heard Peter Gabriel's version of 'Heroes' off his new 'Scratch My Back' offering? I quite like it & it'll be interesting to see what Gabriel song Bowie does for the 'And I'll Scratch Yours' companion album later in the year.
(Posted on 2010-02-22 12:03:00 by ) -
Jesus
I do know how to spell supposed. Dep si.
(Posted on 2010-02-22 12:00:00 by ) -
This might just be the funniest thing I have ever seen: http://www.adultshalloweencostumes.com/adult-official-black-dalek-costume.html
Have added image to a page (linked from thumb) so we need never not look at it again.
(Posted on 2010-02-22 11:52:00 by ) -
Michele, I couldn't agree more. And Ade, thanks for the tip re Reality Tour, which I've considered... and considered... and not bought yet. Now I will. (His VH1 Storytellers is supossed to be well worth a punt, too, on similar lines... and I haven't bought that yet, either.) I would have to disagree re the Decca album, though. That was one of my first Bowie albums, and though some of it is pure tosh, I love London Boys, Silly Boy Blue, Let Me Sleep Beside You and especially karma Man. I still love Karma Man. PS Do you have the Bowie at the Beeb double? A MUST for every Bowiephile.
(Posted on 2010-02-22 11:49:00 by ) -
Just like to say 'Congratulations' to both Carey Mulligan & Duncan Jones on their BAFTA awards last night. Not seen Ms. Mulligan's film but if her performance in 'Blink' is anything to go by it must be well worth a look. Duncan Jones's 'Moon' is one of the best debut films I've seen in a while.
Speaking of which... his dad's 'A Reality Tour' 2cd live album is one to invest in. A decent blend of old, new & obscure. The re-worked version of 'Loving the Alien' is a real highlight. I also recently got the remastereed version of Bowie's debut Decca album (the one he doesn't like talking about!). 'Charmingly naive' is probably the best way to sum it up!
(Posted on 2010-02-22 11:42:00 by ) -
Yes, saw it at the weekend after it aired. I thought "trailer" was a misnomer - it's a flashy (and rather cheesy) cinema advert. A trailer usually has actual footage from the show being trailed. Still, if it gets people excited, and wanting to watch, who cares?
(Posted on 2010-02-22 06:28:00 by ) -
Everyone seen this? http://blogtorwho.blogspot.com/2010/02/new-series-trailer.html
(Posted on 2010-02-21 16:02:00 by ) -
Homemade Who artefacts? Hmm. Or perhaps saddest/duffest piece of memorabilia? (Admittedly Dextrose-character compo had slipped mind, as am rather stuck in writing the bugger. Over the 25,000-word mark, fact fans. Will give that some thought. until which, any more entries to the Who-tat Compo? I reckon my framed set of nine TB tiles, which weigh a sodding ton, are pretty duff... yet also great. I'll take a pic and add later.)
(Posted on 2010-02-21 13:15:00 by ) -
Jesus, Roy! That's uncanny! Particularly the bit about the wall of DVD's. When I said jim-jams, I was being polite but seeing as this is turning into some sort of encounter group, I'll confess it was actually boxer shorts & an England rugby top... form an orderly queue, ladies!
The only real Who collectible I've got is something unofficial & personal to me. A plastic Tardis drinks mat made as a surprise gift by my daughter. Altogether now... AAHH! Perhaps a new competition for you, Nick? Who has the best home-made Who artefact? Could this secure me a cameo in the next Harrison Dextrose adventure...?
(Posted on 2010-02-20 19:32:00 by ) -
You been spying on me? Not sure which is more sinister, being spied upon or that carer reaching across to change the channels. Brrr.
(Posted on 2010-02-20 11:37:00 by ) -
But were you watching it in Dr Who themed jim jams, facing a wall full of Dr Who dvds, idely toying with your Tardis watch? Did you-at any point-yearn for one or two of the aforementioned Dalek collectibles?
Did a carer reach across you and turn the channel at any point?
If none of the above are applicable it was a fleeting and easily forgotten aberation. If not....
(Posted on 2010-02-19 16:23:00 by ) -
You may have a point there, Nick! I do remember thinking to myself when watching aforementioned show "Ha! Look at that sad bastard with all those Daleks!". However, the warm glow of smug superiority was short-lived when I thought "Hang on, sunshine. You're the one sat on his own in his jim-jams watching this!". After having a word with myself, I've come to terms with this lapse & would now like to move on...
(Posted on 2010-02-18 19:17:00 by ) -
Haha. How brilliantly unnecessary. (Admittedly not sure which the worse: Ade watching Trisha or the Daleks bloke.)
(Posted on 2010-02-18 13:48:00 by ) -
Now then, I am about to ask you all a somewhat embarassing question so please don't judge me too harshly! Did anyone watch 'Trisha' today? There was a chap on who had amassed a collection of 280 Daleks & his wife had had enough - 'It's me or the Daleks'! Brilliant! A cautionary tale to us all, I fear.
(Posted on 2010-02-18 11:47:00 by ) -
Mentioned this Mary Tamm pic in DILY, but couldn't find it at the time to chuck here in pic gallery. Just came across it in a drawer the Beegster was rifling through. Hit the thumbnail, right, for full version...
PS Any more for the Fawlty quiz?
(Posted on 2010-02-17 19:01:00 by ) -
Drat 14.
(Posted on 2010-02-17 17:58:00 by ) -
http://www.fawltysite.net/fawlty-towers-quiz.htm
I got - cough - 15.
(Posted on 2010-02-17 15:38:00 by ) -
Well the Hartnellathon has mutated into a cult t.v. fest. So far the Aztecs, followed by the Avengers 'The Living Dead' which made very little sense but had Julian Glover in a main role, an episode of Sir Lancelot with the late great Ballard Berkeley, and then episode one of the Buccaneers with Robert Shaw.
(Posted on 2010-02-17 14:12:00 by ) -
I've gone Baker T recently. Invasion of Time was very poor, with Baker talking to the camera three times - odd - and some very lame jokes, when I'd always imagined Tom to be hilarious. Then I watched Image of the Fendahl, which despite some faults (mainly the Fendahl monsters, though the Wanda Ventham make-up job ws fab), was great gothic horror. As for Billy H, I did watch Dalek Invasion recently, which did drag, but there's always something about 60s b/w sci-fi. His others I watched on VHS eons ago, so memory hazy, though I recall enjoying The Rescue and - again despite some hilariously iffy monsters (or perhaps because of them) - The Web Planet.
Anyone else with ideas?
(Posted on 2010-02-16 12:31:00 by ) -
Well She Who Must etc is out for the day Weds, so I am going for a Hartnellathon possibly The Aztecs to start, Dalek Invasion, Time Meddler and one other. Any suggestions welcome.
(Posted on 2010-02-15 16:50:00 by ) -
New pics posted
I've added Dave Edwards' excellent pics of Blink's Fields House, inside and out, on page 19a of the Who Goes There site. Hit Go to site under the WGT button...
(Posted on 2010-02-15 14:26:00 by ) -
Sad Day
Though the publisher failed to notify me, it seems that Dalek I Loved You has gone out of print (though is still available on ebook, which is surely a great excuse for publishers to avoid reprinting). No doubt there are still a few floating around - though Amazon for one has sold out - so grab a physical copy now, if you haven't already done so.
Right, back to Mrs Dextrose...
(Posted on 2010-02-15 14:06:00 by ) -
No pupils?!?! How will you see to enjoy this sudden freedom etc?
(Posted on 2010-02-15 14:04:00 by ) -
Yahoo Sunday pm before half term hol (-: no 4.15 am get up tom, no 160 mile drive, no pupils.
(((-:
(Posted on 2010-02-14 19:58:00 by ) -
*s'plutter's and drop's monocle into brandy* Jus't what exactly do they teach you journalis't fellow's at Cambridge nowaday's. Flogging's too good for you.
(Posted on 2010-02-11 09:06:00 by ) -
hey with all this talk of prehistoric monster etc praps i ought to auction my "Blink" wallpaper samples that i aquired recently...not from b&q i might add.dave
(Posted on 2010-02-10 15:50:00 by ) -
And I missed commenting on film reviews - this is the trouble when you rush things.
(Posted on 2010-02-10 15:14:00 by ) -
Agh! I put an apostrophe in it's! The ultimate sin. I hate myself and I want to die (but happily am too cowardly to kill myself, being petrified even of paper cuts).
(Posted on 2010-02-10 15:13:00 by ) -
I've just had a great idea to add traffic to my site. (Bear with me.) Yahoo lists it's current Top 10 searches. So I figure if I mention each on in my blog, all these morons will visit. Brilliant. I'll just append each search term with a little customisation, keep it interesting. Right...
Valentine gifts - are shit
Kate Moss - is thin
Portsmouth FC - are dead
Childcare fees - er yes
Alexandra Burke - what ever
Tom Cruise - brief twat
Vernon Kay - tiny brain
Extreme sports - stupid
Best credit cards - still shit
Film reviews
(Posted on 2010-02-10 15:11:00 by ) -
...and job lot of foam from one of those weird shops that looks like it's shut, which sells just foam, and if you peer through the letterbox there's a funny smell and flies and the owner's dead in there, in a nasty foam chair.
(Posted on 2010-02-10 15:07:00 by ) -
sigh *cancels order for Humbrol glue and aifix paint number 112 (blue-grey)*
(Posted on 2010-02-09 12:33:00 by ) -
Hold on, I've just had a look myself and 'brokenish-looking' does not cover it. 'Completely fucked' might be nearer the mark. That is a deceased Brontosaurus, its legs have rotted and its mouth is falling off. You could not even nail that to its perch. Though it pains me to say so, I wouldn't touch that with a bargepole. (Or it'd fall apart. Boom boom.)
(Posted on 2010-02-09 11:20:00 by ) -
Yeah, 'brokenish-looking' is not a plus on the 'resale value' front (and of course it's all about investment, not nerdy collecting).
(Posted on 2010-02-09 11:09:00 by ) -
Lol-it looks a bit careworn, but I guess 30 odd years later it probably would be. Bit worried about the brokenish looking legs though.
(Posted on 2010-02-08 16:40:00 by ) -
PS Was going to mention, before I got too excited about a lizard, that Who locations hound, Dave Edwards, has been in touch and has sent some fabulous pics of the interior of Fields House (from Blink), complete with Who graffitti. I shall be adding to the WGT site when time permits (prob Weds). Chin chin
(Posted on 2010-02-08 11:31:00 by ) -
THAT IS SO COOL! God, I would kill for the Brontosaurus. (And the Sea Devil, Sutekh etc.) Dear She Who Controls the Finances - you MUST let Royston buy the lizard. You might think you know best, that Royston is delusional, but trust me - in this
single, isolated instance, you are wrong.
(Posted on 2010-02-08 11:29:00 by ) -
This is totally beyond sad but-I'm currently persuading She Who Controls All Financial Endeavours that bidding for the 'Invasion' brontosaurus would be a good thing and excellent investment and living room conversation piece. The current sticking point is it being 2m long.
(Posted on 2010-02-07 18:43:00 by ) -
Blimey
I haven't been keeping tabs on the number of visitors to the WGT site, but I just spotted the figure while doing some admin. 25,326! As it says above, Blimey.
(Posted on 2010-02-07 15:05:00 by ) -
I go on and off Q like a lady doing step aerobics, but this month's is a decent issue and I had to relate this Q&A snippet from Kasabian's Serge Pizzorno's:
Q: Are you famous enough to have a stalker?
SP: We live in Leicester and any stalker is soon going to think twice when they see what's involved travel-wise.
(Posted on 2010-02-06 13:57:00 by ) -
Ah yes. I should have guessed before I even hit return. Imagine owning the fucker! Having paid for it! And someone will. Someone will. (Royston?)
(Posted on 2010-02-06 11:01:00 by ) -
I'd have thought that you'd go fo this one Nick... http://www.bonhams.com/cgi-bin/public.sh/pubweb/publicSite.r?sContinent=EUR&screen=LotDetails&iSaleItemNo=4510974&iSaleNo=18192&iSaleSectionNo=1&sServer=http://images1.bonhams.com/&sPath=2010-01/11/7975347-17-1.jpg#
(Posted on 2010-02-05 20:49:00 by ) -
Mrs Dextrose Update!
Over the 20,000-words mark. Quite shocked. Going amazingly well. Am practically enjoying self! Follow my progress here: www.twitter.com/mrsdetrose
(Posted on 2010-02-04 13:44:00 by ) -
PS
Best of luck to freshly Oscar-nominated Carey Mulligan. Sadly suggests we might not be seeing her reprising her Who role for some time to come.
(Posted on 2010-02-03 10:10:00 by ) -
AUGH!
Want this one: http://www.bonhams.com/cgi-bin/public.sh/pubweb/publicSite.r?sContinent=EUR&screen=LotDetails&iSaleItemNo=4499013&iSaleNo=18192&iSaleSectionNo=1&sServer=http://images1.bonhams.com/&sPath=2010-01/11/7975347-17-1.jpg
Come onm if you could have any one item, which would it be. Just paste the link.
(Posted on 2010-02-03 09:37:00 by ) -
WOW!
Just chanced upon the biggest auction of Who props in quite some time. Get past the Mickey costumes and you're into some serious Cybermen, Daleks, a vervoid(!), Sea Devil, even a Brontosaurus from Invasion of the Dinosaurs. Naturally, I can afford none of it, and thus my heart bleeds.
http://www.bonhams.com/cgi-bin/public.sh/pubweb/publicSite.r?sContinent=EUR&screen=Catalogue&iSaleNo=18192
(Posted on 2010-02-03 09:33:00 by ) -
Brilliant
Now someone tells me they saw a fucking BNP ad on my site! I AM NOT NICK GRIFFIN! Gonna have to call a halt to that crap idea while I sort out the details.
(Posted on 2010-02-03 08:56:00 by ) -
Clearly Google Adsense is creepily sneaky, as the moment I typed that lost Bob, all the ads changed to Who-related. Beaten by AI. Brrrrrrrrrrrrr.
(Posted on 2010-02-02 18:52:00 by ) -
Yuck!
I've added Google Adsense, since it costs nowt, however it looks awful. May have to reconsider. At least it's well targeted. Football tips, driving lessons and an alternative to flashing. Please do click on something mindlessly, however, as I get some tiddly sum if you do so. Thank you.
(Posted on 2010-02-02 18:50:00 by ) -
I can see the character now-a mad drunk who spends all day sitting in the pub muttering communication only in one line jokes about cats. Or a Big Issue seller who rewards his customers with a joke-curiously about cats letters to Santa.
(Posted on 2010-02-02 08:04:00 by ) -
Royston - nice work, you are a genius.
(Posted on 2010-02-01 10:13:00 by ) -
Couldn't a character in your new Dextrose book quote extensively from the Cat's Letters to Santa draft?
(Posted on 2010-01-31 12:58:00 by ) -
No. I'm still alive.
Famous people?
Robert Plant - twice - once at The Cropredy Festival browsing the merchandise at a 'hippy clothes' stall, the other time at a Peter Gabriel gig at the NIA in Birmingham. Nice bloke - just another punter at both places.
Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson of Rush backstage at Birmingham NEC. Very polite. Geddy was a tad smaller than I imagined. But still awesome nonetheless.
(Posted on 2010-01-30 21:58:00 by ) -
A fair point well made.
(Posted on 2010-01-30 13:07:00 by ) -
I once met Peter Hook, bass viking extraordinaire of Joy Division/New Order fame, when he played at Huddersfield Uni (my old alma mater!) with his first solo band, Revenge. They were rotten but 'Hooky' was very friendly & approachable in a bluff Salfordian sort of way when I asked for his autograph after. I then had to ruin everything by drunkenly slurring "Cheers, Hooky. It was your bass-lines that got me through 6th Form". He smiled & said thankyou. I then left him alone. I am wincing now as I type this...
I was also called a 'damn disgrace' by Andy Kershaw, former late-night Radio 1 dj & erstwhile supporter of obscure music, due to the train I was working having failed at Crewe. It was the usual scene of chaos with no-one really knowing what was going on, least of all me, so he might have had a point! Interestingly, this is the same Andy Kershaw who was imprisoned for stalking his estranged wife - Who's the damn disgrace now, hmm?
(Posted on 2010-01-30 02:57:00 by ) -
Quick interlude
Sad to report that Cat Letters to Santa will not be seeing the light of day. Differences-in-sense-of-humour issues. Speaking of cats, I woke up to find ours had puked all over my desk.
Right, back to celeb encounters...
(Posted on 2010-01-29 16:16:00 by ) -
Contributions! Thank you, M & R - both made me chuckle. Let me think of one to add... Erm. I got off a train next to Mo Mowlam once. Nah. I went through a brief folk music phase in the early 90s and was the only person to ask the Oyster Band to sign my album after a performance at the HMV in Oxford Street. As one of them signed he dribbled on my LP cover. I had to wipe it off with a sleeve as he didn't seem to notice. Hnnnn. Oooh, and Wendy James of Transvision Vamp - remember them? Neither does anyone else - called me "babe" during an interview. I think it was a ploy to get people to write nice things about her (she once claimed she'd win an Oscar, hilariously). (It worked. Cough.)
Keep em coming...
(Posted on 2010-01-29 14:30:00 by ) -
erm..haven't really met anyone famous (John Humphreys apart-and as he doesn't actually engage with the contestants he cant really count. William G Stewart was a thoroughly nice bloke though). I did get Ian Gillan's autograph when he was on Pop Quiz and I was in the audience though. I asked him why he had just joined Black Sabbath and he said it was because they were steaming. Like a turd as things turned out.
(Posted on 2010-01-29 12:47:00 by ) -
20 years ago I turned up at Oxford train station to catch a train to Gloucestershire, and noticed a film crew. I sat down next to an older man who was watching the filming and politely asked him what it was that was being filmed. He told me it was 'Inspector Morse', and I waxed enthusiastic about how much I loved the show, and the books as well. Eventually I ran out of words and he smiled and said "You don't know who I am, do you?" I agreed I didn't, and he introduced himself as Colin Dexter. I flushed bright red and bolted after mumbling something incoherent. 20 years later I wish I hadn't panicked in my utter embarrassment at fangirling him unknowingly. I've met him on a couple of occasions since the at Oxford Literary Festival talks and he has never recognised me. Which is actually a relief because now I'm embarrassed at having run away so rudely.
(Posted on 2010-01-29 12:35:00 by ) -
Has everyone died?
OK, following the theme, how about some tales of meeting heroes (or just barely famous gits)? Even a spot in the street will do. Who's first?
(Posted on 2010-01-29 11:35:00 by ) -
Update on the TB facebook encounter, and I so know how he feels:
Adam Macqueen Despite the fact that he is one of the very very few people I would actually like to have the autograph of/my photo taken with, I was utterly unable to speak to him. I just kept thinking "I used to pretend to be you in the playground!"
(Posted on 2010-01-28 15:47:00 by )
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Why, thank you, Royston. I hope your Wednesday is proving far lovelier.