I’m delighted to announce I’ve joined the panel of judges for January’s inaugural Black Country Horror Shorts Film Festival, at the suggestion of fellow judge (and old friend) Adam Nevill. More details soon.
A Dog’s Life
I find myself in the news this week, rather than reporting it, but there’s no pleasure in the spotlight. North Wales Live posted a story this morning regarding the tragic and needless death of my three year-old dog Oscar whilst on holiday near Betys-y-Coed. The driver who hit him did not stop, an act which was both immoral and illegal. There is nothing more worth saying.
Timey Wimey, Bollocksy Wollocksy
If these posters are official, it looks as though current Doctor Who showrunner Chris Chibnall plans to bring John Simm back into the series as The Master, in direct contradiction of his original announcement that no legacy villains would reappear (the BBC allegedly has to use the Daleks every season, or pass the copyright to Terry Nation’s family, hence the New Year’s Day “special”). It’s further rumoured the storyline will involve Brexit, which sounds both desperate and yet more evidence of Chibnall’s creative vacuity. Seriously, why is this useless pillock being allowed anywhere near the world’s longest-running science fiction show?
Update: I am indebted to Doctor Freedom for warning me these signs may be some kind of prank or Brexit-related spoof. Trouble is, after Season 11, how can we discern the real Who from the fake rubbish?
The Funny Pages
Considering I began reading superhero comics in the mid-1960s and writing about them in the mid-1970s, it’s slightly odd that it’s taken until now for me to write a letter to one. Still, here it is, fresh from the pages of The Immortal Hulk #14, with a reply from writer Al Ewing.
The Wrightson Stuff
Just received a preview of the nine-page tribute to the late, legendary artist Bernie Wrightson which is due to appear in next month’s edition of The Dark Side.
Shooting from the Hip Flask [2]
As mentioned previously, I’m planning to resurrect Ghostwords TV as a regular broadcast via Vamporama Films‘ YouTube channel. In addition to my punditry, I intend to have occasional guests from the world of film, music and literature, and only this evening I arranged to film the first of those interviews next week at a recording studio in Stourbridge. Watch this space, as they say.
Shooting from the Hip Flask
Back in February 2016, I hosted the first episode in what was originally planned as a series of Ghostwords TV vidcasts distributed via the Vamporama Films YouTube channel. Technical problems scuppered the second instalment, but plans are afoot to resurrect the project later this month. More news soon.
As I Was Saying…
Rather shockingly, it’s been three months since my last confession my most recent posting here, during which time Monsters premiered at Leicester’s third Grindhouse Planet Film Festival and The Forbidden Lady appeared as an extra on Arrow Video’s release of Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion. Chrissie and I went down to London just before Xmas to meet up with my old friend Norman J Warren (photo below), who’s busy supervising the 2K remastering of his back catalogue, but other than that, neither of us have exactly been caught up in the social whirl. If social media has indeed replaced old-fashioned face-to-face interaction, it’s a rather dull and uninspiring substitute for the energetic pub gatherings and rambling early-hours conversations I used to enjoy so much back in the final quarter of the Twentieth Century.
Forbidden No Longer [2]
Arrow Video will be releasing the new Blu-ray edition of The Forbidden Photos of a Lady Above Suspicion on 14 January 2019. As previously mentioned, the extras include The Forbidden Lady, featuring footage from my 2016 conversation with the movie’s star, Dagmar Lassander.
Voices in the Dark
Surprises are part of the Halloween tradition, but I was still caught off guard on Wednesday evening when the BBC telephoned to invite me about the late night show which is broadcast on BBC Radio WM and seven of its sister channels. Apparently, host Graham Torrington likes to chat with “remarkable people”, and his producer Nicole Pullman bizarrely considered I qualified for that nomenclature.
You can listen to our conversation here (I enter the fray just past the 01:26:30 mark). Appropriately for All Hallow’s Eve, we discussed horror movies, the Birmingham Horror Group and my work at Vamporama Films.
