Wossname -- August 2016 -- Main issue
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wossnameWossname
Newsletter of the Klatchian Foreign Legion
August 2016 (Volume 19, Issue 8, Post 1)
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WOSSNAME is a free publication offering news, reviews, and all the other stuff-that-fits pertaining to the works of Sir Terry Pratchett. Originally founded by the late, great Joe Schaumburger for members of the worldwide Klatchian Foreign Legion and its affiliates, including the North American Discworld Society and other continental groups, Wossname is now for Discworld and Pratchett fans everywhere in Roundworld.
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Editor in Chief: Annie Mac
News Editor: Vera P
Newshounds: Mogg, Sir J of Croydon Below, the Shadow, Mss C, Alison not Aliss
Staff Writers: Asti, Pitt the Elder, Evil Steven Dread, Mrs Wynn-Jones
Staff Technomancers: Jason Parlevliet, Archchancellor Neil, DJ Helpful
Book Reviews: Annie Mac, Drusilla D'Afanguin, Your Name Here
Puzzle Editor: Tiff (still out there somewhere)
Bard in Residence: Weird Alice Lancrevic
Emergency Staff: Steven D'Aprano, Jason Parlevliet
World Membership Director: Steven D'Aprano (in his copious spare time)
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INDEX:
01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
02) EDITOR'S LETTER
03) ODDS AND SODS
04) DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS
05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS
07) DISCWORLD ARTS AND CRAFTS NEWS
08) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
09) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
10) CLOSE
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01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
"Rob [Wilkins] ... created the first version of this site in the 1990s, writing all the code and designing it from scratch. Where would I have been without his remarkable (but little-known) computing and programing genius?"
– Colin Smythe, on his new Colin Smythe Ltd publishing website
"Often adolescent in humour, yes, and not exactly Joycean in style, Pratchett's work fizzes with originality and razor sharp allegory, taking aim at the ludicrous hypocrisies and conventions that we all somehow contrive to take seriously."
– Michael Honig, in Publishers Weekly
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02) LETTER FROM YOUR EDITOR
Yes, the August issue was held back until September, but there waas a good reason – see section 4.1 below for an exclusive report on Discworld Convention 2016!
Now that Paul Kidby's amazing Discworld Colouring Book has been published – at least in some parts of Roundworld – publishers Gollancz are running a special contest for Discworld fans in the UK and Ireland (see item 3.1 below). For the rest of us outside that catchment area, here's a photo of Mr Kidby's progress in colouring in the prize:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CqsYxKxW8AAhlzq.jpg
Gollancz has also just published The Last Hero as an ebook, if that sort of thing takes your fancy. I have to admit that while the story of TLH stands on its own merits, it seems a shame to separate it from Paul Kidby's exquisite ilustrations, but there you go...
Right, on with the show!
– Annie Mac, Editor
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03) ODDS AND SODS
3.0 NEW COLIN SMYTHE WEBSITE!
All Discworld conventiongoers, and a vast number of other Discworld fans, know well the name of Colin Smythe, "the man who discovered Terry Pratchett", who published his early novels, and who then served as his literary agent for the rest of The Author's days. But not everyone may realise that Colin Smythe is a world-respected publisher of fifty years' standing who, through the company Colin Smythe Ltd, offers some of the best and rarest of Irish literature, a fascinating selection of literary criticism, theatre history, biographies, and yes, even science fiction and fantasy works *not* by Terry Pratchett! And now the Colin Smythe Ltd internet presence is beautifully catalogued and up-to-date, all shiny and in good working order.
For the Pratchett-and-Discworld fan, there's a comprehensive set of infopages covering the entire oeuvre of Terry Pratchett – hundreds of individual pages, painstakingly compiled, and including all the Discworld novels in all their forms (books, audiobooks, graphic novels, films, radio and stage plays, etc.) and Discworld auxiliaries, both by Sir Terry himself (Where's My Cow?, The World of Poo, Mrs Bradshaw's Handbook) and collaborative works such as Good Omens, The Unadulterated Cat, the Long Earth series, the Discworld Companions, Folklore of Discworld, Mapps, Almanaks, Diaries, Calendars, Nanny Ogg's Cookbook and so on... the non-Discworld novels, short story collections and nonfiction collections... a compendium of works *about* the works of Terry Pratchett (articles, interviews, analyses – 45 years' worth so far!) and assorted articles and other contributions *by* him... the chronology and extensive biographical information for the life and times of Terence David John Pratchett, from earliest days to a collection of farewells and memorials, and so much more – including international fan convention literature (with links!). Even Wossname gets a mention!
A few of the many fascinating Pratchett-y things you'll learn by wandering around the site:
* Josh Kirby's secret name
* The true story of that German soup advert
* The lowdown on of sex and death (all right, sex of Death)
* Young Terry Pratchett's definition of autocracy
* What Discworld publication was a nonfiction bestseller
* What Discworld novel was originally titled Interesting Times
Furthermore, any fans of *other* great writers such as Yeats, Joyce, Shaw, Synge and Wilde will find invaluable resources in Colin Smythe Ltd's catalogue.
A wonderful, useful website. Do have a look!
http://colinsmythe.co.uk/
3.1 THE DISCWORLD COLOURING BOOK COLOURING-IN CONTEST!
For UK and Ireland Discworld fans: how are you at colouring inside the lines? Gollancz, publishers of the gorgeous new Discworld Colouring Book, offer you a challenge:
"Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book Competition!
"To celebrate publication, we're offering one lucky reader the chance to win a page from the book, hand-coloured by Paul Kidby himself! We've made a page available on the Gollancz website as a PDF, so no purchase is necessary. Just download the page and colour it in, then post a photo of your coloured page to social media, tagging @Gollancz on Twitter or Instagram, or GollanczPublishing on Facebook, with the hashtag #Octarine, and Paul Kidby will choose his favourite piece. The winner will receive the competition page, hand-coloured by Paul Kidby, as well as a signed copy of Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book. Five runners-up will each receive a copy of Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book.
"The closing date is midnight on 12th September 2016, and the winner will be announced during Gollanczfest (_http://www.gollanczfest.com/_) on Twitter (_https://twitter.com/gollancz_), Instagram (_https://www.instagram.com/gollancz/_), Facebook (_https://www.facebook.com/gollanczpublishing_) and the Gollancz blog (_http://www.gollancz.co.uk/_). The competition is open to residents of the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Please see http://www.orionbooks.co.uk/Information/Terms%20and%20Conditions.page for Terms and Conditions."
Click here to download the PDF: http://www.gollancz.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Discworld-Colouring-Page-2.pdf
http://www.gollancz.co.uk/2016/08/terry-pratchetts-discworld-colouring-book-competition/
http://www.paulkidby.com/
...and here be an early review of the Discworld Colouring Book, on The Bookbag:
"In Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book Kidby has produced a selection of some of his favourite characters all redrafted as line art. I liked this approach: there's nothing worse than trying to reproduce an original picture which you love – and failing. Here you get original pictures to complete, including many of your favourite characters: Granny Weatherwax, Sam Vimes, Archchancellor Ridcully, Rincewind, Tiffany Aching and Death. There are some colour prints at the end of the book, which I wasn't expecting. Fortunately I didn't spot them until I'd had a go, so I wasn't discouraged. You get some great quotes too... As well as the full-page and double-page spreads there are smaller projects: I idly coloured in a banana whilst listening to a disembodied voice tell me that my phone call was important to them. The paper is of better quality than I suspected at first glance – a black felt-tip pen didn't show through on the reverse no matter how hard I tried. I preferred the effect of using crayons – the result was more subtle, but give your creativity free rein and see what happens. I've got just the one quibble about the book and that rests with the double-page spreads where the picture is trapped in the spine of the book and it's impossible to colour proficiently without taking the book to pieces. It was fun trying though..."
http://bit.ly/2chxhCp
3.2 THE ARTIST KNOWN AS KIDBY!
In The Guardian, an interview/article by Alison Flood about Paul Kidby:
"Kidby first discovered Discworld in 1993, when he was given a copy of The Colour of Magic for his 29th birthday, and was immediately taken with Pratchett's writing. After drawing a range of Pratchett's characters for fun, he took a bundle of them along to a book signing in a WH Smith's in Bath, and handed them over to Pratchett. 'I queued for three hours – he was so popular and I'd had no idea about it,' says Kidby. 'When I got to Terry, I gave him some photocopies of the drawings I'd done in an envelope, and thought "that's it". He didn't need another illustrator; he had Josh Kirby, and he'd made it, he was successful. So I resigned myself to the fact that he wouldn't get in touch.' But a few weeks later, Pratchett rang him. 'He phoned up and said "this is the closest anyone's got to how I see the characters". And that was it – the beginning. It's a fantastic endorsement when an author says that ... For me, creatively, to do my interpretation of a writer's character was pretty much top of the tree.'... Kidby was a freelance illustrator, painting popular video game characters like Sonic the Hedgehog for magazine covers. He'd always known he wanted to be an artist – as a teenager, he applied to art colleges and was offered a place in Hounslow, but ended up declining it as it was too far from where he lived. But his parents were friends with a retired art teacher and “I knocked on her door with my drawings and she very kindly looked through what I'd done, and took me under her wing”. On the side, Kidby started making false teeth during the day to bring in some money. 'At the time it was the most creative job I could get, as I was still working with my hands. I was 17,' he says. 'Looking back over my career path, I was always trying to do something more creative. False teeth were the beginning.'..."
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/aug/18/terry-pratchett-artist-illustrating-discworld-colouring-book
3.3 NEW STEPHEN BRIGGS WEBSITE!
Well, page-onna-website. Another new shiny thing in the world of published Pratchettry:
"As all children know, the way you get into a fantasy world is by accident... You go into the wardrobe, looking for somewhere to hide and – bingo. And that's how Stephen Briggs found Discworld. In 1990, he wrote to ask Terry if he could stage Wyrd Sisters. That was the first time anyone, anywhere in the world, had dramatised Terry's work. He had no idea it would go any further than one play (possibly two). But it did. So far, he has now adapted, staged and published twenty-two plays. He and Terry also worked together to produce the original Discworld Maps and Diaries, Nanny Ogg's Cookbook, The Discworld Companion (now called Turtle Recall) and The Wit & Wisdom of Discworld."
https://www.oberonbooks.com/stephen-briggs.html
3.4 LONG COSMOS REVIEW!
by Glen Seeber on News OK:
"In the five books, Pratchett and Baxter explored the ramifications from all sorts of angles, touching on governmental control versus individual freedom, strife between those who can step and those who are unable to do so, development of children whose mental capacity far outshines that of normal humanity, and treatment of beings common to the parallel worlds who did not develop on the home planet. In 'The Long Cosmos,' inhabitants of all of the worlds, including apelike creatures called trolls, living islands known as Traversers and, of course, humans, get a message from space saying, essentially, 'Join us.' The narrative jumps from one character to another, carrying the reader slowly toward a climax when most of the characters come together at last and find out just what is meant by the message... While 'The Long Cosmos' is an entertaining and satisfying conclusion to the five-novel series, first-time readers would be well advised to start with the first book, 'The Long Earth,' and follow the story in order of publication. Things will make more sense..."
http://newsok.com/article/5511712
3.5 THE WITCH'S VACUUM CLEANER REVIEW!
By Juliette Harrisson on Den of Geek:
"The stories were edited and prepared by Pratchett shortly before his death, and the book includes an introduction from him that must be one of the last things he wrote. Like the first volume, this book is illustrated throughout by Mark Beech, whose style is clearly influenced by Quentin Blake's work, especially his work on Roald Dahl's books – it work very well here, immediately signalling the tone and style of the stories to the reader. His portrait of a waving Pratchett for the Introduction is particularly nice, and his interpretation of a small man in a big black hat is also, touchingly, distinctly Terry-like... Juvenilia by famous authors can vary a bit in quality, but one of the nice things about these stories is that they were written by a young man, for even younger people (and edited by the older Sir Terry as well). Most of the stories are relatively timeless or are clearly set in the past, so young readers will be able to enjoy them easily – one story, for example, makes a brief reference to this being 'the twenty-first century', despite the distinct absence of mobile phones or laptops... Regardless of the age of the author or intended audience, these stories are as funny, magical and whimsical as any of Pratchett's work. There are a few stories set in the mysterious town of Blackbury, and several in the Wild Welsh town of Llandanffwnfafegettupagogo, home of the fastest truncheon in the West and a delightful addition to the little-known 'amusing takes on Wales' subgenre (also including the works of Jasper Fforde and Malcolm Pryce). There are truly enchanting tales of dancing statues and visits to magical places in another realm of existence and several delicate touches of romance, not enough to put off young readers but enough to warm the hearts of older ones..."
http://bit.ly/2bS944Q
3.6 WHAT'S IN A NAME, ER, WORD...
From the BBC's news site:
"'Moist' is the early front-runner in a search to find the most-hated word in the English language. The distasteful adjective – a favourite of Great British Bake Off presenting duo Mel and Sue – has topped polls in the UK, US and Canada, according to those behind the global survey. 'Moist' – dubbed by comedian Miranda Hart the 'queen of all words' – also leads the way in the US, Canada and Australia, also coming second in the poll of Dutch opinion... Dan Braddock, from Oxford University Press, said this was the first time Oxford Dictionaries – which focuses on current English usage – had tried such an experiment and 'we're not entirely sure what to expect yet... We thought for a long time about the question to open with, but we decided to go down the negative route,' he said..."
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-37183043
3.7 WHY FILMING THE WEE FREE MEN IS A GOOD CHOICE
Some good musings on the forthcoming film of The Wee Free Men, by Tom Bacon on Moviepilot::
"The Jim Henson Company – most famous for Farscape, Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal – is bringing one Discworld novel, Wee Free Men, to the big screen. Rhianna Pratchett, an award-winning scriptwriter in her own right, is adapting the novel for the feature film. But why have the team chosen Wee Free Men? 1. A 'Young Adult' Vibe with a Tremendous Star... The star of Wee Free Men is the brilliant character of Tiffany Aching, a 9-year-old girl who is drawn into a fantasy realm of danger. Brought up as a shepherd in the hills of a region known as the Chalk, Tiffany Aching is the unwitting inheritor of her grandmother's witchcraft. She soon winds up forced to take a stand, becoming a trainee witch and battling against the elves of Fairyland! Tiffany is a formidable character, much-loved and with tremendous depth... 2. A Perfect Introduction to Discworld... 3. A Creative Fantasy Story...
"Wee Free Men has all the staples of fairytale mythology – from witchcraft to elves – but all are subverted, in that classic Pratchett style. Tiffany winds up on an epic quest into Fairyland, but Pratchett's Fairyland is a barren and dangerous place, one that would translate easily into a haunting location on the big screen. It's the beginning of a classic Hero's Journey, one that was only truly completed in The Shepherd's Crown, and it has all the mythic quality you'd expect of a classic..."
http://moviepilot.com/posts/4068544
3.8 THE LUGGAGE, ROUNDWORLD STYLE!
On M2, Isaac Taylor tells us of a digital-era travel accessory with some familiar characteristics:
"Ever since we read Terry Pratchett for the first time we dreamed of a suitcase that could follow us everywhere. While planet earth may not have any sapient pearwood to build magical chests out of, we do have a butt ton of robotics that can help make our dreams come true. Enter the Cowarobot R1, a travel companion that follows you on your journey. It can intelligently avoid obstacles and always dutifully keep up with it's human. This means your hands are free to deal with other things like passports, wallets, coffee, or whatever you normally use your hands for. At full charge it can go for 20km, and if it falls behind you, it quickly catches up with a max speed of 7.2km/h. It's fixed with a depth sensor as well as sonar technology to get around. An R1 bracelet on your wrist is what it uses to track you. And If you've left it somewhere you can double tap the screen and it quickly finds a path and navigates to wherever you are..."
http://www.m2now.co.nz/1-robotic-suitcase-follows-everywhere-go/
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04) DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS
DWCON 2016 NEWS
4.1 AN EXCLUSIVE WOSSNAME REPORT
From Brian Dominic, Wossname's man on the scene, who writes:
(Starts computer)
(Straps into saddle)
(Starts pedalling)
RIGHT – let's go!
What follows is a very personal account of what was a fabulous weekend.................
THURSDAY (helping day)
I'd arrived at the Ramada hotel (the overflow hotel just down the road from the Grange) reasonably early in the morning, and having been able to check in before The Allotted Time I was able to go up to the Grange, find Ops and ask if there was anything that needed doing. Eyes lit up. I was duly handed a thick wad of posters and some Blu-tac, and sent forth to decorate the hotel. The walls of the hotel were dotted with fake adverts for things a Morporkian might want to buy – all tastefully produced and in various sizes. I caught up with (and lent a hand to) the Official Renaming Detail, who were erecting the large signs that said "UPPER BROADWAY" "LOWER BROADWAY" "CAVERN CLUB" "STO LAT", "L SPACE (1 & 2)" (when joined together they were an l-shaped place) so that people would know where they were.
After this, is was Goodie Bag Stuffing Time! Picture the scene: a long line of tables, stacked with Goodies – a "Mystery Envelope" packed with totally unknown goodies, the Posh Programme (which normally gets looked at by me after the event), the Read Me, which is a smaller and more convenient version of the Convention Programme – as suggested, this is the one you can use your highlighter and marker pen on to mark up those unmissable events you just HAVE to go to, plus a colouring sheet, a set of small coloured pencils to use on it, a commemorative medal and the all-important lanyard, pen and badge holder. One walked steadily down one side of the table, adding each article as one passed it, then left the full bags at the other end, picked up an empty bag and worked your way down the other side of the table, which had exactly the same things on it in the same order!
After dinner, the evening was taken up with The Incredibly Hard Pub Quiz (well, she DOES have two years to put it together) with an incredibly picky Judge of What Is Right (the only village in the UK with an exclamation mark in it's name is Westward Ho!, but miss the exclamation mark off and you get nil points).
That was about it for Thursday.................
FRIDAY (Registration Day)
This was the day I now normally give to the Convention: I was on duty just after 0900 in Registration, to unite Convention goers with their badge and goodie bag. Old hands knew what to do, but newcomers had to be told what to do with their badge (no sniggers at the back, there!) and to put their hotel key cards there as well, to save them getting deprogrammed by their mobile phone. It was also our job to suggest that Newbies went to Der Troll's Guide For Der Confused – a briefing intended for new visitors. We also had to tactfully enquire if there were any issues which would require the addition of a blue spot to a badge which gave priority in queues and lifts. As the registrations progressed, we found our selves with less and less boxes to look through as more and more people arrived and the contents of the boxes (one envelope for each attendee) disappeared. When we got to two boxes, we moved the Registration table across Upper Broadway to a more shady spot, as we had been under the Greenhouse Roof on the outer side and were starting to gently bake. I'd been off site for some reason and arrived back as Bernard Pearson was about to read "Where's My Cow" – an experience I would have liked to share in, but people were crammed into the space provided and there was no way I could get any way near.
I missed the Opening Ceremony, which actually finished before the scheduled time – something of a "first" – but got in for Terry Pratchett – a Memorial which were the highlights of the Memorial held earlier this year. I don't know how much of this may have leaked around to Oz, but I suspect it might get there sooner or later so I won't say to much about it. The only thing I WILL share is that the final item was "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life". I sat, I sang, I wept uncontrollably (and I wasn't the only one)...................
Next up was Bedtime Stories, for which I didn't follow the pyjamas dress code! There was some interesting material, including the outline of a section of a book that will never be published (and which was shredded in stage after it had been read). Finally, I went to the Karaoke Session, which was rubbishy in that it didn't contain any of the ninety-odd songs I sing.
SATURDAY (Costume Day)
This was the day I intended to wear my Auditor's costume all day and appear in the Masquerade. The first thing to do was to attend the Masquerade Rehearsal, to work out what things needed to happen in my piece, and get Pat Harkin to co-operate with what I wanted to do. After that, I costumed up and went a-wandering. I managed to drop in on a session or two – nobody stopped me.................... For lunch and dinner I dropped out of character – when I took off the mesh mask that effectively stopped people from seeing me I was quite surprised at how cool it was! It was very difficult to stay in character – stopping oneself from using "I" is very, very difficult! I dropped into the Stephen Briggs / Rob Watkins conversation but chickened out of How to fit a Corset and Sewing Cheats! After dinner, it was time to report backstage for the Masquerade. At least we could see each act as it went on but we couldn't unfortunately hear them, as we'd only got a monitor off the video system which was projecting images onto a large screen alongside the stage. Whilst the judges were deliberating, we all went for a photo shoot, then went back in to hear the results. After that, it was off to the late night Hedgehog Party, where everybody can bring food from their part of the country / world...............
SUNDAY (Lazy Day)
I started off late on Sunday – my first event was at 1100 and was entitled "Liner notes – Annotating the Discworld" which gave an interesting insight into the adding of footnotes and the building up to a punch line. I went to Juke Box Jury, where the idea was to sing one tune to the words of another. In the course of this workshop, we came across a previously unknown version of The Dwarf Song, sung to the tune of "Let it Go" from Frozen......... later, I took in the children's Masquerade, seeing as how I hadn't seen the adult one. As I wasn't attending the Gala Dinner, I took myself into Leamington Spa to meet up with a group of similarly-minded attendees. I went back to the Con in time for Toast & Jam, where anybody can get up to sing anything (more or less) but this was disturbed by some Gawd-awful rattling on the ceiling (which was in fact the floor under the stage in the main Con performing space). I went up to investigate and found a 4 piece rock band setting up to perform............ which they did for around 90 minutes, following which I headed off.
MONDAY (Wind Down Day)
I didn't do an awful lot today: I went to the feedback session which is always interesting, followed by The Day's Big Event "Witches Abroad – The Musical" which was excellent, given that there's very little time to rehearse. It inevitably over-ran so we all got booted out of the hall and got told to come back 30 minutes later than scheduled for the Closing Ceremony. The band I had supported was ushered into an area at the front, as we'd won the Battle of the Bands, one of the things which had run throughout the Convention but totally passed me by. Once all the rewards and presentations were completed, we went off to the Dead Monkey Party, which is a gentle winding-down party with loadsa food. I ended up playing my second game of Cards Against Humanity and actually won my first black card! (Authors' note: see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cards_Against_Humanity if you have no idea what this is all about....)
Annnnnnnnnnnd – that was that!
I drove back into The Real World(TM) the next morning – the temporary traffic lights near the hotel which slowed everybody up, roadworks on a critical junction which caused even more chaos but at least after that, traffic was flowing...................
EDITOR'S NOTE: to view Brian's superb Auditor costume, go to https://wossname.dreamwidth.org/file/27132.jpg
*
Here be a call to arms, or to greasepaint and props, from another Brian, the Brian known as Sabremeister:
"April 2018 would have seen Sir Terry Pratchett's 70th birthday. He had a well-known connection with the theatre, and so to celebrate, why not put on a play? Local theatre companies around the world can use this month to stage any Discworld play, in a great big celebration and commemoration of Sir Terry's life and work. I discussed the idea with Colin Smythe at the DW Convention 2016, and he said it was a good one, go for it. So here we are, going for it. Let everybody know, and book the performance slot at the next planning meeting at your local theatre group!"
There's a Facebook event page for this, which can be found at https://www.facebook.com/events/580653112059960/
To view the original announcement, go to http://discworld.livejournal.com/1107951.html
*
...and here be a fascinating pub quiz from the just-finished Convention, as reprinted on the interwebs:
"You weren't there and are curious what you missed? You were there but hit the bar afterwards and can't remember half of them? Or you're just looking for inspiration for devious questions to ask your friends? We have the questions and answers of the Thursday evening pub quiz for you, courtesy of Low King of the Dwarves Jennifer Delaney."
Questions are about Roundworld but sharing subject matter with various Discworld novels. Some samples:
What Belgian beer's name means "Sudden Death"?
In the works of HP Lovecraft, what university is located in the town of Arkham?
Where would you find the Pyramid of Cestius?
Three films tie on most Academy Awards won. Two tie for most nominations. But which film is in both categories?
Which religion has eight million gods and 80,000 shrines?
What is the oldest regiment in the British Army?
What was the first dukedom created in England, currently held by a member of the British royal family?
In Greek mythology, what was the first thing to exist?
What colour are post boxes on the island of Guernsey?
The answers are provided by clicking on the Answer button for each question. To view and take the full quiz, go to:
https://2016.dwcon.org/news/2016/08/26/pub-quiz-questions
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05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
5.0 NEW: TAMAHER IN CARDIFF (FEBRUARY 2017)
Monstrous Productions carry on from strength to strength! (see the review of their latest production below, item 5.7)
When: 22nd–25th February 2017
Venue: The Gate Theatre, Keppoch Street, Roath, Cardiff CF24 3JW
Time: 7.30pm (2.30pm matinee on the 25th)
Tickets: £7 (£5 concession), available from http://monstrousptc.com/
5.1 REMINDER: WYRD SISTERS IN LANCRE, ERM, LANCASHIRE! (SEPTEMBER)
The Greenbrook Methodist Church Theatre Group still have one more performance of their production of Wyrd Sisters to go!
When: 2nd September 2016
Venue: Greenbrook Methodist Church Theatre Group & Community Centre, Greenbrook Road, Burnley, Lancs BB12 6NZ
Time: 7.30pm all shows
Tickets: £8 adult, £5 child, available by phoning Wendy on 01282 426 889
http://www.burnleymethodists.org.uk/greenbrook.htm
5.2 NEW: FEET OF CLAY IN ADELAIDE, FOURECKS (OCTOBER/NOVEMBER)
Adelaide's famous Unseen Theatre will be staging Feet of Clay as their next Pratchett production!
"It's Murder in Discworld!—which ordinarily is no big deal. But what bothers Commander Samuel Vimes, Head of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, is that the unusual deaths of three harmless old men do not bear the clean, efficient marks of the Assassins' Guild. But that's only the start... someone is slowly poisoning the Patrician. No one knows who, no one knows why and, worst of all no one knows how – he just gets weaker and weaker. Added to that, the City Watch has got problems of its own. There's a werewolf suffering from Pre-Lunar Tension, Corporal Nobbs is hobnobbing with the nobs, and there's something really strange about the new dwarf recruit – especially his earrings and eyeshadow. Who can you trust when there are mobs on the streets, plotters in the dark and all the clues point the wrong way? Nevertheless, Sam Vimes has got to find out not only whodunit, but howdunit too. He's not even sure what they dun. But soon as he knows what the questions are, he's going to want some answers. We don't want to give anything away, but Vimes may find that the truth is not out there at all. In fact, it may be inside – but inside what? or should we say whom?"
When: 21st October–5th November 2016 (preview Friday 21st October; opening night 22nd October 22; then season continues Wed.–Sat. to 5th November)
Venue: Bakehouse Theatre, 255 AngasStreet, Adelaide
Time: TBA
Tickets: Adults $22; Concession $18; Groups (6+) $16; TRev $16; Preview $15
http://unseen.com.au/
5.3 REMINDER: WYRD SISTERS IN EAST GRINSTEAD (OCTOBER)
The Ace Theatre Company will present their production of Wyrd Sisters in October.
When: 20th – 22nd October 2016
Venue: Chequer Mead Theatre, De La Warr Road, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 3BS
Time: all evening shows 7.30pm; matinee on Saturday 22nd, 2.30pm
Tickets: evening shows £13 (£11 concessions); Saturday matinee £11 (£9 concessions), available from the Box Office by phoning 01342 302000, by email to tickets@chequermead.org.uk, or online at http://www.chequermead.org.uk/whats-on/theatre/event/?e=364967&cat= (click on the desired date button to purchase)
http://www.chequermead.org.uk/
5.4 REMINDER: GUARDS! GUARDS! IN BRISBANE (OCTOBER/NOVEMBER)
The Brisbane Arts Theatre takes on yet another Discworld play later this year, in October and November: "From the legendary author Sir Terry Pratchett comes the eighth novel in the Discworld series and first featuring the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. Long believed extinct, a superb specimen, The Noble Dragon has appeared in Discworld's greatest city. Not only does this unwelcome visitor have a nasty habit of charbroiling everything in its path, in rather short order it is crowned King (it is a noble dragon, after all). With some help from an orangutan librarian, it is the task of the Night Watch to overpower the secret brotherhood and restore order to the kingdom in this fantastical Discworld adventure."
When: 8th October through 12th November 2016
Venue: Brisbane Arts Theatre, 210 Petrie Terrace, Brisbane, QLD 4000
Time: 8pm Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays (except 10th November); 6.30pm Sundays (16th & 30th October)
Tickets: Adults $31, Concession $25, Group 10+ $25, Group 75+ $20, Student Rush $10(10 mins before curtain), available online at http://bit.ly/1QGbXBF
http://www.artstheatre.com.au/show/guardsguards
5.5 MORT IN THE LAND OF FOG (NOVEMBER)
Paeroa Little Theatre's major production for 2016 will be Mort!
When: 9th–18th November 2016
Venue: Paeroa Little Theatre, 1 Francis Street, Paeroa 3600, th North Island, Land of Fog, er, New Zealand
Time: TBA
Tickets: TBA
http://www.facebook.com/PaeroaLittleTheatre/
5.6 STILL QUITE NEW: WYRD SISTERS IN BOLTON, LANCS (MARCH 2017)
Bolton Little Theatre, "a vibrant amateur theatre company run by members" since 1931, will be presenting their production of Wyrd Sisters next March.
When: 6th–11th March 2017
Venue: Bolton Little Theatre, Hanover Street, Bolton BL1 4TG
Time: 7.30pm
Tickets: £10 (Monday night 3 for 2 special), available at boltonlittletheatre.ticketsource.co.uk – group bookings of 10+ (£9) should be booked through the Box Office. “You can book at Bolton Little Theatre box office in person or by telephone on Monday night from 7.30 to 9pm and Friday mornings from 10.30 to 12 noon – no extra charge if paying by cash or cheque and you can book during the run of the plays or you can book online at boltonlittletheatre.ticketsource.co.uk ...credit card charges will apply. Tickets can be e-tickets (no charge) mobile phone ticket (50p) standard post (£1.50).”
http://www.boltonlittletheatre.co.uk/terry-pratchetts-wyrd-sisters/
5.7 REVIEWS: GOING POSTAL IN CARDIFF
by: togiraikonoka on The Sprout:
"I had previously seen Nightwatch and loved it, it was an amazing rendition of the book. Just like that show, with Going Postal, you have to rely on your own imagination as there are minimal props used and you are kept intrigued while the cast are switching around sets (which is perfect for this type of show, in my opinion). I thought it was brilliant when Mr Pump 'found' the postmaster's hat instead of Mr Groat like in the film, also I found it emotionally powering when Mr Lipwig put on the hat and could 'hear' the letters calling out to him and even made me tear up when he knew the post office was burning because he could hear the cries of the burning letters even without the hat on... The humor between Moist Von Lipwig and other characters was great fun, like when he stopped Stanley from going on a stamp speech as he was so excited to go from his collection of pins to stamps. I also enjoyed it especially when Mrs Maccalariat came in and mentions how worried she was about the golem who was cleaning the female bathroom... All in all, they managed to pull of a pretty great show and yet another fun filled rendition of the book..."
http://thesprout.co.uk/blog/2016/08/22/review-going-postal-the-gate-arts-centre/
By the twin bloggers known as CL Raven:
"We never miss a play and each time it gets bigger and better and we wonder how the hell they'll pull the next one off, as they get more ambitious every time. But they always do, with a brilliant cast and crew and a minimal set that really works. The Gate arts centre is the perfect venue for it. Directed by Amy Davies and Edward Thomas, Going Postal tells the story of Moist Von Lipwig... Asher Townsend, who plays Moist, was fantastic. He captured his cheeky character perfectly, even down to his smile, which often made the audience laugh. And his gold suit stole the show. The golems were a particular favourite of ours and their costumes were amazing. It's not easy to bring a thousands' year old pottery creature to life! Moist's scenes with Adora Bell Dearheart were always entertaining. Ellen Warren, who played Miss Dearheart was perfect for the role. She was exactly how Miss Dearheart should be. Josh Flynn, who played pin-obsessive Stanley and Neil Chappell who played Reacher Gilt's assistant Igor, got the most laughs. Josh's hyperactive portrayal of Stanley was hilarious. Pete Belsen did a great job as Junior Postmaster Groat... Michael's deadpan performance of Vetinari was spot-on. He had the dry sense of humour down perfectly. We're always astounded by the quality of acting in these productions, as well as the costumes and set props. It's clear how much fun everyone has doing this.."
https://clraven.wordpress.com/2016/08/24/going-postal/
5.8 REVIEWS: MORT AT THE EDINBURGH FRINGE
By Dominic Corr on TV Bomb:
A master in absurdity, Terry Pratchett used and abused the written word in his creation of the Discworld. Those unfamiliar with his works can still enjoy Mort for its story, characters and comedy, though fans of the original Discworld series will notice narrative gaps in the transition to the theatre. It happens, and really it's remarkable how much Duck in a Hat Theatre fit into an hour and twenty minutes. Personified Death is perhaps Pratchett's masterpiece: droll, witty and at times genuinely intimidating. Duck in a Hat's interpretation of the character is precise, humorous where it needs to be and fearfully commanding when called for... Whilst some cast members edge on the trims of mediocrity, the character of Mort is carried out well. A subtle mixture of charm and pathos draw the audience into the story effectively..."
http://www.tvbomb.co.uk/review/terry-pratchetts-mort/
By Caroline Cawley on Edinburgh Fringe Guru:
"The cast is comprised of eight members, many of them playing multiple roles. The standout performance is from Naoise Murphy as a rather nasal recruiter who's trying to help Death find a job. She also plays a waitress at a party who reacts violently to a goblet appearing on her tray seemingly out of nowhere, and a cursing robber whose prey escapes her by walking through a wall. In this adaptation, the voice of the actor playing Death has been electronically altered and, combined with his piercing eyes (provided by blue LEDs), he cuts an imposing cloaked figure as he stalks the stage. In general, however, the costumes are hit and miss... The audience appeared to enjoy the adaptation, but I believe this is only because of a decent script. The play benefits from Pratchett's popularity – there were clearly a large number of fans in the audience – while Duck in a Hat contribute only sporadically decent performances and generally poor production values..."
http://edinburgh.fringeguru.com/reviews/edinburgh-2016/terry-pratchetts-mort
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06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS: UPDATES AND REMINDERS
The Broken Drummers, "London's Premier Unofficially Official Discworld Group" (motto "Nil percussio est"), meets next on Monday 5th September 2016 at the Monkey Puzzle, 30 Southwick Street, London, W2 1JQ. For more information, go to http://brokendrummers.org/ or email BrokenDrummers@gmail.com or nicholls.helen@yahoo.co.uk
*
Canberra, Australia's Discworld fan group is Drumknott's Irregulars: "We are a newly established Terry Pratchett & Discworld social group in Canberra called Drumknott's Irregulars. The group is open to all, people from interstate and overseas are welcome, and our events will not be heavily themed. Come along to dinner for a chat and good company. We welcome people all all fandoms (and none) and we would love to see you at one of our events, even if you're just passing through. Please contact us via Facebook (_https://www.facebook.com/groups/824987924250161/_) or Google Groups (_https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/drumknotts-irregulars_) or join us at our next event."
*
For Facebook users in Fourecks: The Victorian Discworld Klatch is "a social group for fans of Discworld and Terry Pratchett... run by a dedicated team who meet monthly and organise events monthly." "If you'd like to join our events please ask to join the Klatch."
https://www.facebook.com/groups/VictorianDiscworldKlatch
*
"The Gathering of the Loonies (Wincanton chapter)" is a public Facebook meeting group: "This group, by request of Jo in Bear will continue to be used for future unofficial (not run by the Emporium) fan Gatherings in Wincanton. Look here for information." [Editor's note: this is an active group. If you use Facebook, it may be worth joining!]
https://www.facebook.com/groups/373578522834654/
*
The Pratchett Partisans are a fan group who meet monthly at either Brisbane or Indooroopilly to "eat, drink and chat about all things Pratchett. We hold events such as Discworld dinners, games afternoons, Discworld photo scavenger hunts. We also attend opening night at Brisbane Arts Theatre's Discworld plays." The Partisans currently have about 200 members who meet at least twice a month, usually in Brisbane.
For more info about their next meetup, join up at https://www.facebook.com/groups/pratchettpartisans/ or contact Ula directly at uwilmott@yahoo.com.au
*
The City of Small Gods is a group for fans in Adelaide and South Australia.
"We have an established Terry Pratchett & Discworld fan group in Adelaide called The City of Small Gods, which is open to anyone who would like to come - you don't have to live in Adelaide or even South Australia, or even be a Discworld fan, but that's mostly where our events will be held, and we do like discussing Pratchett's works. Our (semi-) regular meetings are generally held on the last Thursday of the month at a pub or restaurant in Adelaide. We have dinner at 6.30pm followed by games until 9pm. The games are usually shorter games like Pairs, Sushi Go, or Tiny Epic Defenders, with the occasional Werewolf session, as these are the best sort of games that work in a pub setting. Every few months, we have a full day's worth of board games at La Scala Cafe, 169 Unley Rd, Unley in the function room starting at 10am. In addition, we will occasionally have other events to go and see plays by Unseen Theatre Company, book discussions on Terry's latest, craft, chain maille or costuming workshops or other fun social activities."
The next Monthly Dinner and Games at the Caledonian Hotel will be held on 29th September 2016, and there will be a Pirate Costume Bowling at Cross Road Bowl on 1st October. For more info, go to www.cityofsmallgods.org.au
*
The Broken Vectis Drummers meet next on Friday 7th October 2016 (probably) from 7.30pm at The Castle pub in Newport, Isle of Wight. For more info and any queries, contact broken_vectis_drummers@yahoo.co.uk
*
The Wincanton Omnian Temperance Society (WOTS) next meets on Friday 2nd September 2016 (probably) at Wincanton's famous Bear Inn from 7pm onwards. "Visitors and drop-ins are always welcome!"
*
The Northern Institute of the Ankh-Morpork and District Society of Flatalists, a Pratchett fangroup, has been meeting on a regular basis since 2005 but is now looking to take in some new blood (presumably not in the non-reformed Uberwald manner). The Flatalists normally meet at The Narrowboat Pub in Victoria Street, Skipton, North Yorkshire, to discuss "all things Pratchett" as well as having quizzes and raffles. Details of future meetings are posted on the Events section of the Discworld Stamps forum:
http://www.discworldstamps.co.uk/forum/
*
Sydney Drummers (formerly Drummers Downunder) meet next on Monday 5th September 2016 at 6.30pm (probably) in Sydney at 3 Wise Monkeys, 555 George Street, Sydney,2000. For more information, contact Sue (aka Granny Weatherwax): kenworthys@yahoo.co.uk
*
The Treacle Mining Corporation, formerly known as Perth Drummers, meets next on Monday 5th September 2016 (probably) from 5.30pm at Carpe Cafe, 526 Murray Street, Perth, Western Australia. For details follow Perth Drummers on Twitter @Perth_Drummers or join their Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Perth.Drummers/ – or message Alexandra Ware directly at <alexandra.ware@gmail.com>
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07) DISCWORLD ARTS AND CRAFTS NEWS
7.1 FROM THE DISCWORLD EMPORIUM
* The 2017 Discworld calendar!
"Featuring the iconic fantasy artwork of Josh Kirby, the 2017 Discworld calendar is a nostalgic celebration of his spectacular and unmistakable cover illustrations for Terry Pratchett's earliest Discworld books. The 2017 calendar features twelve pieces of artwork, along with all those important Discworld and roundworld dates that you'll still forget about despite them hanging on your wall in such a decorative fashion. Each calendar includes a full page of colourful artwork for each month along with plenty of space for your notes, reminders and appointments. Includes all major realtime calendrical data for Great Britain, Eire, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the USA, as well as notable Discworld dates."
Each Calendar is priced at £14.99. For more information, ad to order, go to:
http://www.discworldemporium.com/terry-pratchett-discworld-calendar-2017
* An even more special Discworld Colouring Book!
"ARTIST'S EDITION! Paul has hand-picked a selection of his favourite colouring book illustrations including witches, dragons & feegles for this special edition, which features 40 pages of artist's quality display board and special binding for you to tear out and frame your finished masterpieces! Paul Kidby has designed the covers for the Discworld novels since 2002, and is the author and artist of the The Art Of Discworld. If Terry Pratchett's pen gave his characters life, Paul Kidby's brush allowed them to live it. Containing black-and-white line drawings based on Sir Terry Pratchett's Best Loved characters, his hugely popular artwork as well as original pieces produced exclusively for this book - featuring such iconic Discworld personalities as Granny Weatherwax, Sam Vimes, Archchancellor Ridcully, Rincewind, Tiffany Aching and, of course, DEATH – Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book is required ...reading? ...for all Discworld fans."
Each Artist's Edition Discworld Colouring Book is priced at £14.99 plus shipping (UK £3.50, Europe £7, Rest of World £10) and is now available for pre-order (publication date will be 3rd November 2016). For more information, and to pre-order, go to http://bit.ly/2bHipNW
* The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner in two editions!
"An illustrated collection of short stories by master storyteller Sir Terry Pratchett, featuring food fights, pirates, wizards and crooks!
"Poor Mr Swimble is having a bad day. Rabbits are bouncing out of his hat, pigeons are flying out of his jacket and every time he points his finger, something magically appears – cheese sandwiches, socks . . . even a small yellow elephant on wheels! It's becoming a real nuisance – and he's allergic to rabbits. His friends at the Magic Rectangle can't help, but the mysterious vacuum cleaner he saw that morning may have something to do with it . . . Fourteen fantastically funny stories from master storyteller Sir Terry Pratchett, full of food fights, pirates, wizards and crooks!"
The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner is priced at £12.99 plus shipping (UK £3.50, Europe £7, Rest of World £10). For more information, and to order, go to http://bit.ly/2bPII3p
Also available: " A special collector's edition of collected short stories by master storyteller Sir Terry Pratchett, complete with slipcase, critical commentary, two bonus stories a beautiful limited-edition print illustrated by Mark Beech, plus foreword penned by Rob Wilkins!"
The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner Deluxe Slipcase Edition is priced at £25 plus shipping (UK £3.50, Europe £7, Rest of World £10). For more information, and to order, go to
http://bit.ly/2bAsEok
* HOT ITEM: the Musicians' Guild LBE!
"Produced to coincide with the 2016 Discworld Convention in Warwick, this special edition LBE issue is a celebration of Ankh-Morpork's illustrious Musicians' Guild! Along with an assortment of current Discworld stamps, each LBE contains two new guild issues – the Musicians' Guild One Penny, and a rootin' tootin' limited edition 3p – exclusive to this LBE and the Musician's Guild First Day Cover. A generous amount of sports and rarities prizes have been sprinkled throughout the edition including dead letter labels and clacks-o-grams!
"With the triangle being our favourite musical instrument, what better time to introduce a new design of the most sought-after stamp of them all! Only 10 sports will ever be released of this illustrious issue, and TWO are waiting to be found in this LBE edition!
"Lucky collectors will find prize tickets entitling them to one of 25 'sport' first day covers featuring rare sport musicians' Guild issues, or one of 25 large format sheets of limited edition 3p stamps compete with TWO whole rows of sport variant issues!!
"N.B. Special Editions tend to sell our VERY quickly, often within the first hour of release. To avoid disappointment we recommend the purchase of an LBE Season Ticket. Otherwise please have this page ready at the time of release and remember to refresh your browser. It is important to note that adding LBEs to your cart does NOT guarantee purchase - proceeding quickly to checkout once they have been added to cart is heartily advised."
Each Musicians' Guild Little Brown Envelope (LBE) is priced at £5.00. For more information, and to order, go to
http://www.discworldemporium.com/discworld-stamps/new%20stamps/musicians-guild-lbe
The Steam to Summer First Day Cover: "A charming piece of postal ephemera celebrating a summer of holidays and Discworld tourism thanks to the Ankh-Morpork & Sto Plains Hygienic Railway! Every First Day Cover features a full 'train set' of Ankh-Morpork Railway Farthing stamps, comprising seven different designs from Engine No.1 Iron Girder to a variety of cars and carriages of the A-M&SHR. Otherwise only available as a beautiful whole sheet. Inside each envelope you'll find a beautiful glossy advertising postcard promoting holidays on the rails, with a charming illustration of the seaside town of Quiremouth! Limited edition of 200 envelopes - available while stocks last."
Each Steam to Summer First Day Cover is priced at £10. For more information, and to order, go to
http://www.discworldemporium.com/discworld-stamps/new%20stamps/steam-to-summer-fdc
7.2 FROM DISCWORLD.COM
* The Perennial. Pratchett Diary!
"Sir Terry Pratchett left us, far too early, in March 2015. To celebrate his life and works, we've given over the 2017 Discworld Diary – which will be a perennial diary – to remembrances and tributes from some of those who knew and loved him and his extraordinary body of work. Contributors include Neil Gaiman, A S Byatt, Terry Pratchett's literary agent Colin Smythe, co-author of the Long Earth books Stephen Baxter, famed bookseller Rog Peyton, and many more. With an introduction from his daughter Rhianna Pratchett and an afterword from longtime friend and colleague Rob Wilkins. Exclusively embossed with Sir Terry's signature and sealed with his personal coat of arms – the design of which he oversaw himself.
Each Terry Pratchett Diary is priced at £20.00 and will be published on 13th October 2016. For more information, and to pre-order, go to
http://discworld.com/products/books/terry-pratchett-diary/
* The Dark Side of the Turtle coaster!
"To celebrate the theme of this year's DWCON - A Discworld twist on a Roundworld classic."
Each Dark Side of the Turtle Coaster is priced at £2.50. For more information, and to order, go to
http://discworld.com/products/convention-launches/dark-side-turtle-coaster/
* The Greebowie Coaster!
"To celebrate the theme of this year's DWCON – Greebo with a Bowie-esque twist!"
Each Greebo as Bowie Coaster is priced at £2.50. For more information, and to order, go to
http://discworld.com/products/convention-launches/greebo-bowie-coaster/
* "Josh Kirby lives!"
Discworld.com has announced the formation of a partnership with the estate of the late Josh Kirby:
"The collaboration will give these unique and treasured works of art a new lease of life through a range of exclusive, high quality products. The move is the brainchild of Discworld.com's founder and owner Sandra Kidby, Kirby's niece and Estate Director Amy Anderson and Marketing Director Rob Liano. Kirby was renowned as one of the earliest Discworld cover artists and was also a highly regarded science fiction and fantasy painter in his own right, with many of his creations adorning the literary works of such greats as Ian Fleming, Isaac Asimov, Alfred Hitchcock, Richard Matheson, Jack Kerouac, Jules Verne and Edgar Rice Burroughs. He wasn't just a cover artist, he applied his talents to iconic film posters ranging from motion picture phenomenon Star Wars as well as Beastmaster, Krull and the unforgettable Monty Python's Life of Brian. His heroes and heroines were archetypal fantasy figures; his scenes infused with ribald humour and his works meticulously hand-painted."
To read the full announcement, go to http://discworld.com/discworld-com-joins-forces-estate-josh-kirby/
7.3 FROM THE PAUL KIDBY SHOP
The Discworld Colouring Book is here! And Paul Kidby's shop is offering an exclusive signed ‘Pencil Eater' bookplate with each copy.
Priced at £13.50 (price includes postage & packaging for UK deliveries only). For more information, and to order, go to
http://bit.ly/2alSV63
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08) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE: THIEF OF TIME
From Anne at Hubward Ho, analysing Myria Lejean:
"I love Lady LeJean and her development, her struggle to cope with a physicality that has been thrust upon her. The Auditors are, essentially, a consciousness, a mind, without physical form, a body. Without physical form, the Auditors are undifferentiated—there is no individual identity or personality, and if one begins to develop, it is quickly destroyed. In Thief of Time, the Auditors realize that while they can easily manipulate the elements of the universe to create a perfect replica of a human body, it just lays there until the Auditors power it with their own consciousness. However, once that consciousness is separated from the rest by inhabiting a physical form, an individual develops. Once Lady LeJean gains her own consciousness, she finds herself thinking and acting more and more in human ways. The drive of hunger, the enjoyment of art, the appreciation of a cat's companionship—they are all the result of a physical form. It turns out that consciousness is like water: it takes the shape of its container... One of the main themes, and one of my favorite themes, in Thief of Time is that our physicality, our separation from other minds, our stupid, stupid bodies make us human. We exist within our limited perception of time and space, and that perception shapes how we think of ourselves and our universe. We need our skin in order to feel, and we need our brains in order to think, and we need our lungs and vocal cords and mouths and tongues and teeth in order to speak to each other, to share in the experience of being human and alive and in a body, to shorten the gap between my mind and yours..."
https://hubwardho.com/2016/08/16/she-is-an-immaterial-girl-living-in-a-material-world/
...and from Ryan at Hubward Ho, on (eventually) the same book:
"The story of Discworld writ large is all about the clash of known with unknown, civilized with uncivilized (that is, from the point of view of the 'civilized'). It's about the tension between reconciling with, and resisting, change and assimilation. How do you reconcile magic with the clacks? How much resilience to change do you need to show if you're a dwarf in the big city, far from home and tradition? In another writer's hands, this could seem uncomfortably like colonization, and at times it sort of does. But it's clear that Pratchett is well aware of this, as these tensions become the morally ambiguous backbone of stories like The Fifth Elephant, Thud!, Snuff, and Raising Steam.
"In its own way, Thief of Time is rife with the tension between reconciliation and resistance. All kinds of things cross over the edge from the wild and supernatural into the tame and ordinary. Pratchett observes that Chaos is 'Kaos with his hair combed and a tie on,' which in turn becomes Ronnie Soak, milk man. Godlike anthropomorphic personifications like War now have families. The child of Time is either a thief or a clock-maker. The heir to the House of Death is a schoolteacher. A cosmic being falls in love with chocolate. And in the wider context these characters subsist in a world in which magic-slinging, throat-cutting wizards would now rather stay at home, thank you, while clacks send messages flickering across the lands. This should be disappointing. Do we really want to find that the fantastic has become ordinary? Do we really want the whole world to be mapped? But in Pratchett's hands, it doesn't feel disappointing..."
https://hubwardho.com/2016/08/13/the-taming-of-the-world-a-report-from-the-edges/
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09) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
Pterry at Dillons bookshop in Derby, 1996. The chain closed three years later:
http://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276250/binaries/Dillons.jpg
"Nae king! Nae quin! Nae laird!" The Nac Mac Feegle present swords in Tiffany's kitchen, during the recent Unseen Theatre production of The Wee Free Men:
http://unseen.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/wfm-swords-tiff-kitchen800.jpg
The Cunning Artificer and a certain bibliophilic friend:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CqPCFMXWIAA-Q_g.jpg
A very pleased-looking Paul Kidby preparing signed copies of the Discworld Colouring Book:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cp57XgiWYAAcLb-.jpg
...and Lord Vetinari's Roundworld stunt double, Stephen Briggs, signing his co-authored works at this month's UK Discworld Convention:
https://twitter.com/StephenPBriggs/status/769880791094587392
Also from the latest DWCon, a very well-coiffed Lady Sybil, accompanied by a well-known anthropomorphic personification:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cq3F3K-WIAAiJ7U.jpg
...and a helpful Igorina, from same:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CqyX-NzXEAEl9yX.jpg
An adorable Discworld recommendations 'toon by Tumblr user goddamnshinyrock, as linked by Discworld Ales:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CrAif9QWcAEd9Q6.jpg
...and finally, the "Light Rider", the 3D-printed motorbike "inspired by a skeleton". Hands up, anyone who thinks there just might be a Discworld fan among the design team:
http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/wwfeatures/wm/live/624_351/images/live/p0/43/cr/p043crxx.jpg
[If you want to know more about this motorcycle, go to http://www.bbc.com/autos/story/20160802-the-motorbike-inspired-by-a-skeleton – Ed.]
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10) CLOSE
That quote up at the start of this issue comes from a piece on Publishers Weekly, "10 Best Satires", in which "Anything by Terry Pratchett" (yes, Mr Honig really does mean anything) rubs shoulders with such deathless works as Don Quixote, Catch-22 and Animal Farm. To read the whole piece, go to http://bit.ly/2bYUyNy
And that's the lot for August. Take care, and we'll see you at the end of this month!
– Annie Mac
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The End. If you have any questions or requests, write: wossname-owner (at) pearwood (dot) info
Copyright (c) 2016 by Klatchian Foreign Legion
Newsletter of the Klatchian Foreign Legion
August 2016 (Volume 19, Issue 8, Post 1)
********************************************************************
WOSSNAME is a free publication offering news, reviews, and all the other stuff-that-fits pertaining to the works of Sir Terry Pratchett. Originally founded by the late, great Joe Schaumburger for members of the worldwide Klatchian Foreign Legion and its affiliates, including the North American Discworld Society and other continental groups, Wossname is now for Discworld and Pratchett fans everywhere in Roundworld.
********************************************************************
Editor in Chief: Annie Mac
News Editor: Vera P
Newshounds: Mogg, Sir J of Croydon Below, the Shadow, Mss C, Alison not Aliss
Staff Writers: Asti, Pitt the Elder, Evil Steven Dread, Mrs Wynn-Jones
Staff Technomancers: Jason Parlevliet, Archchancellor Neil, DJ Helpful
Book Reviews: Annie Mac, Drusilla D'Afanguin, Your Name Here
Puzzle Editor: Tiff (still out there somewhere)
Bard in Residence: Weird Alice Lancrevic
Emergency Staff: Steven D'Aprano, Jason Parlevliet
World Membership Director: Steven D'Aprano (in his copious spare time)
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INDEX:
01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
02) EDITOR'S LETTER
03) ODDS AND SODS
04) DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS
05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS
07) DISCWORLD ARTS AND CRAFTS NEWS
08) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
09) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
10) CLOSE
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01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
"Rob [Wilkins] ... created the first version of this site in the 1990s, writing all the code and designing it from scratch. Where would I have been without his remarkable (but little-known) computing and programing genius?"
– Colin Smythe, on his new Colin Smythe Ltd publishing website
"Often adolescent in humour, yes, and not exactly Joycean in style, Pratchett's work fizzes with originality and razor sharp allegory, taking aim at the ludicrous hypocrisies and conventions that we all somehow contrive to take seriously."
– Michael Honig, in Publishers Weekly
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02) LETTER FROM YOUR EDITOR
Yes, the August issue was held back until September, but there waas a good reason – see section 4.1 below for an exclusive report on Discworld Convention 2016!
Now that Paul Kidby's amazing Discworld Colouring Book has been published – at least in some parts of Roundworld – publishers Gollancz are running a special contest for Discworld fans in the UK and Ireland (see item 3.1 below). For the rest of us outside that catchment area, here's a photo of Mr Kidby's progress in colouring in the prize:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CqsYxKxW8AAhlzq.jpg
Gollancz has also just published The Last Hero as an ebook, if that sort of thing takes your fancy. I have to admit that while the story of TLH stands on its own merits, it seems a shame to separate it from Paul Kidby's exquisite ilustrations, but there you go...
Right, on with the show!
– Annie Mac, Editor
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03) ODDS AND SODS
3.0 NEW COLIN SMYTHE WEBSITE!
All Discworld conventiongoers, and a vast number of other Discworld fans, know well the name of Colin Smythe, "the man who discovered Terry Pratchett", who published his early novels, and who then served as his literary agent for the rest of The Author's days. But not everyone may realise that Colin Smythe is a world-respected publisher of fifty years' standing who, through the company Colin Smythe Ltd, offers some of the best and rarest of Irish literature, a fascinating selection of literary criticism, theatre history, biographies, and yes, even science fiction and fantasy works *not* by Terry Pratchett! And now the Colin Smythe Ltd internet presence is beautifully catalogued and up-to-date, all shiny and in good working order.
For the Pratchett-and-Discworld fan, there's a comprehensive set of infopages covering the entire oeuvre of Terry Pratchett – hundreds of individual pages, painstakingly compiled, and including all the Discworld novels in all their forms (books, audiobooks, graphic novels, films, radio and stage plays, etc.) and Discworld auxiliaries, both by Sir Terry himself (Where's My Cow?, The World of Poo, Mrs Bradshaw's Handbook) and collaborative works such as Good Omens, The Unadulterated Cat, the Long Earth series, the Discworld Companions, Folklore of Discworld, Mapps, Almanaks, Diaries, Calendars, Nanny Ogg's Cookbook and so on... the non-Discworld novels, short story collections and nonfiction collections... a compendium of works *about* the works of Terry Pratchett (articles, interviews, analyses – 45 years' worth so far!) and assorted articles and other contributions *by* him... the chronology and extensive biographical information for the life and times of Terence David John Pratchett, from earliest days to a collection of farewells and memorials, and so much more – including international fan convention literature (with links!). Even Wossname gets a mention!
A few of the many fascinating Pratchett-y things you'll learn by wandering around the site:
* Josh Kirby's secret name
* The true story of that German soup advert
* The lowdown on of sex and death (all right, sex of Death)
* Young Terry Pratchett's definition of autocracy
* What Discworld publication was a nonfiction bestseller
* What Discworld novel was originally titled Interesting Times
Furthermore, any fans of *other* great writers such as Yeats, Joyce, Shaw, Synge and Wilde will find invaluable resources in Colin Smythe Ltd's catalogue.
A wonderful, useful website. Do have a look!
http://colinsmythe.co.uk/
3.1 THE DISCWORLD COLOURING BOOK COLOURING-IN CONTEST!
For UK and Ireland Discworld fans: how are you at colouring inside the lines? Gollancz, publishers of the gorgeous new Discworld Colouring Book, offer you a challenge:
"Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book Competition!
"To celebrate publication, we're offering one lucky reader the chance to win a page from the book, hand-coloured by Paul Kidby himself! We've made a page available on the Gollancz website as a PDF, so no purchase is necessary. Just download the page and colour it in, then post a photo of your coloured page to social media, tagging @Gollancz on Twitter or Instagram, or GollanczPublishing on Facebook, with the hashtag #Octarine, and Paul Kidby will choose his favourite piece. The winner will receive the competition page, hand-coloured by Paul Kidby, as well as a signed copy of Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book. Five runners-up will each receive a copy of Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book.
"The closing date is midnight on 12th September 2016, and the winner will be announced during Gollanczfest (_http://www.gollanczfest.com/_) on Twitter (_https://twitter.com/gollancz_), Instagram (_https://www.instagram.com/gollancz/_), Facebook (_https://www.facebook.com/gollanczpublishing_) and the Gollancz blog (_http://www.gollancz.co.uk/_). The competition is open to residents of the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Please see http://www.orionbooks.co.uk/Information/Terms%20and%20Conditions.page for Terms and Conditions."
Click here to download the PDF: http://www.gollancz.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Discworld-Colouring-Page-2.pdf
http://www.gollancz.co.uk/2016/08/terry-pratchetts-discworld-colouring-book-competition/
http://www.paulkidby.com/
...and here be an early review of the Discworld Colouring Book, on The Bookbag:
"In Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book Kidby has produced a selection of some of his favourite characters all redrafted as line art. I liked this approach: there's nothing worse than trying to reproduce an original picture which you love – and failing. Here you get original pictures to complete, including many of your favourite characters: Granny Weatherwax, Sam Vimes, Archchancellor Ridcully, Rincewind, Tiffany Aching and Death. There are some colour prints at the end of the book, which I wasn't expecting. Fortunately I didn't spot them until I'd had a go, so I wasn't discouraged. You get some great quotes too... As well as the full-page and double-page spreads there are smaller projects: I idly coloured in a banana whilst listening to a disembodied voice tell me that my phone call was important to them. The paper is of better quality than I suspected at first glance – a black felt-tip pen didn't show through on the reverse no matter how hard I tried. I preferred the effect of using crayons – the result was more subtle, but give your creativity free rein and see what happens. I've got just the one quibble about the book and that rests with the double-page spreads where the picture is trapped in the spine of the book and it's impossible to colour proficiently without taking the book to pieces. It was fun trying though..."
http://bit.ly/2chxhCp
3.2 THE ARTIST KNOWN AS KIDBY!
In The Guardian, an interview/article by Alison Flood about Paul Kidby:
"Kidby first discovered Discworld in 1993, when he was given a copy of The Colour of Magic for his 29th birthday, and was immediately taken with Pratchett's writing. After drawing a range of Pratchett's characters for fun, he took a bundle of them along to a book signing in a WH Smith's in Bath, and handed them over to Pratchett. 'I queued for three hours – he was so popular and I'd had no idea about it,' says Kidby. 'When I got to Terry, I gave him some photocopies of the drawings I'd done in an envelope, and thought "that's it". He didn't need another illustrator; he had Josh Kirby, and he'd made it, he was successful. So I resigned myself to the fact that he wouldn't get in touch.' But a few weeks later, Pratchett rang him. 'He phoned up and said "this is the closest anyone's got to how I see the characters". And that was it – the beginning. It's a fantastic endorsement when an author says that ... For me, creatively, to do my interpretation of a writer's character was pretty much top of the tree.'... Kidby was a freelance illustrator, painting popular video game characters like Sonic the Hedgehog for magazine covers. He'd always known he wanted to be an artist – as a teenager, he applied to art colleges and was offered a place in Hounslow, but ended up declining it as it was too far from where he lived. But his parents were friends with a retired art teacher and “I knocked on her door with my drawings and she very kindly looked through what I'd done, and took me under her wing”. On the side, Kidby started making false teeth during the day to bring in some money. 'At the time it was the most creative job I could get, as I was still working with my hands. I was 17,' he says. 'Looking back over my career path, I was always trying to do something more creative. False teeth were the beginning.'..."
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/aug/18/terry-pratchett-artist-illustrating-discworld-colouring-book
3.3 NEW STEPHEN BRIGGS WEBSITE!
Well, page-onna-website. Another new shiny thing in the world of published Pratchettry:
"As all children know, the way you get into a fantasy world is by accident... You go into the wardrobe, looking for somewhere to hide and – bingo. And that's how Stephen Briggs found Discworld. In 1990, he wrote to ask Terry if he could stage Wyrd Sisters. That was the first time anyone, anywhere in the world, had dramatised Terry's work. He had no idea it would go any further than one play (possibly two). But it did. So far, he has now adapted, staged and published twenty-two plays. He and Terry also worked together to produce the original Discworld Maps and Diaries, Nanny Ogg's Cookbook, The Discworld Companion (now called Turtle Recall) and The Wit & Wisdom of Discworld."
https://www.oberonbooks.com/stephen-briggs.html
3.4 LONG COSMOS REVIEW!
by Glen Seeber on News OK:
"In the five books, Pratchett and Baxter explored the ramifications from all sorts of angles, touching on governmental control versus individual freedom, strife between those who can step and those who are unable to do so, development of children whose mental capacity far outshines that of normal humanity, and treatment of beings common to the parallel worlds who did not develop on the home planet. In 'The Long Cosmos,' inhabitants of all of the worlds, including apelike creatures called trolls, living islands known as Traversers and, of course, humans, get a message from space saying, essentially, 'Join us.' The narrative jumps from one character to another, carrying the reader slowly toward a climax when most of the characters come together at last and find out just what is meant by the message... While 'The Long Cosmos' is an entertaining and satisfying conclusion to the five-novel series, first-time readers would be well advised to start with the first book, 'The Long Earth,' and follow the story in order of publication. Things will make more sense..."
http://newsok.com/article/5511712
3.5 THE WITCH'S VACUUM CLEANER REVIEW!
By Juliette Harrisson on Den of Geek:
"The stories were edited and prepared by Pratchett shortly before his death, and the book includes an introduction from him that must be one of the last things he wrote. Like the first volume, this book is illustrated throughout by Mark Beech, whose style is clearly influenced by Quentin Blake's work, especially his work on Roald Dahl's books – it work very well here, immediately signalling the tone and style of the stories to the reader. His portrait of a waving Pratchett for the Introduction is particularly nice, and his interpretation of a small man in a big black hat is also, touchingly, distinctly Terry-like... Juvenilia by famous authors can vary a bit in quality, but one of the nice things about these stories is that they were written by a young man, for even younger people (and edited by the older Sir Terry as well). Most of the stories are relatively timeless or are clearly set in the past, so young readers will be able to enjoy them easily – one story, for example, makes a brief reference to this being 'the twenty-first century', despite the distinct absence of mobile phones or laptops... Regardless of the age of the author or intended audience, these stories are as funny, magical and whimsical as any of Pratchett's work. There are a few stories set in the mysterious town of Blackbury, and several in the Wild Welsh town of Llandanffwnfafegettupagogo, home of the fastest truncheon in the West and a delightful addition to the little-known 'amusing takes on Wales' subgenre (also including the works of Jasper Fforde and Malcolm Pryce). There are truly enchanting tales of dancing statues and visits to magical places in another realm of existence and several delicate touches of romance, not enough to put off young readers but enough to warm the hearts of older ones..."
http://bit.ly/2bS944Q
3.6 WHAT'S IN A NAME, ER, WORD...
From the BBC's news site:
"'Moist' is the early front-runner in a search to find the most-hated word in the English language. The distasteful adjective – a favourite of Great British Bake Off presenting duo Mel and Sue – has topped polls in the UK, US and Canada, according to those behind the global survey. 'Moist' – dubbed by comedian Miranda Hart the 'queen of all words' – also leads the way in the US, Canada and Australia, also coming second in the poll of Dutch opinion... Dan Braddock, from Oxford University Press, said this was the first time Oxford Dictionaries – which focuses on current English usage – had tried such an experiment and 'we're not entirely sure what to expect yet... We thought for a long time about the question to open with, but we decided to go down the negative route,' he said..."
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-37183043
3.7 WHY FILMING THE WEE FREE MEN IS A GOOD CHOICE
Some good musings on the forthcoming film of The Wee Free Men, by Tom Bacon on Moviepilot::
"The Jim Henson Company – most famous for Farscape, Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal – is bringing one Discworld novel, Wee Free Men, to the big screen. Rhianna Pratchett, an award-winning scriptwriter in her own right, is adapting the novel for the feature film. But why have the team chosen Wee Free Men? 1. A 'Young Adult' Vibe with a Tremendous Star... The star of Wee Free Men is the brilliant character of Tiffany Aching, a 9-year-old girl who is drawn into a fantasy realm of danger. Brought up as a shepherd in the hills of a region known as the Chalk, Tiffany Aching is the unwitting inheritor of her grandmother's witchcraft. She soon winds up forced to take a stand, becoming a trainee witch and battling against the elves of Fairyland! Tiffany is a formidable character, much-loved and with tremendous depth... 2. A Perfect Introduction to Discworld... 3. A Creative Fantasy Story...
"Wee Free Men has all the staples of fairytale mythology – from witchcraft to elves – but all are subverted, in that classic Pratchett style. Tiffany winds up on an epic quest into Fairyland, but Pratchett's Fairyland is a barren and dangerous place, one that would translate easily into a haunting location on the big screen. It's the beginning of a classic Hero's Journey, one that was only truly completed in The Shepherd's Crown, and it has all the mythic quality you'd expect of a classic..."
http://moviepilot.com/posts/4068544
3.8 THE LUGGAGE, ROUNDWORLD STYLE!
On M2, Isaac Taylor tells us of a digital-era travel accessory with some familiar characteristics:
"Ever since we read Terry Pratchett for the first time we dreamed of a suitcase that could follow us everywhere. While planet earth may not have any sapient pearwood to build magical chests out of, we do have a butt ton of robotics that can help make our dreams come true. Enter the Cowarobot R1, a travel companion that follows you on your journey. It can intelligently avoid obstacles and always dutifully keep up with it's human. This means your hands are free to deal with other things like passports, wallets, coffee, or whatever you normally use your hands for. At full charge it can go for 20km, and if it falls behind you, it quickly catches up with a max speed of 7.2km/h. It's fixed with a depth sensor as well as sonar technology to get around. An R1 bracelet on your wrist is what it uses to track you. And If you've left it somewhere you can double tap the screen and it quickly finds a path and navigates to wherever you are..."
http://www.m2now.co.nz/1-robotic-suitcase-follows-everywhere-go/
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04) DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS
DWCON 2016 NEWS
4.1 AN EXCLUSIVE WOSSNAME REPORT
From Brian Dominic, Wossname's man on the scene, who writes:
(Starts computer)
(Straps into saddle)
(Starts pedalling)
RIGHT – let's go!
What follows is a very personal account of what was a fabulous weekend.................
THURSDAY (helping day)
I'd arrived at the Ramada hotel (the overflow hotel just down the road from the Grange) reasonably early in the morning, and having been able to check in before The Allotted Time I was able to go up to the Grange, find Ops and ask if there was anything that needed doing. Eyes lit up. I was duly handed a thick wad of posters and some Blu-tac, and sent forth to decorate the hotel. The walls of the hotel were dotted with fake adverts for things a Morporkian might want to buy – all tastefully produced and in various sizes. I caught up with (and lent a hand to) the Official Renaming Detail, who were erecting the large signs that said "UPPER BROADWAY" "LOWER BROADWAY" "CAVERN CLUB" "STO LAT", "L SPACE (1 & 2)" (when joined together they were an l-shaped place) so that people would know where they were.
After this, is was Goodie Bag Stuffing Time! Picture the scene: a long line of tables, stacked with Goodies – a "Mystery Envelope" packed with totally unknown goodies, the Posh Programme (which normally gets looked at by me after the event), the Read Me, which is a smaller and more convenient version of the Convention Programme – as suggested, this is the one you can use your highlighter and marker pen on to mark up those unmissable events you just HAVE to go to, plus a colouring sheet, a set of small coloured pencils to use on it, a commemorative medal and the all-important lanyard, pen and badge holder. One walked steadily down one side of the table, adding each article as one passed it, then left the full bags at the other end, picked up an empty bag and worked your way down the other side of the table, which had exactly the same things on it in the same order!
After dinner, the evening was taken up with The Incredibly Hard Pub Quiz (well, she DOES have two years to put it together) with an incredibly picky Judge of What Is Right (the only village in the UK with an exclamation mark in it's name is Westward Ho!, but miss the exclamation mark off and you get nil points).
That was about it for Thursday.................
FRIDAY (Registration Day)
This was the day I now normally give to the Convention: I was on duty just after 0900 in Registration, to unite Convention goers with their badge and goodie bag. Old hands knew what to do, but newcomers had to be told what to do with their badge (no sniggers at the back, there!) and to put their hotel key cards there as well, to save them getting deprogrammed by their mobile phone. It was also our job to suggest that Newbies went to Der Troll's Guide For Der Confused – a briefing intended for new visitors. We also had to tactfully enquire if there were any issues which would require the addition of a blue spot to a badge which gave priority in queues and lifts. As the registrations progressed, we found our selves with less and less boxes to look through as more and more people arrived and the contents of the boxes (one envelope for each attendee) disappeared. When we got to two boxes, we moved the Registration table across Upper Broadway to a more shady spot, as we had been under the Greenhouse Roof on the outer side and were starting to gently bake. I'd been off site for some reason and arrived back as Bernard Pearson was about to read "Where's My Cow" – an experience I would have liked to share in, but people were crammed into the space provided and there was no way I could get any way near.
I missed the Opening Ceremony, which actually finished before the scheduled time – something of a "first" – but got in for Terry Pratchett – a Memorial which were the highlights of the Memorial held earlier this year. I don't know how much of this may have leaked around to Oz, but I suspect it might get there sooner or later so I won't say to much about it. The only thing I WILL share is that the final item was "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life". I sat, I sang, I wept uncontrollably (and I wasn't the only one)...................
Next up was Bedtime Stories, for which I didn't follow the pyjamas dress code! There was some interesting material, including the outline of a section of a book that will never be published (and which was shredded in stage after it had been read). Finally, I went to the Karaoke Session, which was rubbishy in that it didn't contain any of the ninety-odd songs I sing.
SATURDAY (Costume Day)
This was the day I intended to wear my Auditor's costume all day and appear in the Masquerade. The first thing to do was to attend the Masquerade Rehearsal, to work out what things needed to happen in my piece, and get Pat Harkin to co-operate with what I wanted to do. After that, I costumed up and went a-wandering. I managed to drop in on a session or two – nobody stopped me.................... For lunch and dinner I dropped out of character – when I took off the mesh mask that effectively stopped people from seeing me I was quite surprised at how cool it was! It was very difficult to stay in character – stopping oneself from using "I" is very, very difficult! I dropped into the Stephen Briggs / Rob Watkins conversation but chickened out of How to fit a Corset and Sewing Cheats! After dinner, it was time to report backstage for the Masquerade. At least we could see each act as it went on but we couldn't unfortunately hear them, as we'd only got a monitor off the video system which was projecting images onto a large screen alongside the stage. Whilst the judges were deliberating, we all went for a photo shoot, then went back in to hear the results. After that, it was off to the late night Hedgehog Party, where everybody can bring food from their part of the country / world...............
SUNDAY (Lazy Day)
I started off late on Sunday – my first event was at 1100 and was entitled "Liner notes – Annotating the Discworld" which gave an interesting insight into the adding of footnotes and the building up to a punch line. I went to Juke Box Jury, where the idea was to sing one tune to the words of another. In the course of this workshop, we came across a previously unknown version of The Dwarf Song, sung to the tune of "Let it Go" from Frozen......... later, I took in the children's Masquerade, seeing as how I hadn't seen the adult one. As I wasn't attending the Gala Dinner, I took myself into Leamington Spa to meet up with a group of similarly-minded attendees. I went back to the Con in time for Toast & Jam, where anybody can get up to sing anything (more or less) but this was disturbed by some Gawd-awful rattling on the ceiling (which was in fact the floor under the stage in the main Con performing space). I went up to investigate and found a 4 piece rock band setting up to perform............ which they did for around 90 minutes, following which I headed off.
MONDAY (Wind Down Day)
I didn't do an awful lot today: I went to the feedback session which is always interesting, followed by The Day's Big Event "Witches Abroad – The Musical" which was excellent, given that there's very little time to rehearse. It inevitably over-ran so we all got booted out of the hall and got told to come back 30 minutes later than scheduled for the Closing Ceremony. The band I had supported was ushered into an area at the front, as we'd won the Battle of the Bands, one of the things which had run throughout the Convention but totally passed me by. Once all the rewards and presentations were completed, we went off to the Dead Monkey Party, which is a gentle winding-down party with loadsa food. I ended up playing my second game of Cards Against Humanity and actually won my first black card! (Authors' note: see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cards_Against_Humanity if you have no idea what this is all about....)
Annnnnnnnnnnd – that was that!
I drove back into The Real World(TM) the next morning – the temporary traffic lights near the hotel which slowed everybody up, roadworks on a critical junction which caused even more chaos but at least after that, traffic was flowing...................
EDITOR'S NOTE: to view Brian's superb Auditor costume, go to https://wossname.dreamwidth.org/file/27132.jpg
*
Here be a call to arms, or to greasepaint and props, from another Brian, the Brian known as Sabremeister:
"April 2018 would have seen Sir Terry Pratchett's 70th birthday. He had a well-known connection with the theatre, and so to celebrate, why not put on a play? Local theatre companies around the world can use this month to stage any Discworld play, in a great big celebration and commemoration of Sir Terry's life and work. I discussed the idea with Colin Smythe at the DW Convention 2016, and he said it was a good one, go for it. So here we are, going for it. Let everybody know, and book the performance slot at the next planning meeting at your local theatre group!"
There's a Facebook event page for this, which can be found at https://www.facebook.com/events/580653112059960/
To view the original announcement, go to http://discworld.livejournal.com/1107951.html
*
...and here be a fascinating pub quiz from the just-finished Convention, as reprinted on the interwebs:
"You weren't there and are curious what you missed? You were there but hit the bar afterwards and can't remember half of them? Or you're just looking for inspiration for devious questions to ask your friends? We have the questions and answers of the Thursday evening pub quiz for you, courtesy of Low King of the Dwarves Jennifer Delaney."
Questions are about Roundworld but sharing subject matter with various Discworld novels. Some samples:
What Belgian beer's name means "Sudden Death"?
In the works of HP Lovecraft, what university is located in the town of Arkham?
Where would you find the Pyramid of Cestius?
Three films tie on most Academy Awards won. Two tie for most nominations. But which film is in both categories?
Which religion has eight million gods and 80,000 shrines?
What is the oldest regiment in the British Army?
What was the first dukedom created in England, currently held by a member of the British royal family?
In Greek mythology, what was the first thing to exist?
What colour are post boxes on the island of Guernsey?
The answers are provided by clicking on the Answer button for each question. To view and take the full quiz, go to:
https://2016.dwcon.org/news/2016/08/26/pub-quiz-questions
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05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
5.0 NEW: TAMAHER IN CARDIFF (FEBRUARY 2017)
Monstrous Productions carry on from strength to strength! (see the review of their latest production below, item 5.7)
When: 22nd–25th February 2017
Venue: The Gate Theatre, Keppoch Street, Roath, Cardiff CF24 3JW
Time: 7.30pm (2.30pm matinee on the 25th)
Tickets: £7 (£5 concession), available from http://monstrousptc.com/
5.1 REMINDER: WYRD SISTERS IN LANCRE, ERM, LANCASHIRE! (SEPTEMBER)
The Greenbrook Methodist Church Theatre Group still have one more performance of their production of Wyrd Sisters to go!
When: 2nd September 2016
Venue: Greenbrook Methodist Church Theatre Group & Community Centre, Greenbrook Road, Burnley, Lancs BB12 6NZ
Time: 7.30pm all shows
Tickets: £8 adult, £5 child, available by phoning Wendy on 01282 426 889
http://www.burnleymethodists.org.uk/greenbrook.htm
5.2 NEW: FEET OF CLAY IN ADELAIDE, FOURECKS (OCTOBER/NOVEMBER)
Adelaide's famous Unseen Theatre will be staging Feet of Clay as their next Pratchett production!
"It's Murder in Discworld!—which ordinarily is no big deal. But what bothers Commander Samuel Vimes, Head of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, is that the unusual deaths of three harmless old men do not bear the clean, efficient marks of the Assassins' Guild. But that's only the start... someone is slowly poisoning the Patrician. No one knows who, no one knows why and, worst of all no one knows how – he just gets weaker and weaker. Added to that, the City Watch has got problems of its own. There's a werewolf suffering from Pre-Lunar Tension, Corporal Nobbs is hobnobbing with the nobs, and there's something really strange about the new dwarf recruit – especially his earrings and eyeshadow. Who can you trust when there are mobs on the streets, plotters in the dark and all the clues point the wrong way? Nevertheless, Sam Vimes has got to find out not only whodunit, but howdunit too. He's not even sure what they dun. But soon as he knows what the questions are, he's going to want some answers. We don't want to give anything away, but Vimes may find that the truth is not out there at all. In fact, it may be inside – but inside what? or should we say whom?"
When: 21st October–5th November 2016 (preview Friday 21st October; opening night 22nd October 22; then season continues Wed.–Sat. to 5th November)
Venue: Bakehouse Theatre, 255 AngasStreet, Adelaide
Time: TBA
Tickets: Adults $22; Concession $18; Groups (6+) $16; TRev $16; Preview $15
http://unseen.com.au/
5.3 REMINDER: WYRD SISTERS IN EAST GRINSTEAD (OCTOBER)
The Ace Theatre Company will present their production of Wyrd Sisters in October.
When: 20th – 22nd October 2016
Venue: Chequer Mead Theatre, De La Warr Road, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 3BS
Time: all evening shows 7.30pm; matinee on Saturday 22nd, 2.30pm
Tickets: evening shows £13 (£11 concessions); Saturday matinee £11 (£9 concessions), available from the Box Office by phoning 01342 302000, by email to tickets@chequermead.org.uk, or online at http://www.chequermead.org.uk/whats-on/theatre/event/?e=364967&cat= (click on the desired date button to purchase)
http://www.chequermead.org.uk/
5.4 REMINDER: GUARDS! GUARDS! IN BRISBANE (OCTOBER/NOVEMBER)
The Brisbane Arts Theatre takes on yet another Discworld play later this year, in October and November: "From the legendary author Sir Terry Pratchett comes the eighth novel in the Discworld series and first featuring the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. Long believed extinct, a superb specimen, The Noble Dragon has appeared in Discworld's greatest city. Not only does this unwelcome visitor have a nasty habit of charbroiling everything in its path, in rather short order it is crowned King (it is a noble dragon, after all). With some help from an orangutan librarian, it is the task of the Night Watch to overpower the secret brotherhood and restore order to the kingdom in this fantastical Discworld adventure."
When: 8th October through 12th November 2016
Venue: Brisbane Arts Theatre, 210 Petrie Terrace, Brisbane, QLD 4000
Time: 8pm Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays (except 10th November); 6.30pm Sundays (16th & 30th October)
Tickets: Adults $31, Concession $25, Group 10+ $25, Group 75+ $20, Student Rush $10(10 mins before curtain), available online at http://bit.ly/1QGbXBF
http://www.artstheatre.com.au/show/guardsguards
5.5 MORT IN THE LAND OF FOG (NOVEMBER)
Paeroa Little Theatre's major production for 2016 will be Mort!
When: 9th–18th November 2016
Venue: Paeroa Little Theatre, 1 Francis Street, Paeroa 3600, th North Island, Land of Fog, er, New Zealand
Time: TBA
Tickets: TBA
http://www.facebook.com/PaeroaLittleTheatre/
5.6 STILL QUITE NEW: WYRD SISTERS IN BOLTON, LANCS (MARCH 2017)
Bolton Little Theatre, "a vibrant amateur theatre company run by members" since 1931, will be presenting their production of Wyrd Sisters next March.
When: 6th–11th March 2017
Venue: Bolton Little Theatre, Hanover Street, Bolton BL1 4TG
Time: 7.30pm
Tickets: £10 (Monday night 3 for 2 special), available at boltonlittletheatre.ticketsource.co.uk – group bookings of 10+ (£9) should be booked through the Box Office. “You can book at Bolton Little Theatre box office in person or by telephone on Monday night from 7.30 to 9pm and Friday mornings from 10.30 to 12 noon – no extra charge if paying by cash or cheque and you can book during the run of the plays or you can book online at boltonlittletheatre.ticketsource.co.uk ...credit card charges will apply. Tickets can be e-tickets (no charge) mobile phone ticket (50p) standard post (£1.50).”
http://www.boltonlittletheatre.co.uk/terry-pratchetts-wyrd-sisters/
5.7 REVIEWS: GOING POSTAL IN CARDIFF
by: togiraikonoka on The Sprout:
"I had previously seen Nightwatch and loved it, it was an amazing rendition of the book. Just like that show, with Going Postal, you have to rely on your own imagination as there are minimal props used and you are kept intrigued while the cast are switching around sets (which is perfect for this type of show, in my opinion). I thought it was brilliant when Mr Pump 'found' the postmaster's hat instead of Mr Groat like in the film, also I found it emotionally powering when Mr Lipwig put on the hat and could 'hear' the letters calling out to him and even made me tear up when he knew the post office was burning because he could hear the cries of the burning letters even without the hat on... The humor between Moist Von Lipwig and other characters was great fun, like when he stopped Stanley from going on a stamp speech as he was so excited to go from his collection of pins to stamps. I also enjoyed it especially when Mrs Maccalariat came in and mentions how worried she was about the golem who was cleaning the female bathroom... All in all, they managed to pull of a pretty great show and yet another fun filled rendition of the book..."
http://thesprout.co.uk/blog/2016/08/22/review-going-postal-the-gate-arts-centre/
By the twin bloggers known as CL Raven:
"We never miss a play and each time it gets bigger and better and we wonder how the hell they'll pull the next one off, as they get more ambitious every time. But they always do, with a brilliant cast and crew and a minimal set that really works. The Gate arts centre is the perfect venue for it. Directed by Amy Davies and Edward Thomas, Going Postal tells the story of Moist Von Lipwig... Asher Townsend, who plays Moist, was fantastic. He captured his cheeky character perfectly, even down to his smile, which often made the audience laugh. And his gold suit stole the show. The golems were a particular favourite of ours and their costumes were amazing. It's not easy to bring a thousands' year old pottery creature to life! Moist's scenes with Adora Bell Dearheart were always entertaining. Ellen Warren, who played Miss Dearheart was perfect for the role. She was exactly how Miss Dearheart should be. Josh Flynn, who played pin-obsessive Stanley and Neil Chappell who played Reacher Gilt's assistant Igor, got the most laughs. Josh's hyperactive portrayal of Stanley was hilarious. Pete Belsen did a great job as Junior Postmaster Groat... Michael's deadpan performance of Vetinari was spot-on. He had the dry sense of humour down perfectly. We're always astounded by the quality of acting in these productions, as well as the costumes and set props. It's clear how much fun everyone has doing this.."
https://clraven.wordpress.com/2016/08/24/going-postal/
5.8 REVIEWS: MORT AT THE EDINBURGH FRINGE
By Dominic Corr on TV Bomb:
A master in absurdity, Terry Pratchett used and abused the written word in his creation of the Discworld. Those unfamiliar with his works can still enjoy Mort for its story, characters and comedy, though fans of the original Discworld series will notice narrative gaps in the transition to the theatre. It happens, and really it's remarkable how much Duck in a Hat Theatre fit into an hour and twenty minutes. Personified Death is perhaps Pratchett's masterpiece: droll, witty and at times genuinely intimidating. Duck in a Hat's interpretation of the character is precise, humorous where it needs to be and fearfully commanding when called for... Whilst some cast members edge on the trims of mediocrity, the character of Mort is carried out well. A subtle mixture of charm and pathos draw the audience into the story effectively..."
http://www.tvbomb.co.uk/review/terry-pratchetts-mort/
By Caroline Cawley on Edinburgh Fringe Guru:
"The cast is comprised of eight members, many of them playing multiple roles. The standout performance is from Naoise Murphy as a rather nasal recruiter who's trying to help Death find a job. She also plays a waitress at a party who reacts violently to a goblet appearing on her tray seemingly out of nowhere, and a cursing robber whose prey escapes her by walking through a wall. In this adaptation, the voice of the actor playing Death has been electronically altered and, combined with his piercing eyes (provided by blue LEDs), he cuts an imposing cloaked figure as he stalks the stage. In general, however, the costumes are hit and miss... The audience appeared to enjoy the adaptation, but I believe this is only because of a decent script. The play benefits from Pratchett's popularity – there were clearly a large number of fans in the audience – while Duck in a Hat contribute only sporadically decent performances and generally poor production values..."
http://edinburgh.fringeguru.com/reviews/edinburgh-2016/terry-pratchetts-mort
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06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS: UPDATES AND REMINDERS
The Broken Drummers, "London's Premier Unofficially Official Discworld Group" (motto "Nil percussio est"), meets next on Monday 5th September 2016 at the Monkey Puzzle, 30 Southwick Street, London, W2 1JQ. For more information, go to http://brokendrummers.org/ or email BrokenDrummers@gmail.com or nicholls.helen@yahoo.co.uk
*
Canberra, Australia's Discworld fan group is Drumknott's Irregulars: "We are a newly established Terry Pratchett & Discworld social group in Canberra called Drumknott's Irregulars. The group is open to all, people from interstate and overseas are welcome, and our events will not be heavily themed. Come along to dinner for a chat and good company. We welcome people all all fandoms (and none) and we would love to see you at one of our events, even if you're just passing through. Please contact us via Facebook (_https://www.facebook.com/groups/824987924250161/_) or Google Groups (_https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/drumknotts-irregulars_) or join us at our next event."
*
For Facebook users in Fourecks: The Victorian Discworld Klatch is "a social group for fans of Discworld and Terry Pratchett... run by a dedicated team who meet monthly and organise events monthly." "If you'd like to join our events please ask to join the Klatch."
https://www.facebook.com/groups/VictorianDiscworldKlatch
*
"The Gathering of the Loonies (Wincanton chapter)" is a public Facebook meeting group: "This group, by request of Jo in Bear will continue to be used for future unofficial (not run by the Emporium) fan Gatherings in Wincanton. Look here for information." [Editor's note: this is an active group. If you use Facebook, it may be worth joining!]
https://www.facebook.com/groups/373578522834654/
*
The Pratchett Partisans are a fan group who meet monthly at either Brisbane or Indooroopilly to "eat, drink and chat about all things Pratchett. We hold events such as Discworld dinners, games afternoons, Discworld photo scavenger hunts. We also attend opening night at Brisbane Arts Theatre's Discworld plays." The Partisans currently have about 200 members who meet at least twice a month, usually in Brisbane.
For more info about their next meetup, join up at https://www.facebook.com/groups/pratchettpartisans/ or contact Ula directly at uwilmott@yahoo.com.au
*
The City of Small Gods is a group for fans in Adelaide and South Australia.
"We have an established Terry Pratchett & Discworld fan group in Adelaide called The City of Small Gods, which is open to anyone who would like to come - you don't have to live in Adelaide or even South Australia, or even be a Discworld fan, but that's mostly where our events will be held, and we do like discussing Pratchett's works. Our (semi-) regular meetings are generally held on the last Thursday of the month at a pub or restaurant in Adelaide. We have dinner at 6.30pm followed by games until 9pm. The games are usually shorter games like Pairs, Sushi Go, or Tiny Epic Defenders, with the occasional Werewolf session, as these are the best sort of games that work in a pub setting. Every few months, we have a full day's worth of board games at La Scala Cafe, 169 Unley Rd, Unley in the function room starting at 10am. In addition, we will occasionally have other events to go and see plays by Unseen Theatre Company, book discussions on Terry's latest, craft, chain maille or costuming workshops or other fun social activities."
The next Monthly Dinner and Games at the Caledonian Hotel will be held on 29th September 2016, and there will be a Pirate Costume Bowling at Cross Road Bowl on 1st October. For more info, go to www.cityofsmallgods.org.au
*
The Broken Vectis Drummers meet next on Friday 7th October 2016 (probably) from 7.30pm at The Castle pub in Newport, Isle of Wight. For more info and any queries, contact broken_vectis_drummers@yahoo.co.uk
*
The Wincanton Omnian Temperance Society (WOTS) next meets on Friday 2nd September 2016 (probably) at Wincanton's famous Bear Inn from 7pm onwards. "Visitors and drop-ins are always welcome!"
*
The Northern Institute of the Ankh-Morpork and District Society of Flatalists, a Pratchett fangroup, has been meeting on a regular basis since 2005 but is now looking to take in some new blood (presumably not in the non-reformed Uberwald manner). The Flatalists normally meet at The Narrowboat Pub in Victoria Street, Skipton, North Yorkshire, to discuss "all things Pratchett" as well as having quizzes and raffles. Details of future meetings are posted on the Events section of the Discworld Stamps forum:
http://www.discworldstamps.co.uk/forum/
*
Sydney Drummers (formerly Drummers Downunder) meet next on Monday 5th September 2016 at 6.30pm (probably) in Sydney at 3 Wise Monkeys, 555 George Street, Sydney,2000. For more information, contact Sue (aka Granny Weatherwax): kenworthys@yahoo.co.uk
*
The Treacle Mining Corporation, formerly known as Perth Drummers, meets next on Monday 5th September 2016 (probably) from 5.30pm at Carpe Cafe, 526 Murray Street, Perth, Western Australia. For details follow Perth Drummers on Twitter @Perth_Drummers or join their Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Perth.Drummers/ – or message Alexandra Ware directly at <alexandra.ware@gmail.com>
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07) DISCWORLD ARTS AND CRAFTS NEWS
7.1 FROM THE DISCWORLD EMPORIUM
* The 2017 Discworld calendar!
"Featuring the iconic fantasy artwork of Josh Kirby, the 2017 Discworld calendar is a nostalgic celebration of his spectacular and unmistakable cover illustrations for Terry Pratchett's earliest Discworld books. The 2017 calendar features twelve pieces of artwork, along with all those important Discworld and roundworld dates that you'll still forget about despite them hanging on your wall in such a decorative fashion. Each calendar includes a full page of colourful artwork for each month along with plenty of space for your notes, reminders and appointments. Includes all major realtime calendrical data for Great Britain, Eire, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the USA, as well as notable Discworld dates."
Each Calendar is priced at £14.99. For more information, ad to order, go to:
http://www.discworldemporium.com/terry-pratchett-discworld-calendar-2017
* An even more special Discworld Colouring Book!
"ARTIST'S EDITION! Paul has hand-picked a selection of his favourite colouring book illustrations including witches, dragons & feegles for this special edition, which features 40 pages of artist's quality display board and special binding for you to tear out and frame your finished masterpieces! Paul Kidby has designed the covers for the Discworld novels since 2002, and is the author and artist of the The Art Of Discworld. If Terry Pratchett's pen gave his characters life, Paul Kidby's brush allowed them to live it. Containing black-and-white line drawings based on Sir Terry Pratchett's Best Loved characters, his hugely popular artwork as well as original pieces produced exclusively for this book - featuring such iconic Discworld personalities as Granny Weatherwax, Sam Vimes, Archchancellor Ridcully, Rincewind, Tiffany Aching and, of course, DEATH – Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book is required ...reading? ...for all Discworld fans."
Each Artist's Edition Discworld Colouring Book is priced at £14.99 plus shipping (UK £3.50, Europe £7, Rest of World £10) and is now available for pre-order (publication date will be 3rd November 2016). For more information, and to pre-order, go to http://bit.ly/2bHipNW
* The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner in two editions!
"An illustrated collection of short stories by master storyteller Sir Terry Pratchett, featuring food fights, pirates, wizards and crooks!
"Poor Mr Swimble is having a bad day. Rabbits are bouncing out of his hat, pigeons are flying out of his jacket and every time he points his finger, something magically appears – cheese sandwiches, socks . . . even a small yellow elephant on wheels! It's becoming a real nuisance – and he's allergic to rabbits. His friends at the Magic Rectangle can't help, but the mysterious vacuum cleaner he saw that morning may have something to do with it . . . Fourteen fantastically funny stories from master storyteller Sir Terry Pratchett, full of food fights, pirates, wizards and crooks!"
The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner is priced at £12.99 plus shipping (UK £3.50, Europe £7, Rest of World £10). For more information, and to order, go to http://bit.ly/2bPII3p
Also available: " A special collector's edition of collected short stories by master storyteller Sir Terry Pratchett, complete with slipcase, critical commentary, two bonus stories a beautiful limited-edition print illustrated by Mark Beech, plus foreword penned by Rob Wilkins!"
The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner Deluxe Slipcase Edition is priced at £25 plus shipping (UK £3.50, Europe £7, Rest of World £10). For more information, and to order, go to
http://bit.ly/2bAsEok
* HOT ITEM: the Musicians' Guild LBE!
"Produced to coincide with the 2016 Discworld Convention in Warwick, this special edition LBE issue is a celebration of Ankh-Morpork's illustrious Musicians' Guild! Along with an assortment of current Discworld stamps, each LBE contains two new guild issues – the Musicians' Guild One Penny, and a rootin' tootin' limited edition 3p – exclusive to this LBE and the Musician's Guild First Day Cover. A generous amount of sports and rarities prizes have been sprinkled throughout the edition including dead letter labels and clacks-o-grams!
"With the triangle being our favourite musical instrument, what better time to introduce a new design of the most sought-after stamp of them all! Only 10 sports will ever be released of this illustrious issue, and TWO are waiting to be found in this LBE edition!
"Lucky collectors will find prize tickets entitling them to one of 25 'sport' first day covers featuring rare sport musicians' Guild issues, or one of 25 large format sheets of limited edition 3p stamps compete with TWO whole rows of sport variant issues!!
"N.B. Special Editions tend to sell our VERY quickly, often within the first hour of release. To avoid disappointment we recommend the purchase of an LBE Season Ticket. Otherwise please have this page ready at the time of release and remember to refresh your browser. It is important to note that adding LBEs to your cart does NOT guarantee purchase - proceeding quickly to checkout once they have been added to cart is heartily advised."
Each Musicians' Guild Little Brown Envelope (LBE) is priced at £5.00. For more information, and to order, go to
http://www.discworldemporium.com/discworld-stamps/new%20stamps/musicians-guild-lbe
The Steam to Summer First Day Cover: "A charming piece of postal ephemera celebrating a summer of holidays and Discworld tourism thanks to the Ankh-Morpork & Sto Plains Hygienic Railway! Every First Day Cover features a full 'train set' of Ankh-Morpork Railway Farthing stamps, comprising seven different designs from Engine No.1 Iron Girder to a variety of cars and carriages of the A-M&SHR. Otherwise only available as a beautiful whole sheet. Inside each envelope you'll find a beautiful glossy advertising postcard promoting holidays on the rails, with a charming illustration of the seaside town of Quiremouth! Limited edition of 200 envelopes - available while stocks last."
Each Steam to Summer First Day Cover is priced at £10. For more information, and to order, go to
http://www.discworldemporium.com/discworld-stamps/new%20stamps/steam-to-summer-fdc
7.2 FROM DISCWORLD.COM
* The Perennial. Pratchett Diary!
"Sir Terry Pratchett left us, far too early, in March 2015. To celebrate his life and works, we've given over the 2017 Discworld Diary – which will be a perennial diary – to remembrances and tributes from some of those who knew and loved him and his extraordinary body of work. Contributors include Neil Gaiman, A S Byatt, Terry Pratchett's literary agent Colin Smythe, co-author of the Long Earth books Stephen Baxter, famed bookseller Rog Peyton, and many more. With an introduction from his daughter Rhianna Pratchett and an afterword from longtime friend and colleague Rob Wilkins. Exclusively embossed with Sir Terry's signature and sealed with his personal coat of arms – the design of which he oversaw himself.
Each Terry Pratchett Diary is priced at £20.00 and will be published on 13th October 2016. For more information, and to pre-order, go to
http://discworld.com/products/books/terry-pratchett-diary/
* The Dark Side of the Turtle coaster!
"To celebrate the theme of this year's DWCON - A Discworld twist on a Roundworld classic."
Each Dark Side of the Turtle Coaster is priced at £2.50. For more information, and to order, go to
http://discworld.com/products/convention-launches/dark-side-turtle-coaster/
* The Greebowie Coaster!
"To celebrate the theme of this year's DWCON – Greebo with a Bowie-esque twist!"
Each Greebo as Bowie Coaster is priced at £2.50. For more information, and to order, go to
http://discworld.com/products/convention-launches/greebo-bowie-coaster/
* "Josh Kirby lives!"
Discworld.com has announced the formation of a partnership with the estate of the late Josh Kirby:
"The collaboration will give these unique and treasured works of art a new lease of life through a range of exclusive, high quality products. The move is the brainchild of Discworld.com's founder and owner Sandra Kidby, Kirby's niece and Estate Director Amy Anderson and Marketing Director Rob Liano. Kirby was renowned as one of the earliest Discworld cover artists and was also a highly regarded science fiction and fantasy painter in his own right, with many of his creations adorning the literary works of such greats as Ian Fleming, Isaac Asimov, Alfred Hitchcock, Richard Matheson, Jack Kerouac, Jules Verne and Edgar Rice Burroughs. He wasn't just a cover artist, he applied his talents to iconic film posters ranging from motion picture phenomenon Star Wars as well as Beastmaster, Krull and the unforgettable Monty Python's Life of Brian. His heroes and heroines were archetypal fantasy figures; his scenes infused with ribald humour and his works meticulously hand-painted."
To read the full announcement, go to http://discworld.com/discworld-com-joins-forces-estate-josh-kirby/
7.3 FROM THE PAUL KIDBY SHOP
The Discworld Colouring Book is here! And Paul Kidby's shop is offering an exclusive signed ‘Pencil Eater' bookplate with each copy.
Priced at £13.50 (price includes postage & packaging for UK deliveries only). For more information, and to order, go to
http://bit.ly/2alSV63
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08) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE: THIEF OF TIME
From Anne at Hubward Ho, analysing Myria Lejean:
"I love Lady LeJean and her development, her struggle to cope with a physicality that has been thrust upon her. The Auditors are, essentially, a consciousness, a mind, without physical form, a body. Without physical form, the Auditors are undifferentiated—there is no individual identity or personality, and if one begins to develop, it is quickly destroyed. In Thief of Time, the Auditors realize that while they can easily manipulate the elements of the universe to create a perfect replica of a human body, it just lays there until the Auditors power it with their own consciousness. However, once that consciousness is separated from the rest by inhabiting a physical form, an individual develops. Once Lady LeJean gains her own consciousness, she finds herself thinking and acting more and more in human ways. The drive of hunger, the enjoyment of art, the appreciation of a cat's companionship—they are all the result of a physical form. It turns out that consciousness is like water: it takes the shape of its container... One of the main themes, and one of my favorite themes, in Thief of Time is that our physicality, our separation from other minds, our stupid, stupid bodies make us human. We exist within our limited perception of time and space, and that perception shapes how we think of ourselves and our universe. We need our skin in order to feel, and we need our brains in order to think, and we need our lungs and vocal cords and mouths and tongues and teeth in order to speak to each other, to share in the experience of being human and alive and in a body, to shorten the gap between my mind and yours..."
https://hubwardho.com/2016/08/16/she-is-an-immaterial-girl-living-in-a-material-world/
...and from Ryan at Hubward Ho, on (eventually) the same book:
"The story of Discworld writ large is all about the clash of known with unknown, civilized with uncivilized (that is, from the point of view of the 'civilized'). It's about the tension between reconciling with, and resisting, change and assimilation. How do you reconcile magic with the clacks? How much resilience to change do you need to show if you're a dwarf in the big city, far from home and tradition? In another writer's hands, this could seem uncomfortably like colonization, and at times it sort of does. But it's clear that Pratchett is well aware of this, as these tensions become the morally ambiguous backbone of stories like The Fifth Elephant, Thud!, Snuff, and Raising Steam.
"In its own way, Thief of Time is rife with the tension between reconciliation and resistance. All kinds of things cross over the edge from the wild and supernatural into the tame and ordinary. Pratchett observes that Chaos is 'Kaos with his hair combed and a tie on,' which in turn becomes Ronnie Soak, milk man. Godlike anthropomorphic personifications like War now have families. The child of Time is either a thief or a clock-maker. The heir to the House of Death is a schoolteacher. A cosmic being falls in love with chocolate. And in the wider context these characters subsist in a world in which magic-slinging, throat-cutting wizards would now rather stay at home, thank you, while clacks send messages flickering across the lands. This should be disappointing. Do we really want to find that the fantastic has become ordinary? Do we really want the whole world to be mapped? But in Pratchett's hands, it doesn't feel disappointing..."
https://hubwardho.com/2016/08/13/the-taming-of-the-world-a-report-from-the-edges/
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09) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
Pterry at Dillons bookshop in Derby, 1996. The chain closed three years later:
http://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/images/localworld/ugc-images/276250/binaries/Dillons.jpg
"Nae king! Nae quin! Nae laird!" The Nac Mac Feegle present swords in Tiffany's kitchen, during the recent Unseen Theatre production of The Wee Free Men:
http://unseen.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/wfm-swords-tiff-kitchen800.jpg
The Cunning Artificer and a certain bibliophilic friend:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CqPCFMXWIAA-Q_g.jpg
A very pleased-looking Paul Kidby preparing signed copies of the Discworld Colouring Book:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cp57XgiWYAAcLb-.jpg
...and Lord Vetinari's Roundworld stunt double, Stephen Briggs, signing his co-authored works at this month's UK Discworld Convention:
https://twitter.com/StephenPBriggs/status/769880791094587392
Also from the latest DWCon, a very well-coiffed Lady Sybil, accompanied by a well-known anthropomorphic personification:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cq3F3K-WIAAiJ7U.jpg
...and a helpful Igorina, from same:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CqyX-NzXEAEl9yX.jpg
An adorable Discworld recommendations 'toon by Tumblr user goddamnshinyrock, as linked by Discworld Ales:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CrAif9QWcAEd9Q6.jpg
...and finally, the "Light Rider", the 3D-printed motorbike "inspired by a skeleton". Hands up, anyone who thinks there just might be a Discworld fan among the design team:
http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/wwfeatures/wm/live/624_351/images/live/p0/43/cr/p043crxx.jpg
[If you want to know more about this motorcycle, go to http://www.bbc.com/autos/story/20160802-the-motorbike-inspired-by-a-skeleton – Ed.]
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10) CLOSE
That quote up at the start of this issue comes from a piece on Publishers Weekly, "10 Best Satires", in which "Anything by Terry Pratchett" (yes, Mr Honig really does mean anything) rubs shoulders with such deathless works as Don Quixote, Catch-22 and Animal Farm. To read the whole piece, go to http://bit.ly/2bYUyNy
And that's the lot for August. Take care, and we'll see you at the end of this month!
– Annie Mac
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The End. If you have any questions or requests, write: wossname-owner (at) pearwood (dot) info
Copyright (c) 2016 by Klatchian Foreign Legion
