Paul & Nessa's Happy Hour - the end

September 28th was a very sad day for me, and it's taken me nearly three months to get round to writing about it which I think is rather telling.
I received a tweet from my mate Paul Dunn on that day, asking if I (and actor / fellow writer David Foster who plays Murgala in my sketches) was going to tune in that evening to Paul & Nessa's Happy Hour - those of you who follow this Blog however fleetingly will know that this is the local radio show in Sunderland to which I have contributed comedy sketch material since mid-2015.
I replied in the affirmative - I'd made it a habit to tune in online each week, not just to hear my material performed but also because I really enjoyed the whole show. I rather facetiously tweeted to David that I reckoned we'd be sacked live on air. As it turned out this was almost true! September 28th's show was, very suddenly, the final edition of Paul & Nessa's Happy Hour on Spark FM and we didn't know until Paul announced it live on air.

I was, quite simply, gutted.

That's not me being selfish or egotistical by any means; I wasn't paid for any of the sketches, nor did my involvement earn me any particular kudos or further opportunities. But I did feel massively proud to hear my material performed and broadcast regularly - and even repeated (material must be half decent if producers want to use it more than once!), and Paul & Nessa were very generous with the thanks and credits on air. I always looked upon the whole endeavour as a collaboration: we were all doing it for the love of it, and if it helped bring light to someone's evening then that was a job well done.

No, I was gutted because I really loved the show each week and really felt a part of the team. I understand perfectly Paul & Vanessa's reasons for putting the show on hold; I assume it was a relatively quick decision, since plans were already in place for a Christmas Special with a return for Murgala and some new material which I'd started working on. We remain firm friends (as firm as anyone can be when at opposite ends of the country!) and I hope further opportunities may arise to collaborate again in the future.
There are about fifteen other unused sketches already written (not Murgala), which may see the light of day eventually, we'll see. In the mean time I'll continue to post the Mixcloud editions of the shows as and when they are uploaded so people can follow things through to the end.

Paul & Nessa have very publicly thanked me on a number of occasions. I'd like to thank them, and Cranked Anvil Productions again here for using my material in the first place and bringing a huge smile to my face every Wednesday evening from 21:00 - 22:00.

Thanks guys - and a Merry Christmas.
x

Stuck for Christmas gifts..?

These publications raising money for Charity are still available, to which I have contributed thus far:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Time-Lord-Change-adventure-Drabbles/dp/1540336123/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1481149583&sr=1-1&keywords=a+time+lord+for+change

https://www.amazon.co.uk/You-Else-J-R-Southall-Editor/dp/1519368240/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481149638&sr=8-1&keywords=you+and+who+else

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blakes-Heaven-John-Davies/dp/151199438X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481149673&sr=8-1&keywords=blakes+heaven

All raising money for good causes.

Thanks.

Review: Evil UnLtd. Vol 2: From Evil With Love, by Simon A Forward

Evil UnLtd. Vol.2: From Evil With Love, by Simon A Forward

 

This is a solid sequel and, if I’m honest, a much better read that Volume One. Where the first book could be accused of having an over-enthusiasm of zany ideas, in places, From Evil With Love is much more tempered and restrained – and potentially funnier, where it needs to be funny; it punches where it needs to punch only, rather than constantly slapping you lightly. But also in its favour the hard work of setting up Evil Unlimited had already been done in Volume One, so the narrative is able to start off pretty much in full stride where the former book had left off. 

A note to begin with: not that I would expect anyone to start with Volume Two, but should that happen I don’t think the reader would get anything like as satisfactory an experience if they hadn’t already read volume one. So… 

This time Snide’s group are faced with a growing collection of ‘goodies’ who have decided that they need to be taken down after the culmination of events in Volume One: Salmon Templar from the Piscapalian Secret Service (*cough* Simon Templar, The Saint), Captain Semper Finion Arcoban of Sysfleet (Captain  S(weet) F.A. – look it up if you have to, don’t make me lower the tone). Unlike with Rolph Stengun in the first book, in Volume Two the author actually makes these goodie characters attractive to the reader - engaging and fun to read in themselves, be that Templar’s obvious James Bond-esque skill with women or Sysfleet’s reliance on email communication for everything (to provide an audit trail), which in the latter case creates some moments of purest comedy gold. 

The title From Evil With Love sets the tone of parody from the start; chapter headings pun further on James Bond films, and the book is merciless with the trappings of the franchise as well – natty vehicles, Miss Geldpfennig, gadgets, sexy women dancing in silhouette in the opening titles, ridiculous amounts of bullets wasted by henchmen who can’t aim for toffee…But the book is not dependent on its reader knowing or picking up on these puns and parodies, as with other victims such as The Saint, Doctor Who, Star Trek and others – they are there to raise a wry smile or even a chuckle if known, but otherwise they can be taken at face value and the story still works perfectly. 

Sysfleet, rather wonderfully, reads like The Federation from Star Trek as if it was run by the Vogons from Hitchhiker’s Guide to The Galaxy. Everything is mired in procedure and regulations, and budgets have to be accounted for – biting a thumb at Star Trek: The Next Generation’s claim that humanity by their time had risen above monetary greed in its own particular cosy futuristic utopia.

What all this Sysfleet and Piscapalian Secret Service background does, alongside providing laughs, is add a lot of depth and texture to the book. One thing flows on from the next, and at no point does the action or plot feel forced or contrived – which is very much to the book’s credit. Forward is clearly growing in confidence as a writer and storyteller; From Evil With Love contains instances of non-linear narrative, or narrative that jump cuts without apparent explanation; this toys with and challenges the audience in interesting ways, adding a lot to the ‘readerly’ experience. 

If I had a grumble it would be that the Evil UnLimited crew are rarely gathered together in this story; instead they are split into smaller groups or operating individually. I felt that this diluted the effect of the team – or rather diluted the impact of the team. Having said that, it’s a more domestic setting for them this time around, largely in or about their headquarters on the great tree. There’s plenty for them all to do though - splitting them up allows for better character interplay and development, and means that some characters are less likely to be standing around idle as the more verbose ones hog the limelight. But I still found myself missing the group scenes. You don’t necessarily need four stories all going on concurrently, for example, but if you have four strands of action feeding the main story then it makes sense to split the group’s focus accordingly, if not evenly. 

The book is again split into three episodes, however unlike the first book where the respite from the chaos and humour was a relief the split here feels much less of a necessity. There is continuity of narrative and generally continuity of setting throughout and as the narrative is much more focussed on telling a great story rather than telling it through gags I never felt as fatigued as I occasionally did whilst reading Volume One. 

I should like to remind readers that these books are all written for charity – that’s a considerable creative investment on the part of the author and they deserve to raise as much money as they can for Cancer Research. 

Find out more about the range, plus purchase copies here:  https://4devil.wordpress.com/

You can follow the author Simon A Forward on Twitter on @prefect4d

 

 

I’m looking forward to volume 3…

A Time Lord For Change - unused Drabble for 'Alien Bodies'

As I mentioned in another recent post, I submitted a couple of Drabbles for Chinbeard Books' A Time Lord For Change that weren't used for one reason or another. Here then is the second of those. I had the temerity to propose one for Lawrence Miles' brilliant EDA Alien Bodies. The editors decided in the end they weren't going to go down the route of spin-offs or novels, to keep the book focussed on the TV adventures - which is a fair decision and probably makes the book generally more accessible. Including areas such as the original novels of the 'Wilderness Years' would most likely open a can of (Time)wyrms anyway.

You can find out more about Chinbeard Books and A Time Lord For Change, plus links to purchase it here:

http://www.chinbeardbooks.com/p-o-d-beard

Proceeds from the sale of this book go to the mental health charity MIND http://www.mind.org.uk/

You can follow the editors and publisher on Twitter on @cliffchapman, @eltownendjones; @BarnabyEJ; @ChinbeardBooks

My thanks go to Cliff for conceiving the project and allowing me to contribute, and also to Elton and Barnaby for picking up the baton when needed and pushing the whole thing through to fruition. I sincerely hope the book does well and raises lost of money for such a good cause.

So here then, for your perusal, is my other unused Drabble:

Alien Bodies: ‘Don’t Try The Slurry’

Scientific unit Delta reporting. Meteor F7 found unsuitable, mining resulted in breakup. No loss of resource, but structural damage to saucer. Emergency repair landing on planetoid designated K120t0Ω. Crystalline slurry discovered on planetoid surface. Substance inert, but exhibits high energy potential. Siphoned into hold for further investigation.

Report ends.

Supplemental: Substance shows signs of activity post-launch, bubbling and solidifying at edges. Operatives observing. Behaviour contradicts accepted change of matter states upon injection of energy. Unit leader advises caution.

Supplemental ends.

Further supplemental: Assist! Urgent assist! Slurry has invaded several Dalek casings and-

KROTON WARNING: THE HIGH BRAINS HAVE BEEN EXHAUSTED!

Review: Evil UnLtd Vol 1: The Root Of All Evil, by Simon A Forward

Evil UnLtd Vol 1: The Root of All Evil, by Simon A Forward

Subtitled ‘The Farce Of The Dark Side’ as are all the subsequent volumes.

I must point out at the start that this, and the subsequent three volumes (at the time of writing), are all charity publications – whether e-book or hard copy, all proceeds from the sales of these Evil UnLtd books go to Cancer Research. That, in itself, makes this a very noble undertaking by the author since this is not a short book and it is brimming-over with ideas.

The basic premise is refreshing – we follow the ‘baddies’ , Dexter Snide and his evil troupe, as they plot and attempt to carry out their wicked schemes, often in the face of ill fortune and ineptitude, countered by ‘goody’ opposition from muscle-bound hero Rolph Stengun (think Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rainier Wolfcastle and Dolph Lundgren all rolled into one). Forward plays to the old actors’ adage that the best roles are the villains; they’re the ones with the most interesting lives, the meatiest raison d’etre. None of the crimes perpetrated are particularly gruesome or violent, and there is a constant level of humour, thus the reader is not encouraged to dislike Snide or his colleagues despite their openly evil intent; our perception is comfortably manipulated so that the baddies become the heroes - a bit like  in the TV series Blake’s 7, where the characters we should be looking upon as terrorists are actually the ones we relate to and root for. In fact if the reader is encouraged to dislike anyone it's certainly dull, stupid and pedantically obsessive Stengun, who seems to right wrongs or prevent crime simply by the power of being there. Snide, on the face of it, appears to have a solid plan: he wants to set up a company, the titular Evil UnLtd.

Forward’s influences are clear from the offset. This is a very lexical book, delighting in the English language and the humorous interplay of words. Add to that the sci-fi setting, the eccentric or exaggerated characters and you have a work heavily reminiscent of Douglas Adams. That’s not to say the book is derivative in any way; Forward is not emulating Adams, he merely subscribes to a similar style of humour, and unlike many of Adams’ novels there is a clear and specific storyline running through all three consecutive mini stories that constitute this book. Other influences abound as well – Doctor Who, Blackadder, more that I could list and doubtless plenty others of which I am not personally aware. All authors carry their influences on our sleeves when putting finger to keyboard. One of the bonuses for the reader here is spotting these influences when they raise their heads and wink at you before ducking back down beneath the parapet, but enjoyment of the book is not dependent on you knowing these references or influences by any means – a bit like watching the Channel 4 sitcom Spaced, for example.

Breaking the book into three story sections is definitely in its favour. Word wit of this ilk can become taxing for the reader after a while. It is a very funny book and a very energetic and lively narrative with some real laugh-out-loud moments. But I was reminded of reading Austen’s Northanger Abbey, or Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, where after so many pages of repeated wit I could only sigh ‘enough already’ and put the book down in frustration. One needs a break from the relentless onslaught, and this tripartite structure does at least relieve the reader from time to time and allow them time to settle and recharge before taking on the next stage. It would be a disservice to the author and his creativity to get to the end and complain about humour fatigue.

I probably enjoyed the first section the most, but then I was rather enchanted with the set up and the various roles the characters were playing in their scenarios.  The middle section is a transition, allowing for some interesting character developments within the group dynamic which then facilitates much of the third section, giving the whole book a coherency that on the face of it one might erroneously believe it lacks. Stengun is amusingly dull and slow-witted, but you wouldn’t want to read any more about him than you do. Snide is a classic villain: focussed on his goals, blinkered at times, often unwilling or unable to listen to advice, yet he seems to engender the support of others who look on him as a natural leader. Professor Doomladen is probably my favourite character, starting off as a restaurateur with an ingenious way of getting payment from disgruntled patrons. Tanith Troy, the stunningly beautiful actress, is possibly where the audience perspective lies – at least initially; as hostage she is the recipient of much of the exposition and explanation that the reader requires, without the author having to settle for an omniscient narrator figure. It is also in Troy that we can see plenty of opportunities for the future within these stories.

I was aware before venturing into this book that there were a further three titles in the series to date. Having read this first one that doesn’t surprise me, and I shall be picking them up to read. Forward has created a universe which offers plenty of scope for development and where pretty much anything can happen.

I urge people to purchase and read this for two reasons – it’s a very funny book and it’s for a very worthwhile cause.

Find out more about the range, plus purchase copies here:  https://4devil.wordpress.com/

You can follow the author Simon A Forward on Twitter on @prefect4d

A Time Lord For Change - unused Drabble for 'The Moonbase'

I submitted several pieces for Chinbeard Books' A Time Lord For Change which, for one reason or another ended up not being used. Here's one, as a taster...

The Moonbase: ‘We’ll Always have Coventry.’

Dearest Jane,

I hope this letter finds you well? I know we agreed that this six month placement would give us the space we both needed, but I miss you terribly and I know in my heart that I still love you. It’s awful up here; I’ve a constant headache from the gravitron, Hobson is a mardy old bugger and there’s all these fey European-types everywhere. I don’t know why they don’t allow women up here. Or maybe I do, thinking about it. I wish I was back on Earth with you, in Coventry. I’m sorry.

All my love,

Evans

Doctor Who: A Time Lord For Change, Chinbeard Books

This very exciting announcement came out this week from Chinbeard Books:

http://www.chinbeardbooks.com/new-beard

Our next book will be released on the 23rd of November, which is - not entirely coincidentally - also 53 years to the day since Doctor Who first aired. 

DOCTOR WHO: A TIME LORD FOR CHANGE is raising money for MIND.

Here's a list of the talent involved (see if you can spot the famous Doctor Who alumni)...
Stephen Aintree, Gareth Alexander, Gary Andrews, Penny Andrews, Jon Arnold, Colin Baker, Ian Baldwin, Matt Barber, Richard Barnes, Piers Beckley, Mark Blayney, Andrew Bloor, Niall Boyce,Simon Brett, William KV Browne, Ron Brunwin, Simon Bucher-Jones, Robin G Burchill, Andrew Cartmel, Cliff Chapman, Baz Collins, Catherine Crosswell, John Davies, Jon Dear, Douglas M Devaney, Yasmin Dibella-Back, Sarah Di-Bella, John Dorney, Lisa T Downey-Dent, Paul Driscoll, Danou M. Duifhuizen, Barnaby Eaton-Jones, Paul Ebbstwo, Tony Eccles, Craig Fisher, Simon Forward, Gemma Fraser, Tim Gambrell, James Gent, Alan Gilmour McWhan, Alan Graham, Clive Greenwood, Nick Griffiths, Christine Grit, David Guest, Ian Ham, Joanne Harris, Colleen Hawkins, Steve Herbert, Liam Hogan, Nicholas Hollands, Steve Horry, David J Howe, John Hughes, Georgia Ingram, Will Ingram, John Isles, Alan P Jack, Brendan Jones, Gareth Kearns, Sami Kelsh, Simon Nicholas Kemp, Lou Marie Kerr, Hendryk Korzeniowski, Ian Kubiak,Andrew Lawston, Shaqui Le Vesconte, JR Loflin,Paul Magrs, Katy Manning, Nick Mellish, Stephen Mellor, Dan Milco, Terry Molloy, Fiona Moore, Aryldi Moss-Burke, Craig Moss, Peter Muscutt, Tessa North, Helen Oakleigh, Mark Trevor Owen, Nigel Peever, Neil Perryman, Kevin Philips, Ian Potter, Ilse A Ras, Lee Ravitz, Lee Rawlings, Rachel Redhead, Mark Scales, Robert Shearman, Jane Sherwin, Kenneth Peter Shinn, Robert Simpson, Verity Smith, J.R. Southall, Ash Stewart, Alan Stevens, Callum Stewart, Sam Stone, Rob Stradling, Steve Taylor-Bryant, Alan Taylor, Andrew Mark Thompson, Elliot Thorpe, Elton Townend Jones, Rebecca Vaughan, Mike Watkins, Daniel Wealands, Lisa Wellington, Ruth Wheeler, Joy-Amy Wigman and Brad Wolfe.

There's some big names and a lot of exciting talent amongst that lot, and I'm sure it's going to be an amazing book that we'll all be proud to have contributed to. It's certainly for a great cause and I'd urge all my readers to buy a copy.