tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60911792011-11-28T00:49:14.332ZMemories, moanings and monsters - oh my!MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.comBlogger1561100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-91454269865744301202010-10-09T13:19:00.001+01:002010-10-09T13:20:45.297+01:00

Yes, I'm back making monsters and this one's my latest, a Yeti from the Doctor Who story 'The Web of Fear', lurking in my also-new underground set. Oh, and the eyes glow in the dark (which doesn't quite come across here).

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-23255042297401948642010-09-06T03:14:00.000+01:002010-09-06T03:14:52.727+01:00

So it was my flatmate's 40th birthday party this weekend (although he doesn't actually hit the big four-zero until the 15th). What a lovely bunch of people - I didn't get around to speaking to everyone, but I managed to catch up with a few people who I hadn't seen in a long time. Oh, and I ended up with black cake icing being smeared over my face. Cheers, Mr Mayor! Haha. Still, the flatmate had

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-29615094862176296792010-09-06T03:12:00.000+01:002010-09-06T03:12:02.074+01:00

What is it about Sundays that causes insomnia with such regularity. It's not even that I slept in this morning, because most other Sundays I get up early and still can't get to sleep come night-time. And I'm not alone in this either. I see so many friends on Facebook and Twitter who experience the same frustrating routine. Ah well, at least I can work from home tomorrow, avoiding the tube

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-15151555501983947932010-05-30T10:07:00.001+01:002010-05-30T10:07:55.848+01:00

So the chief secretary to the treasury, David Laws, has resigned his post in the coalition government because of an expenses scandal that has also exposed that he is gay. It's a situation so tricky that on his programme this morning, even Andrew Marr said 'for once, I have nothing smart to say about it'. The facts are that between 2004 and 2007, David Laws claimed expenses on properties he had

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-82269450071854689142010-05-22T14:18:00.002+01:002010-05-22T14:26:57.400+01:00

Thanks to the wonders of BBC iPlayer, I've managed to catch the final episode of Ashes to Ashes. No spoilers in this post, except to say that I appear to have predicted the ending in this post from last week. I loved that. A really emotionally satisfying ending that makes sense, seems to tie up all the questions, leaves room for viewers to piece together more of the clues and - yes! - makes me

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-79450523789565497712010-05-15T09:33:00.005+01:002010-05-15T09:57:44.096+01:00

In ancient times, like Greek or Roman or Egyptian or those other places like Mesopotamia that I can barely spell. It doesn't matter. The point was back in the past when everyone except the rich went about on foot. Back then, the rich people used to pay people to bring them their news. It was a hazardous occupation. You'd be despatched from your News Hut to a location many miles away. Possibly

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-34775736631775849032010-05-14T20:57:00.003+01:002010-05-15T09:56:28.344+01:00

I'm writing this half an hour before the penultimate episode of Ashes to Ashes hits our screens. They've been weaving this particularly media-literate modern fairy-tale for the last five years, the first two of which as Life On Mars. Is the gruff thuggish Gene Hunt the retro hero he was hailed by those kind of tedious Sun readers who believe the phrase 'political correctness gone mad' is an

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-66802566260825994962010-05-11T22:25:00.003+01:002010-05-11T22:34:59.874+01:00

I'm not a political animal. I'm interested in politics and I have my own political preference, but like many, I'm reluctant to get too involved, because I've seen too many people get eaten up by frustration and disappointment. Better to stand on the sidelines and offer a critique on the passing parade. So, I'm writing this more as a bookmark, to put together some thoughts this evening.For the

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-47188069347718572702010-05-03T10:26:00.003+01:002010-05-03T10:28:07.642+01:00

The word 'rare' is overused. 'Rare' photographs, 'rare' outtakes'... whenever people talk about archive material, it seems they love it to be akin to a lightly bruised steak.There can't surely be such a thing as a rare film by the single more famous film-maker ever, but even the silent ones are at least commercially available. Yet, there's one film that, currently, qualified as rare. Waltzes from

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-78091090696984213162010-05-03T09:58:00.002+01:002010-05-03T10:01:04.916+01:00

So, after a conversation with an experienced blogger last night, I've just made a few deletions from this thing. Funnily enough, the entries where I was most open and revealing about my life are the ones that were badly written and completely lacking in any real insight.So - bye bye bad story about getting drunk and boorish. Bye bye an entry about someone else's embarrassing goodbye email to

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-19137176046888413972010-04-27T21:18:00.005+01:002010-05-03T10:01:53.247+01:00

Just flicking through the TV channels and caught the episode of tonight's episode of The Bill - 'Suffer in Silence'.I'm guessing we'll be seeing other episodes over the next few months called 'Prolonging the Agony', 'Treading Water' and 'Someone Remember to Cancel the Milk'.In other news, my journey home was delayed tonight. The train driver announced: 'Sorry for he delays here this evening, but

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-47073608921160820882010-04-17T12:27:00.002+01:002010-04-17T12:55:05.091+01:00

And a slight reworking of my Hartell Tardis control room sees the addition of a new console for Pertwee.

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-24917634084797845902010-04-17T11:53:00.005+01:002010-04-17T12:16:03.570+01:00

I always wanted this - a set for my Doctor Who dollies - and what better set than the UNIT lab?I'd originally wanted to do the lab as it appeared in season eight, but the spiral staircase put me off. That and pressure from my chums made me go for the later lab, as it appeared in season 11. I could have gone for the lab from 'The Three Doctors', but it had too many windows. So I adapted the

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-53654531716123844262010-04-17T11:37:00.006+01:002010-04-17T11:53:07.485+01:00

I haven't done this for a while, but prompted by Paul Cornell's blog, here's a few more monsters I've made recently.This one's a Blatherine from The Sarah Jane Adventures, which was a present for the author for the episode that they first appeared in. It's customised from a Slitheen figure, with shorter claws, a remolded face and a paint job.Next up, a Mutt from the Doctor Who story 'The Mutants'

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-55929776593178637992010-04-03T13:15:00.004+01:002010-04-17T12:17:54.852+01:00

I'm in sunny Pollokshields with my beloved and, after a stress-free journey there yesterday afternoon, I decided we should have pizza for tea, because we'd both been very good and deserved a treat. A new pizzaria called Pizzahub (see what they did there) has a sign on the front saying 'Opening Soon', but not soon enough for us, sadly. So, we went to a multi-cultural venue round the corner, which

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-82811239634051789592010-03-26T10:47:00.003Z2010-03-26T11:23:07.983Z

Another one of those mornings where, having not blogged in ages, three things take my interest at once. This one's a eulogy. Ish.It's been announced today that ITV has axed The Bill. This comes as no surprise to many of the people who've stuck with it for 27 years, even less to me, who gave up on it about a decade ago. I got tired of the repetitive drug-related storylines, the complete disregard

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-6922378609945858632010-03-26T10:37:00.003Z2010-03-26T11:24:19.483Z

Another link shared to me by Rob, this is a much happier story. How an amateur photographer took photos of near-space on a budget.

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-32234850403304536552010-03-26T10:15:00.005Z2010-03-26T11:23:43.819Z

Thanks to Rob of Whispers and Moans for this.At the risk of sounding like the Express, I stopped reading newspapers when the 'Princess of Hearts' Diana died, sicked my the sanctimonious muck-raking from people who I've seen participating in the same actions they condemn others for. I've experienced the bile of a Sun journalist destroying someone's career with one hand while using class-A drugs

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-72485849195210770882010-03-21T10:14:00.004Z2010-03-26T11:24:41.182Z

My flatmate and I were writing comedy sketches last night, into the early hours of the morning, fuelled by vodka. I dread to think what our neighbours thought of any phrases they might have heard coming from my mouth in the wee small hours, but I can say firstly that my Malcolm Tucker impression's coming on okay, and secondly that I might be in danger of destroying Steven Moffat's reputation

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-37834146517177916862010-02-11T09:16:00.004Z2010-03-14T11:39:47.495Z

It's been very busy at work these last few months, and with research taking place on about eight projects at once I've just not felt chatty enough to come up with a new blog entry. Even Facebook has spent literally weeks with the same status updates from me. Shameful.I worked through most of Christmas, with just three days off over all, so today marks the beginning of my longest stint of holiday

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-78015043461111795212009-12-18T20:52:00.004Z2010-03-14T11:39:18.150Z

So, I was walking towards Hammersmith Bridge today, en route to a pub where my team-mates were having their Christmas lunch, when I heard a man's voice somewhere above me. I looked up to see three men in a cherry-picker, and one of them was shouting something to me. I stopped walking and stepped back, in case the man's cries were something along the lines of 'Look out below!' "We're stuck!" he

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-206416189120693622009-08-18T14:25:00.001+01:002010-04-17T12:18:48.453+01:00

Sitting at the front of the bus this morning, I saw a young dad escorting his son onto the bus. As the boy climbed into his seat, his dad waved him off and blew him a little kiss, and I thought that was really sweet. The dad was quite handsome and I noticed he had a big gold ear-ring and tatoos.And then I realised that this was perhaps an example of a social trend we're seeing more of in the last

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-35774320035766410712009-08-14T01:01:00.007+01:002009-08-18T14:35:50.907+01:00

Think I've almost finished the model Tardis now, so here are a couple of pictures.And in this one, you can see the fault locator wall.[Updated 18 Aug 2009)And now with the floor plate in place:

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-60811179978099814422009-08-09T12:09:00.005+01:002009-08-18T14:36:17.483+01:00

I've not really discussed the Jacko thing - it's been overdone by everyone else and all I could think is that for a man who's been vilified as having an useasy relationship with young boys for over a decade, dying was possibly the best, sanest career move he could have made. That's not to undermine his achievements as a performer and artist, but with all of the various operations he'd submitted

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-89516061314101462702009-08-08T22:12:00.003+01:002009-08-18T14:36:38.383+01:00

Back in June I was woken up by the sound of something outside my bedroom window. I'm one storey up, but we've been broken into before so I leapt out of bed and opened the curtains - to be confronted by the sight of a pair of magpies picking through the ivy on the roof below me.So I grabbed my phone and recorded them.

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-50380553003685070062009-08-08T21:31:00.004+01:002009-08-14T01:05:32.153+01:00

Haven't blogged for two months. That's what happens when work lets me manage a twitter account.Chasing a punch-line has become a full-time occupation. Still, I'm spending my spare time productively, making a model Tardis control room, as seen in the Hartnell era...Still a work in progress - have to work out how to do the innards of the central column for one thing - but I'm also having a go at

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-10554932411152108992009-06-25T08:26:00.001+01:002009-08-18T14:37:39.224+01:00

With an hour's travel every morning, and another on the way home each evening, I tend to get a lot of reading done while on the move. I also listen to podcasts and documentaries (partly work-related). All this means that when I'm on the tube and the train driver or platform staff make an announcement, I have to unplug my earphones to make sure it's not something important. And when it isn't, my

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-40174774851814630652009-05-05T07:55:00.002+01:002009-08-18T14:38:19.110+01:00

I was having dinner with my parents recently. The food was tasty and all was going great until a small child decided to treat us to her special interpretation of The Texas Chain-Saw Massacre: she toddled round the restaurant screaming gleefully at volume. Now, it's tricky, I'm sure, to get baby-sitters, just as it's a welcome relief to escape the confines of the house when you have a baby. But

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-45686357228731201192009-04-21T08:35:00.003+01:002009-08-18T14:40:30.278+01:00

It'll never happen, but the sad news that Dr Stephen Hawking is ill made me wonder how his passing might be treated. He doesn't have the tabloid wow-factor of Jade Goody, yet he's a British hero who should surely be celebrated. Surprisingly, the news that he's ill has disappeared from the BBC News Front Page, hidden in a side-bar in the science and tech section.I hate the thought of vulture-esque

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-61795259211233696122009-04-14T14:22:00.005+01:002009-08-18T14:41:11.108+01:00

It's a sad fact that most of the ignorant twunts online don't appreciate anything with any joy in it, because they wouldn't be online if they were happy in themselves. I'm prompted to write that after seeing some of the mindless crap that's been spewed in reaction to the Doctor Who Easter special. "Worse than 'Battlefield'," apparently. All I can say is, I bet they haven't actually watched '

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-1001506136947641502009-04-14T13:31:00.001+01:002009-08-18T14:50:54.271+01:00

Sometimes, I have to wonder if the ordering of the punctuation on a keyboard is specifically designed to make you think just one step further than you were going to. There are so many times my poor typing leads me to construct a list and then find I've used the + symbol instead of the = symbol. And then I look at the still-open equation and realise A + B + C = D would have been much less

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-67195639503897250142009-04-14T11:06:00.003+01:002009-08-18T14:51:21.237+01:00

We used to have a tree outside the back of our flat. it provided some coverage to prevent our neighbours from looking in, but in truth we were glad to see the back of it, partly because it gave us a clear view of the sky, which is quite a luxury around here, but also because it removed a perch for the single most annoying bird ever.Every morning, just at that point when you're slowly leaving deep

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-19578239444418444862009-04-04T11:23:00.006+01:002009-08-18T14:52:28.930+01:00

So, Life on Mars finished this week. Not the British version that starred John Simm, but the American version with Jason O'Mara. I have to admit, I've kind of cheated on this show; I watched the first three, then kept 'acquiring' the next episode without watching it. But based primarily on the first and last episodes, it does feel as if they got it right in quite unexpected ways. The American

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-74272904412847924902009-03-23T12:12:00.001Z2009-08-18T14:53:21.014+01:00

I'd imagine the schedulers at Dave are in a bit of a panic now. How many episodes of Mock the Week, Never Mind the Buzzcocks or any other number of topical comedy shows might need to be reviewed and possibly re-edited to remove the many comments made at Jade's expense over the years?That's the problem with being a national joke: when the tide of public opinion changes, what was once fair game

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-6896177581329084662009-03-21T09:31:00.004Z2009-08-18T14:53:39.105+01:00

He's one of the most unsettling characters in pop. Slicked- back hair,, a pencil-thin moustache, round glasses and a blood-chilling stone-faced expression that makes him look like Boo Radley at a Harry Potter-meets-the-Third-Reich convention. Occasionally, he smiles - or rather, his mouth slides into a rictus grin. A shark might flash his teeth just as readily, but you're not sure he's pleased to

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-66229068445556894112009-03-18T22:16:00.002Z2009-08-18T14:54:04.356+01:00

So, my other half (a mathematically inaccurate term, as if he's the other half, someone's definitely dividing the portions in my favour!) recently started a new job. On his first day, he was accosted by a colleague who'd heard he's a Doctor Who fan and that he's dating me. This seemed to be of some interest to him because, as the guy explained to someone else 'his boyfriend played Zagreus!'[

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-14540272037264472562009-03-18T22:09:00.002Z2009-08-18T14:54:23.982+01:00

Being a lazy-arse, copying something I posted on Facebook.This is inspired by a list of books doing the rounds, based on the Big Read the BBC did a few years back, which shows the big difference between the books people think they SHOULD have read, and the ones they would actually enjoy. In the world of websites, the notion that a website is doing well is often measured in recommendations - ie,

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-65748466838877956232009-02-18T10:24:00.005Z2009-08-18T14:55:30.266+01:00

Doctor Who Magazine has been running a feature called 'The Time Team' since July 1999. Four fans commit to watching every episode of broadcast Doctor Who from the beginning. Back then, that was the small matter of 696 episodes - that was years before Russell T Davies caught the BBC Drama department in a whirlwind of enthusiasm (it must have been a Tuesday) and convinced them to resurrect the

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-62483399032246576412009-02-18T09:32:00.003Z2009-08-18T14:55:07.791+01:00

I've finally given in and signed up for eBay. I think it's controlled by the Krotons. I'm very suspicious of any shop that claims I've 'won' something I'm actually paying for...

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-68827525416765253352009-02-12T21:17:00.002Z2009-08-18T14:54:52.529+01:00

So, for Christmas, my boyfriend bought me a couple of Marvel Essentials - those big thick volumes that pack a year's worth of Marvel comics into one big meaty binge. I got other graphic novels too, one of which, Watchmen, I read straight away so that no-one could spoil the ending for me. The others I'm saving. Except I'm not so much saving as postponing them, because those two Marvel Essentials

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-22358514701447568782009-01-15T08:50:00.004Z2009-08-18T14:51:44.796+01:00

Since computer animation became the kind of thing that could be done in the home, and spurred on by the BBC's animation of 'The Invasion' missing episodes, lots of Doctor Who fans have had a go at reconstructing missing episodes themselves. Marrying up images with the existing soundtracks, some use the telesnaps - John Cura's photographs of the TV screen when the episodes were broadcast; others

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-15075024934690376142009-01-12T23:50:00.004Z2009-08-14T01:05:15.491+01:00

Haven't posted one of my monsters for a while, so here's one I worked on this Sunday. I've been thinking about monsters that are less likely to be materialising as Character action figures, and I reckon this one, which only has a screen time of less than two minutes, must be pretty way down the list.Fans of 'The Dalek Invasion of Earth' won't need an introduction. It's the Black Dalek's favourite

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-17894626961469752032009-01-06T11:52:00.010Z2009-01-12T23:53:58.324Z

When I was a lad, we had Doctor Who books - novelisations of the TV adventures, written for young teenagers. But there were also a few stories rewritten for a younger age group under the banner 'Junior Doctor Who'. That was how I first experienced the good Time Lord's battle against the Brain of Morbius and the Giant Robot.And that was my first thought when I saw who's been cast as the

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-65643147879012299092008-12-20T11:30:00.005Z2009-08-18T14:52:59.462+01:00

Paul Cornell's now annual attempt to do 'The 12 Days of Blogging' (or 12 Blogs of Christmas, or something to do with the number 12) has brought up a brilliant blog that I hadn't previously heard of, but has apparently been running since 2003. [Sidestep: did I even know the word 'blog' back then? I'm surprised how long I've been writing this one - I spent an hour yesterday adding keywords to all

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-23993290882094790192008-12-20T10:32:00.003Z2010-05-03T10:04:00.533+01:00

I recently caught up with Paul Schrader's version of the prequel to The Exorcist, the film that was then remade by Renny Harlin - the version I'd already seen.Harlin's version was rubbish, but I'm sorry to say the Schrader version was the greater sinner - it was just boring.Thank the deities for Joe Ahearne, whose Apparitions concluded this week. Intelligent, philosophical, gory and bloody

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-62161921644483221882008-12-19T08:30:00.004Z2008-12-19T08:36:22.721Z

Decided to add some keywords to my previous blog entries this morning- anything to postpone going to the hospital to give a blood sample (don't panic - it's for gout. Nothing glamourous or slimming).So, like that other modern annoyance, predictive text, the keywords (or labels, as Blogger calls them) try to second guess what you're typing. Which is a bit worrying, when you're typing 'fox' and,

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-30438118213873715632008-12-16T22:27:00.008Z2010-05-22T14:33:47.898+01:00

I recently completed work on a couple of collections for the BBC Archive site, which led to a brief period of media whoredom for me and a meet-up with a long-time heroine of mine, the lovely Janice Long. Here are the two collections, first of all: - The Genesis of Doctor Who: documents and images from the archives telling the story of the Time Lord's origins. - Music from the Mersey: TV and

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-41735328916658488342008-12-16T11:29:00.003Z2008-12-19T08:24:00.153Z

So this morning, 'Dr' Neil Fox was chatting away on Magic FM's Breakfast Show when he started to discuss the Ripley's Believe it or Not exhibition in London. At one point, he described the exhibition as 'quite incredible'.So,um, shall we put you down as a 'not', Neil?

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-25367313053237587832008-12-14T23:02:00.002Z2008-12-19T08:25:07.724Z

Deck yer balls with bows of holly(Fa-lalalala lala la la)It is prickly but it's jolly(Fa-lalalala lala la la)My mum wrote those muckier lyrics to the popular carol some time in the early 1990s. I sang them to her yesterday and she told me off. When I pointed out that she'd taught me the song in the first place, she denied ever having heard it, insisting it's not the sort of thing she's come out

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-78169116952489662512008-12-07T10:10:00.005Z2008-12-19T08:25:59.267Z

'Optimist of the Year' goes to whoever wrote the copy at the bottom of this BBC News story about the death of society hostess Sunny Von Bulow.Did you know Von Bulow? Tell us about your memories of her? Send your comment using the form below:She was 76 years old and had been in a coma since 1980. It's not impossibly, but it's unlikely many of her contemporaries would be spending their time reading

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-51557413399046256042008-12-04T22:55:00.003Z2008-12-19T08:26:54.382Z

So, last time I blogged I was saying how I'd fallen in love with Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. Well, I finished the last episode earlier this week.Of course I cried.The final five episodes tell one big story. I'm wondering at what point in production they knew it wouldn't get re-commissioned as it all dovetails towards a perfect ending. I kept trying to second-guess the endings to various

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-41343091195059729182008-12-04T22:01:00.008Z2008-12-19T08:27:43.554Z

I'm so behind with writing. It's been a busy few weeks and I'm not going to explain why on a public blog, except to say things are good. And considering I started to write this as a kind of therapy, that's a strong positive.Went on a course with work that also helped put my head in a better place than real therapy managed to - all about negotiating skills. It's supposed to help get the best

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-85553467759757342992008-10-25T15:55:00.001+01:002008-12-19T08:28:41.364Z

The other week, I received an invitation to join Bebo from a friend who I lost touch with more years ago than I want to remember. So I signed up to Bebo - and discovered I was already a member. How could I forget this?Quite easily, it seems, because I signed up for pretty much everything a few years back, when I still worked in what they now call 'social media'.There was a time when I stopped

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-79629922834874272182008-10-24T13:22:00.002+01:002008-12-19T08:29:19.874Z

In the olden days, when TV was powered by steam and people crowded round a walnut cabinet to listen to obscure radio dramas about nightmares, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop used to create these amazing soundscapes. Electronic humming, musical stabs and other trickery that hammered home how other-worldly the production was trying to be. One of the kings of this kind of music was Brian Hodgson. You

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-42863095521935951762008-08-03T22:34:00.003+01:002008-12-19T08:29:41.327Z

I've been working on a little collection of archive treats to mark the 40th anniversary of Dad's Army, and it seems to have been leapt upon by the press.The Telegraph did a nice piece about the background to the series last week, and I was interviewed on BBC Radio Kent and BBC Southern Counties on Wednesday. The Today programme did a two-minute piece too, and there was a news item on BBC News

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-89280746911199902112008-07-18T12:26:00.008+01:002008-12-19T08:30:06.915Z

I'm struggling to get going today. It seems the more work I have, the harder it is to start it.So, instead, I googled myself. What a tw*t.First up is an interview I did for the Off the Telly website.A (frankly bloody glowing) review of my Scorsese book from the Scorsesefilms website, and another from Kamera.co.uk.Nice to see myself in The Times, back from when I worked on h2g2, plugging our

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-28189581881411328792008-07-02T11:14:00.004+01:002008-12-19T08:37:34.977Z

I walked into the living room on Monday night to find my flatmate watching the men's game - some French man was beating the guy from Napoleon Dynamite, when suddenly Dynamite started winning.I know tennis is the one sport my flatmate tends to enjoy, and as it had gone into extra time, and the on-screen announcement hinted that this was a big thing, I sat down and watched.So, firstly, the

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-32041121132206750772008-04-17T13:43:00.003+01:002008-12-19T08:37:59.757Z

Saw this picture of Leona Lewis this morning on the BBC homepage, and immediately my brain rearranged the image in my mind so it looked like the one below it.

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-44487468420520533682008-04-09T15:10:00.003+01:002008-12-19T08:39:14.494Z

This is a bit rubbish, considering how poor my blogging has been so far this year, but...This headline on BBC News.Am I the only one humming this tune now?

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-37415404283783380562008-02-24T09:40:00.003Z2008-12-19T08:40:50.106Z

I've been a reader of The Word magazine ever since it first launched and my flatmate bought a copy to read on a long train journey. Back then it used to promote itself with the phrase 'At last - something to read', which was a marketing idea I stole for my related links section over there > and was as wonderfully reassuring as The Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy's 'Don't Panic'. I like this mag

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-70049506520045091982008-02-24T09:06:00.005Z2008-12-19T08:41:32.684Z

After nearly two months, nothing comes to mind here. Actually - not true! Except I'm about to start blogging as part of my job, so a lot of my thoughts are focused on that there weekly panic instead of an occasional free-form Jazz brain-dump on here.This week, I accompanied a work colleague to visit a lady who once worked at the BBC and had accumulated an attic full of old scripts and paperwork,

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-5214929622153125732007-12-26T14:14:00.002Z2008-12-19T08:42:53.561Z

Bloody hell, Doctor Who was good last night. It had the titanic, Kylie, Bernard Cribbins and the funniest Queen-related scene ever. In the words of my favourite film reviewer ever*, 'it made me laugh and it made me cry'.The Titanic might have been a difficult sell to an audience sandwiched, as this episode was, between two grimfestive episodes of EastEnders, but trust Russell T Davies to find a

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-53067017927553620032007-12-18T15:50:00.001Z2008-12-19T08:43:36.645Z

... Sky News who, reporting on the idiotic decision by Radio 1 to censor 'Fairytale in New York' by Kirsty MacColl and the Pogues, wrote:"MacColl died at the age of 41 the same year when she was hit by a speedboat while diving during a holiday in Mexico."I'm pretty certain she died the same minute she was hit by a speedboat, you insensitive fuckers.

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-10821796101201953832007-12-17T17:28:00.001Z2008-12-19T08:44:12.698Z

There's an interesting article on BBC News about the first Mac-targetting Trojan viruses.What's funny about it is the image they've chosen to illustrate 'pornographic video' with. It's been nearly a decade since VHS tapes began to be obsolete, yet BBC News appears to be telling me that the naughty trojan creators are using VHS tapes to break into my Mac.Argh!!!

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-11582568439669558312007-12-15T10:05:00.004Z2008-12-19T08:49:41.058Z

According the the Guardian, Lib Dem culture spokesman Don Foster has criticised broadcasters for scheduling repeats over Christmas.Which is hilarious as Don Foster made the exact same claim last year, citing the exact same percentages. Looks like TV is doing better than Mr Foster's 100% repeat rate this year...

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-88039874888829155922007-12-09T13:55:00.001Z2008-12-19T08:51:47.421Z

'Turn the spotlight down! I don't like the f***ing light right in my face!'After what was a reportedly disastrous gig in Birmingham last weekend, Marc Almond came to London last night at the Indigo venue at the O2 dome. I noticed on the T-shirts of the Indigo staff that the word indigo was suffixed by a 2, which led to me wonder if they chose the name of that side venue just because it has an 'o'

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-8578890912324267382007-12-06T15:52:00.001Z2008-12-19T08:52:24.729Z

This is important. Time was, Christmas could be relied upon to send some sentimental saccharine-sweet novelty gush up to the top of the charts, but for pretty much the entire decade, the number one has been in the hands of Simon Cowell and Louis Walsh with either Westlife or whoever won Pop Idol / Pop Stars / X Factor.This year, the best act in X Factor is Nicky, but fate has tied her to Louis

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-48797390092726450582007-12-02T12:20:00.001Z2008-12-19T08:53:09.410Z

When Black Box had made it big in the UK, in 1989, my mum caught a glimpse of the band on Top of the Pops and noticed the attractive black woman performing their latest single. 'She's not singing that,' said mum. 'She wouldn't be able to produce a noise like that. That's a fat woman's voice.'My mum knew nothing of the band - this was the first time she'd seen them, but even she could tell that '

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-1140667717154622822007-11-28T12:02:00.001Z2008-12-19T08:53:38.430Z

According to BBC News: "Mice carrying a gene which appears to make them invulnerable to cancer may hold the key to safer and more effective treatments for humans."Now... is anyone else thinking of the sci-fi series V right now?

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-24527104282653548172007-11-22T13:57:00.002Z2008-12-19T08:54:46.166Z

Listening to the radio the other day, I heard an advert for a new 'reality TV talent show' from VH1. Wannabe pitches failed Big Brother girl Chanelle Hayes as the judge in a contest for pop star hopefuls. This is the 19-year-old student who put so much effort into achieving her goal of becoming the UK's leading Victoria Beckham look-alike that she instantly lunged at fellow BB contestant and

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-4265300724839960902007-11-19T22:11:00.001Z2008-12-19T19:08:37.862Z

You know you're 'pished' when you bump into a man wearing a kilt asking for directions late at night, notice he's bleeding profusely from the lower leg, learn that he's just been stabbed in the leg with a screwdriver by the husband of the woman he's just been shagging ... and you don't freak out.Yes, I'm back from my long weekend in Glasgow, where I had a splendid time with 'the boys', who showed

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-20201611278098435362007-11-15T08:53:00.002Z2008-12-19T19:09:54.462Z

On Sunday, I met up with a pal and spent the afternoon strolling through Hyde Park and Green Park. Hype Park is full of interesting birds - black swans, Canadian geese, mandarin ducks - and a flock of seagulls whose attempts to flashmob the pond were royally honked off until they took refuge elsewhere.'Isn't it fun - kicking up leaves,' I said to my walking companion, and suddenly remembered that

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-32899206046501027062007-11-15T08:12:00.002Z2008-12-19T19:11:20.010Z

We've all experienced this, I'm sure - reading the news headlines and suddenly misreading them as related links, as if each unrelated story is connected sequentially.Here's an example of 'other top stories' from today's BBC News Online: - Langham wins early jail release - Winehouse kicks off UK tour - Potter hopefuls lose out on role Did a man convicted of downloading indecent images of

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-22053021532451493072007-11-08T15:34:00.002Z2008-12-19T19:12:37.311Z

Our sign language tutor told us a joke the other day. Woman driver (don't start - she's a woman who drives, okay?), driving in the country, down tiny, winding road. Man in 4x4 coming other way and then comes to a halt. 'Pig!' she shouts.'Bitch!' He replies, before backing up - and promptly crashes into a pig.It's funnier in BSL. Although, as with 'My dog has no nose' in German, it doesn't really

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-43913192469656180772007-11-07T20:44:00.001Z2008-12-19T19:13:34.399Z

Social Networking, they call it - those websites that seem to pop up every six months that allow you to make new friends and link up to old ones. I've joined a lot of these over the years, sometimes to get in touch with a specific person, sometimes to explore what everyone else is on about.I never really got MySpace. It's clunky, many of the profiles are horrifically untidy and ugly to look at (

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-9115214141762192792007-11-07T19:47:00.001Z2008-12-19T19:13:56.831Z

I've taken a week to recover from this - the rather 'mild terror' that I experienced last Wednesday when I got home from a comedy night, decided to chew my nails and found half a tooth on my tongue. Argh!The next day, while I was on the way to work, some more of the tooth decided to make itself known in areas it really shouldn't have reached. So - I went to the dentist.There's a dentist at work,

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-84117710142073491972007-11-07T10:31:00.001Z2008-12-19T19:14:21.193Z

I can't believe these scams still exist - especially when they've been exposed so many times and they insist on using the same story:Dear XXXXXX, I am Barrister Danuel Wanger, a legal practitioner, I am the personal attorney to Mr.M. W.Sangster, a nationality Of your country, who used to work with Shell Development Company in Lome Togo. He used to be my client. On the 7th of June 2004, my client,

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-4289435676139851772007-10-21T17:23:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:15:00.132Z

We live is a mutually-supportive society. You don't just pay for the bits you want; you pay what you can afford so that we all have a good standard of living. It's how you were born, it's how you'll be looked after when you get old, it's how we avoid a situation where a nurse has to rifle through your wallet before they operate on you. Yet some people take real issue against the TV licence and

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-38013427847395208852007-10-17T01:12:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:17:18.123Z

This blogging lark is such a burden when you imagine someone's reading your nonsense. But tonight I discovered that there's software available to big corporations to discover what the blogsphere has been saying without actually anyone from the corporation reading what you've actually written.So, for those of you out there who require a daily ejaculation (aka 'wankers'), there now follows a round

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-92047924936204440242007-10-09T16:55:00.002+01:002008-12-19T19:17:58.887Z

They might be the cause of embarrassment if you reveal them during a karaoke performance, but the mondegreen is often a thing of pleasure. That wonderful moment when you realise that they lyrics to a song weren't quite how you thought they were.My first experience of this was in 'I Will Survive' by Gloria Gaynor, in which my seven-year-old self was convinced the song was about a woman refusing to

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-77856972139898154472007-10-06T01:30:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:19:29.304Z

'Do you like Madonna,' shouts the self-proclaimed Diva, and considering the clientele, the response was surprisingly apathetic at best. It's the launch night of an event for gentlemen of a certain persuasion, certain weight and certain type of facial hair that goes by the name of 'Ursus', and the cabaret act is... okay, although I find myself conjuring up Simon Cowell to be really off-hand with

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-39366113691202890892007-10-02T23:28:00.003+01:002008-12-19T19:20:49.699Z

My flatmate managed to get tickets for the first night of recordings for Jack Dee's Live at the Apollo - or as it's now called, Live at the Apollo as Jack's only hosting the first edition.We took our seats in the circle and waited for the show to begin, and it took us just a few seconds to realise that the speakers in the circle hadn't been switched on. My flatmate went to investigate and was

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-8311941725664105932007-09-03T13:58:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:21:34.933Z

My colleague at work has become obsessed with my sleep patterns. I've missed a couple of days' work this year due to restless nights and poor sleep, so quite rightly she's recognised that this is something that needs to be fixed. However, she is a person who's spent a lot of her life in the hands of doctors and so has no fears about seeking medical advice. Whereas I am a man. Men don't go to

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-62043633295664582682007-09-01T15:13:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:23:33.934Z

He rang our doorbell and my flatmate answered the door. It didn't feel like just a week since we last saw each other, but as soon as I hand my hands of him I knew I couldn't let go. Not this time. Not again.Yes, Neil brought back our copy of the latest DWM this morning. I pawed it as we chatted, flicked through its lovely pages, admired the simply gorgeous picture of Clay on his goodbye page (

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-41667534864194346662007-09-01T10:14:00.002+01:002008-12-19T19:25:06.448Z

The bookies had the twins down as favourites to win, but last night's result for Brian Belo on Big Brother was a really important moment for the show. While the whole Shilpa Shetty incident on the celebrity edition this year led to both an examination of casual racism on TV and the first win for a non-white contestant in the series, Brian won through by just being a nice guy. Painfully, painfully

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-56831282905631028532007-08-28T20:08:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:27:29.446Z

During a rather lovely date on Sunday, my very easy-on-the-eye strolling companion quoted from American Beauty (and not, as I originally wrote, American Pie), specifically the bit where Kevin Spacey says he wants to get fit so he can look good naked.(For future reference, this is me, not making a lurid comment about Kevin Spacey there. He's good at what he does, and that's all I ask of actors.

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-62429263082344335002007-08-27T12:26:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:28:12.766Z

Just heard a track from Madonna's new album. Album? Do we still call them that now? Anyway, it's possibly her new single and it's... er... oh...It sounds like something from her first album, but with added 'R unt B' courtesy (I think) of Timberland. Some nice acoustic guitar and a basic dance rhythm, but the lyrics are risible. I know, I know - we don't listen to Madge for her poetry, but

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-29011784729693707882007-08-27T12:22:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:28:47.903Z

On the upside, a visiting friend left his iPod at our flat on Saturday morning. On the downside, he stole the latest copy of Doctor Who Magazine from our living room, claiming he thought it was his. We don't believe him, do we, children?Witnesses say he looks like trouble and sounds like fun. Oh, and that he claims to like London... honest!"I hadn't even read 'The Time Team' yet, said one witness

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-55537636397692336672007-08-23T23:28:00.003+01:002009-02-16T09:25:40.498Z

Y'know what it's like when you get a piece of music in your head and you can't place it. For the last four years, I've been trying to identify a piece of music that was used as the them tune to some educational programme. I suspected it might have been a Schools unt Colleges programme from way back when.Speaking of which (quick diversion), when I was little, each schools programme used to begin

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-81965548725365246522007-08-16T14:06:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:32:03.261Z

In the last few years, as I drifted from 'early-30s' to 'mid-30s' and am now facing a possible 'late-30s' shift, I've slowly started to become more aware of my health. Having a fat tum has been a worry for some time, but then a few years ago, I was diagnosed with gout (oh the SHAME!) and so although I've not really stuck at anything much, I've at least made a few attempts to be a little better at

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-5404036814657297262007-08-15T14:35:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:32:26.496Z

It worries me that, if tabloid news stories are to ever be believed, foot-fetishists might get beaten up by mobs of people who can't spell 'paedophile'. I mean, while they're out on the rampage, who's minding their kids, eh?

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-37110306949211206202007-08-12T15:11:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:33:15.451Z

Time for a few book recommendations. Actually, they're not from me, they're from my friend Gary. I have at least three of those, so to narrow it down, this one used to edit Doctor Who Magazine. Great, that narrows it down to two. The BLOND one!Anyway, a while back, Gary e-mailed his friends with a few book recommendations. I like it when he does this, as generally his tastes are sound and I end

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-19765939381917402492007-08-12T14:37:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:35:39.016Z

Thanks to the generosity of a few friends, I've had such a fun year. It started when I went to see The Pipettes in March. They're a band my pal David raved about ages ago, and I wasn't all that convinced to be honest, but live was another sory. Very charming and with a lot of catchy tunes under their belt. They had two support acts, one of whom was Metronome - not the Japanese one, but three lads

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-1333584740260004942007-08-12T14:30:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:36:07.921Z

There's a bit of a back-swing against blogging now that everyone thinks it's a word to throw into meetings casually. At work recently, someone asked if our site should have a blog and three of us barked 'NO!' Not that we're adversed to them, but it's really now what we should be doing. We already have a newsletter, which I tend to write, and an additional blog would seem like overkill. But mainly

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-53866198577876531062007-07-04T07:48:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:37:59.791Z

It's difficult having comedy Tourettes; to have been grown up in a peer group where everything's fair game so long as it gets a laugh. It means that so many things leap out with comic potential that really, really shouldn't. I'll explain why...Four months ago, a BBC reporter was kidnapped in Gaza - a terrible thing. Instantly, Alan Johnston became more famous within the BBC than he'd ever been

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-41374289248193588862007-05-17T14:42:00.000+01:002007-05-17T14:44:54.637+01:00

So, Gordon Brown's officially the new Prime Minister.I'm awaiting a succession of programmes using that song by The Stranglers, because 'Golden Brown' sounds like 'Gordon Brown'.... and then a succession of producers getting a bollicking when someone points out that the Stranglers song is about heroin.

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-19549549094082424122007-05-17T14:40:00.000+01:002007-05-17T14:46:04.913+01:00

I used to work for PlayStation. I began in the testing department, playing games to see if they were possible to complete, then trying to break the game by throwing characters off tall buildings, driving cars the wrong way or putting controllers in and out of the machine to see what happens.About a year after PlayStation launched, we saw our first hint of a game that would become a real

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-77791743596072691662007-05-17T14:06:00.000+01:002007-05-17T14:18:09.521+01:00

I like the Clintons. Bill was working on his electoral campaign when I was in the first year of my degree studies. We were both very successful, though I emerged with slightly less scandal than Bill. Much as I liked him, I really liked his wife. Takes a lot of guts to say to the American people 'If you don't believe him, don't vote for him' and then to stand my him after he's admitted to getting

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-320660784637937512007-04-16T23:25:00.001+01:002008-12-19T19:39:32.762Z

Hurrah, we have a heat-wave... which I spent most of indoors for various reasons (I should add, fully clothed without chance of naughtiness). Saw a very strange film on Sunday, Death Line, in which a man is horrifically murdered by an atavistic man on the platform of Russell Square tube station, his body is discovered by Alan Ladd's son and a woman in an Afghan coat, Donald Pleasance plays a

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6091179.post-26955149279917168072007-04-09T10:35:00.002+01:002008-12-19T19:40:25.065Z

It's 10am on a Bank Holiday Monday and with recent events, my mood's a bit uncertain. Then the doorbell rings. It's probably God-botherers, so I was gearing up for a bit of grumpy 'no thankyou' but my flatmate managed to get to the door first. Seems there's some incident going on down the road, and this team of window cleaners are trapped and can't get their vans out because of it. So, the

MonsterMakerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11613901468627373467noreply@blogger.com0