Wed, 12 January 2011 ordinary unordinary lives
A new American television series, No Ordinary Family, has just begun broadcast on this side of the Atlantic. Its premise is simple: an ‘ordinary’ family – wife, husband, daughter and son – with the the usual moderate middle class disfunctionality gain super-powers and must adjust to them. I’ve seen two episodes, and will probably watch [...]
Tue, 11 January 2011 smile, get girls reading comics
Over the past year I’ve increased the amount of comic books/graphic novels I’m reading. Partly because I’m writing coming books now, and also because it’s such a fun, diverse medium. There are so many great titles being published to suit all tastes.
When I was a girl I was not encouraged to read comics – I [...]
Fri, 24 December 2010 seeing the strange
I took this photo in the woods about a week ago. Of course it’s a desiccated thistle head, but it also looks like there’s a winged creature escaped from a fantasy world – such as The Dark Crystal – perched on top of it.
Seeing the world at a slant can lend wonder to the most [...]
Thu, 23 December 2010 Little Crackers
Over the past couple of years the satellite broadcaster Sky has been venturing into commissioning original television programmes, which is generally a good thing as I’m always happy to see screenwriters getting work. Even though Sky is part of the Murdoch MegaCorp, it can have its benefits (as long as you avoid the news channels).
This [...]
Wed, 08 December 2010 healthy competition?
I’ve noted before that I’m fond of the BBC Masterchef series in all its incarnations. My main reason is that I enjoy seeing people who are passionate about their hobby/profession demonstrating their skill, as well as watching their talent being nurtured over the course of the programme. Not all reality TV shows do that.
Often [...]
Fri, 08 October 2010 Nikita episode 1
Last night I watched the début episode of the new television series Nikita. I’m intrigued how the core concept of this story has persisted and been remade.
Its first incarnation was as a French action film in 1990, also called Nikita, which was written and directed by Luc Besson. The plotline is that Nikita is a [...]
Mon, 01 March 2010 a terrible treasure
I decided to pick a work to feature in a “Horror’s Hidden Treasures” section of my own since SFX failed so spectacularly to ask women to promote an under-rated horror gem.
I’d encourage other women to do the same. There’s no pressure to pick a woman’s work, but I’m doing so because this writer hugely [...]
Mon, 08 February 2010 monstrous women are rarely rewarded
I’ve been meaning to write something for Women in Horror Recognition Month, which is a campaign to promote women who work within the horror genre during the month of February.
I’m going to look at two films that I think deserve some attention and discussion: Ginger Snaps (2000) and Jennifer’s Body (2009). These two films serve [...]
Fri, 09 October 2009 death and taxes
It’s been a strange week. There have been two deaths, and I’ve attended one funeral (neither of the deceased were close to me, so don’t proffer sympathies), and a major row erupted in the Irish sf scene that involved a lot of people I know.
My mother had been away on holiday, and she called me [...]
Wed, 02 September 2009 a weekend of horrors
I’m back from my trip to London for the horror film festival FrightFest, and I had a lovely time. The weather was great, mostly, and I avoided the occasional showers. When I wasn’t watching movies, I strolled around Soho in the sun, bought a bowler hat, and met up with mates who’ve moved to the [...]
