Hello you!
Right, pay attention (quiet down at the back)
So Tuesday night was college night again. This week's subject was 'stories that have a twist in the tale'. You know, that last act that you didn't see coming even though the clues were there. We started off by watching a couple of short films which both had the suprise ending.
They were:
Spider (type Spider 2007 short film into youtube. The ending is brutal though)
and
In Captivity (look for 48 hours film project winner 2011)
Both give excellent, if very different, examples of the surprise ending.
None of the above have anything to do with what I'm going to talk about now. Well, alright it does a bit, but not a huge amount. Just a tad. Look just keep reading and you'll see.
Right, now, as I was leaving the class I was having a conversation with a fellow student (can you call us students if it's just a leisure class?) and, if I may be so bold as to call her one, a friend (I'm not that good at making friends. More on that another time.). Ok, it was Lee. It was she that suggested this blog malarky. Mind you, she also suggested Twitter and that ain't never gonna happen y'all!
So anyway, we were talking about her thoughts about the story I've recently finished. Remember the one I was talking about a couple of weeks ago?
What do you mean no?! Yes you do. I sent it out to a few people to get their reactions. Yes, that one! You remember now, don't you? Good.
Well, Lee was one of those people. And she read it and gave me some nice feedback. She did make one comment that I seem to write 'miserable' stories (they do have a good shock ending though some of the time) and that it might be a good exercise to write one with a bit more of a 'sex, drugs and rock'n'roll' vibe to it.
To be fair, a lot of my stories are fairly down beat. Which did get me thinking a little. Because, as you may have noticed, this blog is a cheerful little thing in the main so how do I end writing in two very different styles when they are coming from the same place, ie Me?! To be honest I have no idea, but it is an interesting thought. One is the dark me and one is the light me. Combine the two and you get me.
I think.
Ta ta for now.
PS.
Lee also has a blog.Check out the address below. It's a good one (and I'm sure she'll plug mine at some point. *hint hint*).
http://budbin.wordpress.com/
Wednesday, 30 January 2013
Saturday, 26 January 2013
Another world, another me
Hi everyone (or just the one person left reading this anyway)
I saw a picture on the 'I can has cheezeburger' website (I like it so shut it!) a couple of days ago which said that there may be an alternate universe where I might have gotten, ahem, 'up close and personal' with Emma Watson. To be fair I think what they actually said was 'banging' her but I'm english and would rather not use such crude language in a polite setting such as this.
What do you mean this isn't a polite setting? Hey, my blog, my world and my rules so behave yourself!
Anyway, a thought struck me as I was looking at this picture. If there are an infinite number of universes out there and in each universe there is one me, that must mean there is a universe where I am:
Rich (I'm not even close)
Good looking (I look like Shrek on a bad day)
Intelligent (only in a socially inept way)
A great conversationalist (yeah right)
A snappy dresser (I tend to look like I've been dragged through a hedge backwards)
Now all of those attributes points to some 'me' that probably the envy of his society. But I'm not jealous. I can deal with it. It's fine.
However, this 'me' will also have one more thing going for him.
He is also married to Karen Gillan.
The jammy little sod!
So I have a new goal in my life. I'm going to invent a device that will allow me to travel between the various universes, find this particular verson of me and kill him before taking his place. So if you will all excuse me, I'm off to brush up on the finer points of theoretical physics. Shouldn't take me too long.
Ta ta for now.
I saw a picture on the 'I can has cheezeburger' website (I like it so shut it!) a couple of days ago which said that there may be an alternate universe where I might have gotten, ahem, 'up close and personal' with Emma Watson. To be fair I think what they actually said was 'banging' her but I'm english and would rather not use such crude language in a polite setting such as this.
What do you mean this isn't a polite setting? Hey, my blog, my world and my rules so behave yourself!
Anyway, a thought struck me as I was looking at this picture. If there are an infinite number of universes out there and in each universe there is one me, that must mean there is a universe where I am:
Rich (I'm not even close)
Good looking (I look like Shrek on a bad day)
Intelligent (only in a socially inept way)
A great conversationalist (yeah right)
A snappy dresser (I tend to look like I've been dragged through a hedge backwards)
Now all of those attributes points to some 'me' that probably the envy of his society. But I'm not jealous. I can deal with it. It's fine.
However, this 'me' will also have one more thing going for him.
He is also married to Karen Gillan.
The jammy little sod!
So I have a new goal in my life. I'm going to invent a device that will allow me to travel between the various universes, find this particular verson of me and kill him before taking his place. So if you will all excuse me, I'm off to brush up on the finer points of theoretical physics. Shouldn't take me too long.
Ta ta for now.
Sunday, 20 January 2013
That was the week that was
Hi everyone (or am I just down to one reader now?)
Right, so, where was I?
Oh, thats right, college started back on Tuesday evening and I did some writing. Not really any new totty to report either (I knew you'd ask so I thought I'd better get the answer in first). So anyway as it was the first night back after Christmas the class kicked off (as always) with a spot of monkey writing. Now sometimes we're given a word to write around and sometimes a scenario. This time it was a word. And that word was....
Aubergine.
No, me neither.
But I managed to write something. Not that it will be expanded on nor, in fact, remembered much passed this blog. So then we came to the main writing exercise of the night which was using memories as a way to create something new. The finale of which was that we were to try and create a new short story from one of our distant memories. Now we could write it into a genre we like or take a chance and be given a genre from the tutor. Me being me opted for the latter and was given the romance genre. Yes thats right romance.
So I had to create a short story in the romance genre.....
using the memory of playing in an under 9's football game.
Anyway, here is what I came up with.. (reproduced word for word with no editing)
The boys were running and chasing the ball with every ounce of their being. The rain was hammering down but they didn't care. They had a league title to win. For the parents, however, it was a different matter. Lined up on the side of the pitch they stood in ones and twos or small groups, clutching thermos flasks or driving their hands into coat pockets trying to stave off the terrible conditions, shouting out encouragement to their respective offspring every now and again.
Geoff shouted to his son
"Come on Sam! get that tackle in! That's it son!"
His eyes caught a drop of water on the peak of his cap and with a shake of his head it was sent with many others careering down to the earth.
"Your son made a good tackle there" said a womans voice beside him
Geoff looked around at the big thick hooded red coat standing next to him.
"Yes, he's not a bad defender is my Sam. Needs to be a bit meaner and harder in the tackle but that will come. Which is yours by the way?"
"The boy that got tackled" she replied
"Oh.. so you're with.."
"The opposition"
Geoff couldn't see it properly but felt sure that the woman was smiling at him,
"Well he's a nippy little winger is your lad" Geoff said feeling a little uncomfortable
"Yes" she said "he takes after his father in that respect"
"Good runner is he?" Geoff asked
"You could say that. As soon as he found out that I was expecting he was off like a shot. I'm Sue by the way. My son is Daniel."
"I'm sorry to hear about the father" Geoff said, finding that he wanted the conversation to end
"What about you if you don't mind me asking" Sue said
Geoff shuffled from foot to foot willing the ground to open up and swallow him whole.
"Well I , er, I.." he stuttered
"I'm sorry I've embarrassed you haven't I? Stupid me" Sue said. She adjusted the hood of the coat and Geoff saw her face. From underneath the hood poked a few blonde hairs which rapidly became wet. Her blue eyes beamed a look of concern and he felt his face become hot and suddenly realised that he must be blushing.
"No, not at all. Just not yet used to asking me that" he said, "I'm in the middle of a divorce."
"That's terrible" Sue said, "It must be awful for Sam"
"We're trying to keep things civil for his sake" Geoff said, "It isn't easy though."
And that was as far as I got. And probably as far as it's ever going to go. But not bad for about 15 minutes or so spent on it. So what do you think?
So what else has been happening?
The big thing that caught my eye was actually a couple of moments on the same theme.
Cheating in sport.
The bigs news event in the sporting world was the interview conducted by Oprah Winfrey with the now disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong. It transpires that he won the tour de France by using illegal means. But one phrase stuck out me. 'Win at all costs'.
In football, the Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, admits to diving to get his side a penalty in a game against Stoke.
In a snooker tournament, when a match was finely poised, the player Ricky Walden called a foul on himself even though no one else had seen it. Walden went on to lose the match.
Now in which, out of those three incidents, does the person involved come away with the most credit?
To me its the third one. Walden could have kept quiet, said nothing and maybe gone on to win the frame and then the match. We'll never know because he took what he saw as the fair and sporting option.
So why would anyone cheat in professional sport?
I think its coming down to one thing: money
I don't know about the cycling, I can only go on what I read and heard on the news. But in the premier league football the vast sums of money being thrown around must bring about huge amount of pressure to, and here comes the phrase again, 'win at all costs'. And its not just Suarez either and its not just diving that goes on. All manner of goings on from shirt pulling to blatant play acting happens in what is supposed to be a sporting arena.
Now maybe I'm being fantastically naive but is it time to say enough is enough and that we should return to a time when playing these sports in a true sporting manner was more important than winning at all costs, even if it means some of the big tv corporations, whose wealth gives the players untold riches but seems to detatch the clubs from reality, will withdraw their funding? Which would you rather have: a club that wins by using underhanded methods or a club that comes close but missed out by playing fair? It's a tough call with no easy answers.
Ta ta for now
Right, so, where was I?
Oh, thats right, college started back on Tuesday evening and I did some writing. Not really any new totty to report either (I knew you'd ask so I thought I'd better get the answer in first). So anyway as it was the first night back after Christmas the class kicked off (as always) with a spot of monkey writing. Now sometimes we're given a word to write around and sometimes a scenario. This time it was a word. And that word was....
Aubergine.
No, me neither.
But I managed to write something. Not that it will be expanded on nor, in fact, remembered much passed this blog. So then we came to the main writing exercise of the night which was using memories as a way to create something new. The finale of which was that we were to try and create a new short story from one of our distant memories. Now we could write it into a genre we like or take a chance and be given a genre from the tutor. Me being me opted for the latter and was given the romance genre. Yes thats right romance.
So I had to create a short story in the romance genre.....
using the memory of playing in an under 9's football game.
Anyway, here is what I came up with.. (reproduced word for word with no editing)
The boys were running and chasing the ball with every ounce of their being. The rain was hammering down but they didn't care. They had a league title to win. For the parents, however, it was a different matter. Lined up on the side of the pitch they stood in ones and twos or small groups, clutching thermos flasks or driving their hands into coat pockets trying to stave off the terrible conditions, shouting out encouragement to their respective offspring every now and again.
Geoff shouted to his son
"Come on Sam! get that tackle in! That's it son!"
His eyes caught a drop of water on the peak of his cap and with a shake of his head it was sent with many others careering down to the earth.
"Your son made a good tackle there" said a womans voice beside him
Geoff looked around at the big thick hooded red coat standing next to him.
"Yes, he's not a bad defender is my Sam. Needs to be a bit meaner and harder in the tackle but that will come. Which is yours by the way?"
"The boy that got tackled" she replied
"Oh.. so you're with.."
"The opposition"
Geoff couldn't see it properly but felt sure that the woman was smiling at him,
"Well he's a nippy little winger is your lad" Geoff said feeling a little uncomfortable
"Yes" she said "he takes after his father in that respect"
"Good runner is he?" Geoff asked
"You could say that. As soon as he found out that I was expecting he was off like a shot. I'm Sue by the way. My son is Daniel."
"I'm sorry to hear about the father" Geoff said, finding that he wanted the conversation to end
"What about you if you don't mind me asking" Sue said
Geoff shuffled from foot to foot willing the ground to open up and swallow him whole.
"Well I , er, I.." he stuttered
"I'm sorry I've embarrassed you haven't I? Stupid me" Sue said. She adjusted the hood of the coat and Geoff saw her face. From underneath the hood poked a few blonde hairs which rapidly became wet. Her blue eyes beamed a look of concern and he felt his face become hot and suddenly realised that he must be blushing.
"No, not at all. Just not yet used to asking me that" he said, "I'm in the middle of a divorce."
"That's terrible" Sue said, "It must be awful for Sam"
"We're trying to keep things civil for his sake" Geoff said, "It isn't easy though."
And that was as far as I got. And probably as far as it's ever going to go. But not bad for about 15 minutes or so spent on it. So what do you think?
So what else has been happening?
The big thing that caught my eye was actually a couple of moments on the same theme.
Cheating in sport.
The bigs news event in the sporting world was the interview conducted by Oprah Winfrey with the now disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong. It transpires that he won the tour de France by using illegal means. But one phrase stuck out me. 'Win at all costs'.
In football, the Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, admits to diving to get his side a penalty in a game against Stoke.
In a snooker tournament, when a match was finely poised, the player Ricky Walden called a foul on himself even though no one else had seen it. Walden went on to lose the match.
Now in which, out of those three incidents, does the person involved come away with the most credit?
To me its the third one. Walden could have kept quiet, said nothing and maybe gone on to win the frame and then the match. We'll never know because he took what he saw as the fair and sporting option.
So why would anyone cheat in professional sport?
I think its coming down to one thing: money
I don't know about the cycling, I can only go on what I read and heard on the news. But in the premier league football the vast sums of money being thrown around must bring about huge amount of pressure to, and here comes the phrase again, 'win at all costs'. And its not just Suarez either and its not just diving that goes on. All manner of goings on from shirt pulling to blatant play acting happens in what is supposed to be a sporting arena.
Now maybe I'm being fantastically naive but is it time to say enough is enough and that we should return to a time when playing these sports in a true sporting manner was more important than winning at all costs, even if it means some of the big tv corporations, whose wealth gives the players untold riches but seems to detatch the clubs from reality, will withdraw their funding? Which would you rather have: a club that wins by using underhanded methods or a club that comes close but missed out by playing fair? It's a tough call with no easy answers.
Ta ta for now
Tuesday, 15 January 2013
The journey of writing part 3
Well hello once again (you're still there right? Hello? Hello? I'm not writing this for the good of my health you know. I'm trying to entertain here).
Now, where was I?
Ah yes, the story has been sent out to a select few people and I'm waiting patiently to see what they think of it.
*Goes off to check email again*
Nope, nothing yet.
But anyway, wouldn't you just know it, another idea has popped into my head. And it always happens the same way. Generally when I'm driving either to or from work, and should therefore be concentrating on the road, it just comes into my head. Sometimes it happens when I'm the shower but you probably don't want to hear about that. So that gives a slight problem because obviously I have to wait a little while Before I can write it down. I don't know about any other country but in the UK taking both hands off the wheel and not looking at the road whilest writing story ideas down is frowned upon. Which means that I have to try and keep it in my head till I get into work or back home where I can sort it out or at least whack it into my little notebook. This time I managed to keep it in my head and it has since been written down. Where will it go after that I do not know. Will it become story number 9 in the proposed anthology? Or will it be consigned to the idea notebook of history never to see the light of day? Only time will tell. Unless you're a timelord and know already. But if the Doctor is reading this....
TAKE ME WITH YOU!
Ahem, anyway, right.
Back at college tonight for the next term of creative writing on a Tuesday. Yay! New people to discuss ideas with and try out new things. And you never know there might be some new totty for me to be able to totally fail to talk to...
*sigh*
One day, one day...
Ta ta for now
Now, where was I?
Ah yes, the story has been sent out to a select few people and I'm waiting patiently to see what they think of it.
*Goes off to check email again*
Nope, nothing yet.
But anyway, wouldn't you just know it, another idea has popped into my head. And it always happens the same way. Generally when I'm driving either to or from work, and should therefore be concentrating on the road, it just comes into my head. Sometimes it happens when I'm the shower but you probably don't want to hear about that. So that gives a slight problem because obviously I have to wait a little while Before I can write it down. I don't know about any other country but in the UK taking both hands off the wheel and not looking at the road whilest writing story ideas down is frowned upon. Which means that I have to try and keep it in my head till I get into work or back home where I can sort it out or at least whack it into my little notebook. This time I managed to keep it in my head and it has since been written down. Where will it go after that I do not know. Will it become story number 9 in the proposed anthology? Or will it be consigned to the idea notebook of history never to see the light of day? Only time will tell. Unless you're a timelord and know already. But if the Doctor is reading this....
TAKE ME WITH YOU!
Ahem, anyway, right.
Back at college tonight for the next term of creative writing on a Tuesday. Yay! New people to discuss ideas with and try out new things. And you never know there might be some new totty for me to be able to totally fail to talk to...
*sigh*
One day, one day...
Ta ta for now
Wednesday, 9 January 2013
The journey of writing part 2
So the story that I started writing the other day is now finished. Well sort of. The first draft is completed. It was longer than I thought it was going to be which I suppose isn't a bad thing. Or is it?
See that's the problem when writing your own stories. You never really know. Or at least I don't. And that's where a critique group comes in handy. For those that don't know (Probably not that many reading this) I go to a creative writing class at a nearby college. It's a fun class where people of different backgrounds, interests and, yes, ability come together to help and encourage each other in the pursuit of writing. Depending on the class size you might get to read a piece of your work once or twice a term. You read for about five minutes and then the rest of the class will give feedback about it.
And I hate it.
For two reasons:
1) I never know what to say. I prefer reading something two or three times before making a comment on someones work, so having to say somethng after one listen is very difficult.
2) Other people disagree, but I always think that what I say is complete drivel. It may not be but that's just me.
So I prefer to give it to some friends who will then read the whole piece before commenting on. To this end I, with a couple of friends from the class, have now got our own little group over on fb where we swap ideas and the such like. We do however stick with one principle from the class in that we say what we like and what we don't like. It works well.
And that's the next step. I will be sending it out them in the next day or so and see what they think of it.
And no, you can't be in the group.
See that's the problem when writing your own stories. You never really know. Or at least I don't. And that's where a critique group comes in handy. For those that don't know (Probably not that many reading this) I go to a creative writing class at a nearby college. It's a fun class where people of different backgrounds, interests and, yes, ability come together to help and encourage each other in the pursuit of writing. Depending on the class size you might get to read a piece of your work once or twice a term. You read for about five minutes and then the rest of the class will give feedback about it.
And I hate it.
For two reasons:
1) I never know what to say. I prefer reading something two or three times before making a comment on someones work, so having to say somethng after one listen is very difficult.
2) Other people disagree, but I always think that what I say is complete drivel. It may not be but that's just me.
So I prefer to give it to some friends who will then read the whole piece before commenting on. To this end I, with a couple of friends from the class, have now got our own little group over on fb where we swap ideas and the such like. We do however stick with one principle from the class in that we say what we like and what we don't like. It works well.
And that's the next step. I will be sending it out them in the next day or so and see what they think of it.
And no, you can't be in the group.
Wednesday, 2 January 2013
The journey of writing
So hello there (you're still there right? right?)
So you remember that new story I told you about a few weeks ago?
What do you mean 'no'?!
You remember, the one which wasn't quite ready to go to the page yet. Well it's now ready and over the last couple of days I've been writing away, creating a new world and new characters to explore that world. Letting these characters loose on the page is a rather fun thing to try and do especially if you find that those very same characters you had sketched out over the course of a few writing exercises start to do and say things that you weren't expecting. Like my main character is doing now by being a lot angrier and dismissive of his society than I thought he was going to be...
Still got to stick with it and see where he goes. Probably should stop talking about them as if they're really alive. People will start to think I'm a bit nuts. Well ok, I probably am but no more than the next writer.
I'll let you know what happens next.
And...
If anyone is wondering why I've not written a blog about the New Years resolutions that I made...
It's because I never made any.
I don't believe they do anyone much good.
Alright, I made a vague one..
But I ain't telling you what it is. *Evil grin*
Ta ta for now
So you remember that new story I told you about a few weeks ago?
What do you mean 'no'?!
You remember, the one which wasn't quite ready to go to the page yet. Well it's now ready and over the last couple of days I've been writing away, creating a new world and new characters to explore that world. Letting these characters loose on the page is a rather fun thing to try and do especially if you find that those very same characters you had sketched out over the course of a few writing exercises start to do and say things that you weren't expecting. Like my main character is doing now by being a lot angrier and dismissive of his society than I thought he was going to be...
Still got to stick with it and see where he goes. Probably should stop talking about them as if they're really alive. People will start to think I'm a bit nuts. Well ok, I probably am but no more than the next writer.
I'll let you know what happens next.
And...
If anyone is wondering why I've not written a blog about the New Years resolutions that I made...
It's because I never made any.
I don't believe they do anyone much good.
Alright, I made a vague one..
But I ain't telling you what it is. *Evil grin*
Ta ta for now
Thursday, 20 December 2012
Doctor Who convention report and con lurgy
For those of you that are on my Facebook friends list you might have seen that my last update on there read like this:
'Excellent Doctor Who convention weekend. I will blog about it later. But, for the moment, it can be summed up thus:
David Tennant, Billie Piper, Torchwood, Sarah-Jane adventures, cups of tea, pints of lager, lots of laughter, Cissie and Ada...'
So now, dear reader, I give you the full version of the events. And we start at Friday lunchtime.
It was pissing down on Friday. All day. Now for me the journey to the hotel is only about 85 miles or so but I would have preferred it if the weather was a little nicer. Especially given the M6 motorway can be a sod at times. Thankfully the roads turned out to be fairly clear. Just wet. Very wet. So, being the pretty good driver that I am, I merely killed a bit of speed and put a bit of extra distance in between me and the car in front. Then spent most of the journey wondering how many of the other motorists on the motorway must have had the eyes of a hawk given that, in some cases, they were trying to break the speed of sound. But I made it to the hotel on the outskirts of Birmingham safely enough. Check into hotel, unpack and then register for the con. All done? Good, head to the bar. Because as everyone knows, at a british convention, this is where everyone hangs out. See, standing at the bar, some friends that I have made at previous cons. Had a pint and a chat. Now this is where the 'Cissie and Ada' part comes in. One such conversation topic with my mate Duane was about old-time comedians such as Tommy Cooper and Les Dawson. Les Dawson did a series of scetches with an actor called Roy Barraclough about to older women called Cissie and Ada which are hysterical even today (you can search them out on Youtube). And so began the weekend of randomly quoting these scetches while laughing like drains. For which I apologise to anyone who was standing next to us in the autograph and photo session queues. So after a bit of a drink, something to eat and a catch up with the peeps it was time to begin the Friday night party. Which was a lot of fun. Beer prices weren't too bad and its a good way to start the weekend.
Saturday was Torchwood day for me as I had my picture taken with two of the show's stars Eve Myles (Gwen Cooper) and Gareth David Lloyd (Ianto Jones). And very nice people they were too. I've heard a few negative comments regarding Eve but I didn't have anything untoward happen to me in the brief time when I had my photo taken with her and later in the autograph session though I'm not sure what some people expect. There were a couple of talks from actors, writers and producers of the show giving insights to the production process. All very interesting as well. The highlight of the Saturday at a con is the fancy dress competition and this one was no exception with costumes of amazingly high quality. I'm not much of a costumer but its still fun to watch these people show off in something that they have spent many loving hours preparing. Though I did notice that one guy who came as the SIXTH doctor had dark hair and not blonde. Maybe he couldn't find a good wig and didn't want to dye it but it did look kinda wrong. Anyway, once that was over, it was then on to yet more partying.
And so Sunday duly arrived. As did the headline actors of Billie Piper and the tenth doctor himself, David Tennant. This was where the con kicked up a gear. There were now two photo sessions with people queuing first, in my case anyway I'm not sure if it was the same for everyone, for Billie and then joing the second queue for David. Its all over far too quick. You can see when you are standing patiently in line, getting ever closer the excitement building. Then it's your turn. You say hi, turn to face the camera.... and click! Your moment is over. But you are still happy to have met them. Then its back to the main hall for more talks (some of the running jokes from Saturday are continued while others are started) and lunch. Before you know it, its time to join the autograph queue to say hi to David and Billie all over again. Not that they remembered me *pouts*. So get autographs and then get something to eat before going back into the main hall again to catch the remainder of the talks. Then the last talk of the event was the main duo on stage. And a fun Q&A session it was. Ok, some of the questions may be a little near the boundary of good taste but the two actors coped with them well enough and didn't seem unduly phased by them. It does happen quite a lot at conventions where you get a situation when a question sounds better and funnier in a person's head but for one reason or another comes out slightly wrong but for the most part all the queries are fine.
And then they were gone. Every guest was brought back onto the stage to say their goodbyes and then that was it. This fun way of spending the weekend was, apart from the last remaining party, done. The Sunday party is generally quieter than the proceding two. Mainly because a lot of the attendees go home that evening. Variety of reasons for this from needing to be in work/school the next day or just saving a few pennies for the next con (theses things are addictive and should carry a health warning! May cause serious damage to your bank balance!). But your's truly had a few pints to finish off. Or rather I would have had a few pints had the hotel not run out of beer thus meaning any lager drinkers had to switch to bottles. Still, it all goes down the same way.
Monday was a curiously quiet hotel morning. Until the fire alarm went off. Wouldn't have minded too much except I was in the middle of breakfast and drinking my brew. So I did the only thing I could. Took the cup of tea outside and drank it there. Excitement over I returned to my room, packed the remaining things into my bag and left the room. A few goodbyes to those I saw in the lobby and I was away home having had a rather excellent time.
So.. the con lurgy.
This is the reason why I'm writing this while coughing and spluttering. Caused (I think) by the hotel's air con, or possibly the close proximity to 1000 other people, it is a common affliction in the after con week. But the worst is over so I'll be fine for the works do next Saturday.
There is more that could be said but I won't. I know I know, I'm mean. But you really should just go to one yourself. Seriously you should.
Anyway, to finish off, here is a picture of me standing next to a Dalek.
So the next one will be about Christmas. Unless the world ends tomorrow in which case it was nice knowing you.
'Excellent Doctor Who convention weekend. I will blog about it later. But, for the moment, it can be summed up thus:
David Tennant, Billie Piper, Torchwood, Sarah-Jane adventures, cups of tea, pints of lager, lots of laughter, Cissie and Ada...'
So now, dear reader, I give you the full version of the events. And we start at Friday lunchtime.
It was pissing down on Friday. All day. Now for me the journey to the hotel is only about 85 miles or so but I would have preferred it if the weather was a little nicer. Especially given the M6 motorway can be a sod at times. Thankfully the roads turned out to be fairly clear. Just wet. Very wet. So, being the pretty good driver that I am, I merely killed a bit of speed and put a bit of extra distance in between me and the car in front. Then spent most of the journey wondering how many of the other motorists on the motorway must have had the eyes of a hawk given that, in some cases, they were trying to break the speed of sound. But I made it to the hotel on the outskirts of Birmingham safely enough. Check into hotel, unpack and then register for the con. All done? Good, head to the bar. Because as everyone knows, at a british convention, this is where everyone hangs out. See, standing at the bar, some friends that I have made at previous cons. Had a pint and a chat. Now this is where the 'Cissie and Ada' part comes in. One such conversation topic with my mate Duane was about old-time comedians such as Tommy Cooper and Les Dawson. Les Dawson did a series of scetches with an actor called Roy Barraclough about to older women called Cissie and Ada which are hysterical even today (you can search them out on Youtube). And so began the weekend of randomly quoting these scetches while laughing like drains. For which I apologise to anyone who was standing next to us in the autograph and photo session queues. So after a bit of a drink, something to eat and a catch up with the peeps it was time to begin the Friday night party. Which was a lot of fun. Beer prices weren't too bad and its a good way to start the weekend.
Saturday was Torchwood day for me as I had my picture taken with two of the show's stars Eve Myles (Gwen Cooper) and Gareth David Lloyd (Ianto Jones). And very nice people they were too. I've heard a few negative comments regarding Eve but I didn't have anything untoward happen to me in the brief time when I had my photo taken with her and later in the autograph session though I'm not sure what some people expect. There were a couple of talks from actors, writers and producers of the show giving insights to the production process. All very interesting as well. The highlight of the Saturday at a con is the fancy dress competition and this one was no exception with costumes of amazingly high quality. I'm not much of a costumer but its still fun to watch these people show off in something that they have spent many loving hours preparing. Though I did notice that one guy who came as the SIXTH doctor had dark hair and not blonde. Maybe he couldn't find a good wig and didn't want to dye it but it did look kinda wrong. Anyway, once that was over, it was then on to yet more partying.
And so Sunday duly arrived. As did the headline actors of Billie Piper and the tenth doctor himself, David Tennant. This was where the con kicked up a gear. There were now two photo sessions with people queuing first, in my case anyway I'm not sure if it was the same for everyone, for Billie and then joing the second queue for David. Its all over far too quick. You can see when you are standing patiently in line, getting ever closer the excitement building. Then it's your turn. You say hi, turn to face the camera.... and click! Your moment is over. But you are still happy to have met them. Then its back to the main hall for more talks (some of the running jokes from Saturday are continued while others are started) and lunch. Before you know it, its time to join the autograph queue to say hi to David and Billie all over again. Not that they remembered me *pouts*. So get autographs and then get something to eat before going back into the main hall again to catch the remainder of the talks. Then the last talk of the event was the main duo on stage. And a fun Q&A session it was. Ok, some of the questions may be a little near the boundary of good taste but the two actors coped with them well enough and didn't seem unduly phased by them. It does happen quite a lot at conventions where you get a situation when a question sounds better and funnier in a person's head but for one reason or another comes out slightly wrong but for the most part all the queries are fine.
And then they were gone. Every guest was brought back onto the stage to say their goodbyes and then that was it. This fun way of spending the weekend was, apart from the last remaining party, done. The Sunday party is generally quieter than the proceding two. Mainly because a lot of the attendees go home that evening. Variety of reasons for this from needing to be in work/school the next day or just saving a few pennies for the next con (theses things are addictive and should carry a health warning! May cause serious damage to your bank balance!). But your's truly had a few pints to finish off. Or rather I would have had a few pints had the hotel not run out of beer thus meaning any lager drinkers had to switch to bottles. Still, it all goes down the same way.
Monday was a curiously quiet hotel morning. Until the fire alarm went off. Wouldn't have minded too much except I was in the middle of breakfast and drinking my brew. So I did the only thing I could. Took the cup of tea outside and drank it there. Excitement over I returned to my room, packed the remaining things into my bag and left the room. A few goodbyes to those I saw in the lobby and I was away home having had a rather excellent time.
So.. the con lurgy.
This is the reason why I'm writing this while coughing and spluttering. Caused (I think) by the hotel's air con, or possibly the close proximity to 1000 other people, it is a common affliction in the after con week. But the worst is over so I'll be fine for the works do next Saturday.
There is more that could be said but I won't. I know I know, I'm mean. But you really should just go to one yourself. Seriously you should.
So the next one will be about Christmas. Unless the world ends tomorrow in which case it was nice knowing you.
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