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Radio Phoenix 96.7 FM

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Edited by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Sunday, 22 Apr 2012, 18:39

I will be appearing on 'Themes for Dreamers' again on Sunday 13 May 2012 from 16:00 to 18:00.   The theme of the programme has not been decided yet, but I will be hosting it, and asking questions of my friend and colleague, Gaia Holmes, the programme's usual host. 

You can listen live via www.phoenixfm.co.uk or download the podcast after the programme has been broadcast. 

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Ted Hughes Festival

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The 'Grist' poets, including me, have been invited to recite at the Ted Hughes Festival in Mytholmroyd in October 2012.

The exact date is still to be confirmed. 

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John Sergeant on Spike Milligan

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http://iamhyperlexic.wordpress.com/2012/04/09/john-sergeant-on-spike-milligan-itv1/

It contains, among other things, another statement of why I hate the BNP. 

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'Grist' poetry events in April and May

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On Tuesday 3 April at 8pm, some of the 'Grist' poets, including me, will be reciting at Kork's wine bar in Otley (LS21 1AD).

On Sunday 15 April, the 'Grist' poets are taking over the 'Themes for Dreamers' programme on Radio Phoenix (www.phoenixfm.co.uk) from 4 to 6 pm.  There are rumours that extracts from this programme will be available on CD afterwards. 

On Saturday 21 April between 1 and 2pm, we will be at Huddersfield Central Library in support of World Book Day.

On the evening of Wednesday 2 May, we will be at an event called Wicked Words in Leeds.  Details to be confirmed.

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'Grist' review by Ian McMillan

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Ian McMillan will be reviewing the 'Grist' poetry anthology in the Yorkshire Post on Friday 16 March 2012.
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'Grist' poets appear in Bradford tonight (12 March 2012)

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Tonight I will be appearing with five other of the contributors to the 'Grist' 2012 poetry anthology (called 'A Complicated Way Of Being Ignored') at The Beehive pub in Bradford (ten minutes from Bradford Forster Square station). 

The performance starts at about 7:30pm and will be followed by open mic contributions from the audience. 

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Review of 'Grist' poetry launch night

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http://iamhyperlexic.wordpress.com/2012/03/08/grist-poetry-launch/

 

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Launch of 'Grist' poetry anthology

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Edited by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Monday, 27 Feb 2012, 20:51

On Wednesday 7 March 2012, I will be appearing at Bar 1:22 in Huddersfield at the launch of the 2012 'Grist' poetry anthology.  The collection is entitled 'A Complicated Way of Being Ignored'. 

I will be reading three poems.

The event starts at 7pm, and will be hosted by Michael Stewart, the editor of the collection. 

There may be a follow-up event in Bradford on Monday 12 March.  Details follow once this has been confirmed.

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Another Radio Phoenix appearance

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Edited by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Sunday, 26 Feb 2012, 16:04

I will be co-hosting 'Themes for Dreamers' with Gaia Holmes on Radio Phoenix on Sunday 18 March 2012 from 16:00 to 18:00.  If you live in Halifax, you can listen on 96.7 FM.  Otherwise, you can listen via the internet:

www.phoenixfm.co.uk

and click on 'Listen Live'.  The programme should also be available as a podcast after it has been broadcast. 

I have just updated this to change the date from 11 March to 18 March. 

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Radio Phoenix podcast

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Anybody who missed my appearance on "Themes for Dreamers" on Radio Phoenix on 5 February 2012 can download the programme as two podcasts.

http://www.phoenixfm.co.uk/Podcasts_Themes_Dreamers.htm

 

Permalink 2 comments (latest comment by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Friday, 9 Mar 2012, 20:09)
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Open University e-petition (again)

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http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/22316

This e-petition seems to have got stuck at about 46,000 signatures.  We need 100,000 for it to reach the official threshold.

If you are reading this, you are probably an OU student.  If you are an OU student, you probably do not want OU fees to rise or the breadth and depth of the curriculum to be impoverished.  If you are resident in the United Kingdom and have not signed the petition, please do so. 

To any-one outside the OU, I would say that the Open University is a major asset in re-skilling the UK workforce: cutting it, even in time of recession, is counter-productive. 

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Radio Phoenix

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I will be appearing on a programme called 'Themes for Dreamers', on Radio Phoenix on Sunday 5 February at 4pm.  The programme is hosted by Gaia Holmes, who is a poet and teacher of creative writing at Huddersfield University. 

If you live in Halifax, you can listen to the programme on 96.7 FM.  The rest of the world can get it via the internet:

www.phoenixfm.co.uk

and click on 'Listen Live'. 

The theme of the programme is "renewal".  Most of it will be music, but we will be reading some poetry and talking about stuff as well. 

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Audio CD: Part 7: WARNING

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Edited by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Monday, 9 Jan 2012, 10:15

The piece below entitled "Audio CD Part 7" has come to the attention of a member of the OU staff (not a forum moderator) who has since warned me that "it might not be politic" to have written this.

This person did not give any indication of why it might not be politic, but I feel it my duty to pass on the warning.  It might not be politic to read it either.  I suggest that, if you do read it, you must on no account laugh. 

If you feel that you cannot stop yourself from reading it and further that laughter may be forthcoming, then you should ensure that you are in a private place, preferably one where you cannot be observed, such as:

  • down a disused mine-shaft
  • an old, abandoned amusement park
  • a derelict house which everybody nearby says is haunted
  • the cellar, if you have one
  • the cupboard under the stairs, if you have one.

If you have a civil defence leaflet from the Cold War era, read it carefully and carry out all the steps it recommends.

Above all, don't let anybody know what you have done. 

Permalink 1 comment (latest comment by Birgit Ianniello, Monday, 23 Jan 2012, 15:01)
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My first review

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The 'Grist' short fiction anthology was a book of the week last month.  Michael Stewart has just sent me a link to the review article, and 'Slow Dance With A Skeleton' gets a decent mention.

http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/leisure/taleisurebook/booksreviews/9427147.Story____snacks____are_just_enough/

 

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write-invite.com result announced

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http://iamhyperlexic.wordpress.com/2011/12/26/write-invite-result-announced/
Permalink 2 comments (latest comment by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Monday, 26 Dec 2011, 20:23)
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Ten pence, please.

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I have been short-listed for the last write-invite competition of 2011.  The result has not been announced yet but, since voting has closed, I have posted the piece on my Wordpress blog:

http://iamhyperlexic.wordpress.com/2011/12/26/ten-pence-please/

Permalink 2 comments (latest comment by ROSIE Rushton-Stone, Monday, 26 Dec 2011, 08:47)
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Audio CD: Part 7*

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Edited by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Wednesday, 21 Dec 2011, 17:10

CD-M:   Good afternoon, and welcome to this audio CD presentation for A36B: Start Talking Advanced Bollocks.  My name is Cuthbert Dry-Monotone.  I am here with the celebrated author and lecturer, Derek Nail. (suppresses yawn)

DN:     Good afternoon. 

CD-M:   I wonder if we could start our discussion with the creative processes you went through in order to adapt your short story, “The Porridge Stirrers”?  What would you say “The Porridge Stirrers” is about?

DN:     It’s about a man called Brian Gobbett who is a porridge-stirrer.

CD-M:   (suppresses yawn) Yes, but it’s about more than that, isn’t it?

DN:     Most certainly.  The story’s inciting incident is when, one early morning, very unexpectedly, Brian’s favourite stirring-stick breaks.  He receives a flood of memories from the time before his wife died, when they were together in Bucharest, and they bought the stirring-stick together.  He remembers his youthful ambition, and how he was determined to become the big name among independent porridge-stirrers in the north of England.  He then reflects on how many frustrations and disappointments he has had to face since then.  He wonders how he is ever going to replace the stick.  He teeters on the brink of despair.

CD-M:   Fascinating, angst-ridden stuff.  And then what happens?

DN:     He opens the door of his workshop to investigate an unexpected noise.  He finds a youth, a street urchin, who has apparently got into difficulties while attempting to insert an improvised parcel full of dog-shit through the letterbox.  The youth has among his few simple belongings a beautifully carved and decorated wooden rod.  Brian sees this and instantly believes that it is a sign that he must take the youth in and teach him the art of porridge-stirring.  Only by doing this can he be sure that his life’s work will carry on and hence he can face the prospect of retirement.

CD-M:   Riveting.  And how does the story end?

DN:     With a tableau of the youth, after he has finished his training and taken over the business, vigorously but gracefully stirring porridge.

CD-M:   And what challenges did you face when thinking about how to adapt the short story into other media?

DN:     I think the biggest challenge was how to avoid over-taxing the listener or viewer.

CD-M:   Over-taxing?  How do you mean?

DN:     Well, the traditional stirring of porridge by hand is an activity which engages all of the senses: the sight of the muscular and determined figure of the porridge-stirrer himself, the rustic beauty of his intricately-carved stirring-stick, the glutinous texture and earthy aroma of the porridge.  I wanted to convey all this as simply and directly as possible, so that the person absorbing the adaptation would not miss anything.

CD-M:   (fails miserably to suppress yawn) And were there any other challenges?

DN:     There was also a set of technical problems to be overcome.

CD-M:   Technical problems to do with what?

DN:     To do with the details of the art and practice of porridge-stirring, which are things of forbidding complexity and subtlety.

CD-M:   And so did these considerations influence your choice of medium?

DN:     Indeed.  I thought that it would be impossible to convey these things on the radio.  I also thought that material of this depth would work best as cinema.  I began to work on a film-adaptation.

 CD-M:  I wander if you could just (yawns) take us through the storyboard for the opening sequence?

DN:     Of course.  Here we see Brian Gobbett walking from his home to his workshop.  He glances up at the huge wooden spoon over the door as he enters.  He changes into his work-clothes. (sound of snoring getting gradually louder) He lights the gas under the porridge-pot.  He picks up his stirring-stick, and goes through some warm-up exercises.  He removes the lid from the porridge-pot.  The camera looks down from above as the mixture starts to boil.  He offers a silent prayer, introduces his stirring-stick, and begins to stir…

CD-M:   (waking) HMM!  What?  Er, yes, of course.  Are we still recording?  

 

* The six previous parts have been posted to this blog already.  You can find them by searching for "Audio CD".

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The Companion: Christmas Special 2011

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A year ago, I wrote some parts of 'The Companion' which included a Christmas pantomime performed aboard the 'Irish Rover'.

I am not making any promises, but I will do my best to write another instalment of 'The Companion' (or its sequel) between now and Christmas. 

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Final Instalment Day: enrolment instructions

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How to get ‘The Companion’, a novel by William Thirsk-Gaskill, free of charge:

  1. Send me an email requesting the first of the two PDF files.
  2. Read the PDF file.  Feel free to post comments on it here, or send them to me by email. 
  3. Send me another email requesting the second of the two PDF files.  Don’t do this until you have completed step 2.
  4. Repeat step 2 on the second PDF file. 
  5. Send me an email asking to be put on the distribution list for Final Instalment Day. 

Some of those reading this will know my email address already.  If you don’t know it, please use this one:

wjtg2@my.open.ac.uk

All the material covered by these instructions is copyright © William Thirsk-Gaskill 2011.  Each file so supplied is for the personal use of the named recipient only, and may not be traded, sold, reverse-engineered, amended, emailed, posted on an intranet or Internet, displayed on an overhead projector or similar equipment, broadcast wirelessly, or processed by any means other than being read by the natural person who is the recipient, except with the advance written permission of the author.  If the material is printed, then these conditions apply to all printout thus produced.

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Final Instalment Day

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Following the rejection of the first three chapters of 'The Companion' by two agents, I am thinking of ways to promote volume 1 of 'The Companion'. One of these will be to write volume 2, which I have already started thinking about.

Interest in 'The Companion' seems to be re-awakening, probably because of the intake of people who had not heard of it into the A363 class. I have had a couple of requests recently for the first of the PDF files, and I intend to solicit some more. I expect that most people who read the first PDF will want the second one and hence the final instalment.

When I was converting it into PDFs, I decided that I would send the final instalment free of charge to anybody who had provided reasonable feedback on the earlier parts. I have now decided to modify that plan.

I am going to institute Final Instalment Day. For one day only, anybody who asks by email will be able to receive, free of charge, the final instalment of 'The Companion'. The only condition is that I must be satisfied that the individual concerned has read the rest of the story.

The date I have set for Final Instalment Day is 18 March 2012: the day after the announcement of the 'Fish' short fiction competition, which I have entered.

Permalink 2 comments (latest comment by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Wednesday, 7 Dec 2011, 18:23)
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Please sign the e-petition

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The OU has started an e-petition in order to get parliamentary time to debate proposed cuts in funding.  This is the best chance we have got to stop the cuts.

The Petition: http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/22316

I have written a short article for anybody who needs convincing.

http://iamhyperlexic.wordpress.com/2011/12/02/please-sign-the-ou-e-petition/

 

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Video clip from 'Grist' launch party

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Michael Stewart has posted a video clip on YouTube which shows some highlights of the 'Grist' short fiction launch party.

You can see it on my Wordpress blog (link in the right-hand sidebar of this screen) or here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvH0e0VtyQQ

The article on my blog has a couple of photographs as well. 

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An undiscovered fragment of radio drama

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Fade up.  Indoors, suburban street noise coming through open window.  Occasional shouts in background.

WOMAN:       What are you doing?  You’ve been staring out of that window for two hours.

MAN:             I’m not doing anything.  I’m trying to work out what those nutters are up to, over there.

WOMAN:       Why is that important?

MAN:             Why is that important?  It is important because we are an outwardly respectable couple.  I am an outwardly respectable man, and you are an outwardly respectable woman.  We don’t want undesirables coming round here, disrupting our accustomed routine and de-valuing our property.

See the rest at:

http://iamhyperlexic.wordpress.com/2011/11/21/an-undiscovered-fragment-of-radio-drama/

Permalink 3 comments (latest comment by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Tuesday, 22 Nov 2011, 15:31)
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Run, Johnny. Run, Janet.

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Edited by William Justin Thirsk-Gaskill, Friday, 18 Nov 2011, 16:32

Janet runs every day. Janet wears trainers to help her run faster. Johnny wears trainers, too. Johnny knows that Janet is going to be wearing trainers, and so he makes sure to wear his trainers before the game starts. Johnny has been watching Janet every day while she runs. He has been watching her every day for some time now. He knows what time it will be when she crosses the school playground.

The rest is on my Wordpress blog (link in the right-hand side bar of this page under 'Related links'). 

Permalink 1 comment (latest comment by Matt Hobbs, Friday, 18 Nov 2011, 16:50)
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'Grist' 2012 available to pre-order on Amazon

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The 2012 ‘Grist’ anthology of short fiction is now available to pre-order on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Outside-Asylum-Michael-Stewart/dp/0956309917/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321453397&sr=8-1

The price is GBP 9.45 plus postage (which, depending on which option you choose, can be free within the UK).

I don’t get any royalty from this, but I want people to buy the book both to enjoy and criticise the fiction it contains, and also to enable money to be ploughed back into the ‘Grist’ project and its work in discovering new writers.

In case anybody has forgotten, my contribution to this anthology is a short story entitled 'Slow Dance With A Skeleton'. 

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