Discworld Monthly - Issue 147: July 2009

1. Editorial

Welcome to issue 147. Once again it has been a fairly quiet month in Discworld terms but frantic at home - work stated on this month's issue on Wednesday 24th June.

Hopefully the US DVD of The Color of Magic should get a general release this month. We originally heard the date would be the 14th. So keep checking your favourite DVD outlet.

Paul van Oven wrote in to proudly announce that there will be a Discworldcon in the Netherlands in 2011. The exact date and location to be confirmed. We'll be sure to pass on any details once they are released.

Don't forget, if you visit a play or a talk and would like to let the world know about it, please feel free to email your review to info@discworldmonthly.co.uk and we will consider it for publication.

--
Jason Anthony (Editor) info@discworldmonthly.co.uk
William Barnett (Deputy Editor)
Richard Massey (Festival Goer)

2. News

News from Colin Smythe (Terry's agent):

Nation is on the Guardian Children's Fiction prize long list - though it's not so 'long' - only eight novels.

The DVDs of The Colour of Magic will be released by Genius in the States some time in July. Exact date not yet announced.

Dreamworks are considering Truckers for release in 2012 - see

discworldmonthly.co.uk?redir=TRUCK147A

discworldmonthly.co.uk?redir=TRUCK147B

and

discworldmonthly.co.uk?redir=TRUCK147C

Terry is one of the finalists for the 2009 Mythopoeic Award in the Children's Literature category ~~quilldragon.com/2009/05/28/mythopoeic-awards-2009-finalists/~~

I'm delighted to inform you that NATION has just received the 2009 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award in the Fiction & Poetry Category. See ~~www.hbook.com/bghb/current.asp~~. This is one of the most prestigious literary awards for books for young readers in the US.

A detailed article about Dreamworks' plans for Truckers can be found at discworldmonthly.co.uk?redir=TRUCK147D

I've just seen a collection of fans' cloth Discworld figures, worth looking at: www.dollstreetdreamers.com/gallery/discworld/index.htm

Terry will be at the Darwin festival which takes place from the 5th to 10th July at the University of Cambridge.

Terry will appear with Jack Cohen to discuss the Science of Discworld III: Darwin's Watch on Tuesday 7th.

discworldmonthly.co.uk?redir=DARWIN147

Terry is reported as being unhappy that a radio station dubbed "the Birdsong Channel" has been replaced by an A&R style commercial radio.

www.digitaljournal.com/article/273442

There was an interview with Ian Stewart (one of the authors of the three Science of Discworld books) in the Guardian Education section.

You can read the interview at: discworldmonthly.co.uk?redir=IAN147

Discworld Dates...

This section will contain events that you need to keep in your diary. Entries will remain until they go out of date. New entries will include the word [New] next to them. If this section gets too large we will start pruning entries.

[UK] Lords and Ladies will be performed on Tuesday, May 5 to Saturday, July 25 at The Pomegranate Theatre, Chesterfield; Buxton Opera House; Theatre Royal, Winchester by Tabs Productions.

Performances start at 7:30pm.

For more details: www.tabsproductions.co.uk/

[UK, Updated] The Broken Drummers is a London Discworld Group that meets once a month on a Monday evening. Membership is free - just come along. New members and visitors to London are both welcome and encouraged.

July's meeting will be on Monday 6th July at The Monkey Puzzle, Paddington, London, W2 1JQ.

E-mail brokendrummers@yahoo.co.uk

[UK] The Discworld Stamps' 5th birthday party, Wincanton, will take place over the weekend of the 11 - 12 July 2009.

See www.discworldemporium.com

[UK] Collingwood RSC will be putting Terry Pratchett's "The Fifth Elephant" on stage at The NEW THEATRE ROYAL, Portsmouth. Box Office 02392 649000

The dates are Tuesday 14 July till Saturday 18 July 2009 with a curtain at 19:30.

We are holding a Discworld themed fancy dress on Friday 17 July.

[UK, New] Men At Arms will be performed by the Zenith Theatre Company at St Aldhelms Community Hall, Poole Road, Branksome, Poole, Dorset from July 17th & 18th July 2009. Curtain up at 7.45pm Friday and Saturday evening, 2.30pm Saturday Matinee.

Tickets: 6 GBP, Concs 5 GBP, Mat & u14s 4 GBP.

Box Office: 01202 723588.

[DE] The German Discworld Convention 2009 will take place at Castle Bilstein from August the 14th to the 16th. The festival will be Unseen University themed. Registration and more information can be found in form of a bilingual wiki at:

www.discworld-convention.de

[UK] Wadfest - "Wadstock" - Music With Rocks In takes place on 21st, 22nd and 23rd August 2009 at Trentfield Farm, Church Laneham, Retford, Nottinghamshire, DN22 0NJ.

Tickets cost 20.00 GBP per adult for the weekend including events.

More information at: www.wadfest.co.uk

[US] The First North American Discworld Convention will take place from September 4-7, 2009 in Phoenix, Arizona.

For more information visit ~~http://www.nadwcon.org/~~

[UK] Twyford and Ruscombe Theatre Group will be performing Wyrd Sisters on October 8th, 9th & 10th from 8pm.

More details at: ~~www.twyrusdrama.org.uk/current.htm~~

[UK, New] Chesham Bois Catholic Players (Amateur - Registered Charity 287109) will present Wyrd Sisters on 10th, 16th and 17th October 2009 at Little Theatre by the Park, Church Street, Chesham, Buckinghamshire at 8pm. Further details and booking enquiries available from cbcp.wsboxoffice@yahoo.co.uk.

[IRL] The Irish Discworld Convention will be held on the 6th to the 9th November in the Falls Hotel Ennistymon, Co. Clare, Ireland. Visit www.idwcon.org for more information.

Small Ads...

Please note, DWM has no way of checking the veracity or validity of any of the items in our small ads section. As always, exercise caution when giving out your details over the Internet. We *strongly* recommend parental supervision for younger readers who
follow up any of these contacts.

Lizzie Watson hdmmad@hotmail.co.uk writes: When I saw that someone had set up a Sir Terry's Montrous Regiment on Facebook, I decided to set one up on Bebo, as I don't have Facebook. However, we only have 4 members, that is, me and 3 friends. As a young but massive Discworld fan, I would really appreciate it if people could join up. Please just follow the link: ~~www.bebo.com/sirterrysregiment~~

Viv Croot viv.croot@btinternet.com writes: I have just moved to north-east Kent and I was wondering if there are any Discworld aficionados nearby?

3. Readers' Letters

If you have any letters or comments, please email them to info@discworldmonthly.co.uk

We assume any correspondence is eligible for use in the newsletter unless otherwise stated, including the sender's email address. We may also edit your letters by passing them through a shredder.

It is vitally important that you don't pass off other people's work as your own. If you use information from other resources please let us know so we can give proper credit.

The best letter of the month will receive a Kiss the Cook print supplied as by Bonsai Trading. Sadly Bonsai Trading is no longer trading but John Pagan has kindly supplied me with a number of prints to give away.

*
* From: "Alan Wood" alan.wood@barnsley.ac.uk
*
Am I mistaken or was Making Money the first Discworld book not to include DEATH. Has he died?

DWM replies: No, Death's not dead, He's not even missing. He came for Mrs Lavish. There was a scene where Death and Mrs Lavish talk about "Closing the Ledger", "The final accounting" and the audit.

*
* From: "Naomi Hughes" nch25677@yahoo.co.uk
*
I have only just discovered your site and so thought I would drop you a line. I have started reading all my Discworld books again and I have to say that although I have always raved about how funny they are, I had forgotten until I actually started reading them again the reality of my comments. Myself and my boss are Discworld fans and quite frequently come out of meeting drawing similarities between the people we have had dealings with and various Discworld characters. I have just finished Wyrd Sisters and lent the book to my best friend who isn't really one for reading but already she's crying with laughter, having only managed the first 20 pages and at at how much myself, her and one of our colleagues are like the witches. That leaves one less person to look at me and my boss like we are from some 'other planet' when we burst out laughing at seemingly random things and seem to be having 'coded conversations'!

*
* From: "Makana Bender" makana.bender@hawaiiantel.net
*
To the three mysterious & helpful men that I have trouble not thinking of as the Smoking GNU--

I really did look for this in your FAQ section, and I apologize if it is indeed floating around elsewhere on the site, but I gotta know - what's the true list of his Discworld tales?

I can live without the support material like the Mapps (for now), but all these short stories, and side stories, and co-authorships - how many actual stories have passed me by? I think I'm solid up to Wintersmith on traditional Discworld novels, but apparently there's a Science series? Which aren't mentioned in 7 out of the 8 places that I attempted to leach the answer to this question from myself, even though they seem to be centered on Ponder of good ol' UU?!And I'd never even heard of Nation until tonight as I image searched for new Pratchett-related images for my screensaver - obviously, I signed up for the newsletter because I desperately need it, but to avoid backlog reading on a level I am only willing to give to the T man himself, I need some help! Maybe just a brief run down on what he's done in the last 5 years, with a dash of any possible side stories throughout his career that other sites might not have mentioned - thank you, Wikipedia, O sum of all nerd-knowledge - or anything else storyish that I may be too ignorant to know to ask for?

I await your benevolence, sirs! --M. Bender

DWM replies: You checked the FAQ? That deserves Letter of the Month! You might well find the information at Colin Smythe's website at: www.colinsmythe.co.uk/

*
* From: "Irene Withers" Irene@BTWSystems.co.uk
*
Question 1 of issue 146's competition asks:

What flower is traditionally worn by Watchmen on the 25th May?

No doubt I'll be one of many DW readers who will point out that Lilac is not traditionally worn by Watchmen on the 25th May. Lilac is only, worn on the 25th May, by those who were there, namely at the Treacle Mine Revolution and who remember.

DWM replies: Nope, only you wrote in about this, Irene but we agree the question could have been better worded.

*
* From: "Sapphire Cat" sapphireforgecat@gmail.com
*
Two months ago Liz Kearney asked why Vimes didn't visit his mother in the past. Last month Ray Daley gave his answer. Here's mine.

Young Vimes' mother is still alive (young Vimes is always giving the updates on what "our Mum" says) - but old Vimes' mother is dead and has been for many years. He doesn't want to see her again because, to him, it would be like talking to a ghost. He's accepted his mother's dead - it would likely be too painful or too unnatural for him to see her younger self. He clearly just.. doesn't.. want to go there.

4. DiscTrivia

This month I'm asking some questions about Eric.

Q1.: Why does the Parrot say Wossname a lot?
Q2.: Which of the following is not one of Eric's three wishes?; a) mastery of the kingdoms of the world; b) meet the most beautiful woman who has ever lived,; c) to be a eunuch; d) to live forever
Q3.: What is the name of the demon that guards the Dread Portal?
Q4.: How long did it take Lavaeolus to get home?
Q5.: I Meant It For The Best, I Thought You'd Like It and For the Sake of the Children - were cut into the stairs of hell but why?

The results, as always, appear at the end of this issue.

5. Review: Maskerade in York

Reviewed by Paul Bezler

Well, here we are in York again for the York Rising Stars production of 'Maskerade'. After fighting our way through the racegoers streaming out of the Knavesmire we amended to a local hostelry to fortify ourselves for the coming show. Strange looks were cast our way as the majority of our 14 strong group were in fancy dress, including Squigglyx as the 'Phantom/Ghost'. We were intrigued to find out how the production team would cope with the intricacies of Agnes/Perdita's vocal talents. They did this admirably with the various voices coming from out of thin air but this did compromise the general sound quality somewhat.

This is a young group of actors, bolstered by a sprinkling of older members and it was the younger members of the cast who carried the performance. Fiona Baistow as 'Nanny Ogg' was the stand out performance in this theatre-goers eyes. Her timing and overall stage craft was excellent and she made us all laugh on many occasions. Her scenes with 'Granny Weatherwax' played by Jeanette Linsey were the glue holding the production together.

Kat McHugh was very good and well over the top as 'Christine the Diva' and was ably supported throughout by Claire Pulpher as 'Agnes/Perdita' whose performance was up to the standards we have seen before in the company's recent production of Mort.

Ryan Rollison was energetic throughout as Andre and Tim Pollard got better throughout the performance after a slow start and his death scene at the end had us rolling with laughter. Perhaps the only negative aspect of the performance was the lack of continuity when Tim as 'Mr Salzella' and 'Mr Seldom Bucket', played by the experienced Brian Dale, were on stage together. However, these are small criticisms.

James Noble gave a cameo performance as 'Greebo as a man ' as did Ben Tanquay as 'Senor Enrico Basilica' with much laughter ensuing.

The costumes and general production were up to the company's usual high standard and we recommend a visit to a forthcoming production if you are in the area. ~~www.yorkrisingstars.co.uk~~

(c)Paul Bezler 2009(Hansolobiker)

6. Competition

Last month we mentioned that Bernard Pearson has created a set of fridge magnets based on the names of streets that Terry suggested for street names in a new housing estate in Wincanton.

The street names were:

Mollymog Street Moon Pond Lane Cable Street Shamlegger Street Peach Pie Street Treacle Mine Road Hen and Chickens Field Lobbin Clout Scoone Avenue Wixons Alley Tenth Egg Street Kicklebury Street Morpork Street Ankh Street The Ridings Hen and Chickens Field

Bernard will provide a complete set to the winners of this month's competition. All you need to do is send an email to competitions@discworldmonthly.co.uk by 20th July with a list of which books these names came from.

The randomly selected winner will be announced next month. See www.discworldemporium.com for more details.

Last month to celebrate the Glorious 25th May PJSM Prints (www.discworld.com) came up with a new 1.5" collectable pin badge for the People's Republic of Treacle Mine Road.

PJSMPrints are making one prototype 2" pin available to each of the 3rd, 5th, 9th, 18th, 25th, 103rd, 105th, 109th or 118th purchaser of the pins, and they are also making the tenth available to us as a prize.

We asked you to answer the following three questions:

Q1.: What flower is traditionally worn by Watchmen on the 25th May?
Q2.: When do the badges go on general sale?
Q3.: What badge is coming soon...?

The answers we were looking for were:

A1.: Lilac
A2.: 30th May
A3.: 1.5" Carrot badge and the 1" Lord Havelock Vetinari badge.

The randomly selected winner is Jeremy Flisher from Kent.

We would like to thank the lovely people at PJSMPrints.com for their continued support.

7. Nation at the National - Priority Booking for Discworld Fans

Based on a novel by Terry Pratchett Adapted by Mark Ravenhill

Oh I think you think I want to eat you but - no no no - I am offering you afternoon tea - over there - in one hour.

A parallel world, 1860. Two teenagers thrown together by a tsunami that has destroyed Mau's village and left Daphne shipwrecked on his South Pacific island, thousands of miles from home. One wears next to nothing, the other a long white dress; neither speaks the other's language; somehow they must learn to survive. As starving refugees gather, Daphne delivers a baby, milks a pig, brews beer and does battle with a mutineer. Mau fights cannibal Raiders, discovers the world is round and questions the reality of his tribe's fiercely patriarchal gods. Together they come of age, overseen by a foul-mouthed parrot, as they discard old doctrine to forge a new Nation.

Following War Horse, His Dark Materials and Coram Boy, the National stages Mark Ravenhill's exhilarating adaptation of Terry Pratchett's latest witty and challenging adventure story.

There's no demons, no gods. Just me. And the waves and the sun and birth and death. And there's no reason for anything. I'm sorry: that's just the way it seems to me.

From 11 November Suitable for 10yrs+

Olivier Theatre World Premiere

Cast includes: Gary Carr, Emily Taaffe Director: Melly Still Set Designers: Melly Still with Mark Friend Costume Designer: Dinah Collin Lighting Designer: Paul Anderson Projection Designer: Jon Driscoll Music: Adrian Sutton Sound Designer: Paul Arditti

PRIORITY ONLINE BOOKING FOR TERRY PRATCHETT FANS, MONDAY 29 JUNE

Fans of Terry Pratchett can book their tickets online ahead of the general public on Monday 29 June. To access priority online booking please follow the instructions below:

Go to www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/buytickets and select Nation from the list of productions
In the box on the right hand side of the screen labelled 'Promotion code' enter the code 1987 and click enter.
You should then click on the date that you would like to book for.
Once you have selected your chosen date, you can select where in the theatre you would like to sit and how many tickets you would like to buy.
If you have not booked tickets at the National Theatre before, at this stage you will need to register your details before you can purchase your tickets. If you have purchased tickets before, at this stage you will need to log in before payment.
Once registered or logged in, proceed to check out.

8. The End

Discworld Monthly would like to thank Sonnet UK for hosting our mailing list for us free of charge. For more information about Sonnet UK visit their website at www.sonnetuk.net

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* Latest Book Information *

Nation (non Discworld Hardback) discworldmonthly.co.uk?ISBN=0385613709

Folklore of the Discworld (add-on book) discworldmonthly.co.uk?ISBN=0385611005

Making Money (Paperback) discworldmonthly.co.uk?ISBN=0552154903

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* Disc Trivia Results *

Q1.: Why does the Parrot say Wossname a lot?
A1.: He has a limited wossname. Doodah. Thingy. You know. It's got words in it. Vocabulary.
Q2.: Which of the following is not one of Eric's three wishes?
A2.: c) to be a eunuch
Q3.: What is the name of the demon that guards the Dread Portal?
A3.: Urglefloggah
Q4.: How long did it take Lavaeolus to get home?
A4.: Ten years.
Q5.: I Meant It For The Best, I Thought You'd Like It and For the Sake of the Children - were cut into the stairs but why?
A5.: Because 'The road to hell is paved with good intentions.'

* Obtaining Terry's Books *

If you are looking for Terry books or videos over the net, simply visit our web page at discworldmonthly.co.uk and follow the 'Purchasing' link on the left panel of the page.

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Discworld Monthly was created as a totally free newsletter and will continue to remain so for as long as it continues. However, the costs of maintaining the web site, postage, travel etc. adds up. If you feel you would like to make a small contribution towards these costs please consider doing so via either www.paypal.com or www.nochex.com

My account for each of these is info@discworldmonthly.co.uk

Thanks

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* Thanks *

Thanks for reading this issue of 'Discworld Monthly'. We hope you enjoyed it. If you have any comments or suggestions for the future of this newsletter please email: info@discworldmonthly.co.uk

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Discworld Monthly - Issue 147: July 2009

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