Author Archives: alexfitch

About alexfitch

Co-presenter / producer of "Panel Borders", Thursdays 5pm Resonance 104.4 FM. Film reviewer for www.electricsheepmagazine.com Podcaster for www.sci-fi-london.com

Reality Check: Dan Dare in the 21st Century

Reality Check: Dan Dare in the 21st Century

The second half of a Q and A recorded at last year’s Sci-Fi London Festival about the 40th anniversary of Britain’s most famous comic book character. John Freeman hosts a panel discussion on Dan Dare with Garry Leach, Rian Hughes, Gary Erskine and Rod Barzilay; with this recording focussing on Hughes’ illustrations for Dare in Revolver and Crisis magazines; Gary Erskine and Garry Leach’s illustrations of Dan Dare for Virgin Comics and Rod Barzilay’s small press magazine about space fleet as featured in The Eagle – Spaceship Away.

Dan Dare and the Mekon in Revolver, Virgin Comics Dan Dare and Spaceship Away

For more info about this podcast and a variety of other episodes you can download, please visit the home of this episode at www.sci-fi-london.com / Listen to the podcast of the first half of the panel recording

Links: Original listing of the event at Sci-Fi London
Wikipedia page on Dan Dare
Spaceship Away magazine website
John Freeman’s British Comics news website – Down the tubes
Rian Hughes’ website www.devicefonts.co.uk
Gary Erskine online
Buy original Garry Leach art from artdroids.co.uk

Recommended events:

Comics @ SCI-FI-LONDON

A two day festival about the best of British Comics from the last 30 years in a lovely new space – The Blue Room – at BFI Southbank.

The event includes panel discussions, workshops, talks, a film preview and signings…
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Reality Check: Dan Dare in the 21st Century [ 32:59 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: Dan Dare in the 20th Century

Panel Borders: Dan Dare in the 20th Century

Continuing our month of shows about collectives and anthologies, we have a recording of a panel discussion from Sci-Fi London in 2010, celebrating the continuing popularity of the iconic British Space Hero whose first appearance in The Eagle was published in April 1950. Comics editor and writer John Freeman (The Science Service / Ex Astris) talks to a quartet of artists and writers who have created new adventures for the lantern jawed pilot in more recent years.

These include: Garry Leach, who drew Dan’s return to print in 2000AD, ten years after the end of the original Eagle, in the late 1970s and more recently covers for Virgin comics’ revival of the ‘Pilot of the future’ in 2008;
Rian Hughes, who drew the Eagle inspired comic The Science Service in 1989 and then the Mekon’s final revenge in the Thatcherite satire Dare in the adult comics Revolver and Crisis a year later;
Gary Erskine, who drew Dan Dare’s most recent official comic book adventures in the Virgin Comics periodical of the same name; and
Rod Barzilay, the editor and one of the writers of Spaceship Away, a small press Dan Dare magazine that has continued the original adventures of Spacefleet where the 1950s Eagle left off over the past decade.

This recording covers Dare’s appearance in print from the 1950s to the 1980s. (Recorded and edited by Alex Fitch)

Three anthologies featuring Dan Dare: The Eagle, 2000AD and 1980s Eagle comic

Three anthologies featuring Dan Dare: The Eagle, 2000AD and 1980s Eagle comic

For more info about this podcast and a variety of formats you can stream or download, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Original listing of the event at Sci-Fi London
Wikipedia page on Dan Dare
Spaceship Away magazine website
John Freeman’s British Comics news website – Down the tubes
Rian Hughes’ website www.devicefonts.co.uk
Gary Erskine online
Buy original Garry Leach art from artdroids.co.uk

Recommended events:

25 years of John Constantine: Hellblazer at SCI-FI-LONDON

To belatedly celebrate the 25th anniversary of the start of the ongoing Hellblazer comic, for the inaugural event of this year’s London International Science-Fiction and Fantastic Film Festival, Sci-Fi London is proud to present a panel of Constantine creators – Jamie Delano, David Lloyd, Andy Diggle and Peter Milligan – in an on stage Q and A about their experiences of working on the comic and related graphic novels.
The panel is followed by a screening of the movie Constantine (2005).
5pm, Apollo Piccadilly Cinema, Lower Regent Street, London.

Tickets / more info: www.sci-fi-london.com/festival

Comics @ SCI-FI-LONDON

A two day festival about the best of British Comics from the last 30 years in a lovely new space – The Blue Room – at BFI Southbank.
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Panel Borders: Dan Dare in the 20th Century [ 31:45 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: Spring conventions

Panel Borders: Spring conventions

Continuing our month of shows about anthologies and collectives, we have a trio of interviews recorded at two recent comic book conventions in London. Recorded at Kapow!, Islington Design Centre (April 2011): Alex Fitch talks to editor Alan Cowsill and publisher Tim Pilcher (Comic Book Alliance) about the comic book anthology Spirit of Hope that they’re bringing out to help raise funds to support the people of Japan after the recent Tsunami disaster and to Joel Meadows, editor of Tripwire about the new digital incarnation of his magazine about comics and pop culture. Also in an interview recorded at the London Comic and Small Press Expo, Goldsmiths College (March 2011), Dickon Harris talks to Shaky Kane about his career which has ranged from short pieces in a variety of anthologies such as 2000AD, Escape and Revolver to his serialised graphic novel, The Bulletproof Coffin, written by David Hine.

Sprit of Hope cover by Mike Allred, panel from The Bulletproof Coffin by Shaky Kane, cover of Tripwire digital issue 001

Sprit of Hope cover by Mike Allred, panel from The Bulletproof Coffin by Shaky Kane, cover of Tripwire digital issue 001

For more info about this podcast and a variety of formats you can stream or download, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Wikipedia page on Shaky Kane
London Comic & Small Press Expo website

Article about Sprit of Hope at Geek Syndicate
Comic Book Alliance website

Tripwire magazine website
Panel Borders‘ previous interview with Joel Meadows about Tripwire, May 2008

Recommended events:

The London Zine Symposium, April 17th 2011

Workshops, talks and tables from around the world can be found at the 2011 London Zine Symposium, which is all about celebrating zines, small press, comix, radicals and DIY culture.
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Panel Borders: Spring conventions [ 42:09 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Reality Check: Virtual Worlds on film

Reality Check: Virtual Worlds on film

Virtual worlds on the big screen vary from the most escapist to the increasingly relevant and in this episode of Sci-Fi London’s podcast we look at two very different representations of these on screen. Alex Fitch talks to Nicolas Alberny and Jean Mach, the directors of 8th Wonderland, a film about a virtual community declaring themselves to be a new country with rights and influence on the rest of the world, and the agit-prop antics of the members of this virtual country on film proved prophetic compared to recent events in the Middle East and demonstrations on the streets of London. Also, we have an extract from the Tron: Legacy press conference in which director Joseph Kosinski, stars Jeff Bridges and Olivia Wilde and others talk about their sequel to a VR film classic.
(Tron: Legacy is released on DVD 18/04/11 and 8th Wonderland in June)

Robert Bradford in 8th Wonderland / Jeff Bridges in Tron: Legacy

Robert Bradford in 8th Wonderland / Jeff Bridges in Tron: Legacy

For more info about this podcast and a variety of other episodes you can download, please visit the home of this episode at www.sci-fi-london.com

Links: Official 8th Wonderland and Tron: Legacy websites
Download 8th Wonderland from iTunes

Recommended events:

25 years of John Constantine: Hellblazer at SCI-FI-LONDON

To belatedly celebrate the 25th anniversary of the start of the ongoing Hellblazer comic, for the inaugural event of this year’s London International Science-Fiction and Fantastic Film Festival, Sci-Fi London is proud to present a panel of Constantine creators – Jamie Delano, David Lloyd, Andy Diggle and Peter Milligan – in an on stage Q and A about their experiences of working on the comic and related graphic novels.
The panel is followed by a screening of the movie Constantine (2005).
5pm, Apollo Piccadilly Cinema, Lower Regent Street, London.

Tickets / more info: www.sci-fi-london.com/festival

Reality Check: Virtual Worlds on film [ 32:03 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: Newspaper Comics

Panel Borders: Newspaper Comics

This week’s show begins a month of shows about anthologies and collectives; Alex Fitch talks to the editors of two comic book anthologies which are printed in newspaper form; Richard Cowdry about his anthology, The Comix Reader, a new 24 page newspaper anthology inspired by his love of old newspaper strips, cinema cartoons and his connections with the alternate press scene; and Matthew Sheret about his twice yearly anthology Paper Science, published through his company We are words and pictures, an anthology which showcases brilliant design and the best up and coming comic book creators.

Interior of Paper Science no.1, exterior of The Comix Reader no.1

Interior of Paper Science no.1, exterior of The Comix Reader no.1

For more info about this podcast and a variety of formats you can stream or download, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: More info about The Comix Reader at www.thecomixreader.com and Paper Science at www.wearewordsandpictures.com

Paper Science 4 will be launched at Sci-Fi London’s comic book weekend, which takes place at the BFI on London’s Southbank on 30th April and 1st May, a two day festival featuring panels, talks, workshops, screenings / tables for small press creators to sell their work and entry is free. More info at www.londoncomicsfestival.com

Laydeez do comics April 2011
Guest Speakers

Members of The London Print Studio Comics Collective will present their individual works.
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Panel Borders: Newspaper Comics [ 38:43 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Electric Sheep Magazine podcast: Indie Movies Online

Electric Sheep Magazine podcast: Indie Movies Online

With more and more people wanting to download movies off the internet, a new company has come along to help people do this legally with a wide range of films that include British gems and cult classics. Alex Fitch talks to James Rowley-Ashwood about indiemoviesonline.com: how the collection of films on the site were curated – from Evil Aliens to the site’s one playing movie A Serbian Film, short films by Lotte Reiniger and the Brothers Quay and back catalogue titles from Peter Greenaway and Alex Cox, some of which are out of print on DVD – and how the site’s funding and distribution are achieved.

Indie movies online logo

Links: indiemoviesonline.com
Watch A Serbian Film

Read Virginie Selavy’s article about the censorship of A Serbian Film and interview with the director
Recent articles by Alex Fitch at Electric Sheep: the Halloween franchise / Source Code review

Electric Sheep Magazine podcast: Indie Movies Online [ 28:25 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: Social realism and magical realism in comics

Panel Borders: Social realism and magical realism in comics

Concluding this month’s theme of shows about newspaper comics, Alex Fitch introduces a talk recorded at the Victoria and Albert Museum, in which Ian Rakoff discusses social realism and magical realism in the newspaper strip Little Orphan Annie and the international comic books Corto Maltese and Love and Rockets and how the three sagas are related.

Little Orphan Annie by Harold Gray, Corto Maltese by Hugo Pratt, Locas by Jaime Hernandez

Little Orphan Annie by Harold Gray, Corto Maltese by Hugo Pratt, Locas by Jaime Hernandez

For more info about this podcast and a variety of formats you can stream or download, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Ian’s blog
Articles on Little Orphan Annie from 1935-1945 and 1970-2000
Victoria and Albert Museum website
Wikipedia pages on Little Orphan Annie, Corto Maltese and Love and Rockets

Panel Borders: Social realism and magical realism in comics [ 33:03 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: British Strip Heroes – Garth, Wallace and Gromit

Panel Borders: British Strip Heroes – Garth, Wallace and Gromit

Continuing this month’s theme of shows about newspaper comics, Alex Fitch talks to a couple of creators working on newspaper strips featuring popular British science-fiction characters. Richy K Chandler is a member of a writing team penning new adventures of Wallace and Gromit for The Sun newspaper, including this week’s story ‘Paper Hound’ and talks about his interest in humour strips and writing licensed characters. Writer / artist Huw J Davies was approached by The Daily Mirror in 2007 to update their classic adventure strip Garth for the 21st Century and he talks about his problems in achieving this goal and how it lead to a reimagining of the character in his graphic novel Freeman.

Wallace and Gromit written by Richy K Chandler with art by Mychailo Kazybrid and Garth / Freeman by Huw J Davies

Wallace and Gromit written by Richy K Chandler with art by Mychailo Kazybrid and Garth / Freeman by Huw J Davies

For more info about this podcast and a variety of formats you can stream or download, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Buy Wallace and Gromit strips online at http://gb.zinio.com
Richy K Chandler’s website www.tempolush.com
Listen to Alex’s previous interview with Richy about his small press work
Info about Huw’s art master classes at The London Film Museum
Info about Freeman at www.markosia.com
Articles about Garth at scifipulse.net
Wikipedia pages on Wallace and Gromit and Garth

Panel Borders: British Strip Heroes - Garth, Wallace and Gromit [ 42:05 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Laydeez do podcasts: Small press special

Laydeez do podcasts: Small press special

Listen to a recording of three presentations by small press creators given at Laydeez do comics in February 2011 – Sean Azzopardi, Francesca Cassavetti (with Nick Tesco) and John Miers talk about their self published comics and graphic novels, their interaction with the art world, visits to Angouleme and much more.
(Introduced by Nicola Streeten, recorded and edited by Alex Fitch)
Running time: 1:14:43 / recorded 28/02/11

Ed by Azzopardi, Most Natural thing by Cassavetti and Babel by Miers

Ed by Azzopardi, Most Natural thing by Cassavetti and Babel by Miers

For more info about this podcast and a variety of formats you can stream or download, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Sean Azzopardi’s website
Francesca Cassavetti’s website
John Miers’ website

Info about Laydeez do comics
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Laydeez do podcasts: Small press special [ 1:14:43 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: Audrey Niffenegger – Librarians and other time travellers in print

Panel Borders: Audrey Niffenegger – Librarians and other time travellers in print

Continuing our month of shows looking at newspaper comics, Alex Fitch talks to author and fine artist Audrey Niffenegger about her graphic novella The Night Bookmobile which was serialised in The Guardian in 2008 and is now available as a hardback collected edition from Jonathan Cape. Alex and Audrey also talk about her picture books for adults – The Three Incestuous Sisters and The Adventuress – and the relationship between The Time Traveller’s Wife and the depiction of non-linear storytelling in comics, Doctor Who and the work of Jorge Luis Borges.

Extract from the Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger as printed in The Guardian

Extract from the Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger as printed in The Guardian

For more info about this podcast and a variety of formats you can stream or download, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: read The Night Bookmobile as serialised in The Guardian
Info about the limited bookplate edition from Gosh! comics
Buy books by Audrey Niffenegger from Jonathan Cape
Read The door in the wall by H.G. Wells, which was an influence on The night bookmobile

Recommended events:

2nd Leeds Alternative Comics fair

Buy the cream of Northern England’s comic creators’ recent output and meet the artists at the 2nd Leeds Alternative Comics fair, including Hugh Raine, Steve Tillotson, Gareth Brookes, Adam Cadwell, John Allison, Nikki Marie Jackson and Tommy Eugene Higson…

Saturday 19th March, noon – 6pm, ‘A nation of shopkeepers’ cafe / bar, 27 – 37 Cookridge Street, Leeds, LS2 3AG
More info at leedsalternativecomics.wordpress.com
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Panel Borders: Audrey Niffenegger - Librarians and other time travellers in print [ 33:38 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download