Time to get over it
Well, ‘Something of the Night’ has gone to the typesetters, so soon I’ll be correcting the proofs. From now on in the process, changes have to be kept to a minimum, so I’ve had to accept that I’m not going to be able to use the lyrics from ‘This Woman’s Work’. I’m sorry I haven’t posted for a while; I just hoped that… oh, I don’t know… that one of Kate’s people might have found the thing. I tried everything, short of offering a great deal of money.
So I rewrote the end of my chapter, and it’s better. It had to be. So, thank you Kate for making me stop hoping and start thinking again.
My mad search for Kate has meant that I’ve not blogged at all, so I’ve neglected to big up various gigs I’ve been doing. But I’ll start bringing to your kind attention the things I’ll be doing over the summer. For example, the series I did for Radio Four earlier this year, ‘The Completists’ is being repeated all next week in the 3.45 slot. And I’m one of the guests on ‘Off The Page’ at 1.30pm on Radio Four, Thursday 23rd June. And I’m doing an event called ‘Desert Island Books’ at Burway Books in Church Stretton, also next Thursday 23rd, at 4.30. In fact, if you are in Church Stretton, or maybe even as far afield as Craven Arms or Bishops Castle, you could have a delicious afternoon in my exalted company. You could start at 1.30 listening to ‘Off The Page’, perhaps over lunch. Then maybe you could hop in the car and bimble over to Church Stretton, and listen to that afternoon’s edition of ‘The Completists’ (I should warn you that radio reception can be iffy in the Shropshire Hills, so you might want to upgrade your car aerial). And then you could actually see me in the not insubstantial flesh in conversation with Phil Rickman and Nick Maes. Those of you unfortunate enough not to live in the Welsh Marches might have to make do with just the radio.
Ooh, I know what else I meant to say. The picture is the initial sketch for the cover of ‘Something of the Night.’ It’s based on the illustrations for the Ladybird book ‘The Night Sky.’ Today, my dear old friend Helen Morris sent me her copy of the Ladybird original. Words fail me. Thank you.
Hello Ian
I have just completed Parallel Lines – the first book of yours I have read and I thoroughly enjoyed it. This partly because it brought back some happy memories.
In, or around, 1954, when I was eleven, my mum gave me L T C Rolt’s book, Railway Adventure. A few years earlier we had had a holiday at Towyn and had travelled on the railway. I still have the book and have decided to re-read it.
I agree with the majority of the opinions you expressed in your book – which, of course, helps.
Thanks and best wishes.
Bill Riley
Ian – by a spooky co-incidence I was reading a recent back copy of the Journal of the Friends of the National Railway Musuem (quite a learned magazine compared to some of the genre) a few days later – this had obviously been issued not long after the original Completists Broadcast.
The letters page includes a letter from Mr Mitchell referring to the Broadcast and pointing out that whilst it had not been appropriate to mention it during the programme, he still required a few old Bradshaws and I think he listed them.
If you seek to maintain a ‘completist’ collection of references to your broadcasts in print (or for any other reason) I’d happily send you the magazine now I’ve finished with it. Let me know an address if you’d like it (slightly presumptious of me to presume you don’t already subscribe of course).
Dan
Thanks a lot Dan. It was a huge pleasure and privelege to meet Mr Mitchell.
I managed to catch up with Radio 4’s Ian Marchant day – although I only managed ‘Off the Page’ last night – and very good it was too.
Must say I enjoyed the Completists with Vic ‘Bradshaw’ Mitchell – a very good interveiw I must say – the man is (as some might say) ‘a legend’ – 2 books a month too – bet he does not worry too much about creative writing courses…I presume his Timetable collection took up quite a bit of space!
More seriously enjoyed the re-run of the whole series actually – good stuff.
A very 1960’s style picture of winter there Ian. So, only six months or so to wait for the book?