Further Events for 2025

 

I'm busier with events this year than I have been since the end of COVID. Fortunately I'm not working on a book at the moment.

Mansion of Gloom will be available to buy at all of them.

AUGUST

Sunday 10 An Alien in London William Burroughs walk for the Sohemian Society. With Bill Redwood and Jim Pennington.
Some tickets still available here. Starts outside Westminster Reference Library WC2H 7HP

Sunday 31 Talk (around 4pm) on Netherwood guesthouse and Aleister Crowley at The Mint House Pevensey, East Sussex. Information here.

SEPTEMBER

Decadent London walk for the Sohemian Society. I'VE DECIDED TO POSTPONE THIS UNTIL NEXT SPRING

OCTOBER

Thursday 9   Decadent London online talk for the Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities, Fine Art and Unnatural History. Hosted by Edward Parnell.

Tuesday 14 October Lecture for the Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies. Subject probably Horror on the London Underground. To be held in London, at the Horse Hospital.  RIP Roger Burton.

Thursday 30   Talk about the life and art of James Abbot McNeill Whistler for the Salon for the City. London Horse Hospital.

DECEMBER

Sunday 7 Goth Weekend Talk about Mansion of Gloom with Dr Emma Liggins at Guy's Hospital Chapel.

Thursday 11   A coffee house related talk for the London borough of Islington.

Many of the above are subject to confirmation so please check beforehand.

Spring Into Action

A lot of my time is being spent revising one of my earlier books for republication - hopefully in the summer. The rights to my early books have now reverted to me. This one will be published by Accumulator Press (like Secret Tunnels and Netherwood) and we'll see how things go and consider republishing one or two of the others. I am also considering publishing, or re-publishing, non-fiction (no fiction or poetry) by other authors.

At present I have only one talk arranged - it's for Salon in the City in September on Decadent London (can you guess which book I'm republishing?). Also appearing at that event is Nina Antonia, who amongst other things has recently written a book about Decadent poet Lionel Johnson called Incurable. See here.

Jack-in-the-Green will be with us shortly. See here.

A book I very much enjoyed reading recently was Hollywood by Garson Kanin, a highly readable and amusing account of his time as a screenwriter and film director in Hollywood, mainly for Sam Goldwyn, who is brought to colourful life in the pages. What is impressive is that it's told almost entirely in dialogue - although as with any such account you have to question how accurately these conversations could possibly have been remembered - but it's all hugely entertaining. I also found interesting the account of 'Mae's' an LA brothel where the girls were lookalikes for film stars of the period, surely the inspiration for the similar operation in James Ellroy's LA Confidential where they were 'cut to look like movie stars'.

January 2015

Very little happening here at the moment as all my free time is being spent writing the next book, which I want to be out by September.  As far as Lord of Strange Deaths is concerned there have been so many false announcements of its appearance that I won't bother mentioning it any more - according to Amazon it's coming out in December this year.  I have much more control over my present book which I'd say is two thirds completed - more news in a month or so.

Despite promising myself that I wouldn't do any events during the writing of the new book, I've agreed to one or two.  The first, which should be very interesting, will be with Bradley Garrett details here under Salon No.24.  As City Read has a subterranean theme it's likely that there will be a talk in April somewhere or other.  Also a talk for the Dracula Society on Sax Rohmer, possibly in June.

Sad to hear of the death of Demis Roussos this week, my post on Aphrodite's Child here.  Also the passing of Edgar Froese of Tangerine Dream - my first live concert was TD at Fairfield Halls Croydon 23rd October 1975, a memorable and very loud occasion.

Clubs and Salons

After the well-attended Salon for the City on Thursday a chap recommended that I should talk at the Catalyst Club in Brighton (if they'll have me).  I'll think about it, but I'm trying to limit any further appearances this year, preferably to none - although I've now agreed to speak at a conference in October, as the subject matter is not underground London.  However, the Catalyst Club itself looks well worth supporting.  The revival of the salon continues apace, reassuring in these days of (anti)social media.  Earlier this month over 100 people showed up for the Balham talk, which was nice. 

The next Salon will include Bob Stanley from St Etienne, who kindly wrote the foreword to my book on the folklore of London and Paul Kelly who's made a series of excellent films about the city, which are about to be released by the BFI.