| Author | Message | ||
     Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.239.19 |
http://www.midhurstandpetworth.co.uk/news/regional/best_selling_horror_author_aw arded_obe_1_1590728 | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
Cool. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
Then again, any system of awards which can give, say, Cliff Richard a Knighthood while neglecting, say, Ronnie Barker (among many others) is bollux. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.239.19 |
You know, I quite liked Cliff Richard in the late Nineteen Fifties. Espresso Bongo. | ||
| Mick Curtis (Mick) Username: Mick Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.178.82.216 |
I only liked EXPRESSO BONGO (sadly, I'm enough of a nerd to know that espresso was spelled with an 'x' for this film!) because of the then absolutely gorgeous Sylvia Syms. | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 92.232.199.129 |
Nice to see a UK horror writer honoured though, although not the right one in my opinion. Hey, Ramsey Campbell OBE sounds rather good, doesn't it?  You're right, Gary, t'was a travesty of justice that Ronnie Barker never got a Knighthood. | ||
| Carolinec (Carolinec) Username: Carolinec Registered: 06-2009 Posted From: 92.232.199.129 |
.. and Peter Cushing. He should certainly have got a Knighthood. At least they gave Christopher Lee one eventually. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Used to love Hebert. He was a part of my childhood. But just literally finished The Ghosts of Sleath (no, really, no bs), and never have I wanted to stop reading a book so much. I have no words to describe how bad this is. I hate saying this, but I doubt his millions will be ruffled by my critique. Sorry if I have offended anyone in saying this. It's horrible to have to say this, but I believe I'm not out of order doing so. Awful beyond belief. It's not like he couldn't write prose, or plots, but this made me depressed. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
I struggled with Sleath, too. The book in which he discovered CGI. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.239.19 |
I once went through a James Herbert stage...Rats, Fog. But if he is the only Horror Writer to be given such an Establishment award, then it is a travesty. Having said that - and no disrespect to any other Horror Writers - and after trying to empathise with the Establishment and its aims and standards - it is hard to credit that an author who wrote, say, some of the scenes in THE FOG is given the Order of the British Empire for so doing. Or has he been given it for other reasons? Exports? Charity work? The furtherance of Art? Equally, it is refreshing, too, in some strange way! | ||
| John Forth (John) Username: John Registered: 05-2008 Posted From: 82.24.1.217 |
I didn't mind Sleath. His novels are usually, at the very least, entertaining enough to keep me reading. The Secret of Crickley Hall was the first one I've ever given up on. Tedious beyond belief. As for his OBE - who cares? An archaic, pointless honour that any right-minded person would refuse. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.239.19 |
As for his OBE - who cares? An archaic, pointless honour that any right-minded person would refuse. ============ That's an interesting separate point, with which I have sympathy. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.239.19 |
After convincing elsewhere, I retract my 'travesty', with due apologies. | ||
| Mark_lynch (Mark_lynch) Username: Mark_lynch Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 88.108.215.77 |
>>Charity work? I believe he's helped a few charities out in his time, but hasn't made a big publicity thing about it. I know he was involved in helping an ME charity for instance. But that's not the reason for his award, and nor should it be. Many poorer writers than JH have been awarded bigger prizes. Good for him for getting a gong, and good for fantastic fiction as well, I say. Though of course, yes, the whole honours system if a bit dubious to say the least. (Nah, I dind't much care for GHOSTS OF SLEATH either; a poor affair of a sequel after the tight HAUNTED. I suspect ASH will also be a bit of a disappointment, the third David Ash book, due out early next year. But I kinda liked SECRET OF CRICKLEY HALL. Not great literature, and far too long for the exposition at the end, but it gave me a genuine shiver in a sunny cafe by the coast -- and you can't say fairer than that.) | ||
| Ramsey Campbell (Ramsey) Username: Ramsey Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 195.93.21.68 |
More power to Jim and the genre. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
Nice one, Mr. Herbert. I'm not really into all this establishment and royalty stuff, but it's nice to see someone who inspired me as a kid getting some kind of recognition from the mainstream. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
You're not into royalty stuff? Jon O, are you reading? Sorted! | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
Har-de-har.  | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Just to clarify, anything that brings more recognition to the genre, great. And I'm not disparaging JH's work, just one book. I can't say I didn't mean it, because that would be a lie. But I do respect his work, and what he represents in the genre. I was just very very disappointed and saddened by what I read. I realize that I am not qualified to make such judgments, and hope that I haven't offended too many people. It wasn't my intention. Just for the record, I've loved his work since I was a kid. I grew up on his novels, along with King and Ramsey. I recognize what area of the genre he's writing in, and don't have any exaggerated notions of it being anything other than it is. I loved The Haunted. I thought I wouldn't, thought it might be a homage too far, but it was wonderfully evocative, which was half the reason I was so depressed with The Ghosts of Sleath. I thought it eschewed all the hard work in atmosphere, for loud whiz bangs and melodrama. Anyway, just wanted to make that clear. I felt guilty afterward, perhaps worried I'd gone too far. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
Oh, relax, man. It's hardly a burning issue. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.239.19 |
I'm relaxed, but... I got into trouble yesterday regarding James Herbert and the context I put his OBE. I did not decry his work, but merely said that if he is the only Horror writer to gain such an Establishment award, then it is 'travesty'. I have apologised about this but one interpretation of what I said was, I feel, that many Horror writers deserve such an accolade, not only JH. That is the travesty. Having said that, any such accolade for the Horror genre is worth praising. But having said that, I sympathise with those who do not think this is a burning issue because such an Establishment accolade is worthless, at least dependant on one's political point of view. Whether one supports the Establishment, the Royalty, the Government... | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
Er, I was addressing Frank, Des. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Des - yes, it was me Prof was speaking to | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.153.239.19 |
Sorry, it must have been my Sanity and other Delusions... :0 | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
You dipstick, Rodney. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Any real fan would know it was Rodders | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
Potage bon femme. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Yes, it has rom, rim and ram. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.157.25.172 |
The last four posts on this thread make no sense to me at all. BTW, just started a real-time review of TENEBROUS TALES: http://nullimmortalis.wordpress.com/2010/10/31/tenebrous-tales-by-christopher-ba rker/ | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Des - Only Fools and Horses. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
Bonnet de douche. Bain marie. Mange tout. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.157.25.172 |
I've seriously never watched 'Only Fools and Horses' other than snippets that have accidentally come my way. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
It's great. Shakespearian. Bawdy, clumsy, hilarious and often surprisingly profound. A great messy omelette (Hamlet) of a show. And Del Boy really is a great comic creation. John Sullivan (the writer) really knows life. The show ha that ring of truth about it. It can be frequently naff, however, so make sure you real-time review the whole of it. | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
It's also astonishing to think that in its heyday it got 29 million viewers. That's half the country. That'll never happen again. | ||
| Des (Des) Username: Des Registered: 09-2010 Posted From: 86.157.25.172 |
I value the Fry opinion, I shall watch... | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
Well, if it works for you, you've a wealth of pleasure in store. There are something like 65 episodes - about 40 hours of top-notch telly. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Yes, Des, I agree with Gary on all of the above. Watching it now really makes me realize just how brilliant it was. As much a take on ordinary people in Thatcherite Britain, as a boisterous comedy. | ||
| Zed (Gary_mc) Username: Gary_mc Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 81.96.253.77 |
Yep, Gary's nailed it with that description. | ||
| Mark_lynch (Mark_lynch) Username: Mark_lynch Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 217.171.129.74 |
I wonder what Del, Rodders, and Uncle Albert would read for fun, if they do/did read? | ||
| Gary Fry (Gary_fry) Username: Gary_fry Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 86.31.194.128 |
Rodders reads "adult art magazines". | ||
| Mark_lynch (Mark_lynch) Username: Mark_lynch Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 217.171.129.68 |
And I suppose Uncle Albert would read Patrick O'Brien or some other nautical author... Hornblower type stuff. Mm. Del would pose in wine bars with a Philip Roth novel but watch the telly rather than actually read it. | ||
| Mark_lynch (Mark_lynch) Username: Mark_lynch Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 217.171.129.68 |
Incidentally, going back to Mr H OBE: according to Peter James's Twitter feed, James went to Herbert's OBE party and bumped into Robert Powell there. He asked Powell what he did for a living. Whoops. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
Yeah, but Powell's a survivor | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
To be fair to JH, he may have honestly forgotten on account he probably only watched the film the once, and then consigned it among 'best to be forgotten.' Though to be honest, is the film that bad? I saw half of it once, the latter half, when I was a kid, and it wasn't, or at least, didn't seem too bad. | ||
| John Forth (John) Username: John Registered: 05-2008 Posted From: 82.24.1.217 |
It's not a great film, Frank. Fairly faithful, as I remember, although a lot of the patent Herbert 'character vignettes before death' scenes have been removed. SURVIVOR is one my favourite JH books, but the film just felt a bit bloodless. I thought the film version of HAUNTED suffered the same way. He's not really been served well by film. I'd still love to see a version of THE FOG shot like an early 80s TV show, like THE OMEGA FACTOR or something like that. | ||
| Frank (Frank) Username: Frank Registered: 09-2008 Posted From: 85.222.86.21 |
John - I never knew The Fog was made into a production at all. Wow. I actually thought the movie version of The Haunted was actually a decent movie. Fluke was made into a family film, with Eric Stoltz narrating the dog's thoughts! Didn't someone make a real cheap and shoddy version of The Rats? If I could have one of JH's books made into a movie I'd love to see Shrine adapted. | ||
| John Forth (John) Username: John Registered: 05-2008 Posted From: 82.24.1.217 |
Frank - there never was a film version of THE FOG. Just wishful thinking on my part. THE RATS was filmed, I think, in Canada as DEADLY EYES. It's not much cop, by all accounts. | ||
| Mark_lynch (Mark_lynch) Username: Mark_lynch Registered: 03-2008 Posted From: 217.171.129.71 |
It was Peter James who asked Powell what he did for a living, not JH. The Survivor's a film I have watched, but never all of it in one sitting. It's pretty dire, makes 90 minutes seem like three hours. Robert Powell reckons a half decent version existed but the edited 90 minute version is just terrible. JH says for the Rats movie that the producers used small dogs dressed up as rats. It was also apparently made bya firm who specialised in Kung Fu movies. How so. Yeah, I think the Haunted movie's okay. Seems a throwback to 70s movies, which is probably when Lewis Gilbert (the director) was at his peak. I don't think this was one of his strongest films, though. Decent cast, decent production, but they shoulda used Herbert's TV script as the basis of the movie screenplay, I reckon. |