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Colin Leslie (Blackabyss)
Username: Blackabyss

Registered: 02-2010
Posted From: 81.129.50.208
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 05:31 pm:   

My membership for the British Fantasy Society has just expired and I was just about to resubscribe when I read this :-
http://www.stephenjoneseditor.com/article-sj-fantasycon201101.htm

I want to support the genre's I love but not sure the BFS is the right way anymore. What do you think?
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Mbfg (Mbfg)
Username: Mbfg

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 212.219.63.204
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 06:06 pm:   

Like all organisations, the BFS will inevitably go through convulsions and trials. The weekend was fantastic, everyone friendly and enjoying friendship, fellowship and the sorts of conversation that would get you beaten up in a pub :-) It seemed healthy enough to me.

The problem is that the BFS is full of PEOPLE so they are going to bicker and tussle a little now and then. It's a tiff. A few insults thrown, feet stamped. I won't let it spoil my enjoyment of the BFS.

What does sour things is vindictivenss. I have no tolerance for that for the hurt it causes. Lets get things in perspective. It really doesn't matter and it's not worth injuring people over.

Awards? So often a source of irritation. Don't get me wrong, I'd love an award, I'd be unbearably smug and revel in the adulation the validation, but I won't die inside if I never ever get one. In fact,I'm beginning to pray that I never do!

So, Colin, at the end fo all that waffle, yes, renew your membership.

Cheers
Terry
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Des (Des)
Username: Des

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 86.143.98.239
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 06:16 pm:   

I hope to be able to keep to a vow that I shall offer only one paragraph on this thread:

Like many people who did not attend, I am learning about the matter piecemeal. But it seems to be similar to the hoohah two years ago in that people are simply complaining about the results - which shouldn't be done, unless the known Award rules were changed (by 'madness' or 'badness') without the members knowing they were being changed. I agree (and I have thought and said this over many years) that the rules need fundamentally changing for the future - and there is a discussion on the BFS Forum about this and the nature of the BFS going forward. Perhaps Colin's decision should await the outcome of that.

des (BFS member on and off since the mid 1970s and proud recipient of the KEW Award in 1998 that I'm not giving back!)
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Carolinec (Carolinec)
Username: Carolinec

Registered: 06-2009
Posted From: 92.232.199.129
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 06:29 pm:   

Well, first of all let me declare an interest in this. I've just taken over as online news editor for the BFS so that, apparently, makes me a committee member, though I've not yet had any chance to get involved in that side of things.

Secondly, just to say that I didn't manage to get to FCon (gutted I didn't get there to see all you lovely people ), wasn't at the awards ceremony, and I'm not on Facebook so I only know second hand about all the fuss that's been created.

But I do know that there's discussion going on on the BFS forum now about how the awards process can be improved - it does look to me like they're really wanting to learn (the hard way?) from all this. So I'd say, Colin, give them a chance.

I know I, for one, as online news editor, want to take this opportunity I have to help make the website look good, fresh and up-to-date. I want to help promote the BFS to others, along with promoting the small presses (and big presses), authors, and every other aspect of the genre I love. So I really do hope the BFS can come out of all this smelling of roses - I do think it will do a great disservice to the whole genre if they don't.

Other than that, I can't really comment on anything to do with the awards as I know nothing about them, but I really hope BFS members, and others associated with the genre, can all pull together on this.
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Colin Leslie (Blackabyss)
Username: Blackabyss

Registered: 02-2010
Posted From: 81.129.50.208
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 06:42 pm:   

Thanks for the comments so far folks. I don't really care about the rights or wrongs of the awards but I do want to ensure my £35 is serving some purpose. I had hoped the society would have a mentoring scheme for new writers (like me), a more proactive publication schedule (seems to have been more diverse in the past) and well, more of a community. I am not decrying any of the current postholders and I like some of the recent changes to the website (if not the publications). To borrow from The Judean People's Front "what have the BFS ever done for us"?
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Carolinec (Carolinec)
Username: Carolinec

Registered: 06-2009
Posted From: 92.232.199.129
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 06:55 pm:   

Colin - tell 'em that on the BFS forum - they need to know how the members are feeling. Perhaps not on the thread that's talking about the awards, but start up a thread of your own about this issue. It's an important one. After all, if the BFS doesn't serve its members, what the hell is it doing?

A mentoring scheme for new writers is an excellent idea (btw did you know there's a writing group there - Whirlpool?. Ask on the forum and someone can put you into this - it's a private area. I'm not in it myself as I don't consider myself a writer).

I think the publication schedule issue is down to finances .. but without its members, it's not going to have sufficient finance to improve on any of this. More members means more "community", more finance to do things, and more opportunity to help our genre. By 'eck, I'm sounding like I'm writing their marketing slogans now ...
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Matthew Fryer (Matthew_fryer)
Username: Matthew_fryer

Registered: 08-2009
Posted From: 194.176.105.153
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 07:01 pm:   

>> To borrow from The Judean People's Front "what have the BFS ever done for us"?

I think you mean the People's Front of Judea. Splitter!
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Weber (Weber_gregston)
Username: Weber_gregston

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 109.158.58.144
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 10:08 pm:   

No, the splitter was the Popular People's front of Judea, sat all on his own on the steps.
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Joel (Joel)
Username: Joel

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 2.24.18.1
Posted on Thursday, October 06, 2011 - 11:56 pm:   

Sorry Des, but here and elsewhere you're missing the whole point. The anger concerns a distortion of the process that amounted to a lack of transparency and a failure to admit (or deal with) a conflict of interest. Steve Jones' posting makes that very clear. Parallels with past events are not appropriate and serve only to confuse the issue.
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Des (Des)
Username: Des

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 86.143.98.239
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 12:27 am:   

If I have missed the point, I apologise. Perhaps there was more said or known by actual attendees to the convention. But based on everything I've read about it so far, my statement above seems to apply - with a firewall between (a) actually breaching rules (not happened) (b) perceptions of conflicts of interest etc (perhaps happened?) - but the basic fact seems that in both incidents, people were / are complaining about the results of the awards.

And there I've broken my vow already!
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 82.4.19.77
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 03:30 am:   

Awards given to Artists for their Works of Art suck... and I include the Nobel Prize in that.

The fake competition they instil is the agar plate upon which artistic deceit and self-deception breeds. I have no time for either.
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 82.26.114.108
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 05:12 am:   

I agree. It's like making silly lists, isn't it? :-)
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Lincoln (Lincoln_brown)
Username: Lincoln_brown

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 120.144.160.24
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 08:26 am:   

Sam Stone is returning her award for best novel.
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 194.32.31.1
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 12:49 pm:   

Silly lists are the only Awards worth bothering with as they are the only truly accurate way of gauging relative quality for the individual concerned - and harm no one else in the process while stimulating debate and even, in many cases, educating the list reader and sending them down new paths of discovery they might otherwise never have stumbled upon.

I find list making, the act of forcing oneself to differentiate, to be a useful mental exercise, honing one's honesty and consciously eliminating self-deceit. One is forced to recognise what one values above all else in Works of Art (and whatever else one chooses to list) and the result creates a shortcut mode of communication directly into the psyche of like-minded individuals, polar opposites and the whole spectrum of one's fellow human beings in between. Reasoned argument is healthy and meeting people who share one's tastes is fun.

Once you bring groups into the differentiating equation all honesty goes out the window.
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Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker)
Username: Stephen_theaker

Registered: 12-2009
Posted From: 94.169.3.199
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 12:52 pm:   

Have you done a top ten of your favourite lists..?
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 194.32.31.1
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 12:54 pm:   

I did on here somewhere a while back... lots of stuff about beer and sexual positions, if I remember correctly.
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Carolinec (Carolinec)
Username: Carolinec

Registered: 06-2009
Posted From: 92.232.199.129
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 06:46 pm:   

Ah, this is much better than talking about the BFS!
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Weber (Weber_gregston)
Username: Weber_gregston

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 109.158.58.144
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 07:35 pm:   

I want a list of your favourite Alligators, and make it snappy
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Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker)
Username: Stephen_theaker

Registered: 12-2009
Posted From: 94.169.3.199
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 08:20 pm:   

1. Kim Basinger
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Frank (Frank)
Username: Frank

Registered: 09-2008
Posted From: 85.222.86.21
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 09:02 pm:   

Stevie - get your teeth into this:http://www.empireonline.com/100britishfilms/default.asp?film=10
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 82.4.19.77
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 09:26 pm:   

Thanks, Frank.

First the films I haven't seen: 'Darling', 'Oh! What A Lovely War', 'The Remains Of The Day', Olivier's 'Hamlet', 'A Room With A View', 'The King's Speech', Branagh's 'Henry V' - he's a hopeless director, 'Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part II', 'Atonement', 'Control', 'In The Loop', 'Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban’, ‘Monsters’ – sounds interesting, ‘Sense And Sensibility’ & ‘Billy Elliot’.

That’s 15 out of 100 or 85% of the movies listed I have seen.
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Frank (Frank)
Username: Frank

Registered: 09-2008
Posted From: 85.222.86.21
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 09:44 pm:   

I've seen most of those you mentioned, except Monsters and Billy Elliot. In The Loop is one of the finest British comedies I've ever seen. It's up there with The Lavender Hill Mob. The third Harry Potter film is such departure from the first two Chris Colombus directed movies, and Branagh's Henry V is fine film that you must get round to watching just to know that he is capable of making good movies. Control is essential viewing, so to speak, though I'm just as keen on 24 Hour Party People's view of Ian Curtis and Joy Division. Atonement was very good, kind of what I was expecting, but it boasts a hammer blow ending, and superlative performances. Nice to see at least a handful of horror movies in there. And one of my favourite films of the last few years, Hunger (though this must rate up there with Threads as one of the most darkest and depressing films you're ever likely to see. Though I reserve that 'title' for a certain Estonian film about a young girl abandoned by her mother on a rundown council estate,Lukas Moodysson’s Lilya 4 Ever.
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Simon Bestwick (Simon_b)
Username: Simon_b

Registered: 10-2008
Posted From: 86.24.166.73
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 09:52 pm:   

Frank- I have that one as part of a Lukas Moodysson box set, but not watched it yet. Bleaker than Threads? OK... this I have to see. With a stiff one in my hand, of course.
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Frank (Frank)
Username: Frank

Registered: 09-2008
Posted From: 85.222.86.21
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 09:52 pm:   

Oh, Stevie, just watche The Assassination of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford. Mark Kermode listed it as his best film of 2007. I'd have to agree with him, and its comparisons with films by Malick is very apt. Mesmerizing and masterful (need to go and think about it for a while).
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Simon Bestwick (Simon_b)
Username: Simon_b

Registered: 10-2008
Posted From: 86.24.166.73
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 09:53 pm:   

And a drink as well. :-)
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Simon Bestwick (Simon_b)
Username: Simon_b

Registered: 10-2008
Posted From: 86.24.166.73
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 09:53 pm:   

Sorry Frank- crossed posts there!!
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 82.4.19.77
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 10:11 pm:   

Now those that, imo, should not be on a list of the hundred Best British Films:


24 Hour Party People – fun but not that good.

Four Lions – brave and very funny but not a classic.

Dracula – a classic but Hammer made several better movies so this wouldn’t be in my Top 100.

The Railway Children – okay, it’s a classic of its kind but Top 100… I doubt it.

Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels – mindlessly entertaining flashy nonsense that already seems hopelessly dated.

Casino Royale – it was brilliant but there are several better Bond movies so this would just miss out.

Man On Wire – classic documentary feature but doesn’t belong in the Top 100, his follow-up, ‘Project Nim’, is a quantum leap better made and more affecting.

Hunger – overrated and hard to sit through myth-making with admittedly stunning acting.

Chariots Of Fire – monstrously overrated and really quite boring stiff-upper-lip drama.

The Full Monty – get outta here!

Slumdog Millionaire – feelgood movie-making by numbers that didn’t do much for me.

Shakespeare In Love – fluffy period entertainment that was really quite irritating.

Hot Fuzz – extremely likeable follow-up to ‘Shaun Of The Dead’ that just falls short of classic status.

Topsy Turvy – great fun with wondrous production values but not quite one of Mike Leigh’s best.

The English Patient – God it was dull… dull, dull, dull… and loooong.

Sexy Beast – great gangster thriller with outstanding acting but there are loads better British films of this kind.

The Descent – a modern horror classic but not quite Top 100 material.

28 Days Later – as above.

A Fish Called Wanda – fairly amusing all-star comedy but no way should it be in the Top 100.

Borat – I laughed until I was sick but does this one-joke movie really belong here?

Dead Man’s Shoes – as with ‘The Descent’ & ’28 Days Later’.

Moon – I absolutely loved it but… just misses out.

Four Weddings And A Funeral – I hate this bloody film!!

Distant Voices, Still Lives – I’m not a fan and find his films dreadfully dull to sit through.

This Is England – it was great but there are loads better British films of this kind.


That's 25 out of 100 I disagree with or a nice round quarter.
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Frank (Frank)
Username: Frank

Registered: 09-2008
Posted From: 85.222.86.21
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 10:49 pm:   

I would disagree with you on Dead Man's Shoes, and Sexy Beast, Stevie. But I agree with you on everything else

Simon - it's a different kind of bleak to Threads, which is probably the most obvious statement I've ever made, but I'm sure you'll realize what I mean once you watch it. It's a film which has stayed with me, and left me sobbing.
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 82.4.19.77
Posted on Friday, October 07, 2011 - 11:20 pm:   

Which means I kind of agree with these films but in this order:


1. Brazil [93]
2. The Red Shoes [3]
3. A Clockwork Orange [11]
4. Monty Python’s Life Of Brian [2]
5. Black Narcissus [45]
6. Don’t Look Now [4]
7. The Third Man [14]
8. Naked [76]
9. A Matter Of Life And Death [20]
10. Peeping Tom [59]
11. Performance [31]
12. Monty Python And The Holy Grail [18]
13. If… [36]
14. Goodbye, Mr Chips [80]
15. The Wicker Man [47]
16. Zulu [33]
17. The Ladykillers [30]
18. The Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp [25]
19. Lawrence Of Arabia [1]
20. Rebecca [23]
21. Kind Hearts And Coronets [7]
22. Brighton Rock [74]
23. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy [94]
24. Withnail & I [10]
25. Local Hero [9]
26. Great Expectations [43]
27. Shaun Of The Dead [6]
28. The Man In The White Suit [72]
29. The Man Who Fell To Earth [42]
30. A Man For All Seasons [34]
31. Goldfinger [16]
32. The Bridge On The River Kwai [15]
33. The Killing Fields [86]
34. Trainspotting [8]
35. Gandhi [88]
36. Gregory’s Girl [95]
37. The 39 Steps [52]
38. Saturday Night And Sunday Morning [22]
39. Kes [29]
40. Billy Liar [85]
41. Hope And Glory [87]
42. Went The Day Well? [68]
43. Sweet Sixteen [40]
44. The Ipcress File [99]
45. The Lavender Hill Mob [64]
46. The Italian Job [39]
47. The Long Good Friday [19]
48. Brief Encounter [5]
49. Tom Jones [55]
50. The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner [81]
51. Sunday Bloody Sunday [54]
52. A Hard Day’s Night [60]
53. Blow Up [69]
54. The Lady Vanishes [82]
55. My Name Is Joe [57]
56. Look Back In Anger [49]
57. Shallow Grave [26]
58. The Curse Of The Were-Rabbit [51]
59. Nil By Mouth [96]
60. Secrets And Lies [62]


All IMHO... that was fun and killed a boring night sat in.
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Weber (Weber_gregston)
Username: Weber_gregston

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 109.158.58.144
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 01:07 am:   

The Descent, dead man's shoes and sexy beast should certainly be in any top 100 british films list. In fact the descent is top 10 material. easily IMO one of the best English horror films of all time.

Scratch that. One of the best Horror films full stop.

There are very few films that scared me as much as that one did.
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 82.4.19.77
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 02:17 am:   

Some glaring omissions:

The Man Who Knew Too Much
Things To Come
The Four Feathers
The Thief Of Baghdad
Oliver Twist
Dead Of Night
Odd Man Out
Tales Of Hoffmann
A Night To Remember
Night Of The Demon
The Entertainer
This Sporting Life
Victim
Repulsion
Dracula, Prince Of Darkness
Quatermass And The Pit
The Witchfinder General
Frenzy
O Lucky Man
Barry Lyndon
The Duellists
Time Bandits
The Mission
Life Is Sweet
Raining Stones
Another Year

...I could go on and on.
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 82.26.114.108
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 08:25 am:   

You're insane, you are. Certifiable.

So are you, Stevie.
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Mbfg (Mbfg)
Username: Mbfg

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 82.6.90.110
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 09:37 am:   

Ah Stevie,

Can I add the excellent, breakneck "London to Brighton"? which is a small and brutal msterpiece and the intriguing and haunting "Red Road"?

"A Night to Remember", what an amazing film. It packed a real emotional punch that Cameron's "Titanic" couldn't get within a country mile of. And oddly, though made in 1960-ish, was like a 1940s movie.

And what about that odd little Roger Moore film, "The Man Who Haunted Himself"?

What's this got to do with the BFS? am I missing something here?

Cheers
Terry
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Des (Des)
Username: Des

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 86.143.98.239
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 09:55 am:   

I think people are trying to change the subject, Terry. :-)
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Frank (Frank)
Username: Frank

Registered: 09-2008
Posted From: 85.222.86.21
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 11:33 am:   

Terry - agree with you on London To Brighton. Brilliant and harrowing film.
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 82.4.19.77
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 02:37 pm:   

Totally agree!

'London To Brighton' belongs on the list. A stunning lowlife crime thriller of the same quality as these, also missing, masterpieces: 'Night And The City', 'Get Carter', 'Mona Lisa' & 'The Crying Game'.
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Colin Leslie (Blackabyss)
Username: Blackabyss

Registered: 02-2010
Posted From: 81.129.50.208
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 02:43 pm:   

So the answer is sod the BFS and buy some DVD's, thanks everyone.
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Des (Des)
Username: Des

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 86.143.98.239
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 02:48 pm:   

Colin, I think some very positive things are still coming out on the BFS forum thread I mentioned. And I renewed my membership in the last week...
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 82.4.19.77
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 03:15 pm:   

The answer is sod awards ceremonies. Long live lists!
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Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker)
Username: Stephen_theaker

Registered: 12-2009
Posted From: 94.169.3.199
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 04:01 pm:   

Sorry not to answer, Colin. If membership had gone up to £40 as planned I don't think I'd have renewed. At £35 it'll probably come down to what publications they have planned and whether I'm in a grump with them at the time. If I don't renew I'll still get the e-version of the journal that they send to contributors, thanks to my reviews, but I'd be sad to lose my vote. What I'd really like to be doing is paying £15 or thereabouts for an ebook membership.
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Frank (Frank)
Username: Frank

Registered: 09-2008
Posted From: 85.222.86.21
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 04:12 pm:   

Stevie - I went through the list so quickly I didn't realise they were missing: Get Carter', 'Mona Lisa' & 'The Crying Game'. Just goes to prove how enjoyable, but subjectively insane lists about anything are.
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Joel (Joel)
Username: Joel

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 2.24.27.242
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 08:47 pm:   

Colin, don't be put off the BFS by its occasional internal arguments. Dissent is not always a bad thing. And the BFS publications are reliable and mostly excellent. Above all it's a society, with gatherings and shared platforms, a fandom network to which I owe much of my adult social life.
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Colin Leslie (Blackabyss)
Username: Blackabyss

Registered: 02-2010
Posted From: 81.157.239.49
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 09:10 pm:   

Thanks for all the useful comments. The timing of this post was prompted by Stephen Jones and the award blog but my post was not meant as an addition to that argument, congratulations to all the winners.
I am just wondering if the BFS is the best way to support the genre. I like the publications but think they have done much stronger work in the past. The forums are pretty quiet (compared to here and other sites). Caroline, I did try the Whirlpool but again it's very quiet in there.
£35 is a fair amount of money to find these days and as I have yet to make it to Fantasycon (despite Mr Jones insisting that it is affordable for all) I sometimes think I would be better supporting the genre by using my £35 to buy more small press titles.
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Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker)
Username: Stephen_theaker

Registered: 12-2009
Posted From: 94.169.3.199
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 10:36 pm:   

In David's shoes now, with the Dark Horizons and New Horizons eds having stepped down, I'd be tempted to knock the journal and Dark Horizons on the head, put Prism out as a cheap newsletter again, and put a chapbook or two in each mailing instead. Get some variety in there, make every mailing a surprise, give people something collectable and exclusive - and that they'll actually read. It would make the workload a lot easier. Instead of finding one person to do the job of Dark Horizons every three months, they could recruit a different person to supervise each special project.

I should really be posting this on the BFS forum...
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Stephen Theaker (Stephen_theaker)
Username: Stephen_theaker

Registered: 12-2009
Posted From: 94.169.3.199
Posted on Saturday, October 08, 2011 - 10:38 pm:   

(Now I think about it, that was actually an idea Guy Adams floated when he was chair, the only difference being that he was thinking of ditching Prism, or rather, putting it all online.)
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Des (Des)
Username: Des

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 86.143.98.239
Posted on Sunday, October 09, 2011 - 11:23 am:   

Official BFS Statement:
http://www.britishfantasysociety.co.uk/news/official-bfs-statement-concerning-aw ards/
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Rosswarren (Rosswarren)
Username: Rosswarren

Registered: 11-2009
Posted From: 135.196.120.43
Posted on Sunday, October 09, 2011 - 04:17 pm:   

I plan on joining this year and making 2012 my first Fantasycon visit
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Colin Leslie (Blackabyss)
Username: Blackabyss

Registered: 02-2010
Posted From: 86.146.193.35
Posted on Sunday, October 09, 2011 - 09:43 pm:   

Quite right Ross, I'll be doing the same although Corby sounds a bit dodgy or is that just more spurious rumours.
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Colin Leslie (Blackabyss)
Username: Blackabyss

Registered: 02-2010
Posted From: 86.146.193.35
Posted on Sunday, October 09, 2011 - 09:44 pm:   

? (dropped off the last post)
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Des (Des)
Username: Des

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 86.143.98.239
Posted on Monday, October 10, 2011 - 08:51 pm:   

The new acting Chair's statement:
http://www.britishfantasysociety.co.uk/news/statement-to-members-of-the-bfs-from -graham-joyce/
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John Forth (John)
Username: John

Registered: 05-2008
Posted From: 82.24.1.217
Posted on Monday, October 10, 2011 - 09:22 pm:   

I can't think of a better man to do it.
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Rosswarren (Rosswarren)
Username: Rosswarren

Registered: 11-2009
Posted From: 81.132.145.240
Posted on Monday, October 10, 2011 - 09:22 pm:   

^ Just joined the BFS after reading the statement. Look forward to making 2012 my maiden trip to Fantasycon
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Barbara Roden (Nebuly)
Username: Nebuly

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 142.179.0.196
Posted on Monday, October 10, 2011 - 09:54 pm:   

Looks like no one has to worry about going to Corby for Fantasycon next year, as the organisers have pulled out and cancelled the con. Speaking as someone who's worked in the hotel/catering industry, organised small cons, and am on the committee for World Fantasy 2012 in Toronto, if there's going to be a Fantasycon in 2012 people better hope that a) new organisers step forward fast and b) at least one of them knows someone who owns a large hotel, otherwise it's going to be way too late to arrange something for twelve months from now.

I saw all kinds of kvetching about Corby, everything from the place being the arse end of nowhere, to it being hard to get to by train (or any other mode of transport), to there not being much of anything to see or do there once you arrived (and presumably got bored with all the Fantasycon events), to 'it's too far from where I live', to 'The con hotel is too expensive' (I believe the con rate was £64.00 per night maximum). So all the new organisers have to do is find somewhere that's no more than two hours' travel from anywhere in the UK, is on a motorway, has direct rail/coach access from everywhere, has at least one hotel large enough to accommodate up to 500 people as attendees but doesn't charge more than £50.00 per night (which price also has to include free parking and free WiFi access), has a multitude of even cheaper overspill hotels within two blocks, and is located somewhere that has a lot of restaurants and attractions within walking distance. Shouldn't be a problem.
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Simon Bestwick (Simon_b)
Username: Simon_b

Registered: 10-2008
Posted From: 86.24.166.73
Posted on Monday, October 10, 2011 - 11:14 pm:   

There are some moves afoot already, Barbara. Can't say more at this stage, but fingers crossed.
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Gary Fry (Gary_fry)
Username: Gary_fry

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 109.158.118.51
Posted on Monday, October 10, 2011 - 11:27 pm:   

Official Secrets Act?
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Gcw (Gcw)
Username: Gcw

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.153.235.184
Posted on Wednesday, October 12, 2011 - 08:09 pm:   

Barbara, you have tempted me from my hibernation...

I myself have been a vociferous opponent of the Fcon in Corby. The main problem as I saw it was not so much Corby, but the hotel itself.Five hundred people attended Brighton, the hotel in Corby has about 150 rooms.

Now that would be fine if there was some other nearby hotels or B&B's. there aren't. the hotel is in the middle of an industrial estate and lorry park. Also, yes, people DO want to leave the convention from time to time to eat & simply take a stroll. How would a potential 500+ people eat, drink & sleep in a hotel made up of 150 rooms? It doesn't add up.

Booking the Holiday Inn in Corby was a mistake pure & simple. It's cancellation is a good thing. One thing I do agree with you on is that it will indeed be difficult to book a substitute hotel, I do hope they can, but if not, I am sure we will enjoy Fantasycon again in the future in a (I hope) more suitable venue.

gcw
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Gcw (Gcw)
Username: Gcw

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.153.235.184
Posted on Wednesday, October 12, 2011 - 11:54 pm:   

..Aaaaand thread killer strikes again. Take care folks, see you in a year or so..:-)

gcw.x
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Mick Curtis (Mick)
Username: Mick

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.176.1.6
Posted on Thursday, October 13, 2011 - 01:30 am:   

I'm listening, gcw! Having helped out (in a minor way) with conventions back in the 'eighties, I agree it's a huge and thankless task running these. However, like gcw, I always want to have a wander around the place it's held in, otherwise cabin fever strikes. I feel this isn't a good location for all the reasons gcw mentions, and the Corby decision was, in my not-so-humble opinion, not that well thought out. The hotel may be fine (although the limited number of rooms suggests otherwise) but it's very badly placed indeed.
One rumour was that maybe Champagne Charlies would suit a single day convention, as a(n) hotel will be nigh on impossible to sort given the time scales.
I'd even prefer Nottingham to Corby, and that's saying something.
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Jonathan (Jonathan)
Username: Jonathan

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 91.143.178.131
Posted on Thursday, October 13, 2011 - 10:53 am:   

Having been to Champagne Charlies twice, I'd rather there not be a BFS Con if that's the choice next year. Dreadfully pokey.

At least in Nottingham there's a host of good pubs and restaurants outside the hotel, and actually quite a lot to do, culture-wise.
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Simon Bestwick (Simon_b)
Username: Simon_b

Registered: 10-2008
Posted From: 86.24.166.73
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 01:48 pm:   

Good news!

http://www.britishfantasysociety.co.uk/news/third-update-from-acting-chair-graha m-joyce/

Back to Brighton, then. I know some folk found the travel costs prohibitive... it occurred to me it might be worth hiring a minibus if enough northerners are interested.
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Des (Des)
Username: Des

Registered: 09-2010
Posted From: 86.143.98.239
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 01:56 pm:   

I'm determined to make it to Brighton next September. :-)
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Mick Curtis (Mick)
Username: Mick

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.176.1.6
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 02:11 pm:   

Good show, Des! And Simon, if you get a minibus, could you pop over to Whitby and drag the professor (and possibly even his good lady) down to the south coast with you?
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Simon Bestwick (Simon_b)
Username: Simon_b

Registered: 10-2008
Posted From: 86.24.166.73
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 03:08 pm:   

That's kinda what I had in mind, Mick...
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John Forth (John)
Username: John

Registered: 05-2008
Posted From: 217.20.16.180
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 04:24 pm:   

Again, this is embarassingly convenient for me. Welcome news!
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Weber (Weber_gregston)
Username: Weber_gregston

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 194.66.23.11
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 05:28 pm:   

You can rent out your spare room to a group of festival-goers, make some cash on the side...
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John Forth (John)
Username: John

Registered: 05-2008
Posted From: 82.132.139.40
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 09:40 pm:   

I can offer a couch, but that's about it.
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Weber (Weber_gregston)
Username: Weber_gregston

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.144.33.11
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 11:28 pm:   

That'll sleep 4. you know what these festival peeps are like...
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Mick Curtis (Mick)
Username: Mick

Registered: 03-2008
Posted From: 86.176.1.6
Posted on Friday, October 14, 2011 - 11:29 pm:   

Steady!
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Carolinec (Carolinec)
Username: Carolinec

Registered: 06-2009
Posted From: 92.232.199.129
Posted on Saturday, October 15, 2011 - 12:48 pm:   

Well, I'm not sleeping on a couch with three of you guys, that's for sure!

Anyway, I'll have to try again next year and see if I can get as far as Brighton. Hope the new medication has worked well by then and that we don't have another unseasonal heatwave ...
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Stevie Walsh (Stephenw)
Username: Stephenw

Registered: 03-2009
Posted From: 82.4.19.77
Posted on Sunday, October 16, 2011 - 04:52 am:   

Why couldn't I have met you about 20 years ago, Caroline?!
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Carolinec (Carolinec)
Username: Carolinec

Registered: 06-2009
Posted From: 92.232.199.129
Posted on Sunday, October 16, 2011 - 12:30 pm:   

I was married then too though, Stevie.

Here's a funny BFS-related story which happened to me last week ...

As I missed FCon, I had my copies of the BFS Journal and Four Fathom Forty posted out to me. I was out when they arrived and the idiot postman who delivered them put them in a bin at the back of the house .. a bin that was full of used cat litter! Honestly, it must have been so obvious what was in there when he took the lid off, I can't believe he was so stupid!

The books were in a jiffy bag which was soaked, but thankfully the books weren't soggy when I rescued them. They don't smell too good though. I'm still waiting to hear if the BFS can send me some other, sweeter smelling, copies as replacements .. (though I realise this wasn't the BFS's fault, it's completely down to the idiots Royal Mail employs)

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