Christopher Fowler's Blog, page 241

The Panic Of ’83

The Daily Mail started it, of course – an article in 1983 called for the banning of videos which brought undesirable images into the home for the first time. Home entertainment was a new concept, and the Mail feared it would break up the nuclear family structure it was so desperate to cling onto. On […]

No, We’ve NOT Fallen Out Of Love With E-Readers

Today’s Independent runs a piece by Caroline Corcoran suggesting that the world is falling out of love with the Kindle. Although she makes some good points, beware the journalist with the ad hominem argument. And beware the Fox News approach of substituting opinion for fact. In this case, the facts are few; a study (we […]

Nyctophobia Out This Thursday!

Nyctophobia is a fear of the dark, and is a phobia you can ‘catch’ from someone else. I’m hoping to make the nation scared of the dark from this Thursday October 9th, when it appears in bookshops. I’m very proud of the way this novel has turned out, in a nice edition from Solaris. The […]

My Favourite Non-Disney Animated Movies

As a child I loved Disney animations for their painterly vistas and tight storytelling structures, but there were films from other companies I’ve watched almost as much. I’ve left out the obvious choices – ‘Spirited Away’, ‘The Wind Rises’ and ‘Anastasia’ among them – and am still looking for a decent copy of ‘The Suicide […]

How Gone Girl Went Somewhere Completely Different

NO SPOILERS Gillian Flynn’s book ‘Gone Girl’ was 2012’s beach read – you couldn’t find a sunbed without a copy of the tanning oil-smeared novel on it. It was a female favourite – I knew of few man who’d read it. What was the appeal? It had a fairly standard hook, the writing was unadorned, […]

Criminal Consequences As Specsavers Readers Choose The Plot

The game of Consequences – finishing something started by someone else – has long been popular among crime writers. Charles Dickens had, in a way, inspired the idea in another form with books like ‘Mugby Junction’ and ‘The Haunted House’. In these he started off a story and had other writers deliver additional episodes which […]

Re:View – ‘Mr. Turner’

Anyone who has worked extensively with artists will notice a paradox; you can rarely see the art inside of them, for who they are is not what they produce. Mike Leigh makes the case strongly in his biography of William Turner, the Victorian artist who became the master of light on canvas at a time […]

Rediscovering London 1: Soho

Recently I mentioned that the more I traveled the less I found comparably pleasing in London, from obvious complaints (litter and dirt, public advertising, poor pedestrianisation) to larger, less solvable problems (endless privatisation, sky-high rents, overcharging and overcrowding). I’ve been bugged most of all by the half-hearted approach to problem solving; for example an initiative […]

The Rise Of The Precinct Drama

Precinct dramas – those set in a single limited space – have grown popular in the last few years, We’ve had thrillers set in one room (‘The Disappearance of Alice Creed’, ‘Exam’, ‘Cube’, ‘Fermat’s Room’) a great many set entirely in houses or apartments (of which ‘Amour’ is probably the best) horror films set in […]

Now Appearing At…

Ah, October, season of the witch – and public appearances! First off this year I’ll be taking part in what has become the most diverse and diverting literary festival in Britain, the Cheltenham Literary Festival. On WED 8th OCT 2014, between 2:15PM – 3:15PM, with psychological thriller writerSophie Hannah compering, I’ll be withKate Mosse(The Taxidermist’s […]