Christopher Fowler's Blog, page 406

No Flies On eReaders

Well, I decided to give my Sony eReader one more chance. Even though it refuses to download books to the device after I've legitimately paid for them. (It says 'Transfer to READER' – but there's no READER column to transfer to) I've still got some stuff to read on it before I frisbee it into [...]

Transitional Attractions

This is a photo I took of a fence surrounding building works in King's Cross, where I live. The old joke about people one day waking up in New York to find that all the builders have finished and gone home will never become true, so construction companies are making areas attractive while they're in [...]

Library Cuts Need Fresh Thinking

This week, Brent council closed down six of its twelve libraries in order to save money, despite massive protests. Obviously you only need to be able to read pamphlets to work at Brent Council, but perhaps they could have saved the requisite amount by taking a collective wage cut. Of course, that will never happen, [...]

Toward Less Complex Language

Recently I gave my mother a copy of the JB Priestley novel 'The Good Companions'. I'd found it in a secondhand book shop and knew it was one of her favourites, about an troupe of seaside entertainers. The next time I saw her she told me she was puzzled.

'I read this when I was young [...]

Dead Weird

Okay, I've reached the dead sea – just about to go and test its buoyancy – then I'll be heading for the Israeli border to visit Jerusalem. After that, off into the desert to Petra. Wi-fi is not exactly prevalent here and I've yet to work out how to ward off the plague of flies [...]

Dead Good

Okay, I've reached the dead sea – just about to go and test its buoyancy – then I'll be heading for the Palestinian border to visit Jerusalem. After that, off into the desert to Petra. Wi fi is not exactly prevalent here and I've yet to work out how to ward off the plague of [...]

Re:Re:View – 'Jerusalem'

I missed this play first time around and am thrilled it came back with the original cast intact. Jex Butterworth has matured as a playwright in the last few years, but his edge is as sharp as ever. This is a big evening; a lengthy three-act exploration of the power of English mythology.

Id Mark Rylance's [...]

This May Shock/Depress you…

And there I was thinking the Internet was a democratising force. I noticed this phenomenon too, and have since started carrying out a few simple tests. Sometimes it becomes very difficult to find what you're looking for from where you are. This is why.

Look Out, He's Off Again!

I've just finished this particular tranche of interviews and signings for new books and the 'War Of The Worlds' game, so I'm taking a week off and following in the footsteps of Indiana Jones, forsaking London tomorrow for this place. There will be wi-fi here and there. Saddle up that camel!

Ghost Artists

Last night we were discussing the creation of art and outsourcing work, and I was reminded of a story from my friend Polly, a wonderful artist who was hired to teach children how to make a piece of quilted art. When the children's finished work was hung, she noticed something odd about it – it [...]