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Peter Ormerod

@bowiegod.bsky.social

Author of David Bowie and the Search for Life, Death and God, out on January 15 2026 and published by Bloomsbury. Also entertainments editor for NationalWorld. Also a bit too keen on porridge, toast, Swindon, Noel Edmonds etc

94 Followers  |  71 Following  |  464 Posts  |  Joined: 19.11.2024
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Posts by Peter Ormerod (@bowiegod.bsky.social)

The phrase 'An evening with' makes me think of Homer Simpson:

"Oh, oh, an evening with Philip Glass... just an evening?"

26.02.2026 14:30 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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Tomorrow night! Leamington Spa!

26.02.2026 14:30 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

As an aside: the critic (Colin Marshall) wonders if I'd have written the book were it not for a particular Bowie quote from 1996. I'm pretty sure I would have, but that quote (and other similar ones) gave me confidence that I was on the right lines, and those kind of things can matter

25.02.2026 12:44 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I was v mindful of the different kinds of people who might read it - those who know loads about Bowie but less about religion, those who know loads about religion but less about Bowie, and other permutations. Also knew I was dealing with big and complex stuff but wanted to keep it readable

25.02.2026 12:44 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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AprΓ¨s Bowie, le dΓ©luge | Los Angeles Review of Books On the 10th anniversary of David Bowie’s death, three books consider the rock star from new angles.

Interesting piece in the @lareviewofbooks.bsky.social looking at three recent Bowie books - Alex Larman's, Paul Morley's and mine, which is described as 'a highly readable biographical overview, suitable for the non-Bowieologist'. Pleased about this!

lareviewofbooks.org/article/davi...

25.02.2026 12:44 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 2    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

And it sounds like the spirituality stuff is getting a proper airing. Maybe there's a book in that

10.02.2026 21:27 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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This is more promising though

10.02.2026 21:23 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

This may well be great but I'm a bit alarmed by this bit of the press release (Harty wasn't 'reduced' to anything - he was just being Harty, and Bowie didn't seem in control of very much at all)

10.02.2026 21:21 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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There's something I find incredibly artistic about this somehow. It's like a moving painting.

(No sound)

08.02.2026 21:31 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Thanks so much - I'm delighted you've enjoyed it. That's quite some company to be keeping too - I'm most honoured!

08.02.2026 15:26 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Thanks Amber!

08.02.2026 15:21 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

He's such a lovely person to talk with - he has an insider's knowledge with an outsider's curiosity

07.02.2026 10:27 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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Peter Ormerod on Bowie’s Search for Life, Death and God - Maggiore on Bowie In this interview, I spoke with Peter Ormerod, a journalist best known for his work with The Guardian and the author of David Bowie and the Search for Life, Death and God. The book sets out to trace a...

When he's not helping to run New York, @maggiore6.bsky.social runs a superb Bowie site, full of interviews and his own fascinating insights. He kindly invited me to discuss Dave, God, the Bowie/Jones dichotomy and loads more

maggioreonbowie.com/peter-ormero...

07.02.2026 10:27 β€” πŸ‘ 7    πŸ” 1    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 1
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This sticker was used on the tour - it looks like that word is Isolar, spelt in a version of Bowie's own 'Isolaric Alphabeth' - and it doesn't half make me think of a similar design used 40 years later, again with its own alphabet(h)

06.02.2026 13:42 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

This series is such a treat and it's only just got going so sign up now.

(Numerology - which Bowie wrote as 'numberology' - was quite a thing for him at the time and seems to have been part of his prayer ritual, along with tarot and Dion Fortune's book Psychic Self-Defence)

06.02.2026 13:42 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0

You're very welcome - hope you enjoy it!

04.02.2026 15:50 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

That's all very kind and lovely to hear; thanks SeΓ‘n

31.01.2026 14:48 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

We were created to eat it. I've always been obsessed with it and am made mostly of it. Only discovered steel cut oats relatively recently though - they take commitment but they're next-level stuff

29.01.2026 21:06 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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Quite a nice thing to see in the Amazon charts. Feels a bit weird to be ahead of Paul McCartney and the Dalai Lama but there you go

Thanks, everyone

29.01.2026 12:15 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Ha! The more the merrier

29.01.2026 12:12 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

Ah, thanks - hope you enjoy it!

28.01.2026 18:21 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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David Bowie and the Search for Life, Death and God by Peter Ormerod review – the making of a modern saint An exhilarating account of Bowie’s spirituality and the quasi-religious nature of his work, from Space Oddity to Blackstar

It's an honour to have my book reviewed by the great Simon Critchley in today's @theguardian.com

And as for the review itself, it's beyond anything I could have dreamt of

www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...

28.01.2026 08:45 β€” πŸ‘ 20    πŸ” 3    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 0

I mean, blimey

28.01.2026 08:29 β€” πŸ‘ 0    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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Life on Mars? Bowie was questing far deeper Major Tom’s journey from lost spaceman to junkie to alien idol was never about sci-fi cheap thrills

Really nice and satisfyingly chunky review of my book in the London Standard

'What Ormerod provides here is a welcome addition to the heaving Bowie library'

www.standard.co.uk/culture/book...

25.01.2026 16:24 β€” πŸ‘ 3    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0
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Uncle Floydβ†’Slip Away Uncle Floyd. Slip Away. Slip Away (Jonathan Ross, 2002). Slip Away (Live By Request, 2002). Slip Away (live, 2002). Slip Away (live, 2003). Slip Away (live, with the Polyphonic Spree, 2004). Deep i…

RIP "Uncle Floyd" Vivino, who was UHF television at its most gloriously strange. Inspiration for one of Bowie's best songs of his later years. bowiesongs.wordpress.com/2014/03/27/u...

23.01.2026 14:27 β€” πŸ‘ 48    πŸ” 7    πŸ’¬ 2    πŸ“Œ 1

And that's a lovely comment to read - thanks

21.01.2026 21:43 β€” πŸ‘ 1    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 0    πŸ“Œ 0

I've sadly had to postpone some events this week but I'm really looking forward to getting out and speaking with people about the book in the weeks and months ahead. Thanks to everyone who's given support or encouragement in any way - it means a lot and makes a difference

21.01.2026 17:12 β€” πŸ‘ 4    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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Follow Bowie's 'wild journey' of spirituality in Courier journalist's book David Bowie’s extraordinary spiritual adventures are the subject of a β€œmonumental” new book written by a Courier journalist.

And being a local newspaper journalist at heart, it's been a joy to appear in the Banbury Guardian, the Derbyshire Times and of course the Leamington Spa Courier (it's taken me 26 years but at last I've done something vaguely worthy of its pages)

www.warwickshireworld.com/arts-and-cul...

21.01.2026 17:12 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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Chris Bianchi - English Touring Theatre

I've also listened to the audiobook for the first time, and I couldn't be happier with our choice of reader, Chris Bianchi. There are so many generic voices out there, but Chris is something different, and reads with such thoughtfulness and soul. More about him here:

ett.org.uk/artists/chri...

21.01.2026 17:12 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0
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Book Review: David Bowie and the Search for Life, Death and God by Peter Ormerod An exploration of the spiritual quest behind one of popular music’s most enigmatic figures.

Some more nice reviews have been popping up - I'm especially pleased with this one from young people's publication Voice, which is a proper force for good

www.voicemag.uk/review/16077...

21.01.2026 17:12 β€” πŸ‘ 2    πŸ” 0    πŸ’¬ 1    πŸ“Œ 0