Nicholas Pegg

It’s a terrific first episode. That story gets a lot of stick (too much in my opinion), but that’s as fine a Part One as any of the best Tom Baker serials.

In the garden today: it’s October, but the gorgeous honeyed fragrance of sweet alyssum is still filling the patio with perfume. The scent was once believed to cure mental anguish: the name ‘alyssum’ comes from the Greek, literally meaning ‘free of madness’. Would that we were.

In the garden today: Snapdragons basking in September’s final sunset.

Well, that was a complete and utter joy. So much so that we’re doing it all again tomorrow in Exeter.

I am so thrilled to be interviewing Miriam Margolyes live on stage at the Hall for Cornwall today. What a gorgeous venue! #TheLittleBookOfMiriam

Thinking of you and sending all good wishes, Paul.

‘Watched Attack of the Cybermen.’

I didn’t understand a word of this until I imagined Peter Davison’s Doctor breathlessly rattling it out at high speed while simultaneously trying to defuse a bomb, and then it made total sense.

The Impoverished Planet Whose Downtrodden Inhabitants Are Being Ruthlessly Exploited By A Slimy Little Alien Who Trundles About In A Life-Support Machine trilogy:
The Curse of Peladon
The Sun Makers
Vengeance on Varos

The Triumvirate In Charge Of An Ancient Stranded Spaceship That They’ve Forgotten How To Pilot trilogy:
Full Circle
State of Decay
Ghost Light

Theatre Royal Plymouth We are the largest and best-attended regional producing theatre in the UK. Watch, take part and experience.

Plymouth Theatre Royal has a basement space called The Lab - not sure of the hire arrangements, but it might be worth a look… theatreroyal.com

Exeter Phoenix is a great venue with several spaces available to hire, and it’s a minute’s walk from Exeter Central station. exeterphoenix.org.uk

Prince Felix Yusupov, ringleader of the group of Russian aristocrats who assassinated Rasputin in 1916, could have heard The Laughing Gnome and watched The Tomb of the Cybermen.

Wallis Simpson could have heard The Chicken Song from Spitting Image.

Sadly, I don’t recall ever coming across any feedback from Señor Dalí. He was in the audience for Bowie’s big opening night at Radio City Music Hall on Valentine’s Day 1973, along with Bette Midler, Allen Ginsberg and Andy Warhol. That must have been quite an afterparty.

I think we have a winner!

Salvador Dalí could have seen Alexei Sayle’s Stuff, A Fish Called Wanda or The Happiness Patrol. (And he did see the Aladdin Sane tour.)

Logan Roy and the Brixton Boy: the curious case of Brian Cox and David Bowie Every so often in the well-ploughed furrows of academia, an unexpected discovery will come to light. A game-changing revelation that upsets the applecart, moves the goalposts, and rewrites the text…

A couple of years ago, the actor Brian Cox recalled in his autobiography that back in the 1960s, he had worked on a TV drama with the teenage David Bowie. This was news to me, so I decided to investigate. It took a while, but here’s what I found out.

gutsofabeggar.wordpress.com/2024/11/14/l...

This sounds terrific.

Today's painting from my Brave New Worlds exhibition:

DUNE (2021, 2024, 2026)

(acrylic on oil paper)

To take a closer look (or to buy the original painting) follow this link:

barnabyedwards.co.uk/brave-new-wo...

And of course, unless the Master came up with the nickname himself, an ancient invader of Xeriphas was familiar with the properties of the ‘kamelion’ before it had even evolved on Earth.

Another lovely piece, thank you! Remarkable how many alien races appear to be familiar with Earth’s humble chameleon, naming either themselves or their tech after it. The Axons don’t quite know what a frog is, but happily describe their gift of Axonite as ‘the chameleon of the elements’.

Today's exciting delivery: a few postcard prints of gorgeous classic science fiction film artwork by the brilliant @barnabyedwards.bsky.social - taken from his new exhibition, 'Brave New Worlds' at the Exeter Picturehouse.

I knew I recognised them from somewhere.

Also ‘Our friends all think we’re mad / But we know better cos the spy is bad.’ Outstanding.

For the first time in many moons, just heard We Are Detective by the Thompson Twins. Takes me back to teenage times, so of course I love it, but (a) the tune is absurdly close to ABBA’s Head Over Heels, (b) omg the lyrics. ‘He left his footprints by the garden tree.’ The garden tree? As opposed to…?

The best Bucks Fizz song is Under Attack by ABBA

Devotees of Michael Sarrazin might like a word.

Very much enjoying all the indignant reviews of this new Frankenstein film, written by people who have clearly never read Frankenstein, taking issue with the fact that it appears for once to be based on Frankenstein.

Barnaby Edwards | BRAVE NEW WORLDS BRAVE NEW WORLDS A century of science fiction cinema

My new painting exhibition - Brave New Worlds: A Century of Science Fiction Cinema - is now open to the public! If you’re not in the Devon area, you can browse online, where you can buy the original artworks as well as T-shirts, framed prints and postcards.

barnabyedwards.co.uk/brave-new-wo...