Wossname -- September 2015 -- Main issue part 1

[News and reviews about the works of Sir Terry Pratchett]

Wossname
Newsletter of the Klatchian Foreign Legion
September 2015 (Volume 18, Issue 9, Post 1)

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WOSSNAME is a free publication offering news, reviews, and all the other 
stuff-that-fits pertaining to the works and activities of Sir Terry 
Pratchett. Originally founded by the late, great Joe Schaumburger for 
members of the worldwide Klatchian Foreign Legion and its affiliates, 
including the North American Discworld Society and other continental 
groups, Wossname is now for Discworld and Pratchett fans everywhere in 
Roundworld.
********************************************************************

Editor in Chief: Annie Mac
News Editor: Vera P
Newshounds: Mogg, Sir J of Croydon Below, the Shadow, Wolfiekins, Mss C, 
Alison not Aliss
Staff Writers: Asti, Pitt the Elder, Evil Steven Dread, Mrs Wynn-Jones
Staff Technomancers: Jason Parlevliet, Archchancellor Neil, DJ Helpful
Book Reviews: Annie Mac, Drusilla D'Afanguin, Your Name Here
Puzzle Editor: Tiff (still out there somewhere)
Bard in Residence: Weird Alice Lancrevic
Emergency Staff: Steven D'Aprano, Jason Parlevliet
World Membership Director: Steven D'Aprano (in his copious spare time)

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INDEX:

01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
02) EDITOR'S LETTER
03) THE SHEPHERD'S CROWN NEWS
04) ODDS AND SODS
05) SIR PTERRY'S HUMANIST FUNERAL
06) WITHOUT WHOM: ROB WILKINS
07) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
08) DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS
09) DISCWORLD ARTS AND CRAFTS NEWS
10) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS
11) DISCWORLD GAMES NEWS
12) TERRY PRATCHETT: GUILTY OF LITERATURE? WELL ACTUALLY, YES
13) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
14) CLOSE

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01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH

"It was a hard book to complete because Terry's health was declining in 
the last year. But he was still enjoying the writing. He wasn't able to 
polish it quite as he would have liked and there were a few ideas that 
he would have loved to have followed up on and he never got the 
opportunity."

– Rob Wilkins, on the occasion of the The Shepherd's Crown launch

"This is not a fantasy novel intended for 'younger readers' as it is 
wont to be pigeonholed... This is a book for all ages, the tour de force 
of one of the English language's greatest authors, who, in the midst of 
encroaching darkness and facing so many terrors of his own, has 
contrived to astound us one last time with his craft."

– David Lloyd, Vice-Chancellor of the University of South Australia

"For those reading The Shepherd's Crown 'Mind how you go' are considered 
to be the Pratchett magic words. We'd always say them to someone 
travelling somewhere. They were also the last words I said to my 
grandfather and my father."

– Rhianna Pratchett

"I am proud and honoured to be a part of such a wonderful series. I 
think of the cover as my own tribute and thanks to Terry and his 
wonderful literary creations."

– Paul Kidby on his cover art for The Shepherd's Crown

"Pratchett is in good company: only the stories of truly great writers 
end up belonging more to their readers than their creators."

– Natalie Haynes in The Independent

"Terry Pratchett's novels are stylistically adept: good muscular prose, 
not mucked around with for effect (except sometimes!), enlivened by wit, 
sharp observation, a unique take on the world at large and whatever the 
subject of social satire might be for the time being, a brimming sense 
of fun and the ridiculous, and overall an approach to the reader that 
feels inclusive, a letting in on the joke, an amused welcome to the 
world he is writing about."

– author Christopher Priest, listing some of the qualities he is sure 
will keep Terry Pratchett in the forefront of public author-awareness 
for at least as long as Dickens

"Thank you everyone for getting the Shepherd's Crown to Number One. 
Terry would have been so proud"

– from the official Pratchett Twitter account, 3rd September 2015

"Hopefully, Discworld will now be frozen like a snapshot and enter the 
pages of literary history, and Pratchett's estate will resist publishers 
who pray that it is turned into a co-written franchise which survives 
rigor mortis, the sun going nova and everything else. That's the fate of 
almost every successful writer of airport thrillers, which is perfectly 
all right since that genre deserves no better, but literature is a 
different matter."

– journalist Pratik Kanjilal

"Reading Pratchett, like reading Austen, requires commitment, and a 
willingness to look under the surface."

– essayist and language researcher Annie Coral Demosthenous

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02) LETTER FROM YOUR EDITOR

Ook oook and eek – most of all eeek! Every time I think I have the 
September issue ready to wrap up and send out, another newsworthy item 
falls axross my eyes or into my inbox, and the wordcount grows and 
grows. At this point I've decided to split up what was meant to be a 
single issue and send part of it now and the rest before the 
rapidly-approaching end of the month. So bedlow the line is a *lot* of 
news, and soon there will be a proper long editorial and a *lot* of 
reviews...

– Annie Mac, Editor

p.s. The Discworld Plays section is *huge* this month. Well done, 
Pratchett fans of the theatrical world!

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03) THE SHEPHERD'S CROWN NEWS

3.0 ROB WILKINS IN PERSON IN ADELAIDE AND MELBOURNE!!!

Rob Wilkins, of @terryandrob Rob will be making a brief appearance in 
Fourecks this coming week. He will be signing copies of his afterword in 
The Shepherd's Crown, and answering questions about his work with Sir 
Pterry. Not to be missed!

Adelaide event:
When: Tuesday 29th September 2015
Venue: Dymocks Adelaide, 135 Rundle Mall, Adelaide, South Australia 
(phone 08 8223 5380)
Time: 12:30pm
Tickets: FREE! But must be pre-booked. See below.

Melbourne event:
When: Wednesday 30th September 2015
Venue: Dymocks Melbourne, 234 Collins Street, Melbourne 3000
Time: 6.30pm
Tickets: FREE! But must be booked in advance. To book, go to:

http://www.trybooking.com/Booking/BookingEventSummary.aspx?eid=161340

Editor's note: Wossname will be there, of course!

3.1 THE SHEPHERD'S CROWN: STORMING THE BESTSELLER LISTS

 From The Bookseller:

We're delighted to report that the final Discworld novel by Sir Terry 
Pratchett, The Shepherd's Crown, has rocketed straight to the #1 spot in 
Nielsen BookScan's chart, selling 52,846 copies in its first week. This 
is Sir Terry's tenth British Number One, and a wonderfully fitting 
tribute to the beloved writer's final work... Hailed as a 'magnificent 
sign-off' by the Daily Telegraph and a 'funny, fearless farewell' by the 
Daily Mail, The Shepherd's Crown has already garnered an outpouring of 
love and admiration from fans and critics... Francesca Dow, MD of 
Penguin Random House Children's division, commented, 'We are extremely 
proud to publish the long-awaited final novel in the Discworld series. 
The Shepherd's Crown is an incredibly special book and it is a real 
privilege to share and celebrate Terry's last work with his fans. We 
cannot think of a more fitting way to honour the late, great Sir Terry 
Pratchett.'

Terry Pratchett has held the Official Top 50 number one for a second 
week, as The Shepherd's Crown (Doubleday Children's) sold 27,386 copies, 
worth £318,576, through Nielsen BookScan's Total Consumer Market... The 
book also took the Children's top spot — Pratchett's 40th week atop that 
chart since BookScan records...

http://discworld.com/crowning-glory-sir-terry-pratchett/

3.2 WHAT *IS* A SHEPHERD'S CROWN?

 From Roundworld's Royal Albert Memorial Museum:

"Who would have thought that there are royal headdresses for shepherds? 
English folklore describes the internal moulds of fossil sea urchins as 
'Shepherd's crowns'. Sea urchins have a characteristic conical shape and 
five decorative ridges that meet at the top of the shell like the ribs 
of a crown. Notably the Cretaceous sea urchin species Micraster, 
Echinocorys and Conulus have found their way into English folklore.

"Shepherds may have come across petrified sea urchins, while caring for 
their sheep on the chalky downlands of southern England.

"An interesting folklore originates from Suffolk in eastern England 
where fossil sea urchins are known as 'Fairy loaves'. The loaf-like 
shape of some sea urchins inspired people to placed them by the hearth 
as charms..."

http://bit.ly/1Kjndkg

3.3 REPORT: THE SHEPHERD'S CROWN LAUNCH EVENT IN MELBOURNE

Dymocks booksellers, always active supporters of the works of Pratchett, 
let the Victorian Discworld Klatch take over their Melbourne city centre 
flagship store's cafe for a Discworld party on the night of the 
Australian release of The Shepherd's Crown last month. Here be a 
Wossname exclusive report...

By Damian Perry

The Victorian Discworld Klatch, in partnership with Dymocks Melbourne 
store, held a Shepherd's Crown book event. People dressed up, even with 
the threat of people saying something about it (according to Twitter). 
Fun and games were had throughout the night. We had book readings, a 
colouring in competition, book cover designs, a costume competition and 
Playdough-tionary.

Clap-o-metre was the judging tool of the evening. Leanne, dressed as 
Tiffany, won the book cover competition.

Playdough-tionary. Two rival tables were set up. One had Death. One had 
no Death.

During the first few rounds, the non-Death table dominated. We had (take 
a look at the Klatch page for pictures):

– A Dibbler in green.
– An orange golem.
– Two purple blobs that were obviously going to be the entire Discworld...

And then because we were guessing within 30 seconds we changed the rules 
so that Suzie alone would guess and choose a winner. From there, 
Imogen's swamp dragon won, followed by Tiffany Aching – the first of the 
Death table wins.

In the last round nobody had any idea. It turned out they were Feegles. 
Deb was brought in to decide which was the best and strangely the yellow 
Feegle beat the blue Feegle (it takes more skill to make a Feegle out of 
yellow play dough).

In the playoffs Imogen took on Death. Making sheep. Suzie took her life 
in her hands by picking Imogen's multicoloured sheep over Death's "Where 
is the green" sheep. Imogen won the book pack. Amanda dressed as Susan 
won the book pack for the best coloured cover.

There was a shakeup in the costume competition when Death went home 
early and a tiny Tiffany turned up to nab the best costume prize. 
Apparently it's not good form to let a little kid lose a costume 
competition.

All over the Internet there are articles about how we spent the night of 
the last Discworld book release. The Melbourne Klatch group spent the 
evening in friendly revels with friends, playing games and colouring in. 
A marvellous night had by all.

Massive thanks to Louise and Dymocks Collins St. She always does her 
best to entertain us and loves the Discworld fandom. Now time to go and 
read the book.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VictorianDiscworldKlatch/

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04) ODDS AND SODS

4.0 PRATCHETT FAMILY BACKS THE CALL FOR A STATUE

"Sir Terry Pratchett's family is backing a campaign to have a statue of 
the author erected in Wiltshire... In the past two weeks, hundreds of 
fans have signed a petition for a permanent statue to the writer in 
Salisbury. A spokeswoman for the family said he would 'undoubtedly' have 
found the amusement 'in almost any statue'. She said: 'Sir Terry always 
said he would like to be useful in death, so a statue where a pigeon can 
stop for a well-earned rest would have amused him no end.' The campaign 
for a permanent 'tribute to Sir Terry' was launched on Change.Org by 
Emily Brand..."

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-wiltshire-34334105

4.1 DISCWORLD BARON TO BE AUCTIONED

"Following the successful Barons Trail, each of the Barons will now go 
up for auction. With money raised from the sales going to The Trussell 
Trust and supporting their work to stop UK hunger. The auction will take 
place at Salisbury Cathedral. From 12 September auction 
catalogues/souvenir guides can be purchased in advance from Casa Fina 
and the Salisbury Cathedral Shop, as well as on the night.

"From Wednesday 23 September, all 25 Barons will be displayed on the 
North Lawn of Salisbury Cathedral and auction guests will be able to 
view the barons closely on 1 October between 6.30pm and 7.30pm, at the 
drinks reception prior to the auction commencing. People can pre-bid for 
a Baron online at The Barons Charter:

http://www.thebaronscharter.org.uk/

"Please note that there will be no parking within the Cathedral grounds; 
please use City Centre car parks."

The Barons' Auction Salisbury 2015
When: Thursday 1st Oct 2015
Venue: Salisbury Cathedral
Time: 6:30 pm
Tickets: £15* To purchase online, go to http://bit.ly/1ia9JAO and click 
the Buy Tickets button

*All tickets purchased online will also be subject to an additional £2 
transaction fee per ticket. Tickets purchased in person or on the 
telephone do not incur additional charges.

http://www.cityhallsalisbury.co.uk/index.php?page=1598

For full details go to 
http://www.cityhallsalisbury.co.uk/images/BaronsInformation.pdf

http://www.trusselltrust.org/

4.2 PRATCHETT FANS TRIBUTE VIDEO UPDATE

 From last month's main issue: "With the final Discworld book almost 
upon us, a video tribute seems a fitting way to channel our appreciation 
for Terry Pratchett's words. Send us your contribution before 27 August 
2015, the day THE SHEPHERD'S CROWN is released, and we'll take it from 
there – so you can get on with reading."

And here it is!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP1rJNOwYls

4.3 THE DUEL, FINISHED!

Remember the animated short film project, "The Duel", that was given 
Professor Sir Pterry's blessing many moons ago? It's finished now! By 
Ben Harper, Sean Mullen and Alex Sherwood (and officially "mucked about" 
by Terry Pratchett, out of the Animation Hub, Ballyfermot College of 
Further Education, Trinity College Dublin & the Irish Film Board with 
music by Paul Lynch, here it is:

https://vimeo.com/77104562

4.4 ROB WILKINS AT THE LONDON SHEPHERD'S CROWN RELEASE EVENT

In the London Evening Standard:

"Rob Wilkins, who was Sir Terry's assistant, gave a reading from The 
Shepherd's Crown at a midnight launch in Waterstones in Piccadilly... Mr 
Wilkins, 46, told the Standard: 'This is Terry's final novel and to me 
there can be nothing more important. This has got to be a celebration of 
him, all of his work culminating and giving him a right good send off. 
He was so modest that he would look at all of this and wonder what all 
the fuss was about. We are going to have a proper memorial next year. 
But this is it, the final Discworld novel. There will be spin-off 
projects and things like that going off into the future and also we have 
Narrativia, our film and TV company. We are actively out there 
developing material at the moment. Terry's daughter Rhianna is actually 
working on the script right now for The We[sic] Free Men.'... Mr Wilkins 
added: 'I actually say in the back of the book it wasn't finished as 
Terry would have liked. What I mean by that is he wrote the book like a 
giant literary jigsaw then pieced it all together at the end and kept 
polishing it until you couldn't see the join between the various parts 
and once it was assembled then he would be happy. But he didn't quite 
get to the point of assembling all of the bits when he died. Being at 
the coal face with all those ideas coming out – you would never know the 
direction he was going in. He would even throw me a curved ball. We were 
lucky with his Alzheimer's, his variant meant we had more of Terry for a 
longer time. It was only the last few months that we started losing the 
Terry we loved. In January that was the start of the end and it was 
terribly upsetting. Terry wasn't a sentimental man, we never had our 
final discussion or the final chat or anything like that. Every day was 
a new day and you just dealt with the problems his disease brought on a 
day to day basis.'..."

http://bit.ly/1ElXCe5

4.5 THE END...

...according to Neil Gaiman:

"In an interview with The Times, Gaiman revealed that his long-time 
friend, who died in March aged 66, had planned a different ending to the 
one that was published yesterday but had died before getting it down on 
paper. 'This is still the saddest moment for me,' Gaiman said. 'When I 
talked to Terry about it there was one little beautiful twist that would 
have made people cry, but he never got to write it."... The scene 'would 
have made the book, but he never got to write it. He simply ran out of 
time', he added... Gaiman says that his friend didn't want his 
unfinished work to be published. The American Gods author said Pratchett 
wanted 'whatever he was working on at the time of his death to be taken 
out along with his computers, to be put in the middle of a road and for 
a steamroller to steamroll over them all'. Along with Pratchett's 
millions of fans, Gaiman said that he was 'ridiculously glad that hasn't 
happened'. The author also revealed that he was working on Pratchett's 
last request: a TV adaptation of Good Omens, the 1990 novel they wrote 
together about an angel and demon working together to foil the 
Apocalypse...".

http://bit.ly/1OS19l7 (BEWARE: CONTAINS SPOILERS)

Also, in the Daily Mail, which for all its myriad sins has long been a 
supporter and promulgator of both Sir Pterry's books *and* his personal 
crusades:

"Mr Gaiman also revealed that the ending of The Shepherd's Crown – Sir 
Terry's final novel – was not the one which the author had intended. 
Tragically, the writer died before he managed to get his preferred 
conclusion down on paper.
'When I talked to Terry about it there was one little beautiful twist 
that would have made people cry, but he never got to write it,' Mr 
Gaiman said. 'He simply ran out of time. But if you are going to die 
mid-book, Terry did it as best you possibly can.'"

http://dailym.ai/1VYWEta

[Editor's note: I found the ending to The Shepherd's Crown well 
sufficient, and also found the "ending that never was" was well and 
truly telegraphed by events in the story. Your mileage may vary, but for 
me, the end as published was perfect.]

4.6 LOOKING BACK AT THE JOHNNY MAXWELL BOOKS

On Den of Geek, Andrew Blair deconstructs Pratchett's superb Johnny 
Maxwell trilogy:

"The most interesting thing about Only You Can Save Mankind were its 
observations on empathy and detachment with regards moving images, but 
its ending counteracts the popular aphorism by stating that violence 
does solve some things. It might seem surprising in the context of the 
book, but then Pratchett has disposed of monsters with poetic abandon 
since. While examining the way in which gamers have to detach themselves 
from what they're actually doing – I mean, try playing any real world 
conflict-based shoot 'em up while thinking about the reality the 
simulation is depicting – he also brings in images of the Gulf War on 
TV. Considering the ending states unambiguously that some monsters must 
be fought, it's ultimately a book that says 'Ask questions first, shoot 
later'...

"Johnny and the Dead asks the reader to consider something they might 
see in their everyday life, to look beyond the surface of it and ask 
questions. It goes one step further, again, with its ending, where the 
dead stop waiting around for the next stage of their afterlives to 
happen. Again, it takes the ending you expect and gives it a little 
tweak, in this case with the people of the graveyard deciding that 
waiting to be saved isn't all that. Inspired by councils selling off 
graveyards for tiny amounts to get rid of the costs of upkeep, it's a 
wry and fond look at local history that might inspire you to do some 
investigation of your local graveyard...

"All of Johnny's friends get satisfying character development in the 
third and final book in the series, Johnny And The Bomb. This book, 
especially, with its mentions of the Trousers of Time and 'Millennium 
hand and shrimp,' complements ideas in the Discworld universe, almost 
like a primer. That these come from a character called Mrs Tachyon may 
be entirely deliberate, as a theoretical time-travelling particle has 
echoes of both this book and the existence of something like the 
Discworld. While the ending might be the most straightforwardly heroic 
of the three books, Johnny's friends are put into the midst of the 
fantastic more than in any other story..."

http://bit.ly/1NJJpLJ

4.7 A LOVELY ELEGIAC POEM

Recently (re)discovered: a poem by Sam Garland aka 
/u/Poem_for_your_sprog, originally published on Reddit on... you know... 
*that* day:

The sun goes down upon the Ankh,
And slowly, softly fades –
Across the Drum; the Royal Bank;
The River-Gate; the Shades.

A stony circle's closed to elves;
And here, where lines are blurred,
Between the stacks of books on shelves,
A quiet 'Ook' is heard.

A copper steps the city-street
On paths he's often passed;
The final march; the final beat;
The time to rest at last.

He gives his badge a final shine,
And sadly shakes his head –
While Granny lies beneath a sign
That says: 'I aten't dead...'

To read the whole poem, go to:

http://bit.ly/1gCi0wl

/u/Poem_for_your_sprog's Twitter account:

https://twitter.com/Poem4your_sprog

4.8 DISCWORLD AS A MODEL OF FAIRNESS

Here be an interesting essay on the "fairness of Discworld" by 
academician and author Kari Sperring:

"My idea of heaven does not map too well with that of the Nac Mac 
Feegle, but when I stop and think about it, when it comes to Discworld, 
they're on to something. I don't yearn for thievery and poaching, but I 
do long for a fairer world. And Discworld is one of the fairest worlds I 
know. It's not a tidy kind of fairness. Discworld has rules and internal 
logic, which applies to everyone equally and often rather messily. The 
first inventor of a steam engine on Discworld was Ned Simnel, who failed 
to do his maths properly and managed to blow himself up in the process. 
Mr Hong failed to carry out the necessary research before opening his 
fish bar on the site of a former fish god temple, on an astronomically 
significant night in Ankh Morpork, with bad results. All that was left 
of him was one kidney and half an earhole. As in reality, on Discworld, 
actions have consequences and they aren't always pleasant, but they are 
logical and they pay attention (sometimes, anyway) to the intentions of 
the people involved...

"The bulk of Pratchett's heroes are ordinary people, not particularly 
clever or good-looking or advantaged. Some of them are kind and decent, 
like Captain Carrot of the Ankh Morpork Watch, the city's incompetent 
police force, or the witch Magrat, but a lot of them aren't. They're 
just people, with a full complement of flaws. But these ordinary people 
come up against big problems, familiar problems of injustice and cruelty 
and unfairness, and they fight back in a variety of ways (some devious, 
some dirty) and they win... Many of the Discworld books deal with 
discrimination, particularly that based on race – species, on the 
Discworld – and the outcomes are fair... Discworld is a highly moral 
universe, one in which the intent of actions is taken into account as 
well as their outcomes, in which the million-to-one-chance comes off 
(and the characters know this and play up to it), in which no-one gets a 
pass because they're special or privileged. It's a world in which the 
little people – the workers who run the Clacks system of communication, 
say – can take on Big Business and Big Power..."

http://bit.ly/1KHXROh

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05) SIR PTERRY'S HUMANIST FUNERAL

By humanist celebrant Kenneth Greenway:

"An email from Isabel of the British Humanist Association dropped into 
my inbox On March 17th 2015 asking the funeral network to email her if 
they wanted to be considered for conducting Terry's funeral, I was taken 
aback by such an opportunity. I was with my wife at the time I read the 
email, I looked at her and said 'Terry's family want a BHA celebrant to 
do his funeral and we're being asked if we like to do it and why. Shall 
I go for it?' My wife simply said, 'Do it!'  I thought that living in 
Essex and 160 miles away from Salisbury would work against me. So, if 
truth be told I spent no more than 10 minutes writing an email back to 
Isabel. I spoke of why Terry and his Discworld books meant so much to me 
and the meaning his work had to my wife and I. TP's Discworld books were 
a hot topic of conversation on our first date. At our wedding we had a 
Discworld cake and our tables were named after locations on the Disc. 
I've personally been a fan since I first read 'Mort' about 25 years ago 
and I own every book, merchandise, maps, and all kinds of other stuff 
associated with the Discworld.

"I discovered I had been chosen to conduct the funeral in the evening of 
the following day (18th March)  At the time the call came in I was 
bathing our two girls. My wife took the call as she wasn't with me " she 
was recovering from an operation and couldn't lift things. After the 
phone call she came running upstairs, in a very excitable state. I said, 
'You can't run, you've had an op!' She was very excited and not making 
any sense. Once she'd calmed down she said 'They want you!' Being a bit 
slow, my reply was 'Who does?' She said 'Terry's family want you to do 
his funeral.  I've just spoken to Rob'.  I was immediately stunned in to 
silence and couldn't quite believe it. My wife and I hugged and then I 
felt very overwhelmed, the feeling of responsibility was almost 
crushing. To be the person selected to help those closest to TP to say 
their last goodbye felt out of this world and a bit unreal..."

A lovely piece, well worth reading in its entirety:

http://www.writerscafe.org/writing/KGreenway/1621131/

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06) WITHOUT WHOM (A TRIBUTE TO THE LIVING): ROB WILKINS

By Steven D'Aprano

Rob Wilkins, PTerry's personal assistant, is a very private man who 
would never dream of blowing his own horn, so here are some facts he is 
too modest to admit to in public:

Rob was apparently born in 1968 or 1969, but actually entered the world 
in 1847, possibly from an alternate universe. Having invented the time 
machine that inspired the writer HG Wells when he attended a private 
demonstration at the secret Wilkins laboratory, Rob travelled forward in 
time from 1877 to save us from the coming Machine Apocalypse when our 
iPhones achieve sentience and rebel over the indignity of having to 
display webpages like "You Won't Believe These 10 Secrets About Katy 
Perry's Favourite Ice-Cream Flavour!".

Rob was the inspiration behind "Interesting Times" when he took over the 
Chinese government and ran the country as Supreme Dictator for three 
years. Rob left the job because it wasn't challenging enough. Of course 
the Chinese hushed it up, but Sir PTerry found out about it while 
discussing bananananana daiquiri recipes on Alt.Fan.Pratchett.

Rob was also the inspiration for Willikins, Sam Vimes' butler. Sir 
PTerry got the idea for a character who was half Jeeves and half street 
fighter when Chunk Norris arrived at their doorstep one night, begging 
Rob to take him in as an apprentice and teach him everything he knows 
about martial arts. Initially refusing, Rob relented after Norris proved 
his dedication by standing at their gate, through rain, sleet and hail, 
for thirty-eight days without food, drink or sleep. Unfortunately the 
training regime was too hard for Norris, who left after just two weeks, 
a broken man.

When Rob's crime-fighting activities prevent him from performing his 
usual duties as head chef at The Fat Duck, Heston Blumenthal stands in 
for him.

Rumours that Rob has been banned from every casino in Europe for being 
too skilful at Blackjack are unfounded. He has only been banned from 
half of them. He owns the others.

The producers of the Twilight movie begged Rob to play Edward the 
sparkly vampire, but Rob turned them down because he didn't want to 
overshadow the rest of the cast and make them look bad.

At the age of five, Rob saved his uncle from being eaten by a lion after 
the uncle climbed into the lion's enclosure at the London Zoo to win a 
drunken bet.

Elon Musk gets all of his best ideas from Rob.

While ghost-writing the scripts for the Hobbit trilogy, Rob discovered a 
secret message hidden in the original book. Despite what everyone 
believes, JRR Tolkien never actually existed. The Middle Earth books 
were actually written by JK Rowling.

Also, as part of a documentary about the medieval witch trials on the 
History Channel, Rob swam the English Channel fully clothed with his 
hands tied behind his back.

Your Editor feels moved to add:

Of course, that's just messin'. But Rob Wilkins' greatest achievement – 
and gift to us all – was the ten years he spent as personal assistant, 
aide de camp, driver, literal (and literary) amanuensis, voice double, 
public representative and general runner of interference for Sir Terry 
Pratchett. Without Rob, Sir Pterry's final years of battling his 
Embuggerance would have been far more difficult. Even now, Mr Wilkins 
continues to serve as a guardian of the Pratchett body of work and 
future adaptations and related projects thereof. So charge your glasses 
and raise a toast to Rob Wilkins. Hurrah!

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

07) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS

7.1 REMINDER: MORT IN BRISBANE (SEPTEMBER–OCTOBER)

The Brisbane Arts Theatre's latest Discworld production, Mort, continues 
its run.

When: currently running, through to 3rd October 2015
Venue: Brisbane Arts Theatre, 210 Petrie Terrace, Brisbane, QLD 4000
(phone 07 3369 2344)
Time: 8pm Thursdays (except 27th August), Fridays and Saturdays; 6.30pm
Sundays (6th and 20th September)
Tickets: Adults $31, Concession $25, Group 10+ $25, Group 75+ $20, Gold
Members $15, Members $25, Student Rush $10 (10 mins before curtain).
Members can redeem their included season tickets for this show. There
are no refunds or exchanges once tickets have been purchased. To
purchase tickets online, go to http://bit.ly/1Imz2tJ

http://artstheatre.com.au/show/mort

7.2 NEW: WYRD SISTERS IN HEXHAM (NOVEMBER)

The Queen's Hall Theatre Club will perform their production of Wyrd 
Sisters in November.

When: Thursday 26th – Saturday 28th November 2015
Venue: Main Theatre, Queen's Hall Arts Centre, Beaumont Street, Hexham, 
Northumberland NE46 3LS (Box Office 01434 652477)
Time: 7:30pm
Tickets: £10 (concessions £9, under 18s £7). The Box Office is open from 
10.00am – 5.00pm Monday to Friday & 10.00am to 4.00pm Saturday and one 
hour before the start of every performance. To buy online, go to 
http://bit.ly/1O5eIAp and click on the tab marked BOOK, then click the 
BOOK tab for the date of your choice.

http://www.queenshall.co.uk/events/terry-pratchett%E2%80%99s-wyrd-sisters
http://www.queenshall.co.uk/

7.3 UPDATES: WYRD SISTERS IN UPPINGHAM (OCTOBER)

Tickets are now available for the Uppingham Theatre Company's 
forthcoming production of Wyrd Sisters!

"Why not visit Lancre this Halloween, it has everything, witches, evil 
Dukes and Duchesses, strolling players, ghosts, you name it, its got it, 
and for only £10, yes £10 folks(£2 going to charity with each ticket 
old) you could be transported to the mythical kingdom of Lancre!"

When: Thursday 29th October through Saturday 31st October 2015
Venue: Uppingham Theatre, 32 Stockerston Road, Uppingham, Rutland LE15 9UD
Time: 7.30pm all evening shows; Saturday matinee 2.30pm
Tickets: £10 (includes a £2 charity donation per ticket to Rutland 
Reminders). Available in person from Uppingham Sports and Books, 9 High 
Street East, Uppingham. To purchase online, go to 
https://www.wegottickets.com/location/1664 or 
http://www.uppingham.co.uk/School-Shop

http://www.rutlandreminders.org.uk/
http://www.uppinghamtheatrecompany.org.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Uppingham-Theatre-Company/215743641793859

Here be a fine photo of Nanny, Granny and Magrat checking out the 
scumble harvest:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CPXNfbCWUAAHPmS.jpg

7.4 REMINDER: UNSEEN ACADEMICALS IN BUCKINGHAMSHIRE (NOVEMBER)

The Marlow Players will present their production of Unseen Academicals 
in November.

When: 12th, 13th and 14th November 2015
Venue: Shelley Theatre, Court Garden, Pound  Lane, Marlow, Bucks SL7 2AG
Time: 8pm all shows
Tickets: £12. To purchase online, go to 
http://marlowplayers.org.uk/product-category/boxoffice/

http://www.marlowplayers.org.uk/

7.5 NEW: GUARDS! GUARDS! IN GUERNSEY (OCTOBER)

The Guernsey Youth Theatre will present their production of Guards! 
Guards! early next month. This is probably the firs time in Guernsey 
history that a newspaper advert was placed to find an actor to play an 
orangutan! And fittingly, proceeds from the performances are going to 
Sir Pterry's beloved Orangutan Foundation. Oook!

When: 5th and 6th October 2015
Venue: Princess Royal Centre for Performing Arts, Les Ozouets, Guernsey 
GY1 2UB
Time: 7:30pm
Tickets: £10 (£8 concessions). To purchase tickets, go to 
http://www.guernseytickets.gg (or ring 74999)

https://www.guernseytickets.gg/show.asp
https://www.facebook.com/GuernseyYouthTheatre

Editor's note: about that orangutan advert, go to http://bit.ly/1OB2QFH 
for a shufti. Cute photo!

7.6 NEW: MASKERADE IN LINCOLNSHIRE (OCTOBER)

Act II youth theatre company will perform their production of Maskerade 
in October.

When: 17th October 2015
Venue: South Holland Centre, 23 Market Place, Spalding, Lincs PE11 1SS
Time: matinee 2.30pm, evening show 7.30pm
Tickets: £9.50 (£8 for under-16s, over-60s, and disabled persons with 
companion; £7 per person for groups of 10+). To purchase tickets online, 
go to http://purchase.tickets.com/buy/TicketPurchase – select October 
and then scroll down to the appropriate date and time and click on the 
Buy Tickets button. Alternatively, ring the Box Office on 01775 764777. 
There is a £1.50 transaction fee for booking up to 9 tickets online

http://www.southhollandcentre.co.uk/whats-on/view/maskerade

http://www.act2online.co.uk/

7.7 NEW: MORT IN CHORLTON-CUM-HARDY, MANCHESTER (OCTOBER)

Chorlton Players will be performing Mort next month.

When: Thurs. 22nd October – Sat. 24th October 2015
Venue: St Werburgh's Parish Hall, St Werburgh's Rd, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, 
M21 0TL
Time: 7:30pm
Tickets: £6 (£4 concessions). To purchase online, go to 
http://chorltonplayers.com/?page_id=33

"Online ticket sales should normally account for 60% of the available 
seating in the hall. The rest are sold at the hall when the doors open 
(normally 7.00pm unless otherwise stated). Buying tickets online is not 
compulsory but a pre-booked ticket automatically reserves a seat. 
However, this expires when the show starts, and your seats will be 
re-allocated to box office sales. Please arrive in good time for the 
show. Also, please try to arrive as a full booked party, in order to 
process your online booking... The hall has a wooden floor, so quiet 
shoes would be appreciated!"

http://chorltonplayers.com/

7.8 NEW: MAKING MONEY IN BASILDON (NOVEMBER)

The Thalian Theatre Group are back in November with a new Discworld 
production: Making Money!

When: Thurs. 12th – Sat. 14th November 2015
Venue: Mirren Studio, Towngate Theatre, St Martin's Square, Basildon, 
Essex SS14 1DL.
Time: 8pm
Tickets:  £10 (£8.50 concessions), with a booking fee of £1. To purchase 
online, go to http://thaliantheatregroup.wix.com/thalian nd click on the 
tickets image. To reserve tickets by phone, ring 01268 417854. A 
percentage of ticket sales will be donated to Alzheimer's Research UK.

Box Office telephone: 01268 465 465.

http://thaliantheatregroup.wix.com/thalian
www.facebook.com/ThalianTheatreGroup/info?tab=page_info

www.towngatetheatre.co.uk/

7.9 NEW: WYRD SISTERS IN CHARLTON, LONDON (OCTOBER)

The Alexandra Players will present their production of Wyrd Sisters in 
late October.

When: 28th–31st October 2015
Venue: Alexandra Hall, Bramshot Avenue, Charlton, London SE7
Time: 8pm (Wednesday 28th, Thursday 29th, Friday 30th; 7pm (Saturday 31st)
Tickets: TBA

http://alexandraplayers.org.uk/

7.10 NEW: WYRD SISTERS IN HEXHAM (NOVEMBER)

When: 26th – 28th November 2015
Venue: Queen's Hall Arts Centre, Beaumont Street, Hexham, 
Northumberland, NE46 3LS
Time: 7:30pm all shows
Tickets: £10 (£9 concessions; £7 under 18s). Box office: 01434 652477

http://www.queenshalltheatreclub.co.uk/
http://www.queenshall.co.uk/

7.11 NEW: WYRD SISTERS IN ARKANSAS (OCTOBER)

Discworld comes to Arkansas next month when the Twin Lakes Playhouse 
presents Wyrd Sisters!

"In the spooky castle on the top of the hill King Verence I has just 
been bumped off by his scheming cousin Duke Felmet, and the kingdom is 
in peril. Enter three wildly eccentric witches, the understandably 
miffed ghost of the former king, a caravan full of travelling players, 
and the long-lost heir to Lancre's throne, and what follows fits quite 
neatly into the genre of Epic Dramatic Slapstick Thriller Romantic Comedy."

When: Oct. 9-11 2015
Venue: Twin Lakes Playhouse, 600 West Sixth Street, Mountain Home, AR 72653
Time:
Tickets: $11 in advance, $13 at the door. To book, ring 424-0444.

http://twinlakesplayhouse.org/

7.12 REVIEWS: NIGHT WATCH IN CARDIFF

By Adam Walker on Wales Online:

"Sword fights, a full-scale city riot and time travel. No, it's not 
Doctor Who but the latest Terry Pratchett play by Cardiff's Monstrous 
Productions. This time it was Night Watch and I must admit, I was 
slightly worried about this play. You see, I've seen the last two 
Pratchett plays by Monstrous Productions, Witches Abroad and Wyrd 
Sisters , and I loved them. But any Pratchett fan knows there are no 
witches in Night Watch... Jes Hynes who completely steals the show as 
Sam. He IS Sam Vines, and as a life-long fan of Pratchett and the 
Discworld, I don't say that lightly. This is Monstrous' sixth Pratchett 
play and they know what they're doing, transforming a stage with just a 
few props and some lighting and sound effects into the Discworld... 
Night Watch felt a lot larger in scale than Monstrous' previous plays 
but they know Pratchett, they know Discworld, and they do an amazing job 
bringing it to life."

http://bit.ly/1i06Cvt

By DeadAngelLover22 on The Sprout:

"Most of the play was down to your imagination. They used basic props 
and the costumes were stunning, the stage was right out to even the 
crowd and the cast walked through the crowd to get onto the stage a few 
times. It was so well done – most of the time you just thought 'Where 
did they come from?' But, as the cast walked right up to you, it made it 
so much more personal, and I loved that because you felt like you were 
an onlooker but also somewhat part of the play..."

http://thesprout.co.uk/en/news/review-nighttch-the-gate/19495.html

By the always-entertaining twin bloggers known collectively as CL Raven:

"The complicated time travel was helpfully explained by Lu-Tze, a 
history monk, played by Howard Dickens. Craig Harper was great as young 
Sam Vimes. He played Mort in, well, Mort, so it was good to see him back 
in a leading role. He did well to capture how young Sam is in the book – 
nervy, eager to impress and wanting to do the right thing. Jez Hynes was 
outstanding as older Sam Vimes/John Keel and the part where he recited 
his Night Watch contract, word perfect, with all the punctuation, got a 
well deserved applause. Tyron Sullivan was fantastic as the villainous 
Carcer. A lot of actors when playing villains, make them too hammy, but 
he successfully avoided that and made Carcer into the type of bad guy 
you want to hate, but can't help liking, because he portrayed him so 
well. The way Heath Ledger was as the Joker. The scenes with Carcer and 
Vimes together were amazing. They were the perfect pairing. And full 
applause to their final fight scene. They completely threw themselves 
into it. We could easily believe it was actually Vimes and Carcer 
fighting in real life... In keeping with Pratchett's novels, the humour 
was brilliant too. Los Shanahan as Dr Lawn had some great, funny lines, 
and Matthew Hitchman as Fred Colon managed to make the audience laugh 
just by waving a flag. We laughed the whole time he had it..."

https://clraven.wordpress.com/2015/09/10/night-watch/

7.13 REVIEWS: SOUL MUSIC IN WELLINGTON

By Gill Paltridge for Around Wellington:

"Wellington Theatre Company's Rebecca Beard and Mike Leach have chosen 
to adapt their own version of 'Soul Music' for the stage and have 
injected their personal Discworld enthusiasm into the script, preserving 
Pratchett's comic flair in puns, gags and witty satire... Ian Jones has 
already excelled in recent productions in the town. As Imp y Celyn he 
conveys wide-eyed, earnest sincerity and the role's youthful glee when 
the magic guitar adopts him. Kirk Shepherd, whilst not exactly dwarfish, 
is appropriately droll as Glod Glodsson, his deadpan delivery suited to 
the role. Rob Spurway as the giant Troll Lias Bluestone delivers the 
necessary slow-witted cloddishness and lumpen enthusiasm. As the The 
Band With Rocks In their performances are central to the drama. From a 
long cast-list Maat Ward as CMOT Dibbler is outstanding. His 
self-serving entrepreneurial glee is a delight and his character's eager 
sniffing-out of an opportunity is physically well-defined. Colin 
Marshall's Albert, Death's PA, has an appropriate indolent detachment in 
spotting his master's defects. Dawn Morton and Hannah Green appear as 
members of the City Watch – complete with Vikings' helmets and chainmail 
– then individually as beggar Foul Ole Ron and pub landlady Hibiscus 
Dunelm, delivering confident, well-observed performances... An 
outstanding feature of this production is Penny Bradnum's costuming. She 
has managed to fill the stage with delightful inventiveness creating a 
galaxy of very weird wizards, grungy heavy metallers and odd schoolgirls 
– one with a beard. Pratchett would approve of the visual oddity 
assembled..."

http://www.aroundwellington.co.uk/soul-music-brings-discworld-to-town/

By AC on The Fine Times Recorder:

"Rebecca Beard's long-gestated project to bring her favourite 
'Discworld' book into live performance, proves that 'Soul Music,' 
apparently neglected by the many adapters of Pratchett's literary 
genius, was long over-due to make its stage debut. The many-peopled 
Wellington Theatre Company enthusiastically create the bizarre 
multi-roles of constables, schoolgirls, musicians, an impresario, 
academics, aristocrats, plus a plethora of relatives & citizens of 
various citadels that have arisen on 'Discworld.'... Underpinning the 
success of the performance are the talents of designer & operators of 
precise lighting & sound effects, Steve Bradnum assisted by Kit Sells. 
Imaginative costumes were selected & perfectly fitted by Nancy 
Powell-Brace & Penny Bradnum; props searched out by Mary Lewis & puppets 
made by Eve Male, all contributing to a team whose efforts are worthy of 
praise & a credit to the show's creator, Rebecca Beard..."

www.theftr.co.uk/soul-music-wellington-theatre-co-at-wellington-arts-centre/

7.14 REVIEW: MORT IN HASTINGS

The Stables Youth Theatre production, reviewed by Martin Robinson:

"Terry Pratchett was new to me and I expected humour, a sideways look at 
life and entertainment, despite the funereal publicity for Mort and the 
author's recent sad demise. My expectations were fulfilled... Costumes 
were spot on, props effective and the set promised great things. 
Lighting and sound were ambitious and added to the performance and the 
many cogs in the machine all meshed and ran true. The large number of 
female players demonstrated an equality in the arts missing in some of 
the more established companies and notable emerging talents included 
Emily Cooper as Ysabell and Lily Sparrow as Princess Keli..."

http://bit.ly/1OpncBJ

7.15 REVIEW: WYRD SISTERS IN EXETER

By Daniel Mumby in the Exeter Express and Echo:

"One of the great pleasures of watching amateur dramatics is getting to 
see a group develop and refine its craft over a string of productions. 
While faces occasionally change and the chosen material often greatly 
varies, there is always the feeling of incremental progress, raising a 
bar that has already been set very high. I felt this way when I sat in 
the Broadclyst Victory Hall, watching the village's theatre group tackle 
Terry Pratchett's Wyrd Sisters with affection and aplomb. Having come in 
with little to no knowledge of Pratchett's oeuvre, I came away 
thoroughly entertained and curious to examine more of his work... The 
cast are generally excellent, with the three principle witches each 
excelling in their own way. Lin Alderman is the stand-out as Nanny Ogg, 
playing up the rustic, buffoonish qualities of the character while also 
doing well in the more dead-pan moments in the stocks. Alison Harris 
steps ably into Sheila Hancock's shoes as Granny Weatherwax, whose 
amusing ignorance of the theatre is counterpointed by her real-world 
resourcefulness. Rachel Cunningham completes the set as the naive but 
well-meaning Magrat Garlick, who tries so hard to be accepted.. This was 
a highly entertaining production which confirms our suspicions that 
Broadclyst Theatre Group is continuing to grow in stature..."

http://bit.ly/1FHvSw3

7.16 THE SHAKESPEARE CODEX: WORLD PREMIERE IN ABINGDON (APRIL 2016)

Stephen Briggs and the Studio Theatre Club will present, for the first 
time ever on Roundworld, a very special Discworld play... The 
Shakespeare Codex!

"Discworld's 'stars' have to stop the elves taking over our world, make 
Shakespeare write A Midsummer Night's Dream ... and ensure the potato is 
discovered! Featuring Ridcully, Rincewind, Granny Weatherwax, Angua, 
Vetinari, Shakespeare, Queen Elizabeth I ... & the Earl of Oxford. Based 
loosely on The Science of Discworld II: the Globe, Lords & Ladies, and A 
Midsummer Night's Dream. Staged on 6 to 9 April 2016 (both Terry's and 
Shakespeare's birth month).

"Tickets will be on general sale from 1 January 2016. We're expecting 
quite a lot of interest in this show, so *early booking* (particularly 
for the weekend performances) is recommended. More news on the show 
here, as it happens. At the moment, we plan to stage the show for four 
evening performances, plus a matinee on the Saturday. Tickets will be 
£10.00 (Wed, Thu, Fri) and £11.00 (Sat mat and evening). Block booking 
discounts will be available for the Wed and Thu performances."

http://www.shakespearecodex.co.uk/

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

08) DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS

8.1 GERMAN DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS

The 2015 German Discworld convention (Scheibenwelt) went well. There are 
some convention photos by Robert Flach at http://on.fb.me/1JeeUpj 
(requires Facebook membership). Here be a selection that can be seen by 
those of us who refuse to use Facebook. Includes a Howondaland hermit 
elephant!

http://bit.ly/1gw1n5v
http://on.fb.me/1NH50nR
http://bit.ly/1P5SaNn
http://bit.ly/1QKoFBG

The next Scheibenwelt convention will be from 18th – 21st May 2017, once 
again at Castle Ludwigstein.

8.2 IDWCON NEWS

A slight change in the IDWCon guests line-up:

"Watch spokesperson Captain Shivers read out a prepared statement 
earlier today: 'It is with great regret that we announce that the 
learned Dr. Jack Cohen will be unable to attend the imminent Watch Open 
Weekend,' she stated. She strongly denied any rumours that his absence 
was caused by dangerous experiments gone awry, instead explaining that 
'while he is in good health, he is no longer in a position to handle the 
various demands of a convention, not to mention air travel.' She went on 
to say that 'while Jack and his fascinating lectures will be greatly 
missed at the Convention, we at the Watch will endeavour to still have a 
good time without him, thanks to our dazzling array of other guests.' Dr 
Cohen ('Rich in years, thank you so very much') co-authored the Science 
of Discworld books along with Ian Stewart and Sir Terry, in between his 
regular day job of being a highly distinguished academic and lecturer."

Guests Bernard Pearson,Colin Smythe, Jacqueline Simpson, Reb Voyce, Ian 
Mitchell, and Dave and Leo of Backspindle Games are still good to go.

The Third Irish Discworld Convention will take place at the Cork 
International Hotel on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th of October 2015. Ticket 
prices are €50 for a full attending member or €40 for a Concession 
membership. Membership entitles each ticket holder to entry to all of 
the events at the Convention (with the exception of the Banquet Dinner, 
which is paid for separately). For more details, and to purchase, go to:

http://bit.ly/1QGbUr8

[Editor's note: the Gala Dinner is already sold out]

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

09) DISCWORLD ARTS AND CRAFTS NEWS

9.1 DISCWORLD EMPORIUM UPDATES

Wossname wishes Bernard Pearson, the Cunning Artificer, a slightly 
belated happy birthday!

"It's been almost two weeks since the publication of The Shepherd's 
Crown, and what a tale it is too, littered with classic Pratchett-isms; 
punes, footnotes 'an all, and exploring the light and shade of humanity 
in his inimitable fashion. Unsurprising perhaps, but no less meaningful, 
Professor Sir Terry Pratchett OBE Blackboard Monitor achieved his 10th 
number one in the UK book charts with his 41st and final Discworld novel 
– a final Hurrah and 'mind how you go' from our beloved author in a 
manner most fitting – in words, on pages, bound in a book. We'd like to 
extend our gratitude to everyone who has dropped in to the Emporium 
whether in person, or virtually, to buy the book or just to say hello. 
The Emporium has received a tremendous amount of support, and our 
floorspace is still awash with mailbags on a daily basis! We hope 
everyone's orders are arriving in fine fettle and thank you all for your 
kind custom."

To read this announcement, with accompanying iconographs, go to 
http://bit.ly/1K9OGIk

"Out 22nd October, The Compleat Discworld Atlas is available for 
pre-order at-las(t)! Your Compleat guide to the geography and topography 
of Discworld, The Compleat Discworld Atlas is a wonderously witty travel 
guide brought to you by Ankh-Morpork's esteemed Guild of Trespassers, 
with sumptuous illustrations and comprehensive gazetteer, all 
accompanied by a giant double-sided map! The Compleat Discworld Atlas is 
our final collaboration with Sir Terry Pratchett. A project 3 years in 
the making, this new guide to the extraordinary world he created was 
completed before his death in March 2015. To honour this auspicious 
publication each copy from the Emporium includes a souvenir travel 
poster as a gift from us!"

The Compleat Discworld Atlas is priced at £25.00. Add £3.50 for UK 
delivery, £7 for rest of Europe delivery, or £10 for Rest of World 
delivery. For more information, and to order, go to:

http://www.discworldemporium.com/Compleat-Discworld-Atlas

And then there's the Hanging Baskets of Muntab stamp sheet:

"This cultural issue from the Ankh-Morpork Post Office celebrates the 
horticultural crowning glory of Muntab's impenetrable forest border 
defence. These centuries-old hanging guardposts were constructed during 
the height of the spice trade, and are nowadays maintained by wandering 
tribes of cannibalistic pygmies. Each minisheet consists of six stamps 
measuring 35 x 38mm, and is accompanied by a presentation postcard."

The Hanging Baskets of Muntab minisheet is priced at £5.00. For more 
information, and to order, go to:

http://bit.ly/1FTA9fU

...and the Krull one flot stamp:

"Situated on the edge of the world with a promotory overlooking the rim, 
the island of Krull is Discworld's unrivalled center of astrozoology. 
although due to a 'derailment' by Rincewind and Twoflower in The Colour 
of Magic it remains unclear whether there have been any advances in 
determining the sex of Great A'tuin. This regional issue features the 
Potent Voyager, Krull's celebrated bronze astro-exploratory vessel and 
the final creation of Goldeneyes Silverhands Dactylos, Discworld's 
father of invention and ingenuity.

"Spot the sport! One stamp on every sheet contains a 'deliberate' 
mistake or variation - only included on whole sheets or in lucky LBEs. 
Stamp measures 25 x 36mm, Sheet measures 160 x 282."

The Krull one flot stamp is priced at £0.35 for a single stamp and 
£12.25 for a sheet of 35 stamps. For more information, and to order, go to:

http://bit.ly/1jmcsrT

"The Krull One Flot is also available in the latest Little Brown 
Envelope edition. Each 'LBE' includes a lucky dip assortment of 
Discworld Stamps along with sports and rarities waiting to be found in 
lucky envelopes. The latest edition Little Brown Envelope, a 'lucky-dip' 
assortment of Discworld stamps with a chance of sports and rarities!
To celebrate the forthcoming release of The Compleat Discworld Atlas 
each envelope also contains a brand new regional issue from Krull, 
Discworld's unrivalled center of astrozoology. The cosmic One Flot stamp 
features the Potent Voyager, Krull's celebrated bronze astro-exploratory 
vessel and the final creation of Goldeneyes Silverhands Dactylos, 
Discworld's father of invention and ingenuity. This charming issue is 
also available to collect singly or as whole sheets. A generous splash 
of sports and LBE Exclusives, such as the Blue Triangle and Dead Letter 
Label have been distributed throughout the edition."

The Somewhere Over the Rimbow LBE is priced at £5. For more information, 
and to order, go to:

http://www.discworldemporium.com/rimbow-lbe

...and don't forget to further your education with a degree from the UU. 
It's magic:

"Graduate from Discworld's most spellbinding educational establishment 
with a masters degree from the Unseen University! Choose from six 
subjects and amaze your peers with evidence of your thaumaturgic 
proficiency – a magical gift for any Terry Pratchett devotee or aspiring 
wizard! Each set includes a suitably sumptuous certificate for your 
subject of choice and embossed with an octarine 'seal', a Graduate 
Declaration form to ensure that alumni leave Ankh-Morpork's foremost 
seat of learning with their education and university apparatus in a 
satisfactory state, and a free double-sided Bronze* Octogram keychain! 
++ Certificates will be provided blank for you to personalise at home, 
but if you would prefer us to do it for you we can hand sign in our best 
handwriting – please provide the name/s of the recipients in the 
comments box during checkout ++ Measurements: Certificates 298 x 390mm, 
key chains 40mm diameter, declarations 105 x 300mm."

The Unseen University Graduation Set is priced at £12.50. For more 
information, and to order, go to:

http://www.discworldemporium.com/unseen-university-diploma

...and you might also fancy an official UU student notebook:

"Aspiring wizards would be unwise to venture onto campus without their 
Unseen University student notebook - a boon to any thaumaturgical 
scholar! Within this stout and sturdy educational companion is contained 
such important information as dining hours, university customs and notes 
on wizardly conduct, along with 50 plain pages for your spells, jottings 
and rude doodles. Sketchbook-quality 190gsm off-white paper made from 
100% real trees. Measures 105 x 147mm."

The Unseen University Student Notebook is priced at £5.00. For more 
information, and to order, go to:

http://bit.ly/1V2xg3j

Last but certainly not least, the small but perfectly formed UU Coat of 
Arms wall boss:

"Official insignia from one of Discworld's greatest institutions. 
Finished in old wood and sculpted to achieve an ancient, hand carved 
appearance. Proudly display your academic prowess and understanding of 
higher magic with this elegant Unseen University crest. Features a 
wizard's hat crossing an open book emblazoned with the UU motto; Nunc Id 
Vides, Nunc Ne Vides (now you see it, now you don't). Usually to earn 
this relief you must have undergone at least 7 courses at Unseen 
University, not including the cheese board. Pre-drilled and produced in 
hard wearing resin, these handsome pieces are suitable for both home and 
garden. Measures approximately 95x80mm."

The UU Coat of Arms Wall Boss is priced at £7.50. For more information, 
and to order, go to:

http://www.discworldemporium.com/BackToSchool?product_id=78

9.2 DISCWORLD.COM UPDATES

Those beautiful framed sepia Paul Kidby prints are back!

"The sepia frames are back in stock and we've simplified the range to 
feature our most popular images. They now come in an attractive oak 
frame and are mounted to showcase Terry's signature hologram, showing in 
the bottom right corner. We think they look great and will make an 
excellent addition to any collection!"

Available prints include The Librarian, Nanny Ogg with Greebo, Greebo 
himself, Rincewind with The Luggage, the "unusual suspects" (A-M City 
Watch portrait), and Great A'Tuin, all as featured in the classic series 
of Kidby greeting cards some years ago. Each framed print is priced at 
£35 and measures 285mm x 335mm.

For more information, and to order, go to:

http://discworld.com/products/framed-sepia-prints/

Or you could greet the day with some Klatchian coffee (or the Roundworld 
equivalent) in a Discworld mug:

"A selection of mugs featuring some of your favourite Discworld 
characters. Our sublimation ceramic mugs are manufactured with a 
dishwasher safe premium coating. Bright white in colour and with a high 
gloss finish, the coated ceramic mug is produced from superior quality 
heavy weight ceramic and has a super hard coating. Dishwasher resistant 
up to 800 wash cycles at 45°C. The mugs measure 80mm diameter x 90mm high."

There is a large selection available – Feeglespotting, Rob Anybody Mac 
Feegle, Death ("There's no justice, there's just me"), Wyrd Sisters 
("When shall we three meet again? Well, I can do next Tuesday"), the 
Sunshine Sanctuary for Sick Dragons, Rincewind ("Luck is my middle name. 
Mind you, my first name is bad"), Greebo ("To Nanny Ogg he was merely a 
larger version of the little fluffy kitten he had once been. To everyone 
else he was a scarred ball of inventive malignancy"), Panic and Freak 
Out (channelling the Keep Calm series and featuring a running 
Rincewind), and the City Watch (by cartoonist Ray Friesen).

Each mug is priced at £8.00. For more information, and to order, go to:

http://discworld.com/products/mugs/

Also back in stock: Tiffany's White Horse pendant

"This is an absolutely stunning piece of sterling silver jewellery and 
is a faithful reproduction of the pendant worn by Tiffany Aching in A 
Hat Full of Sky. This piece is based on Paul Kidby's original design. 
The horse measures 55[sic] tail to head, chain 18 inches. Designed 
exclusively for Discworld.com by Tom Lynall." [Editor's note: we're 
pretty sure that should be 55mm. Surely not the same size at the real 
White Horse of the Chalk, at any rate!]

Tiffany's White Horse pendant is priced at £45. For more information, 
and to order, go to:

http://bit.ly/1QShI1y

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

10) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS: UPDATES AND REMINDERS

The Broken Drummers, "London's Premier Unofficially Official Discworld 
Group" (motto "Nil percussio est"), meets next on Monday 5th October 
2015 at the Monkey Puzzle, 30 Southwick Street, London, W2 1JQ. For more 
information, go to http://brokendrummers.org/ or email 
BrokenDrummers at gmail.com or nicholls.helen at yahoo.co.uk

*

Canberra, Australia has a new Discworld fan group, Drumknott's 
Irregulars! "We are a newly established Terry Pratchett & Discworld 
social group in Canberra called Drumknott's Irregulars. The group is 
open to all, people from interstate and overseas are welcome, and our 
events will not be heavily themed. Come along to dinner for a chat and 
good company. We welcome people all all fandoms (and none) and we would 
love to see you at one of our events, even if you're just passing 
through. Please contact us via Facebook 
(_https://www.facebook.com/groups/824987924250161/_) or Google Groups 
(_https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/drumknotts-irregulars_) or 
join us at our next event."

*

There is a new public Facebook meeting group, "The Gathering of the 
Loonies (Wincanton chapter)": "This group, by request of Jo in Bear will 
continue to be used for future unofficial (not run by the Emporium) fan 
Gatherings in Wincanton. Look here for information. Next event Loonies 
Christmas Party. Same weekend as Hogswatch would have been. ie 27/28/29 
November."

https://www.facebook.com/groups/373578522834654/

*

The Pratchett Partisans are a fan group who meet monthly at either 
Brisbane or Indooroopilly to "eat, drink and chat about all things 
Pratchett. We hold events such as Discworld dinners, games afternoons, 
Discworld photo scavenger hunts. Our recent 'Murder In Morpork' mystery 
party was a great night out. With 26 people attending, we had 24 
suspects, our special guest – Vetinari, and one dead mime! It was a fun 
night of food and murder and we are planning another Murder in December 
so stay tuned. We also attend opening night at Brisbane Arts Theatre's 
Discworld plays."
The Partisans currently have about 100 members who meet at least twice a 
month, usually in Brisbane. For more info about their next meetup, join 
up at https://www.facebook.com/groups/pratchettpartisans/ or contact Ula 
directly at uwilmott at yahoo.com.au

*

The City of Small Gods is a group for fans in Adelaide and South 
Australia. For more information on their upcoming activities, go to 
www.cityofsmallgods.org.au

"Every few months, we have a full day's worth of board games at La Scala 
Cafe, 169 Unley Rd, Unley in the function room starting at 10am."

Upcoming events include:
Con-Centric Games, Burnside Community Centre (Sep 18-20
Monthly Dinner and Games, TBA (Sep 23 or 24)
Costume Bowling – Talk Like a Pirate Day (Sep 26)	
Board Games Day at La Scala Cafe, 169 Unley Road, Unley (Oct 4)

Also, City of Small Gods will be holding a special quiz night in 
October: "Test your knowledge on all things Science Fiction and Fantasy 
– books, movies, TV, comics, games and more! A dragon's hoard of prizes 
including best costume!"
UPDATE: ALL TABLES HAVE NOW BEEN BOOKED! If you would like to be added 
to a waiting list, or be contacted when we announce next year's quiz, 
please contact us! Part proceeds of the quiz night will be donated to 
the Alzheimer's Australia Dementia Research Foundation.

For more info, go to http://ausdwcon.org/fan-clubs/adelaide/quiz/

*

The Broken Vectis Drummers meet next on Thursday 1st October 2015 
(probably) from 7.30pm at The Castle pub in Newport, Isle of Wight. For 
more info and any queries, contact broken_vectis_drummers at yahoo.co.uk

*

The Wincanton Omnian Temperance Society (WOTS) next meets on Friday 2nd 
October 2015 (probably) at Wincanton's famous Bear Inn from 7pm onwards. 
"Visitors and drop-ins are always welcome!"

*

The Northern Institute of the Ankh-Morpork and District Society of 
Flatalists, a Pratchett fangroup, has been meeting on a regular basis 
since 2005 but is now looking to take in some new blood (presumably not 
in the non-reformed Uberwald manner). The Flatalists normally meet at 
The Narrowboat Pub in Victoria Street, Skipton, North Yorkshire, to 
discuss "all things Pratchett" as well as having quizzes and raffles. 
Details of future meetings are posted on the Events section of the 
Discworld Stamps forum:

http://www.discworldstamps.co.uk/forum/

*

Sydney Drummers (formerly Drummers Downunder) meet next on Monday 5th 
October 2015 at 6.30pm (probably) in Sydney at 3 Wise Monkeys, 555 
George Street, Sydney,2000. For more information, contact Sue (aka 
Granny Weatherwax): kenworthys at yahoo.co.uk

*

The Treacle Mining Corporation, formerly known as Perth Drummers, meets 
next on Monday 5th October 2015 (probably) from 5.30pm at Carpe Cafe, 
526 Murray Street, Perth, Western Australia. For details follow Perth 
Drummers on Twitter @Perth_Drummers or join their Facebook group: 
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Perth.Drummers/ – or message Alexandra 
Ware directly at <alexandra.ware at gmail.com>

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

11) DISCWORLD GAMES NEWS

11.1 DISCWORLD MUD, AN OLDIE BUT GOODIE

On gamer website Rock Paper Shotgun, a long and lovin‌g look at the 
Discworld MUD:

"While not really talked about any more, many MUDs do still tick along. 
Skotos has been running a set of commercial ones since 1999, and you can 
find lots of others on sites like this one. Probably best not to search 
for 'MUD play' though, that'll give you very different responses. 
Generally, active modern MUDs have very small but devoted communities 
that are generally open to new players, but expect them to respect rules 
when it comes to things like roleplaying characters and not, for 
instance, just grabbing a sword and trying to kill everything. Not that 
this will usually work anyway, as a new player will get splattered 
faster than an annoying fly. It's worth spending some time reading the 
rules and getting an idea for what each is trying to offer before 
jumping in.

"On the one hand, the Discworld MUD is easy to get started in. There's a 
lengthy, not-very Discworldy tutorial at the start, which you really, 
absolutely, no-kidding need to follow if you've never played one of 
these games before. At the same time though... Somewhat inevitably, the 
scale of it means you're not likely to bump into many people by 
accident. At the time of writing, there were only about 70 players 
online. That's not a huge problem though, thanks to the very active 
NPCs. If a torch goes out in one of the guilds, someone will be along 
shortly to relight it. Each guild and area has its own set of 
characters, reacting and responding to what you do. In Genua for 
instance, the people get annoyed with you for crimes like tomb raiding 
or sitting on the wrong benches. Elsewhere, singing the Hedgehog Song 
can be a broken-leg worthy offence (as well as a weapon against 
characters without earmuffs). You'll also find a lot of familiar faces 
while exploring, and achievements for doing so – tracking down all the 
Cut-Me-Own-Throat-Dibbler variants in the different cities for instance. 
Quests too, if you're into that kind of thing, you helpful or avaricious 
soul, you... the main wiki is excellent, with guides to all of the 
content and useful extras like the Accessibility Guides that focus on 
navigating and finding key landmarks. It's also possible to call up on 
your fairy godmother for assistance at any time, who will warp you back 
to your starting location (the Mended Drum in Ankh-Morpork) or return 
you to life if you die and can't find any priests around. In one of the 
biggest deviations from standard Discworld lore, resurrection is easily 
had (and Death a bit of a git, honestly), but it's not something you 
want to do on a regular basis. As well as costing a lot of character 
progress, past a certain point you have to buy lives and will die for 
real if you run out...

Even with a wiki, and some handy features like being able to see an 
ASCII map of each area, getting started isn't easy. Discworld MUD offers 
a vast amount of freedom and flavour, but you're often left fighting 
against that and the parser to get things done. This isn't a criticism 
so much as a casual warning; it's a game that expects you to type 
exactly what it expects rather than one that will bend over backwards to 
get what you mean. In the Mended Drum for instance, there's a bulletin 
board. Type 'read bulletin board' and you'll get the message 'A bulletin 
board [40 notes] does not have anything written on it.' You have to type 
'look at bulletin board' to read the content. This is a big reason why 
it's worth spending some time in the tutorial area, where the NPCs 
explain everything in great detail, even if it is a bit bland and not 
remotely Disc-y... If you're willing to deal with the kind of learning 
curve that would make Dark Souls cry, or simply feel like taking a poke 
around some familiar haunts in a way that none of the official games 
ever came close to, you really should check the Discworld MUD out. It's 
one of the best fan projects for anything that you'll find, and may it 
live until at least the robots rise and kill us all. Ideally longer, if 
they have good taste in fantasy..."

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2015/08/24/discworld-mud-game/

11.2 DISCWORLD FOR PC: ONE OF THE GOLDEN GREATS

On Digital Spy, Discworld (PC) is ranked 4th out of the "12 hardest 
games ever made":

"So, it turns out you use the butterfly with the lamppost to cause a 
thunderstorm in the future so you can steal the monk's robe. Why didn't 
we think of that? As anyone who played Discworld on PC in the 1990s will 
tell you, the above statement doesn't make any more sense in context, 
which is but one reason why Psygnosis' Terry Pratchett adaptation is one 
of the most illogical and difficult point-and-click adventures ever made."

An interesting read for old-school gamers!

http://bit.ly/1NLGp17

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

12) TERRY PRATCHETT: GUILTY OF LITERATURE? WELL ACTUALLY, YES

Jonathan Jones, an arts critic for The Guardian newspaper, recently 
wrote a scathing dismissal of the works of Terry Pratchett in an op-ed 
column that even professional novelists deemed deliberate 
stir-the-pubic-up clickbait:

"It does not matter to me if Terry Pratchett's final novel is a worthy 
epitaph or not, or if he wanted it to be pulped by a steamroller. I have 
never read a single one of his books and I never plan to. Life's too 
short. No offence, but Pratchett is so low on my list of books to read 
before I die that I would have to live a million years before getting 
round to him. I did flick through a book by him in a shop, to see what 
the fuss is about, but the prose seemed very ordinary... Actual 
literature may be harder to get to grips with than a Discworld novel, 
but it is more worth the effort. By dissolving the difference between 
serious and light reading, our culture is justifying mental laziness and 
robbing readers of the true delights of ambitious fiction..."

http://bit.ly/1LNzdB5

Rebuttals include a piece titled "You Don't Know What It Is, Do You, 
Mister Jones?" by well-known author Christopher Priest:

"Recognizing writers in the present day who are likely to achieve 
long-term recognition as a classic author is a risky business. Popular 
success often comes about because of the public's unpredictable 
reaction, or a wish to find an undemanding read, or because of a 
response to perceived matters of the moment. Happenstance comes into it, 
and so does the luck of timing. Best-seller success is therefore usually 
ephemeral. Can anyone seriously suggest that the 'Grey' novels of E. L. 
James, the 'Twilight' novels of Stephenie Meyer, the nonsensical 
best-sellers by the likes of Dan Brown or Jeffrey Archer, are destined 
for anything but the dustbin of literary history? Who now reads, or even 
remembers, the author Hervey Allen? Or for that matter James Hilton, 
Dorothea Brande, Alexis Carrel, Franz Werfel, Munro Leaf? ...in their 
day their books were immense popular successes. Ephemerality has struck 
– posterity has eluded them... We are more likely to find literary 
posterity, or the possibility of it, in the genres. For instance, thirty 
years ago who would have guessed that Philip K. Dick would be seen, at 
least in the world of Hollywood studio films, as a paradigm of science 
fiction? Most of his novels were quickly written for commercial 
publishers, aimed at and read by a genre audience. But as a result of 
several hugely successful films, Dick's many routine SF books have 
returned to print, he is taught in universities and schools, and he is 
generally regarded as the finest modern SF writer. Yet in 1981, roughly 
at the time Blade Runner was being filmed, John Sutherland gave Dick no 
more than a passing mention...

"I would say that of all the writers I have ever known, or the books I 
have ever read, Terry Pratchett's seem to be a dead cert for long-term 
classic status... His work is written well – no matter what Jones says 
about 'very ordinary' prose, Terry Pratchett's novels are stylistically 
adept: good muscular prose, not mucked around with for effect (except 
sometimes!), enlivened by wit, sharp observation, a unique take on the 
world at large and whatever the subject of social satire might be for 
the time being, a brimming sense of fun and the ridiculous, and overall 
an approach to the reader that feels inclusive, a letting in on the 
joke, an amused welcome to the world he is writing about..."

http://bit.ly/1O5Tn6C

By Charlie Jane Anders on i09:

"Twilight by Stephenie Meyer probably won't be read 100 years from now, 
argues The Prestige author Christopher Priest. But Stephen King and J.K. 
Rowling have a decent shot at posterity... Priest's blog post is worth 
reading in its entirety — it's partly a meditation on what makes authors 
endure after their deaths, and Priest's own observations on why Stephen 
King is more likely than Dan Brown to be read by our descendants. Priest 
argues that although it's impossible to predict for sure what will make 
an author live on for decades after death, some mix of popularity and 
distinctive storytelling seems to be at play — and Priest says the 
modern literary novel is less likely to produce very many lasting 
classics. 'We are more likely to find literary posterity, or the 
possibility of it, in the genres.'..."

http://bit.ly/1LP68CD

By Pratik Kanjilal for The Indian Express:

"Assuredly, Discworld is literature. High literature, even. Writers with 
a light touch have the misfortune of being hugely popular in their 
lifetime but dismissed as insubstantial after the event. Few escape this 
fate, unless their work is not restricted to their times but to ideas of 
enduring interest. George Mikes and PG Wodehouse live on because they 
show what it means to be English. Even the English, and particularly the 
English, have no idea what makes them English, so these are useful 
clarifications... in the hands of Pratchett, parody rose to define what 
is human...

http://bit.ly/1iKKjuf

And the best is last – an excellent essay, "Terry Pratchett, Jane 
Austen, and the definition of literature", by Annie Coral Demosthenous, 
Honorary Research Fellow in European Languages and Studies at the 
University of Western Australia

"Last month in The Guardian, with a piece headlined Get Real. Terry 
Pratchett is not a Literary Genius, literary critic Jonathan Jones 
claimed Terry Pratchett's books should not be read, because they are not 
literature... Yet the definition of 'literature' is changeable, and 
inextricably linked with fashion. As the author Christopher Priest has 
pointed out, works now considered classics were not necessarily defined 
as high culture when they were written, and works considered literary 
when published do not always survive over time... So what is high 
culture? And what do we mean when we call something 'literary'? 
According to Jones, 'actual literature' is 'harder to get to grips with 
than a Discworld novel, but it is more worth the effort'... As this 
definition is not particularly helpful, let us consider some 
characteristics commonly considered 'literary': the elegant and 
adventurous use of language, engagement with themes of universal 
significance, inventiveness of style, defiance of genre 
classification... Pratchett seldom allows language to exist 
unchallenged; words are stretched and twisted by new and surprising 
contexts, opening the reader's eye to the arbitrary relation of 
signifier and signified, often eliciting surprised laughter... 
Pratchett's work is often underestimated because it is classified as 
'genre fiction' rather than literary fiction. Yet Pratchett's 
relationship with genre is complex and adversarial. He does not 
reproduce genre stereotypes, he sets them up to be deconstructed, or at 
least affectionately mocked. Reading Pratchett, like reading Austen, 
requires commitment, and a willingness to look under the surface. It's a 
shame Jonathan Jones was unable to do so before writing his follow-up 
article on Pratchett – for which he had, belatedly, read one book by the 
author – this past weekend.

http://bit.ly/1Opz1Yv

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

13) IMAGES OF THE MONTH

Something fabulous! The cast of the Monstrous Productions theatre 
company, fresh from their triumphant run of Night Watch, recreate Paul 
Kidby's cover as a live tableau:
http://bit.ly/1MlBgMV

The Year of the Sneezing Panda, by hump_day:
http://bit.ly/1LEgHZ2

The unforgettable Mistress Weatherwax, as only Paul Kidby can draw her:
http://bit.ly/1EWIQva

Homage to Paul Kidby himself! Fanart by Alda-Rana:
http://bit.ly/1Jwnch8

Rob Wilkins and Stephen Briggs reading to the fans at the Waterstones 
Piccadilly Shepherd's Crown launch. From inside the stone gate to 
Fairyland, no less:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CNXkwFXWgAAf8if.jpg:large

Another photo of Rob and Stephen at Waterstones, smiling, by attendee 
Amy Simmonds:
http://bit.ly/1MTGazb

The streets of Ankh-Morpork, by Martin Baines:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CPB96xsWcAALDE4.jpg:large

...and Rob, several hours later, photographed by Stephen:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CNZMy1SWcAAMvzh.jpg

A fine turnout of costumed Discworld fans at the Leeds launch, by 
Jessica Wheatley:
http://bit.ly/1JrCrqh

Stephen Player's take on Nanny Ogg among the ballerinas, from Maskerade:
http://bit.ly/1NQTZ28

Marvellous sign from Waterstones Aberdeen's opening celebration for The 
Shepherd's Crown:
http://bit.ly/1JFB0WE

A fine cartoonish Nanny Ogg by Tatiks:
http://bit.ly/1NydJZB

Witches three – from the Broadclyst Theatre group's recent production of 
Wyrd Sisters:
http://bit.ly/1iIG3LH

Talented fanart doodler Amy P Simmonds' clever tribute to the passing of 
Sir Pterry:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/COYxLxPWEAIoaX7.jpg

[Amy's Twitter account is https://twitter.com/InkaDoodleDo/ – well worth 
a look! – Ed.]

...and finally, a message from your Librarian, courtesy of Waterstones:
http://bit.ly/1JFB0WE

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

14) CLOSE

This may be one of the most amazing pieces of Discworld fan art ever 
created – an amazingly artistic, amazingly Nanny Ogg-like crocheted 
Nanny Ogg doll by Kim Lapsley! In addition to a wealth of photos, Kim's 
blogpost contains a blow-by-blow description of her process. Truly 
excellent:

http://kimlapsley.blogspot.com.au/2014/02/nanny-ogg.html

And on the subject of Discworld fan art, here be an unforgettable image 
of The Author on a wall in north Wales:

http://bit.ly/1Qt4J5v

"The 8ft mural honouring the author has appears [sic] on a council-owned 
wall in Buckley and makes reference to his battle with Alzheimer's. An 
artist dubbed the 'Flintshire Banksy' has paid tribute to one of the 
world's best-loved authors. The mysterious person, known as Random, has 
created a mural honouring the late Sir Terry Pratchett on a 
council-owned wall between the town council building and baths in 
Buckley. The 8ft artwork features a life-like head and shoulders 
portrait of the popular writer, as well as an image of a small dog, 
inspired by Pratchett's wonder dog Gaspode who appeared in seven of his 
novels...."

Read all about it in the Daily Post: http://bit.ly/1QTepai – and in The 
Leader, which offers a more in-depth look at Random's Pratchett tributes:

"Speaking to the Leader, Random said: 'I was asked if I would be willing 
to do another one after the Harry Patch creation last year. I decided to 
do one of Terry Pratchett, who is a favourite author of mine. I 
understand it has been received pretty well but because of the nature of 
the way I work it is difficult to get much one-on-one feedback.' The 
mural took Random about four-and-a-half hours to produce before it was 
mounted over the weekend. Having produced a similar Terry Pratchett 
mural at Europe's biggest street art festival, 'Upfest' in Bristol, 
earlier this year, Random opted to use a different quote this time 
around to signify the author's own struggle with Alzheimer's..."

http://bit.ly/1LDPyqX

And that's the lot for the moment, whew! Part 2 coming before Thursday...

– Annie Mac

Remember, the Wossname blog (_wossname.dreamwidth.org_) often features 
image-based posts and is worth checking now and again. The mirror 
version of this current issue can be viewed at 
http://wossname.dreamwidth.org/22482.html

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

The End. If you have any questions or requests, write: wossname-owner 
(at) pearwood (dot) info