DiscoverOctothorpe
Claim Ownership
109 Episodes
Reverse
John is middle, Alison is even sadder, and Liz is sorry.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Discussion of access issues (chapter 2), wealth privilege (chapter 6)
Letters of comment
Abigail Nussbaum
Ali Baker Brooks
Andrew January
The Eastercon members’ portal
Caroline Mullan
DC
Farah Mendlesohn
Critical Friends 8
Jacob Holder
Mark Plummer
Meg MacDonald
Doc Weir award
Dave Langford receives the trophy
Alt text: Dave Langford triumphantly lofts a blue Bag for Life from Tesco, which we are expected to believe contains the Doc Weir trophy. He is standing in front of a house.
GUFF
The results
Chengdu 2023
“The Pidu district of Chengdu announces a 10-year science fiction plan”
Glasgow 2024
Town Hall Event: Hugo, Lodestar, and Astounding Awards Glasgow
Town Hall Event: Site Selection Glasgow 2024
Eastercon and money
Picks
John: Dredge
Alison: Hopeland by Ian McDonald (paper, epub, audiobook, Amazon)
Liz: Starling House by Alix E. Harrow (paper, epub, audiobook, Amazon)
Credits
Cover art: “Voyagers” by Ulrika O’Brien
Alt text: The background is a starry, lightning-filled square in blues, purples, and yellows. Atop that, there is a spaceship, somewhat like a rocket, with engines coming out of the sides. There are yellow lights shining from it, and a ladder reaches up to a central archway. John, Alison and Liz are depicted as silhouettes, regarding it with wonder. Their shadows stretch off the canvas, and they look faintly alien or futuristic in a hard-to-define manner.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John is ignorant, Alison is first, and Liz is a trendsetter.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: COVID (chapter 8).
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia
Maundy Thursday
Andy Openshaw
Nuala on Bluesky: sorry!
Raj recommends pizza crunch
Mono
Raj on Mastodon
Track Changes
Meg MacDonald
DC’s loc
Eastercon 2024
Telford
Telford International Centre
KFC
Catchup
Members’ area
Catchup will be closing at the end of April
Dealers’ room
Beyond Cataclysm
COVID
No reported cases, as far as we are aware
Picks
John: Thunder Road: Vendetta
Alison: Fallout (the TV series)
Liz: Stardew Valley
Credits
Cover art: “Vibrant Food Culture” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A drawing of a blackboard with text that reads: “Octothorpe 108 guide to Glasgow street food.” A picture of a deep fried pizza with glasses is next to text reading ’The “Coxon” pizza crunch’, a picture of three pakora with glasses next to ‘The “Scott” haggis pakora’, and a picture of a deep fried Mars bar next to ‘The “Batty” deep fried Mars bar”. Stars also adorn the backboard, and bottles of red and brown sauce are in the bottom-left-hand corner.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John, Alison, and Nicholas are live from Levitation!
A transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Thank you very much to our stunt Liz, Nicholas Whyte!
Nicholas’ blog, From the Heart of Europe
April Fool’s Day
The rocket in all its glory!
The Hugo Awards
Hugo Award finalists
The announcement video
Thank you to everyone who nominated us!
Congratulations to the other Fancast finalists:
The Coode Street Podcast
Hugos There
Publishing Rodeo
科幻Fans布玛 (Science Fiction Fans Buma)
Worldbuilding for Masochists
The first Town Hall will be on 20 April 2024
Tickets available on Eventbrite
The stream will be available on YouTube
Three Black Halflings
Tammy Coxen
The Glasgow Gimlet
Tammy’s Tastings
Tammy’s podcast, My Tiny Bottles
Bigolas Dickolas
Gallifrey One
BSFA
Join their Discord!
Picks
John: Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace (Channel 4)
Our cosplay
Alison: Eastercon catch-up
Nicholas:
The Black Archive
David Whitaker in an Exciting Adventure with Television by Simon Guerrier
Credits
Cover art: “Octothorpe at Levitation” by Sue Dawson
Alt text: John, Alison, and Nicholas Whyte stand in front of a projection of the Octothorpe podcast and behind a panel table. Each of them wears a convention badge, and Nicholas holds the Glasgow Landing Zone Rocket. Nicholas is looking at the camera, while John and Alison are not quite as good at this. The table they stand behind holds beers, coffees, convention newsletters, phone batteries, microphones, and table tents.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John used to be an undergraduate, Alison has been keeping a list, and can Liz be a stunt Liz?
A transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Death (Deb Geisler, chapter 3) and gambling (Hugo Awards, chapter 7; Alison’s pick, chapter 8).
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia
Mike Glyer
Transcripts
Bob Morrell
Colin Murtagh
We also heard from Jonny Baddeley, Alex Holden, Farah Mendlesohn, and Ang Rosin
Deb Geisler
File 770
Eastercon
Programme
Octothorpe Live is at 13:00 on Monday!
Games
Newsletter
Please come help, post in the Discord if you’d like to volunteer!
GUFF
Vote here!
Doc Weir
BSFA Awards
Awards
Nebula Award finalists
Android Press Games
The Bread Must Rise
Hugo Award betting markets
Liz has decided not to put her referral link here because the people who run the website might be a bit too Silicon Valley-y
Hugo, Girl! un-recuse
Picks
John: Airecon
Overs: The Cricket Card Game
Alison: The 2023 Eastercon souvenir book
Balatro
Liz: “No CGI is really just INVISIBLE CGI” on YouTube
Todd Vaziri on X, BlueSky, Mastodon
Credits
Cover art: “Podcasting Is Magic” by Alison Scott
Alt text: Three ponies in the style of My Little Pony adorn the cover. The left-hand one is orange, and has a six-sided die as a cutie mark. The central one is teal, and has a rainbow Apple logo for a cutie mark. The right-hand one is blue, and has a Hugo Award for a cutie mark. They look like they are having a nice time. The words “My Little Octothorpe 106” appear at the top, and the words “Podcasting Is Magic” appear at the bottom.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John watches movies, Alison walks on the Moon, and Liz has special bonds.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Censorship, in the form of more Hugo Award controversy
Letters of comment
Ang Rosin
Andy Openshaw
Chris Garcia
Zodiac Speaking
ErsatzCulture and Raj
España Sheriff
Brighton 1987
Martin Easterbrook
Tammy Coxen
Sandra Bond
Keep an eye out for Poetry Slum!
Click here to see the cover
Nicholas Jackson on Bluesky
Harry Payne on Bluesky
BSFA Awards shortlist
Hugo Awards
The 2023 Hugo Awards: A Report on Censorship and Exclusion by Chris M Barkley and Jason Sanford
Charting the Cliff: An Investigation Into the 2023 Hugo Nomination Statistics by Camestros Felapton and Heather Rose Jones
More on Other Chinese Hugo Nominations, based on “Charting the Cliff” by Prograft
Recent updates from the MPC/WIP
Journey Planet #79
Picks
John: Monolith dir. Matt Vesely
Alison: Moonwalkers
Liz: FRIENDSHIP
Credits
Cover art: Liz’s Bedtime Reading by Alison Scott
Alt text: A famous photograph of Margaret Hamilton standing beside printed outputs of the code that took the Apollo spacecraft to the Moon, overlaid with the words “Octothorpe 105” and “Liz has finished reading the latest Hugo Award exposés”.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John, Alison and Liz discuss what SF they enjoyed from 2023.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Fanzine
The Ancillary Review of Books
IDEA
Nerds of a Feather
Fan Artist
Alison Scott
España Sheriff
Fan Writer
Camestros Felapton
Paul Weimer
Sandra Bond
Fancast
Going Rogue
Game/Interactive Work
Video games
Baldur’s Gate 3
Chants of Sennaar
Dredge
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor
Tabletop games
Apiary
Earthborne Rangers
Moon
Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game
INELIGIBLE: Hegemony
Galactic Starcruiser
Adrian Hon’s write-up
Cass Morris’s write-up
Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form)
Blue-Eyed Samurai (Netflix)
Doctor Who (BBC iPlayer, Disney+)
For All Mankind (Apple TV+)
Foundation (Apple TV+)
The Last of Us (Now)
The Mandalorian (Disney+)
Poker Face (Now)
Silo (Apple TV+)
Star Trek: Lower Decks (Paramount+)
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (Paramount+)
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (Netflix)
Best Dramatic Presentation (Long Form)
Asteroid City (Now Cinema)
Barbie (rent or buy)
Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (Paramount+)
Ghosts, series 5 (BBC iPlayer)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Disney+)
The Marvels (Disney+)
Nimona (Netflix)
Polite Society (Now Cinema)
Poor Things (rent or buy)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Now Cinema)
Best Related Work
50 Years of Text Games by Aaron A Reed
Silverwolf
A City on Mars by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith
All These Worlds: Reviews and Essays by Niall Harrison
A Traveller in Time: The Critical Practice of Maureen Kincaid Speller, ed. Nina Allan
Best Graphic Story
Moon Knight, volume 9 by Jed MacKay, Alessandro Cappuccio, and Rachelle Rosenberg
Why Don’t You Love Me? by Paul B Rainey
Best Series
Dune by Frank Herbert, Brian Herbert and Kevin J Anderson
Elric by Michael Moorcock
Imperial Radch by Ann Leckie
The Final Architecture by Adrian Tchaikovsky
The Tyrant Philosophers by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Best Short Fiction
“Spring Woods Spring” by B Pladek
“The Year Without Sunshine” by Naomi Kritzer
Find stories to read at Rocket Stack Rank
Best Novella
A Theory of Haunting by Sarah Monette
Walking Practice by Dolki Min
“On the English Approach to the Study of History” by E Saxey
Best Semiprozine
Giganotasaurus
Strange Horizons
wot, no https?!
Best Novel
Bridge by Lauren Beukes
The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez
Titanium Noir by Nick Harkaway
Orbital by Samantha Harvey
In Ascension by Martin MacInnes
Hopeland by Ian McDonald
Julia by Sandra Newman
Him by Geoff Ryman
Cahokia Jazz by Francis Spufford
City of Last Chances and The House of Open Wounds by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh
The Year in Review 2023 by Graham Sleight
Credits
Cover art: “Favourite Reading Positions” by Sue Mason
Alt text: John is in the bottom-left, sitting in a chair, wearing a blue shirt and purple trousers, holding a can, and reading an ebook. Alison is in the upper-middle, lying down upside down, wearing a purple shirt and stripy trousers, and reading an ebook. Liz is in the bottom-right, wearing a pink shirt with green trousers, holding a mug of a hot beverage, and reading a physical book. They are surrounded by floating beer bottles, books, the Moon, a mug with a moose on it, and two cats. The word “Octothorpe” appears in scattered letters around the artwork, against a pinky-purple background.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John is a year behind, Alison is opening nominations, and Liz is Elizabeth (!).
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Israel/Palestine war (Montreal in 2027 segment), serial killers (John’s pick)
Letters of comment
Ali Baker Brooks
Chris Garcia
DC
Kevin Anderson
Mark Plummer
Martin Easterbrook
Mike Glyer
Raj
Alison’s fan art page
BSFA longlist
Fan funds
TAFF
Announcement
Ballot
EFF
GUFF
Montreal in 2027
Tel Aviv in 2027
Christopher Priest
2005 Guest of Honour speech
Hugo Awards
Trademarks
WIP announcement
Mike Dunford on Bluesky
Chris Barkley’s interview of Dave McCarty
Transcript
A possibly smoking gun
File 770 comment
Screencap of post from Chinese socials
Machine translation
Tammy Coxen argues Worldcon will die because of lack of volunteers
Picks
John: How to Find Zodiac by Jarett Kobek (Amazon)
Los Angeles Magazine article
Alison: Fantasy Map Maker
Alison’s map
Liz: North Woods by Daniel Mason (hardback, ebook, audiobook, Amazon)
Credits
Cover art: “Hugo Regalia Shop” by Alison Scott
Alt text: The words “Octothorpe 103 Hugo Regalia Shop” appear above a selection of costumes. There are small depictions of a clown, a pirate, a panda and a banana above full-length depictions of a member of the Catholic church (with Hugos on their mitre and crosier), a gangster (labelled “boss”, holding a Hugo), Zaphod Beeblebrox (holding three Hugos) and Jesus (with a crown of thorns but made with Hugos).
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John, Alison and Liz respond to a letter of comment from Tobes.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X, Mastodon or Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Chinese censorship (discussion of the Hugo Awards), Jim Crow Florida (Liz’s pick), general socioeconomic inequality (John’s pick)
Glasgow 2024’s hotel bookings are open
Letters of comment
Alex Ingram
Bill Higgins
Chris Garcia
Colin Murtagh
Jersey Gryphon
Karen Schaffer
Raj
Tobes Valois
Hugo Awards controversy
File 770’s roundup
Some recent writing on these topics:
Abigail Nussbaum
Cora Buhlert
Genre Grapevine
Ada Palmer on censorship
Reaction from Chinese fans
A reaction from Zimozi Natsuco
Check out Ersatz Culture’s feeds for more information on Chinese reactions (Bluesky, Mastodon)
Dave McCarty
His apology
A link to his Facebook
The Useful Idiot
It’s not Lenin, it’s a Western term originating in the 1940s and 1950s
Worldcon Intellectual Property statement about resignations, censures, and reprimands
Glasgow 2024’s Hugo nominations post
Picks
John: The Kitchen, dir. Daniel Kaluuya and Kibwe Tavares
Alison: Dangerous Space, designed by Jason Greeno and Jason Tagmire
Liz: The Reformatory by Tananarive Due (paperback, ebook, Amazon)
Credits
Cover art: “Scooby Gang” by Alison Scott
Alt text: Scooby, Velma and Daphne unmask the panda from last week’s cover art, and the person wearing the panda suit looks a lot like Dave McCarty. They say “It was old Mister McCarty all along!” and he says “And I would have gotten away with it too if it hadn’t been for you meddling Hugo finalists!” He is tied up with rope. The words “Octothorpe! 102” appear at the top of the image.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John is self-promoting, Alison ”doesn’t have COVID”, and Liz is distracting.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: large power and age differentials in sexual relationships (John’s pick)
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia
Niall Harrison
Adam Roberts on romantasy
A website called “pudding.cool”
Geri Sullivan
Bridget Bradshaw
TrishEM says congratulations
Dave Mansfield
Upcoming conventions which aren’t Worldcon
Triple Time!, the 34th filk convention (2–4 February 2024, Buxton)
Picocon 41 (23 March, London)
Gallifrey One (16–18 February 2024, Los Angeles, USA)
Levitation 2024, the Eastercon (29 March 2024–1 April 2024, Telford)
FunCon (31 May–2 June 2024, Buxton)
Glasgow 2024, the Worldcon (8–12 August 2024, Glasgow)
Three Black Halflings
Hotel bookings open on 22 January 2024
Novacon (8–10 November 2024, Buxton)
Send us your Hugo recs while there is a chance we might read/watch them and mention them
China Miéville and Keanu Reeves are collaborating
Picks
John: Poor Things
Exhibition of costumes at the Barbican
Alison: Why Don’t You Love Me? by Paul B. Rainey (hardback, ebook, Amazon)
Liz: Chants of Sennaar (PS4, Steam, Switch, Xbox)
Relevant Penny Arcade
Cracking the Cryptic play Chants of Sennaar
Credits
Cover art: “Glasgow Hotel Board Game” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A board reminiscent of a well-known board game about property trading. There are three purple properties (Campanile, Village, Moxy), each of which has one hotel. There are two teal properties (Crowne Plaza, Marriott), a replacement for “In Jail” called “In WSFS”, a Statue square featuring a man on horseback with a traffic cone on his head, and a square called Telephone Kiosk with a depiction of a police box. In the middle of the board, the words “Octothorpe Episode 101”. Each property has asterisks for the rent and the words “Rates coming very soon but not quite soon enough for this cover” appear at the bottom.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John, Alison and Liz receive a telegram.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia
Irwin Hirsh
Raj on Mastodon (1, 2)
Hugo voting stats
Moon Knight
Warren Ellis and Declan Shalvey’s run
Warren Ellis’ predatory behaviour
Article at the time of the original story
SoManyOfUs
Article from the year after
Jed MacKay and Alessandro Cappuccio’s run
Moon Knight: Age of Anubis: A Marvel: Multiverse Missions Adventure Gamebook
Want an invite to the Discord? Hit John up! - Glasgow 2024 announces Tanya DePass as special guest
Picks
John: The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jiminez [paperback, Amazon]
Alison: The Coral Bones by EJ Swift [paperback, ebook, Amazon]
Late-breaking news of a new paperback from Jo Fletcher Books
Liz: Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh [paperback, ebook, audiobook, Amazon]
Festive gaming corner
John:
EXIT: The Game: Advent Calendar: The Silent Storm
Final Girl: North Pole Nightmare
Herd Mentality
Legendary: Marvel
Monikers
Paleo
SCOUT
Alison:
Schotten Totten
Zuuli
Pandemic: Iberia
The Mind
Bohnanza
Terraforming Mars
FryxGames’ CEO posted transphobia and racism
Liz: Hated by Emily and Andrew
Credits
Cover art: “Telegram from the Queen” by Alison Scott with telegram by Claire Brialey
Alt text: A telegram lies with a golden thread bookmark on a plush purple surface. It has two pieces of Weetabix above text which reads “I am so pleased to know that you are celebrating your one hundredth episode in January 2024. I send my congratulations and best wishes to you on such a special occasion. Claire R (of Croydon).” The words “Octothorpe 100” are at the top in golden lettering.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John doesn’t study herpetology, Alison knows lots of words, and Liz goes first.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Games, SMOFs
If I Ran the Zoo… Con
PDF version
Hard copy from NESFA
Bidding Phase:
3401 Pre-Supporting Memberships by Leslie Turek
5501 Kill the Wabbit by Priscilla Olson, John Pomeranz, Leslie Turek, Mark Olson
Planning Phase:
2201 The “Relationship” by Priscilla Olson, Mark Olson
5901 We’re in the Money by Glenn Glazer, Leslie Turek
Modest food
Privy’s props
Privy’s cast
At-Con Phase:
701 The Lady and the Snake by Mark Olson, Leslie Turek
1101 The Dungeon Master by Joe Rico
2901 The BNF by Priscilla Olson, Fred Isaacs, Leslie Turek
Credits
Cover art: “Game of Privies” by Alison Scott
Alt text: John, Alison and Liz are on a large privy holding drinks with a snake wrapped around the privy. Speech bubbles surround them: “Have you seen my emotional support python?” “The perfect spot for the old pharts photo”, “It’s another ‘what if…’ episode”, and “Oi! There’s a queue here mate”. A banner with “Punctuation Worldcon 2030” appears at the top and the words “Octothorpe 99” appear at the bottom.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
Points at the end of each phase:
Phase
People
Financial
Goodwill
Bidding
2
0
1
Planning
5
4
1
At-Con
6
5
7
John thinks it’s grandfathered in, Alison doesn’t think it’s SF, and Sandra is Liz.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia
Curt Phillips
Where to buy Moon (USA, UK)
If you know of websites that do this in other countries, let John know!
Mark Plummer
The full text of Mark Plummer’s and Leigh Edmonds’ previous locs
Glasgow 2024’s disease mitigation policy
Fan funds
TAFF
Free ebooks
Taffluorescence! #1
With news of the upcoming TAFF race
Geri Sullivan’s Idea
#13 is forthcoming
Sandra’s books
The Psychopath Club
The Devil’s Finger
Picks
John: A City on Mars by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith (hardback, epub, Amazon)
Alison: For All Mankind
Sandra: Beyond Fandom: Fans, Culture & Politics in the 20th Century by Rob Hansen (ed.)
Credits
Cover art: “Stunt Lizard” by Alison Scott
Alt text: The heads of John and Alison regard a lizard version of Sandra Bond who is doing stunts (on fire, skateboarding) while wearing her signature hat. The words “Octothorpe 98” appear at the top.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John has played some games, Alison will play some games, and Liz is playing games RIGHT NOW
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: China, being burned alive, classism
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia
España Sheriff
Leigh Edmonds
Lori Anderson
Chengdu
Chinese v foreign attendees
An example
We expect stats at the 90 day mark
WSFS remote participation
Current WSFS constitution and standing rules
Preliminary meeting video
Don Eastlake on Facebook
Glasgow 2024
Online convention news
Glasgow presents Catherynne M Valente and Peter S Beagle
Novacon
Novacon 53
Picks
John: The Wicker Man
Alison: Goliath by Tochi Onyebuchi (physical, epub, audiobook, Amazon)
Liz: Titanium Noir by Nick Harkaway (physical, epub, audiobook, Amazon)
Gaming corner
Tabletop games
Hadrian’s Wall
Moon
Turing Machine
Villagers
Cracking the Cryptic play Return of the Obra Dinn
The Roottrees are Dead
Credits
Cover art: “To the LizBatmobile” by Alison Scott
Alt text: John, Alison and Liz are depicted as Robin, Harley Quinn and Batman, but the Batman logo is replaced by “WSFS”. The Batmobile is in the centre of the three of them. The words “Octothorpe 97” appear at the top and the words “…to the LizBatmobile” at the bottom.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John didn’t, Alison would’ve done, and Liz tried.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: China
Was Chengdu a shower?
Nicholas Whyte signs autographs
Chengdu Worldcon on YouTube
WorldconEvents on YouTube
Site selection meeting videos are going up here
WSFS Business Meeting” group on Facebook
File 770’s reporting on this year’s WSFS
Picks
John: Hallowe’en
Alison: New Zealand
Liz: Poker Face
Credits
Cover art: “Chengdu Worldcon Report” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A giant panda stands in a metal tub wearing a rainbow show cap with helicopter blades beneath a shower made of bamboo. A purple towel with “42” on it is over the side of the metal tub. The words “Octothorpe 96” are above “Chengdu Worldcon Report” with a footnote reading “might not have been a shower after all”.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John is playing a game, Alison is in New Zealand, and Liz’s head is on fire.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Privilege (letters of comment), carbon emissions (GUFF), grant applications (picks)
Letters of comment
Dave Mansfield
Esther MacCallum-Stewart
Chris Garcia
Abigail Nussbaum
SJ Johnson
Hugos
Congratulations to Hugo, Girl!
Thanks to Nicholas Whyte for
Being our designated Hugo acceptor
Liveblogging the Hugo Award ceremony
GUFF
It goes from Australasia to Europe (and vice versa)
Australasia
Stonehenge Aoteroa
Woomera
Te Tauaarangi Air Force
Royal Australian Air Force
Kākāpō family tree
Picks
John: Don’t Play This Game (play the demo)
Alison: Australia
Liz: Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood (epub, paperback, audiobook, Amazon)
Credits
Cover art: “Birds” by España Sheriff
Alt text: A kakapo, a kiwi and a SIAMESE FIREBACK just chilling out. They look a bit like John, Alison and Liz. The words “Octothorpe 95” adorn the top of the cover.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John is eating cinnamon rolls, Alison doesn’t think it’s funny, and Liz has two lists.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X, on Mastodon, or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: colonialism (chapter 2), COVID (chapter 3), organised crime (chapter 5), privilege and capitalism (chapter 7).
No letters of comment this week, normal service resumes next week!
Books in the order they were discussed
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The Kaiju Preservation Society, by John Scalzi
Legends & Lattes, by Travis Baldree
Coffee Shop AU
Nona the Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir
The Spare Man, by Mary Robinette Kowal
Nettle & Bone, by T Kingfisher
John’s ranking:
Nettle & Bone
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau
Nona the Ninth
The Spare Man
Legends & Lattes
The Kaiju Preservation Society
Alison’s ranking:
Nettle & Bone
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau
The Kaiju Preservation Society
Nona the Ninth
Legends & Lattes
The Spare Man
Liz’s ranking:
Nettle & Bone
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau
Nona the Ninth
The Kaiju Preservation Society
Legends & Lattes
The Spare Man
Consensus ranking:
Nettle & Bone
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau
Nona the Ninth
The Kaiju Preservation Society
Legends & Lattes
The Spare Man
Credits
Cover art: “Favourite Reading Positions” by Sue Mason
Alt text: John is in the bottom-left, sitting in a chair, wearing a blue shirt and purple trousers, holding a can, and reading an ebook. Alison is in the upper-middle, lying down upside down, wearing a purple shirt and stripy trousers, and reading an ebook. Liz is in the bottom-right, wearing a pink shirt with green trousers, holding a mug of a hot beverage, and reading a physical book. They are surrounded by floating beer bottles, books, the Moon, a mug with a moose on it, and two cats. The word “Octothorpe” appears in scattered letters around the artwork, against a pinky-purple background.
Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John is husky, Alison is a dingo, and Liz is a ridgeback.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Abigail Nussbaum
Chris Garcia
Ersatz Culture
Chengdu is a shower
Relevant Pixel Scrolls:
Fanzine and Fan Writer added; videos of the construction
Panoramic views of the convention site
Arthur Liu’s post on Weibo
Glasgow 2024
Glasgow 2024 Presents: The Media of Storytelling: Print v Screen
Hugo discussion
GUFF
LEGO postcards from Australia
You can donate £5 or £10 to guffeurope@gmail.com to get a personalised postcard from Alison
Postcard from Australia for £5
Photo postcard from the Internet for £5
Special surprise exclusive GUFF 2023 Art postcard for £10
Postcard with an “unreasonable special request” for £10 [don’t ask me what this means, I just wrote down the words Alison said—John]
Picks
We did a lot of talking about our opinions of SF this episode, so picks return in future!
Credits
Cover art: “Flying to Australia” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A photograph of Alison’s Apple Watch on a plane to Australia. This episode of Octothorpe is playing on that Apple Watch, which is on her wrist.
Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John went to Reno, Alison went to San Francisco, and Liz went to Chicago.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Twitter or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Murder and sexual violence (chapter 4)
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia
Dave Mansfield
Duncan MacGregor
Ersatz Culture
Irwin Hirsch
Juan Sanmiguel
Nick Hubble
Peter Sullivan
ConFrancisco
Ansible 75 (October 1993)
File 770’s Worldcon Wayback Machine:
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Chengdu is a shower
The Hugo Voter Packet still doesn’t have Best Fanzine or Best Fan Writer
Ersatz Culture’s page on the Hugo Voter Packet now contains downloads for both
Arthur Liu/Heaven Duke has two pages in Chinese covering similar ground: one, two
Glasgow 2024
Progress Report 2 is now out
They’ve got a big organ
John is moderating “The Media of Storytelling: Print v Screen” for Glasgow Presents
21 September at 19:00 BST
Dan Hanks, A M Justice, Jim Mcleod, and R W W Greene
Tickets are free
Picks
John: Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956 and 1978)
Alison: The Thin Man (1934) and The Island of Doctor Moreau by H G Wells (1896)
Liz:
Credits
Cover art: “1993 Time Machine” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A drawing of España Sheriff with “gosh wow oh boy oh boy” in a thought bubble to the left of a drawing of Alison saying “displays include Hugo history and antique vibrators” behind an info desk. Computer monitors display the text “Coming soon! Websites!” and “Try Virtual Reality, it’s the next big thing”. A Dalek and the Golden Gate Bridge adorn the scene. Above, the words “Moscone North” are below the words “We travel to a land that photography forgot” which are in turn below “Octothorpe 92”.
Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John is a journalist, Alison is fundraising, and Liz is approved.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Twitter or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Abigail Nussbaum
Ali Baker Brooks
Chris Garcia
David Curry
Edward Morland
Farah Mendlesohn
Jonathan Baddeley
Lori Anderson
Not Laurie Anderson
The Clarke Award
Liz read them all! 🌟
Hugo Voter Packet
Ersatz Culture’s report on what’s in the packet
Site selection
Voting has started!
Seattle in 2025
Alison’s GUFF plans
If you are in Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Adelaide, Christchurch, Picton/Nelson, Wellington, Auckland or Perth, email Alison
Picks
John: The (Kenner)Spiel des Jahres shortlist
Alison: LEGO
Liz: The Mountain in the Sea by Ray Nayler (hardback, epub)
Credits
Cover art: “Plenty of Bits” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A photograph of three mini figures made to look like John, Alison nad Liz with a dragon in the background. John is holding a lightsaber, Alison a fish and a cup o f coffee, and Liz an ice cream. Two cats accompany them.
Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
John, Alison and Liz read Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty.
Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, check out our subtitles/transcripts, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Twitter or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Murder, death
Other works we discussed:
Station Eternity by Mur Lafferty
Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee
Rosewater by Tade Thompson
This didn’t make the edit due to Liz’s audio being troublesome
The 2018 Hugo Award ballot
Credits
Cover art: “Standard-Sized Cryochambers” by Alison Scott
Alt text: Three cryochambers marked “Coxon J, Scott A and Batty L” reside in a room marked “Clone Bay”. John and Liz’s heads are visible through the windows int heir chambers; Alison’s is not. Blood floats in front of them underneath the words “Octothorpe 90”.
Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)