With the advent of a wondrous new toy (I'm finally iPadded up) I'm in a position to write on the fly, whereas previously I had to specifically make a point of sitting down at the PC and then pouring all the words out of my head then and there. Additionally it's also meant I'm in a position to do a lot more reading of books and comics than I have done for quite a while so I find myself feeling like I've got stuff I actually want to talk about and share.
So I'm back... Let's see how long this one lasts.
To kick off I figured I should bring people up to date on some of what I've been doing in the interim. As a card carrying nerd I've not remained idle.
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Firstly, I remain active in Doctor Who fandom. As you may or may not recall this is my first love and I continue to coordinate the Merseyside Local Group. (Still online at http://www.mlgonline.co.uk) We've moved a couple of times in the last couple of years and we currently meet at the historic Caledonia pub on Catharine Street (Round the back of the Philharmonic) on our customary First Saturday of every month. 2013, of course, was a busy year for Doctor Who and Doctor Who fans and I continue to be tapped by local and national media as a rentagob for any Doctor Who-related items. (For example http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzsCLyz90lI) At the MLG we also celebrated our 35th anniversary cementing our place as (probably) the longest continually running local group in the UK, if not the world. I've also been active on the convention circuit a little with some interviewing gigs at the local "Who at Hoylake / The Hilbre" events (Here's me talking to Anneke Wills http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jro47Ht-RsM)
and a visit to the National Space Centre in Leicester for last years "Science of the Timelords" as compere and sole interviewer for a day. (Nicholas Briggs, Andrew Cartmel, Nev Fountain, Marcus Hearn, Frazer Hines, Louise Jameson, Sarah Sutton, Nicola Bryant, Sophie Aldred all in one day...) What a busy, busy day.
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Additionally, I'm now a regular presenter on the "Attack of the 50ft Nerds" podcast as resident "Third nerd" alongside my best mate Mike Bell and our partner in crimes against nerd-dom Andy Wears. It's a bizarre mix of regular shows where we discuss "everything in geekdom", film commentaries, "Beyond" episodes where we just talk about shit and occasional specials that don't fit into any of the existing brackets. Something for everyone as long as you can handle dick and fart gags. You can find the existing episodes on iTunes and the Pop-cast network pages (http://pcn.panelsonpages.com/category/50ft-nerds/).
As well as all the regular stuff, the new love of my life is Tabletop gaming, and it's all that fucking Wil Wheaton's fault. (Yes. Wesley Crusher. shut up. I know.) if you haven't caught Wil's show Tabletop on the Geek and Sundry network on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4F80C7D2DC8D9B6C) (Founded by Felicia Day and home of The Guild amongst other great nerd programming) it is my favourite TV show that is not actually on TV. This is what the YouTube app on my PS3 was made for. Best description? Celebrity Poker for Geeks. Take Wil, plus three friends (or sometimes members of his family) who are from the gaming, YouTube or acting communities and watch them play a fun game for 30 minutes and discover just how much you could have playing them too. Behind the sofa next to me is a pile of games that has been amassed in the last six months thanks to the Griggs families combined love of Tabletop. The games themselves are awesome and it's a great way to have some family time instead if just sitting in front of the TV. It's true, the family that plays together stays together. Wil and co have just successfully completed an IndieGogo funding campaign to raise a million dollars for season Three AND a new RPG show as well, so expect to hear more about my own adventures in the world of Tabletop.
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| The Family AutonScouser #Tabletop Collection |
As always you can follow me on the twitter where you can keep up with my latest reading (Thankyou Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/), watching (Thankyou Tvtag at http://tvtag.com/feed), Beer drinking (Thankyou Untappd at https://untappd.com/) and general shenanigans that I can fit into 140 characters or less and, hopefully, I will periodically point you back here for something a bit more substantial.
