The Pod Delusion episode 122, Resonance FM at 11am on Sunday 12th February, podcast here

This week we explore UN reform with a former ambassador to the United Nations, get the latest on the Twitter Joke Trial, build a moon base and keep filibustering to pass the time. Correspondents include James O’Malley, Carl Gardner, Alex Fitch, Jessica Metheringham-Owlett, Craig Lucas, Tom Williamson and Sarah Angliss. The Pod Delusion is a weekly news magazine radio programme and podcast about interesting things. From politics, to science to culture and philosophy, it’s commentary from a secular, rationalist, skeptical, somewhat lefty-liberal, sort of perspective. A bit like From Our Own Correspondent but with more jokes.

Panel Borders: Exhibiting Comics, Resonance FM at 8pm on Sunday 12th February, podcast on Panel Borders afterwards

Continuing our month of shows about about non practitioners’ love of comics, Alex Fitch talks to Lord Baker of Dorking about his contributions as lender and patron of The Cartoon Museum to their latest exhibition ‘Her Maj: Sixty years of unofficial portraits of the Queen’ and to John Huddy, founder and curator of The Illustration Cupboard about the gallery’s history of exhibiting art from picture books and graphic novels. Also, from last week’s Manga Jiman awards ceremony at the Embassy of Japan in London, Cultural Officer Simon Wright and Minister Hiroshi Suzuki, the director of the Japan Information and Culture Centre, introduce this year’s winning entries to the comic book competition.

Recent podcasts

Panel Borders: Searching for comics with DJ Food

Starting a month of shows about non practitioners’ love of comics, guest presenter Robin Warren talks to musician Strictly Kev about collaborating with Henry Flint on the artwork for his new LP The Search Engine and the three EPs that make up the release. Robin and Kev talk about the latter’s interest in British anthologies, especially 2000AD, and how a love of comics in his formative years compliments his music production as DJ Food and with The Cinematic Orchestra.

Comics and Conflicts podcast: Pat Mills on Charley’s War

Imperial War Museum educator Grant Rogers talks to Pat Mills about his seminal wartime strip Charley’s War, serialised in Battle Action comic in the 1970s and 80s. Grant and Pat Mills discuss the history of the strip, working with Joe Colquhoun and the real life events that influenced the comic. (Recorded in front of an audience at the 2011 Comics and Conflicts conference at the Imperial War Museum, London.)

Online magazine:

ELECTRIC SHEEP ISSUE SIXTY – FEMMES FATALES: Deadly dames and murderous man-eaters

To mark the restoration of Otto Preminger’s magnificentLaura, we celebrate femmes fatales, including Peggy Cummins’s gutsy bank robber in Gun Crazy and Barbara Stanwyck’s sassy social climber inBaby Face. We have a feature on female action heroines and a terrific Comic Strip on Twin Peaks temptresses by Richy K. Chandler, while Reel Sounds is enthused by a wild jazz scene in The Phantom Lady and in Alter Ego Katy Darby is Bridget Gregory in The Last Seduction.

New cinema releases include the intelligent, creepy cult victim tale Martha Marcy May Marlene, the excellent James Ellroy-scripted LA crime thriller Rampart, Polanski’s ferociously funny middle-class satire Carnage, and Cronenberg’s disastrous A Dangerous Method. And we have a feature on doyenne of queer cinema Barbara Hammer, who is the subject of a retrospective at Tate Modern.

In the DVDs, we review 70s Vietnam vet vigilante drama Rolling Thunder and Bulgarian neo-noir Zift, and to give context to the latter’s interest in bodily waste, we have an article on toilet scenes in cinema.

In Short Cuts, we review the screening of Swedish feminist porn shorts Dirty Diaries at the London Short Film Festival while Cine Lit peruses the latest film books. In the Film Jukebox, soulful, dreamy chamber popsters The Tindersticks pick their favourite films.

Pat Mills points us to a podcast recording of the talk he had with Grant Rogers at the Comics & Conflicts events last summer in the Imperial War Museum, organised by Alex Fitch, Paul Gravett and Ariel Khan, now online so those of us who couldn’t be there can get a listen.

Panel Borders: Habbibi Blankets, Sunday 29th January on Resonance FM, podcast after transmission on Panel Borders

Concluding our month of shows looking at biography and autobiography in comics, Alex Fitch talks to the multiple award winning (and Grammy nominated) cartoonist Craig Thompson about his epic new graphic novel Habibi (My beloved). Alex and Craig discuss the 672 page book’s reworking of themes from One Thousand and One Nights, mixing in modern concerns about gender politics and pollution in the Middle East and how his previous autobiographical works Blankets and Carnet de Voyage, with their themes of sexual awakening, religion and travelogue, led to his latest work.

Book List: Children’s book illustration, Tuesday 31st January at 8pm on Resonance FM, podcast on Panel Borders afterwards

In an hour long show about children’s book illustration, Alex Fitch talks to three generations of illustrators: David McKee, creator of Mr Benn, King Rollo and Elmer the Patchwork Elephant; Dave McKean, artist of of young adult books by David Almond, graphic novels and picture books by Neil Gaiman and Richard Dawkins’ first science book for children The Magic of Reality; and Jim Kay, illustrator of Patrick Ness’ A Monster Calls and Toby Forward’s Flaxfield Quartet of novels about dragons.

Also includes an extract from Dave McKean’s presentation of his work from The Magic of Reality at the book launch in Foyles, September 2011.

Recent podcasts:

Panel Borders: Dotter of Her Father’s Eyes

Continuing our month of shows about biography and autobiography, guest presenter Nicola Streeten interviews Bryan and Mary Talbot about their forthcoming graphic novel, Dotter of Her Father’s Eyes, which contrasts two coming of age narratives: Lucia, daughter of James Joyce, and author Mary Talbot, daughter of the Joycean scholar James S Atherton. (Recorded and edited by Alex Fitch)

Laydeez do podcasts – Judith Vanistendael: Dance by the light of the moon

In a Q and A recorded at Bar Music Hall in East London as part of Comica Festival, 2010, Paul Gravett talks to Flemish cartoonist Judith Vanistendael about her semi-autobiographical graphic novel Dance by the light of the moon, published in the UK by Self Made Hero. (Recorded and edited by Alex Fitch, introduced by Sarah Lightman)

Panel Borders: Dotter of Her Father’s Eyes, Thursday 22nd January at 8pm on Resonance FM, podcast on Panel Borders after transmission

Continuing our month of shows about biography and autobiography, guest presenter Nicola Streeten interviews Bryan and Mary Talbot about their forthcoming graphic novel, Dotter of Her Father’s Eyes, which contrasts two coming of age narratives: Lucia, daughter of James Joyce, and author Mary Talbot, daughter of the Joycean scholar James S Atherton. (Recorded and edited by Alex Fitch). You can also read a Director’s Commentary guest post with Mary and Bryan talking us through some of Dotter here on the blog.

(Lucia Joyce in the sanatorium, words by Mary Talbot, art by Bryan Talbot, published Jonathan Cape)

Laydeez do podcasts – Judith Vanistendael: Dance by the light of the moon

In a Q and A recorded at Bar Music Hall in East London as part of Comica Festival, 2010, Paul Gravett talks to Flemish cartoonist Judith Vanistendael about her semi-autobiographical graphic novel Dance by the light of the moon, published in the UK by Self Made Hero. (Recorded and edited by Alex Fitch, introduced by Sarah Lightman). Judith has a new book just out in Belgium and France this month and due out in English from SelfMadeHero this April, When David Lost His Voice.

Recent podcasts:

Panel Borders: Collier’s War

Continuing our month of shows on biography and autobiography, Alex Fitch talks to Canadian cartoonist David Collier about his work, from his Collier’s self published comics to graphic novels such as Chimo released by Drawn and Quarterly. Alex and David also talk about the latter’s experiences serving in the army and getting advice from Robert Crumb. (Recorded live in front of an audience at the Imperial War Museum, London).

Panel Borders: Animating Tatsumi

Starting a month of shows on biography and autobiography, Alex Fitch and Dickon Harris interview comic creator turned animator Eric Khoo who’s directed a portmanteau film called Tatsumi (released 13/01/12), based on the work of mangaka Yoshihiro Tatsumi, including five of his gekiga short stories with bookends adapting his autobiography A Drifting Life. You can read a Director’s Commentary with Eric talking us through some of the film here on the blog.

Panel Borders: Collier’s War, Resonance FM on Sunday 15th at 8pm, podcast on Panel Borders afterwards

Continuing our month of shows on biography and autobiography, Alex Fitch talks to Canadian cartoonist David Collier about his work, from his Collier’s self published comics to graphic novels such as Chimo released by Drawn and Quarterly. Alex and David also talk about the latter’s experiences serving in the army and getting advice from Robert Crumb. (Recorded live in front of an audience at the Imperial War Museum, London).

Recent podcasts:

Panel Borders: Animating Tatsumi

Starting a month of shows on biography and autobiography, Alex Fitch and Dickon Harris interview comic creator turned animator Eric Khoo who’s directed a portmanteau film called Tatsumi (released 13/01/12), based on the work of mangaka Yoshihiro Tatsumi, including five of his gekiga short stories with bookends adapting his autobiography A Drifting Life.

Electric Sheep Podcast: Cult animation

Alex Fitch talks to a pair of directors of innovative short animated films; to Oscar winner (2011 co-director Short Animated film) Shaun Tan about the adaptation of his acclaimed picture book The Lost Thing and to web animator Jonti Picking about his cult animated series Weebl and Bob as well as his adverts for Cadbury’s Creme Eggs (is it that time of year already?) and Anchor Butter.

Clear Spot: Cult animation, Tuesday 10th at 8pm on Resonance FM, extended Eric Khoo podcast on Panel Borders & Tan & Picking on Electric Sheep podcast after transmission

Alex Fitch talks to three directors of innovative new animated films. Alex talks to Oscar Winner (2011 co-director Short Animated film) Shaun Tan about the adaptation of his acclaimed picture book The Lost Thing and to web animator Jonti Picking about his cult animated series Weebl and Bob as well as his adverts for Cadbury’s Creme Eggs (is it that time of year already?) and Anchor Butter.

Alex is joined by Dickon Harris for an interview with comic book creator turned animator Eric Khoo who has directed a portmanteau film called Tatsumi (reviewed recently on the blog here), based on the work of Yoshihito Tatsumi, including five of his short stories and bookends adapting his autobiography A Drifting Life.

Electric Sheep Magazine, issue fifty-nine

Fake Documentaries: Political satires, media manipulation, horror trickery
We start off the year with the real truths behind fake documentaries to mark the Blu-ray release of Peter Watkins’s incendiary Punishment Park, whose denunciation of the US government’s repression of dissent remains powerfully relevant 40 years later. We also have articles on the Joaquin Phoenix hoax I’m Still Here, Danish political satire AFR, the infamous BBC live ghost-hunting show simulation Ghostwatch, and a comic strip on The Blair Witch Project, plus Norwegian monster mockumentary Troll Hunter is out on DVD.

At the cinema, we review Jean Vigo’s poetic gem L’atalante, Steve McQueen’s much anticipated study of sex addiction Shame, Tatsumi, an animated film on the life and work of the eponymous manga artist, and financial thriller Margin Call. In the DVDs we look at legendary road movie Two-Lane Blacktop and we have an interview with director Monte Hellman about his latest film, Road to Nowhere.

We also review Teuvo Tulio’s flamboyant melodrama Cross of Love, and we have a feature on films in which everybody dies. In Short Cuts we preview the London Short Film Festival. Musician Barry Adamson of Magazine and the Bad Seeds fame picks his favourites in the Film Jukebox while writer Tom Benn is Blade Runner’s Roy Batty in Alter Ego.

Recent podcasts:

Panel Borders: Unnamable horrors in genre comics

Concluding our series of shows about H.P. Lovecraft, Alex Fitch talks to three creators who have recently penned comics inspired by his monsters and scenarios. Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning talk about adding a Lovecraftian twist to Marvel Superheroes in their titles Realm of Kings and The Thanos Imperative, which feature alternative versions of Captain Marvel and the Avengers possessed by the ‘Many-angled Ones’. Also Ed Brubaker discusses Fatale, his latest collaboration with artist Sean Phillips, following Sleeper, Criminal and Incognito, which mixes noir storytelling with occult ceremonies and tentacle faced Nazis.

Panel Borders episode 250 – Alan Moore and the horrors at Red Hook

Continuing our month of shows about H.P. Lovecraft, Alex Fitch talks to Alan Moore about his final graphic novel that isn’t part of the continuing League of Extraordinary Gentlemen narrative – Neonomicon – which has just been published, along with its prequel The Courtyard, as a graphic novel by Avatar Press. Both comics follow on from Lovecraft’s tale ‘The Horror at Red Hook’ and Alan discusses why he chose that story in particular to explore further, plus the origins of The Courtyard in an abandoned short story collection called ‘Yuggoth Cultures’, and examples of Lovecraftian imagery in his League of Extraordinary Gentlemen saga.

The Pulse episode 3

Filmed in London and presented by Lian Cooper, SCI-FI-LONDON’s monthly podcast about SF throughout the media features interviews by Alex Fitch with comic book creators Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning about their combination of Space Opera and superheroes for Marvel & Rebekah Isaacs about her Buffy spin-off series Angel and Faith. Also, Transformers special effects creator Scott Farrar talks about his work and Christopher Paolini (Eragon) discusses the latest book in his Inheritance Cycle of books with Chris Patmore, plus there are trailers for forthcoming games and films…

Panel Borders: The Last Ride of the Western Heroes, Sunday 13th November at 8pm on Resonance FM, podcast afterwards on Panel Border

Continuing our month of shows about genre in comics, Alex Fitch talks to creators of small press and mainstream cowboy comics. Alex talks to veteran comics writer John Ostrander about his classic serialised graphic novel The Kents featuring the history of Superman’s great grandparents in 19th century Kansas and their encounters with the Luthers of the time, which is being re-released in three ’100 page giants’ this winter. Alex and John also talk about Blaze of Glory: The Last Ride of the Western Heroes, Grimjack and his unrealized Doctor Who audio western.

Also in an interview recorded at this year’s Bristol Small Press Expo, Tim Keable and Andrew Cheverton talk about their ongoing comic West, which has recently included horror tropes and guest artists plus their future plans for the title and its graphic novel collections. (This is the 300th radio show that Alex Fitch has made for Resonance FM! Congrats, Alex!)

Electric Sheep Film Club: Subversive Japanese Cinema

Electric Sheep and Strange Attractor present a screening of Sex Jack (1970, 69 mins), directed by yakuza-turned-filmmaker Kôji Wakamatsu and written by his politically engaged acolyte Masao Adachi. Set against the background of the 60s Japanese student movement, it follows a group of young revolutionaries who take refuge in the flat of a stranger. Screened at the Quinzaine des Réalisateurs at the 1971 Cannes festival, it remains one of Wakamatsu’s most striking works. With thanks to the French-based international label Dissidenz, which has recently released three Kôji Wakamatsu DVD box-sets.

Sex Jack will be preceded by the black and white animated tale Man-Eater Mountain (dir Naoyuki Niiya, 2008, 28 mins), which uses paper theatre to tell a gruesome folk tale. A couple of police inspectors and their guide take a serial killer to the mountains to find the bodies of his victims, but soon they face the demons that reside there Man-Eater Mountain is presented by Zipangu Fest, the first UK-wide festival devoted to Japanese film, which runs from 18 to 24 November.

The films will be followed by a talk with Jasper Sharp, author of Behind the Pink Curtain: The Complete History of Japanese Sex Cinema, director of Zipangu Fest and co-editor of the Japanese cinema website Midnight Eye, and Julian Ross, commissioning editor at Vertigo Magazine and programme coordinator for the Theatre Scorpio season at Close-Up Film Centre and the Art Theatre Guild season at the BFI Southbank in July-August 2011. The talk will be hosted by Electric Sheep editor Virginie Sélavy.

(The next screening will be in January and then on a monthly basis at The Horse Hospital arts club)

Doors at 7pm on 15h November, film at 7:30pm, talk at 9:30pm. Full details on the Horse Hospital website.

Panel Borders: Gendering Fantasy

Starting a month of shows about genre in comic books, Alex Fitch talks to the writers of two very different fantasy comics which show the wide range of approaches to the genre. At a signing in Orbital Comics, recorded in February, Alex talks to Jim Zubkavich about his popular Image Comics title Skullkickers and his web strip Makeshift Miracle, then in an interview recorded at last weekend’s MCM Expo, Joceline Fenton discusses her small press comic Hemlock. Both creators discuss the appearance of their comics online, the importance of well designed packaging for the collected editions and their other projects.

I’m ready for my close-up: Buried land / Scorched Earth, Friday 28th October at 5pm on Resonance FM, extended podcast afterwards on Electric Sheep

In this special Halloween themed episode of I’m ready for my close-up, Alex Fitch talks to three directors who have made films about man’s relationship with the land.

At this year’s Frightfest, Robyn Hardy discusses his classic horror film The Wicker Man and its new, belated thematic sequel The Wicker Tree, a pair of films about fertility and terrifying pagan rites, while Larry Fessenden talks about his eco-themed monster movies No Telling, Wendigo and The Last Winter.

Also, in a Q & A recorded at the East End Film Festival, Alex interviews Steven Eastwood, co-director of Buried Land, a ‘mockumentary’ / docudrama about the real-life discovery in a small town in Bosnia of an ancient, buried pyramid which may reinvent mankind’s knowledge of pre-Christian architecture and empire building, but in the short term has changed the fortunes of the people in the area.

Panel Borders: Gaslight and the body electric, Sunday 30th October at 8pm on Resonance FM

Concluding this month’s series of shows about new British comics, Alex Fitch talks to the creators of a pair of new Steampunk comics that mix classic comic book ideas with old and new storytelling techniques. Howard Hardiman discusses The Peckham Invalids, a new comic he’s written, illustrated by Julia Scheele and Sarah Gordon that features Edwardian, disabled homeless children with superpowers. Howard and Alex also talk about the return of the author’s beloved anthropomorphic title Badger, in a new zine / illustrated novella format and his recent experiences at art school.

Plus, in an interview recorded at the MCM Expo, Alex talks to Leah Moore, John Reppion and Emma Vieceli about their web comic, The Thrill Electric, which started this week on Channel 4′s website and tells the tale of sexual politics gang violence and the arrival of the telegraph in Victorian Manchester.

Panel Borders: Strip Magazine, tonight at 8pm on Resonance FM, extended podcast on Panel Borders afterwards

In a panel discussion recorded at the Bristol International Comics Expo, editor John Freeman introduces his new project ‘Strip Magazine‘, a British anthology comic with new strips by PJ Holden, John McCrea, Phil Hester, James Hudnall, John Ridgway and more – including a newly coloured and still uncut reprint of the classic Action strip, Hookjaw. John talks to Jim Alexander and Jasper Bark about the strips they’re contributing to his comic plus what we might expect from future issues and the parallel graphic novel publishing initiative being launched by Bosnian publishers Print Media Productions.

The Pulse: Shaun Tan, the human cyborg and The Ward, online at Sci-Fi London

In the pilot episode of SCI-FI-LONDON’s new video magazine show, we have three interviews with cult figures contributing to Sci-Fi and Fantasy culture. Chris Patmore talks to actress Lyndsy Fonseca about appearing in John Carpenter’s The Ward and to Rob Spence, a bona fide cyborg who has a removable camera eye! Alex Fitch talks to Oscar winning animator Shaun Tan about The Lost Thing and his recently published book of sketches. Presented by Lian Cooper, edited and filmed by Adam Davis and Taro Russell.

Reality Check: Fringe Event, online now at Sci-Fi London

In this edition, hosted by Chris Patmore, we really do take a reality check on two popular TV series that have just come out on DVD. For Fringe Season 3 we speak with Oxford University quantum physicist David Deutsch about the possible existence of parallel universes. For the release of The Event we speak with psychologist Dr Patrick Lehman about the fascination with conspiracy theories.

Previous podcasts:

Panel Borders: David B’s Black Paths

Concluding our month of shows on war comics and our four years of broadcasts on Thursday evenings, Alex Fitch talks to French graphic novelist David B about his new book Black Paths, which depicts a little known footnote to the First World War, as the defeated Austro-Hungarian Empire loses control of the city port of Fiume and we meet various eccentric characters trapped within the city walls. Alex and David also talk about the latter’s Ignatz Award winning comic book Epileptic and his work with the independent publishing company L’Association.