Author Archives: William the Bloody

About William the Bloody

Cat lover. 18C scholar on the dialogue and novel. Co-convenor OGOM Project

Phantasmagoria : The Dark Side of the Light

A fascinating short film with Mervyn Heard on the spooky spectacle of the late eighteenth-century/early nineteenth-century phantasmagoria and its uncanny foreshadowings of cinematic thrills. If this whets your appetite, come to the OGOM Company of Wolves Conference in September–we will … Continue reading

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Otranto: Gothic articles and resources

Otranto is a marvellous new project for publishing peer-reviewd online articles on the Gothic.

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Grandma, what a long history you have! The origins of “Little Red Riding Hood”

An interesting account by Tom Jacobs of the origins and dispersal of the Red Riding Hood tale. This is probably not such new and startling news as it proclaims, but that’s newspapers for you. And it begs a few questions … Continue reading

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Comedy Crib: Faeries, ‘Dry Spell’

Some entertainingly grimy urban faeries.

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Maria Tatar, ’10 Lesser-Known Fairy Tales That Should Get More Love’

Some of these tales I had heard of; others not, and my curiosity has been strongly stirred. The expert on folklore Maria Tatar gives a precis here of a variety of vivid tales from Italy, Japan, West Africa, and elsewhere … Continue reading

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Interdisciplinary Gothic Event and Exhibition, Birmingham, 17 April 2015–2 May 2015

On Saturday 2nd May 2015, Birmingham City University will be hosting an Interdisciplinary Gothic Event and Exhibition at the Library of Birmingham, organised by Serena Trowbridge in the School of English. The event will consist of several talks between 20 … Continue reading

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17 of March 2015’s Best YA Books

The YA novels listed here look very exciting, and many have a Gothic, paranormal tinge to them, featuring witches, ghosts, and so on. I have to confess to not knowing any of these but I’ll be investigating them!

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Neck of the Woods, Manchester International Festival, Fri 10 Jul 2015 – Sat 18 Jul 2015

Not quite werewolves, but obviously of interest to those exploring those boundaries between wolf and human that the werewolf narrative explores. Neck of the Woods–a multimedia performance on the wolf–looks very intriguing: MIF has invited Turner Prize-winning artist Douglas Gordon … Continue reading

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Happy 18th, Buffy!

My interest in vampire fiction and subsequent exploration of the genre of paranormal romance was initially aroused by the now-classic TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which is eighteen years old today. Created by Joss Whedon and combining wit and … Continue reading

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Caryl Churchill, The Skriker, with Maxine Peake, Manchester Royal Exchange, 3 July 2015-1 August 2015

This performance of Caryl Churchill, The Skriker, with Maxine Peake looks fabulous; I’d not, I’m ashamed to admit, heard of this play before. Very appropriately, I’ve just finished my chapter on werewolf narratives, ‘”But by blood no wolf am I”: Language … Continue reading

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