This chapter of The Swipe is dedicated to Christine Wickings, 80 years young yesterday. So much of what I am and do and how I act is thanks to her. If you hear a strange electrical crackle and low thrum of energy coming from the east, that will be Clan Wicko gathering in Essex to celebrate our matriarch, our queen. We know how to party hearty. Blessings be upon my lovely mum.
This week: fake beer, funny birds and sexy Star Trek. Let’s make it so!
Wherever you are, whenever you are, however you are, welcome to The Swipe.
Rob is reading…
In counterpart to last week’s Fence piece on how to get published, Susanna Breslin offers more practical tips for a career in writing. There is some seriously useful stuff in here.
Rob is watching…
That weird show where Jay Blades and Del-Boy Granville totter around various steam fairs and county shows chatting to makers, hobbyists and tinkerers. The 6:30 BBC2 slot has developed into serious comfort telly and I for one am all up for it. Worth it for the collective bewilderment around cosplay. Please, check the moment where knight of the realm David Jason speeds around a car park in a motorised La-Z-Boy.
Rob is listening…
To The Breeders covering Guided By Voices. Extremely pertinent to my interests and, I hope, yours.
Rob is drinking…
Tutts Clump Cider—because it’s great, but also to support a brilliant local (to me) business who have been kicked hard in the tenders by the pandemic. If you see Tutts Clump on your travels, pick up a bottle. Alternatively, drop them a tenner through their GoFundMe. Please, don’t let a fantastic British food story fade out to a sad ending.
Rob’s Low-Key Obsession Of The Week…
How To Comment On Social Media. Can I stress, I don’t do this. Any more. You learn from your mistakes, OK?
I was unaware that there were trends in restaurant menus, but did have a lovely time browsing this NYT presentation of fine new examples of the form. I love typography. I love esoteric printing techniques. I love workplace ephemera. This lil rabbit found a hole to dive into.
You don’t know Nicholas Saunders. But you should. Because I guarantee his work has touched your life in some small way.
Please, please, watch this lovely animation, the vision of French director Charlie Belin. It takes a lot of work to create something this simple, sweet and lovely.
That moment when you reach out to touch an object, and the weight of history presses back into your palm.
Jack Latham’s images of click farms are equal parts mundane and eerie. This, I’m sorry to say, is what the future looks like.
On the whole, I think I could be persuaded into one of these at the end of a meal.
This genuinely reconfigured my opinion of Blade Runner 2049. If you’re uninterested in Denis Villeneuve’s sequel to the SF classic, there’s still good reason to look at this post, as it digs into writing, acting and the surprising cross points which come out of nowhere and lead to incredible cinematic moments. Also, further proof that Ryan Gosling is one of the most cheerfully experimental actors working today.
Those of us who know about Star Trek fan fiction will not be surprised at the horniness of the franchise. For everyone else—let’s boldly go.
I love fictitious brands, but Heisler passed me by until today, so I’m happy to share. Mine’s a Heisler Gold, cold as you can get it.
Joel Morris, whose new book on comedy looks like a must-buy, describes the release of Technotronic’s Pump Up The Jam as a still point in history, and how that is funny. I will admit I was grim-faced at the start and on the floor cackling by the end. Joel knows of which he speaks.
We Outro with Tom Waits, and a collaborative attempt to document his dizzying sideshow Glitter And Doom which touched down briefly on these shores in 2009. Apparently he’s working on new material. HURRY UP YOU SLACKER.
See you in seven, fellow travellers.
EXCUSES AND HALF TRUTHS 