A podcast about science fiction and SF fandom from John Coxon, Alison Scott, and Liz Batty.
Episodes
Thursday Jul 04, 2024
Thursday Jul 04, 2024
John is doing Discord, Liz is doing programme, and Alison isn’t working on the Worldcon.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, 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
- Karen Schaffer
- Chris Garcia
- Peter Sullivan
- Kat Kourbeti
- Facebook
- Farah Mendlesohn
- Mike Scott
- Malcolm Hutchison
- Jonny Baddeley
- Glasgow 2024
- Glasgow 2024 Worldcon Community Group on Facebook
- Cerebus
- Why is Alison collecting a big pile of con badges?
- The Streisand Effect
- (I know I got it slightly wrong in the episode!)
- The Streisand Effect
- Awards
- Antipodes
- Brisbane in 2028
- File 770 report (with details of their socials/mailing list)
- Worldcon 1939
- Minneapolis in 2073: Progress Report 11
- Torched by Alissa Walker
- Continuity 2024
- The 2024 New Zealand NatCon
- John spent ages assuming that the above was just the online portal, but it is in fact the convention website
- There is some backstory on this at SFFANZ
- Brisbane in 2028
- Picks
- John: Alan Wake 2
- Saga Anderson’s sweater
- I didn’t mention it on the podcast at all and it’s just for you, the show note reader, but I was watching this sketch when I was waiting for Alison and Liz this morning: ”Beavis and Butt-Head” from SNL
- Alison: Animal Well
- Liz: Will Anderson’s YouTube channel about Scrabble
- John: Alan Wake 2
- Credits
- Cover art: “Massive Lizard” by Alison Scott
- Alt text: Three stick figures run from Godzilla, who is depicted in the style of Godzilla Minus One. The words “Octothorpe 113” used to be at the top of the art, but Godzilla has knocked off the letters “O C T O”, is holding “H”, and is trying to eat “T”.
- Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
- Cover art: “Massive Lizard” by Alison Scott
Friday Jun 21, 2024
Friday Jun 21, 2024
John was gaming, Alison was dancing, and Liz was batty.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, or tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Wealth privilege (chapter 3)
- Letters of comment
- Chris Garcia
- Curt Phillips
- David Ian Salter
- Ersatz Culture
- Peter Sullivan
- Sandra Bond
- Levitation (Eastercon 2024)
- FunCon
- UK Games Expo
- Glasgow 2024 (Worldcon 2024)
- Picks
- John: The Beast
- Alison: Baldur’s Gate 3
- Liz: Godzilla Minus One (Netflix)
- Credits
- Cover art: “That Octothorpe Series” by España Sheriff
- Alt text: John, Alison and Liz stand in the transporter on a Constitution-class Federation starship. They are mid-transportation, made of sparkles instead of fully fleshed out. The words “Octothorpe 112” appear beneath them.
- Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
- Cover art: “That Octothorpe Series” by España Sheriff
Thursday Jun 06, 2024
Thursday Jun 06, 2024
John, Alison, and Liz read the 2024 Hugo Award finalists for Best Novel.
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: Rape and murder during a brief discussion of historically accurate piracy in Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi, discussion of billionaires during Starter Villain
- John’s rankings:
- Some Desperate Glory
- Translation State
- Saint of Bright Doors
- Witch King
- Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
- Starter Villain
- Alison’s rankings:
- Saint of Bright Doors
- Some Desperate Glory
- Translation State
- Witch King
- Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
- Starter Villain
- Liz’s rankings:
- Some Desperate Glory
- Saint of Bright Doors
- Translation State
- Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
- Witch King
- Starter Villain
- Consensus:
- Some Desperate Glory
- Saint of Bright Doors
- Translation State
- Witch King
- Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi
- Starter Villain
- 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 text “Octothorpe 111” and “Hugo Novels 2024” appears to the top and the bottom of the image.
- Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
- Cover art: “Favourite Reading Positions” by Sue Mason
Friday May 24, 2024
Friday May 24, 2024
John is a professor, Alison doesn’t have a bucket list, and Liz is the country’s foremost fan historian.
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: More wealth privilege (chapter 2)
- Letters of comment
- Bridget Bradshaw
- Christopher J Garcia
- Farah Mendlesohn
- Jonathan Cowie
- Jonny Baddeley
- Kin-Ming Looi
- Sandra Bond
- Tammy Coxen
- Awards
- Babel wins “Best Translated Work” at the 2024 Xingyun Awards
- Clarke Award finalists
- John: 0, Alison: 1, Liz: 3
- The winner will be announced on 24 July
- 2024 Nebula Awards
- 2023 Nebula Awards
- Locus Awards
- Glasgow 2024
- Picks
- John: Sunderland Shorts Film Festival
- Soulmate, Beautiful Things, Ensouled, Finger Food, Bisected, Own Home?, R1CO, The First Time I Never Met You
- Wes Anderson’s short adaptations of Roald Dahl
- Alison: Aurora
- Liz: A Man on the Moon by Andrew Chaikin [paper, ebook, audiobook, Amazon]
- John: Sunderland Shorts Film Festival
- Credits
- Cover art: “Explain 2233” by Alison Scott
- Alt text: Three photographs of the night sky, labelled Newcastle, Bangkok, and “Quite near London” (the labels were written by a Londoner, which is why it doesn’t just say “London”). Text above reads “Octothorpe 110” and below reads “Local Aurora Snapshots”. The Newcastle and London images show photographs of aurora with some minor bits of vegetation intruding; the Bangkok picture shows a skyline of buildings underneath a thunderstorm.
- Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
- Cover art: “Explain 2233” by Alison Scott
Thursday May 09, 2024
Thursday May 09, 2024
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
- Caroline Mullan
- DC
- Farah Mendlesohn
- 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.
- Dave Langford receives the trophy
- GUFF
- Chengdu 2023
- Glasgow 2024
- Eastercon and money
- Picks
- 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)
- Cover art: “Voyagers” by Ulrika O’Brien
Thursday Apr 25, 2024
Thursday Apr 25, 2024
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
- Andy Openshaw
- Chris Garcia
- DC’s loc
- Meg MacDonald
- Nuala on Bluesky: sorry!
- Raj recommends pizza crunch
- Raj on Mastodon
- Eastercon 2024
- Telford
- Catchup
- Dealers’ room
- 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)
- Cover art: “Vibrant Food Culture” by Alison Scott
Thursday Apr 11, 2024
Thursday Apr 11, 2024
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!
- April Fool’s Day
- The Hugo Awards
- Hugo Award finalists
- The announcement video
- Thank you to everyone who nominated us!
- Congratulations to the other Fancast finalists:
- The first Town Hall will be on 20 April 2024
- Three Black Halflings
- Tammy Coxen
- The Glasgow Gimlet
- Tammy’s Tastings
- Tammy’s podcast, My Tiny Bottles
- Bigolas Dickolas
- Gallifrey One
- BSFA
- Picks
- John: Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace (Channel 4)
- Alison: Eastercon catch-up
- Nicholas:
- 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)
- Cover art: “Octothorpe at Levitation” by Sue Dawson
Thursday Mar 28, 2024
Thursday Mar 28, 2024
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
- Eastercon
- Awards
- Nebula Award finalists
- 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
- 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)
- Cover art: “Podcasting Is Magic” by Alison Scott
Thursday Mar 14, 2024
Thursday Mar 14, 2024
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
- ErsatzCulture and Raj
- España Sheriff
- 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)
- Cover art: Liz’s Bedtime Reading by Alison Scott
Thursday Feb 29, 2024
Thursday Feb 29, 2024
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
- Fan Artist
- Fan Writer
- Fancast
- Going Rogue
- Game/Interactive Work
- Video games
- Tabletop games
- Galactic Starcruiser
- 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
- 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)
- Cover art: “Favourite Reading Positions” by Sue Mason