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Greg Pickersgill
Greg Pickersgill (born 1951), is a British science fiction fan. Pickersgill's love of science fiction led him into UK fandom where he has been involved in both fan-writing and convention-running. He joined the BSFA in 1967, and began writing reviews for the Association's magazine, ''Vector'', in 1968. His fanzines include ''Fouler'', ''Ritblat'', ''Stop Breaking Down'', and ''Rastus Johnson's Cakewalk''. Convention activities include developing British fanrooms in the 1970s, fanrooms at the 1987 and 1995 Worldcons and the 2000 Eastercon, and a key role in the British Mexicons of the 1980s. He created the ''Memory Hole'' (a combined permanent fanzine collection and redistribution system), the former Memory Hole internet forum (for discussing reading, collecting and archiving science fiction fanzines) and helped set up The Mexicon Hat (a charitable fund to assist projects related to British fandom; beneficiaries included the journal '' Critical Wave''). A collection of Pickersgill ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Science Fiction Fandom
Science fiction fandom or SF fandom is a community or fandom of people interested in science fiction in contact with one another based upon that interest. SF fandom has a life of its own, but not much in the way of formal organization (although formal clubs such as the Futurians (1937–1945) and the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society (1934–present) are recognized examples of organized fandom). Most often called simply "fandom" within the community, it can be viewed as a distinct subculture, with its own literature and jargon; marriages and other relationships among fans are common, as are multi-generational fan families. Origins and history Science fiction fandom started through the letter column of Hugo Gernsback's fiction magazines. Not only did fans write comments about the stories—they sent their addresses, and Gernsback published them. Soon, fans were writing letters directly to each other, and meeting in person when they lived close together, or when one of them ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
63rd World Science Fiction Convention
The 63rd World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), also known as ''Interaction'', was held on 4–8 August 2005 at the SEC Centre with the attached SEC Armadillo and Moat House Hotel in Glasgow, United Kingdom. Parties took place at the Hilton Hotel. The organising committee was co-chaired by Colin Harris and Vincent Docherty. This convention was also the 2005 Eurocon. Participants Attendance was 4,115, out of 5,202 paid memberships. The members represented 35 different nationalities, of which the largest contingents were from the United States and the United Kingdom. Guests of Honour * Greg Pickersgill * Christopher Priest (novelist), Christopher Priest * Robert Sheckley * Lars-Olov Strandberg * Jane Yolen Special guests * Alan Lee (illustrator), Alan Lee * Professor David Southwood Participating writers and artists In addition to the guests of honour, notable participating science fiction and fantasy writers and artists included: Awards 2005 Hugo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1951 Births
Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United Kingdom announces abandonment of the Tanganyika groundnut scheme for the cultivation of peanuts in the Tanganyika Territory, with the writing off of £36.5M debt. * January 15 – In a court in West Germany, Ilse Koch, The "Witch of Buchenwald", wife of the commandant of the Buchenwald concentration camp, is sentenced to life imprisonment. * January 20 – Winter of Terror: Avalanches in the Alps kill 240 and bury 45,000 for a time, in Switzerland, Austria and Italy. * January 21 – Mount Lamington in Papua New Guinea erupts catastrophically, killing nearly 3,000 people and causing great devastation in Oro Province. * January 25 – Dutch author Anne de Vries releases the first volume of his children's novel '' Journey Through ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Novacon
Novacon is an annual science fiction convention, usually held each November in the English Midlands. Launched in 1971, it has been hosted by the Birmingham Science Fiction Group since 1972. History The first Novacon was organised by the University of Aston Science Fiction Group in November 1971, at a time when the Eastercon was the only regular annual sf convention in the UK. The first Novacon was judged a success and its members voted to make it an annual event. The organisation was passed to the recently formed Birmingham Science Fiction Group to ensure continuity from year to year. Since then, Novacon has developed into a fan-centred rather than academic convention, based around a single-stream, structured programme and intended to let its members network and socialise, as well as attend programme items; there are usually also several science-oriented items. Nova Awards The annual Nova Awards are presented at Novacon. These are given in the categories of Best Fanzine, Best Fan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
TransAtlantic Fan Fund
The Trans-Atlantic Fan Fund, often known as ''TAFF'', is a crowdfunding project created in 1953 for the purpose of providing funds to bring well-known and popular members of science fiction fandom familiar to fans on both sides of the ocean, across the Atlantic. History The first international fan fund, the ''Big Pond Fund'', was established to get Ted Carnell to the 1947 Worldcon, though it was the 1949 Worldcon he eventually attended. TAFF's roots lie in the successful effort to bring Walt Willis to the 1952 Worldcon in Chicago. Willis published the founding document for TAFF in ''Hyphen'' 4 (October 1953) following a discussion with "the available leaders of British fandom" at that year's Coroncon. Since that time TAFF has regularly brought North American fans to European conventions and European fans to North American conventions. The success of TAFF has inspired other regular fan funds between North America and Australia, Europe and Australia, and even Eastern and West ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Magazine Of Fantasy And Science Fiction
''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher and J. Francis McComas had approached Spivak in the mid-1940s about creating a fantasy companion to Spivak's existing mystery title, ''Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine''. The first issue was titled ''The Magazine of Fantasy'', but the decision was quickly made to include science fiction as well as fantasy, and the title was changed correspondingly with the second issue. ''F&SF'' was quite different in presentation from the existing science fiction magazines of the day, most of which were in pulp format: it had no interior illustrations, no letter column, and text in a single column format, which in the opinion of science fiction historian Mike Ashley "set ''F&SF'' apart, giving it the air and authority of a superior magazine". ''F&SF'' qu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Algis Budrys
Algirdas Jonas "Algis" Budrys (January 9, 1931 – June 9, 2008) was a Lithuanian-American science fiction author, editor, and critic. He was also known under the pen names Frank Mason, Alger Rome (in collaboration with Jerome Bixby), John A. Sentry, William Scarff, and Paul Janvier. He is known for the influential 1960 novel ''Rogue Moon''. Biography Budrys was born in Königsberg (today's Kaliningrad) in the then East Prussia, Germany. His father Jonas Budrys was the consul general of Lithuania; as a child he saw Adolf Hitler in a parade in the city. In 1936, when Budrys was five years old, Jonas was appointed as the consul general in New York, instead of Paris as he had hoped. After the Soviet Union's occupation of Lithuania, the Budrys family ran a chicken farm in New Jersey while Jonas remained part of the exile Lithuanian Diplomatic Service, since the United States continued to recognize the pre-World War II Lithuanian diplomats. During most of his adult life, Budry ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
David Langford
David Rowland Langford (born 10 April 1953) is a British author, editor, and critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science fiction fanzine and newsletter ''Ansible'', and holds the all-time record for most Hugo Awards, with a total of 29 wins. Personal background David Langford was born and grew up in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales before studying for a degree in Physics at Brasenose College, Oxford, where he first became involved in science fiction fandom. Langford is married to Hazel and is the brother of the musician and artist Jon Langford. His first job was as a weapons physicist at the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment at Aldermaston, Berkshire from 1975 to 1980. In 1985 he set up a "tiny and informally run software company" with science fiction writer Christopher Priest, called Ansible Information after Langford's news-sheet. The company has ceased trading. Increasing hearing difficulties have reduced Langford's participation i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Critical Wave
''Critical Wave'', later subtitled "The European Science Fiction & Fantasy Review", was a British small-press magazine, initially published and co-edited by Steve Green and Martin Tudor during the period 1987-96. There was also a short-lived US edition in the late 1980s. Many authors and artists contributed to the original 46 issues, including Graham Joyce, Michael Moorcock, David A Hardy, Stephen Baxter, Colin Greenland, Charles Stross, Joel Lane, Iain M Banks, Arthur "ATom" Thomson, David A. Hardy, Iain Byers, Dave Mooring, Jim Porter, Sue Mason, Michael Marrak, Harry Turner and Kevin Cullen. Once ''Critical Wave'' became fully typeset, Kevin Clarke joined as resident designer. Despite the immense enthusiasm displayed by many of its readers, ''Critical Wave'' only continued to appear with extensive financial input from its editors and key supporters. It eventually buckled under the pressure of increasing print costs, postage and bank charges, and announced its closure in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Science Fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel universes, extraterrestrial life, sentient artificial intelligence, cybernetics, certain forms of immortality (like mind uploading), and the singularity. Science fiction predicted several existing inventions, such as the atomic bomb, robots, and borazon, whose names entirely match their fictional predecessors. In addition, science fiction might serve as an outlet to facilitate future scientific and technological innovations. Science fiction can trace its roots to ancient mythology. It is also related to fantasy, horror, and superhero fiction and contains many subgenres. Its exact definition has long been disputed among authors, critics, scholars, and readers. Science fiction, in literature, film, television, and other media, has beco ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Science Fiction Fanzine
A science-fiction fanzine is an amateur or semi-professional magazine published by members of science-fiction fandom, from the 1930s to the present day. They were one of the earliest forms of fanzine, within one of which the term "''fanzine''" was coined, and at one time constituted the primary type of science-fictional fannish activity ("fanac"). Origins and history The first science-fiction fanzine, ''The Comet'', was published in 1930 by the Science Correspondence Club in Chicago. The term "fanzine" was neologism, coined by Russ Chauvenet in the October 1940 issue of his fanzine ''Detours''. in "Science Fiction Citations" for the Oxford English Dictionary "Fanzines" were distinguished from "prozines", that is, all professional magazines. Prior to that, the fan publications were known as "fanmags" or "letterzines." Traditionally, science-fiction fan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
