Marie O'Regan

December

Above is the cover and internals of the article Marie contributed to The Dark Side about the stunning new BBC 1 series Apparitions, featuring interviews with writer/director Joe Ahearne and star Martin Shaw. To read interviews with both online that Marie conducted, click here and here.

But to read some of Marie’s latest book reviews on the Dreamwatch Presents Total Sci-Fi site, mentioned in previous news sections, click here, here and here.

Marie has a story in the forthcoming FantasyCon edition of Estronomicon (above with the Vincent Chong artwork), called ‘Cut to the Chase’; a taut serial killer tale. For more details visit the Screaming Dreams site here.

Marie will also be reading a brand new story, 'In The Howling of the Wind', at 'Christmas Spirits', the ghost reading night in Derby on 3rd December in Derby, at the Voicebox. Mark Chadbourn and Alex Davis will also be reading, and full details of how to book can be found here. This story will also appear in the Christmas edition of Estronomicon (cover below). For more details visit the Screaming Dreams site here.

Marie has just completed three pieces of non-fiction for a forthcoming issue of Shroud magazine. To tie in with the publisher’s new character line The Scandalous Misadventures of Hiram Grange, the articles deal with his favourite weapon Webley Mark VI handgun, his favourite tipple of Absinthe, and also the notion of Geographical Confluences – whereby supernatural occurrences are worse where murders or natural disasters have taken place. Keep checking this site and also the Shroud site here for more details.

Marie has also been busy revamping both author Tony Richards’ site here, and artist Michelle Blessemaille’s site here. She has also found time to typeset the new charity anthology by the Wingerworth Wordsmiths (from the Read-Us site she maintains): Perspectives. More details about this next month.

If you want to catch up with Marie before then, though, you can meet her in person at the BFS Open Night at Ye Olde Cock Tavern on 5th December from 6pm onwards.

 

November

Following up her review of The Graveyard Book for Dreamwatch, Marie was invited to do an interview with Neil Gaiman in London last month. There she chatted with him about his new novel, and attended the launch party for it in the evening (above). The interview will appear in a forthcoming issue of The Dark Side magazine.

In the next issue of Dark Side, however, you can find Marie’s piece on the new BBC supernatural drama Apparitions (above) – see previous news sections for more details. This will include exclusive interviews with both the show’s writer Joe Ahearne and its star, Martin Shaw. You can pick up your copy on 17th November.

And finally in terms of non-fiction, Marie has just read and reviewed the new Stephen King short story collection, Just After Sunset. You can read this on the Dreamwatch Presents Total Sci-Fi site shortly.

On the fiction front, Marie has just written a brand new story for the premiere issue of New Voices in Fiction (above). ‘Playtime’ is an extremely creepy supernatural tale which should satisfy fans of Marie’s fiction from Mirror Mere.

Marie has also been busy with website work, updating the Read-Us Writers site at www.read-us.com

To finish off this month, we can tell you that Marie spent her Halloween on the set of Dread, the latest in a string of adaptations from Clive Barker’s Books of Blood (after Midnight Meat Train and Book of Blood). Directed by Anthony DiBlasi and starring Twilight’s Jackson Rathbone (above), this is the chilling tale of Quaid and his experiments in fear. More news as and when about this, but expect a set report in the very near future. In the meantime, here are some pictures from the Dread Halloween party…

The cast and crew enjoy a well-earned drink.

 

Making a movie can cost an arm and a leg…well, maybe just an arm.

 

Producer Jorge Saralegui (left) with friend.

 

A zombie relaxing with a lager.

October

Marie is happy to report that she had a wonderful time at FantasyCon 2008 (see last month for more details on Guests and Panels). Her first as Co-Chair of the Organising Committee, her last as Chair of the BFS, it was a bitter-sweet experience but one which she will always remember. Above you can see the beautiful Souvenir Booklet with Dave McKean artwork, edited by Marie and Paul Kane (together below). Also below is a candid snapshot of MC Christopher Fowler introducing the event and finally people enjoying themselves over the weekend. A proper pictorial record of the event will be online here very soon, so keep checking back.

Photo © Peter Coleborn

MC, Christopher Fowler

Photos © Paul Kane

  

Prior to FCon, Marie was also at the York and London Open Nights at the beginning of September, attended by the likes of Simon Clark (author of Midnight Man, above left), Michael Marshall Smith (author of The Servants) and Stephen Jones (whose Mammoth Book of Best New Horror Vol. 19 – also above, right – was actually launched at FantasyCon).

On the website front, Marie has just completed updates of author Tony Richards’ personal web presence at www.richardsreality.com. Here she has posted all the latest news about Tony’s new novel from HarperCollins, Dark Rain (above).

Finally, Marie has just finished reading an advance copy of Neil Gaiman’s The GraveyardBook – with cover and internal artwork by FCon Guest Dave McKean (above) – and she will be reviewing this title for the Dreamwatch website. Marie has given the book an excellent 10/10, and you can check it out yourself when it’s released at Halloween.

September

Last month Marie had the great pleasure of interviewing Martin Shaw (above) ahead of his appearance as Father Jacob in the BBC series Apparitions. Martin chatted to Marie about his work on the show, and about what he thinks the appeal of the supernatural is. You can read the interview on DreamwatchPresents Total Sci-Fi very soon, as will a review of the first episode which Marie can report was absolutely riveting. Look out for this going online on 31st October.

Marie has also written a piece for The Dark Side magazine (above) about Apparitions, which will feature in their November edition.

Marie is one of the main organisers of this year’s FantasyCon, held in Nottingham from 19th – 21st September at the Britannia Hotel. Guests of Honour are author of Poison Ink and The Lost Ones, Christopher Golden, MirrorMask director and Coraline artist Dave McKean, and ‘Chronicles of the Raven’ creator James Barclay – with Old Devil Moon and Full Dark House author Christopher Fowler as a very capable MC.

      

For a fun packed weekend full of panels, chat, film shows, a banquet and the presentation of the British Fantasy Society Awards, book now by going to the website here.

Marie will sadly be stepping down as Chair of the BFS at this year’s Annual General Meeting. It’s been a brilliant experience and she wants to thank everyone who’s helped and given her support and advice over the past four years. She’ll still remain a member of the BFS, though, and will be in attendance at other events – such as the BFS Open Night at Ye Olde Cock Tavern in London on 5th September.

Finally, in other work, Marie has updated award-winning Elastic Press’ website with new material which you can view at www.elasticpress.com.

And she typeset the latest British Fantasy Society Special Publication, Houses on the Borderland, a collection of supernatural novellas edited by David A. Sutton, featuring Paul Finch, Allen Ashley, Gary Fry, Samantha Lee, Simon Bestwick and David A. Riley.

 

August

Marie's hard at work with FantasyCon in the run up to the Convention - if you haven't booked your place yet there's still time to do so, at www.fantasycon.org.uk. It promises to be a great weekend, and details will be going up on the FantasyCon site very soon. She has, however, managed to fit in some non-BFS work as well, see below:

Marie’s interview with Joe Ahearne about his new show Apparitions (above, starring Martin Shaw) will be up on the Dreamwatch Presents Total Sci-Fi site very soon. In the meantime you can read a couple more interviews that Marie conducted in print format…

First up, you’ll find her interview with Changeling and Species II director Peter Medak in issue 4 of the magazine Shroud (above). To visit their website, click here.

And in the new issue of Dark Side magazine, there’s the interview Marie and Paul Kane did with Unmarked Graves author Shaun Hutson, where he talks about his life and work (above).

Also in non-fiction news, Marie is reviewing Tim Lebbon’s new Noreela novel Fallen (above) for Dreamwatch. We’ll link to this when it’s up.

Last but not least, Marie had a wonderful time at the BFS Awards Showcase last month, photos from which you can enjoy below:

Brian Aldiss

David Devereaux

Gillian Redfearn of Gollancz speaks about the Gollancz recommendees: David Devereaux, Joe Abercrombie, Joe Hill.

 

July

Marie was delighted to be able to interview TV genre maestro Joe Ahearne last month. Joe was the creator/writer of hip vampire series Ultraviolet, starring Jack Davenport, and director of the pilot and several episodes of Strange, starring Samantha Janus (both above). In the interview, Joe talked about his new series for the BBC, the supernatural drama Apparitions, which airs later this year and stars Martin Shaw (below). More details about when and where you’ll be able to read this in a future news update.

On the website front, Marie has just finished updates of artist Michelle Blessemaille and author/editor Allen Ashley’s websites. You can check these out at www.michelleblessemaille.com and www.allenashley.com respectively.

Marie’s interview with bestselling author Michael Marshall Smith that she conducted has now appeared in issue 3 of Shroud magazine (below).

Marie had a great time at June’s BFS Open Night and you can see a couple of pictures below from that. She will next be at the BFS Award Showcase at the same venue, Ye Olde Cock Tavern, Fleet Street, on 19th July. Hopefully she’ll see some of you there.

 

June

We kick off this month with review news, and Marie has just turned in a piece on John Connolly’s new novel The Reapers for The Hub magazine which should be appearing shortly. The latest in his series of Charlie Parker thrillers, this time Parker is relegated to the back seat whilst Angel and Louis take centre stage - and Marie was delighted to report that it’s up to John’s usual excellent standards. Look out for both the review and the novel out at a bookstore hear you now.

For the same publication Marie has also just reviewed the new horror movie, Five Across the Eyes. Following a group of young girls who get lost in a car and then chased by another, demented driver, the film is shot in a handheld way à la Blair Witch Project. You can find out what Marie thought of it when the review is published soon.

Marie also found time, in amongst scripting work this past month, to update author Tony Richards’ website with news about his forthcoming collection Passport to Purgatory (above). To visit ‘Richard’s Reality’, just click here.

Finally, Marie typeset the brand new publication for the British Fantasy Society last month:A Dick and Jane Primer for Adults (above), edited by Lavie Tidhar and featuring Conrad Williams, Adam Roberts, James Lovegrove, with an introduction by Jeff Vandermeer. This publication is only available to members of the BFS, so join today in order to get yours.

Marie will be attending the BFS Open Night on 6th June from 6pm onwards at Ye Olde Cock Tavern, Fleet Street, so come along and join in the fun.

May

You can find not one, but two interviews Marie has conducted with bestselling author Michael Marshall Smith (above), firstly in the May/June issue of Shroud magazine and also in the June edition of Writing Magazine. In both Michael talks about his life, his work and his excellent new book, The Servants, which has just come out from HarperCollins (below) so be sure to pick them up.

In the review stakes, Marie has written about the new DVD releases Megasnake, Snoop Dog’s Hood Of Horror and Ghost in the Shell – Laughing Man OVA (below) all for Dreamwatch, which you can find by clicking here.

     

Marie recently updated the site of award-winning Elastic Press, with news of releases from Gareth L. Powell (The Last Reef) and Chris Beckett (The Turing Test) both below. To head on over to the site just click here.

  

Finally, below you can see a selection of photos from Derby’s Alt.Fiction which Marie attended in April.

Organiser Alex Davis

Sarah Pinborough, Mark Morris, Simon Clark and Tim Lebbon

Graham Joyce, Michael Marshall Smith

Philip Palmer

Mike Carey

April

Last month Marie typeset another in the popular ‘Angel’ series by Mike Ripley for Telos Books. Following on from Just Another Angel, Angel Touch and Angel Hunt, comes Angel on the Inside. For more details about the release and previous publications in the Telos line, visit the website at www.telos.co.uk.

Marie was also delighted to be invited on set at Black Island Studios, London, to watch some of the post production work on the new Book of Blood movie (above), the second of Midnight Pictures’ releases after Midnight Meat Train. There she got to see the effects being done on the impressive ‘Army of the Dead’ which will plague both Jonas Armstrong and Sophie Ward in the film (see previous news sections). The set visit, which will form part of her report for Dreamwatch Presents Total Sci-Fi, also allowed her the opportunity to meet up with Clive Barker again, who she hasn’t seen since FantasyCon 2006 where he was a Guest of Honour. A great time was had by all and Marie thoroughly enjoyed herself.

  

On the review front, Marie has turned in pieces on both Conrad Williams new horror novel, The Unblemished (above) and Maria V. Snyder’s second entry in her fantasy ‘Study’ series, Magic Study (also above). Both of these you can read on Dreamwatch Presents Total Sci-Fi soon.

You can also see what Marie had to say about the new Richard Kelly film Southland Tales over on Pantechnicon. The ‘follow-up’ to Donnie Darko, this SF/Thriller stars Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Sarah Michelle Gellar as Krysta Now (below). To check out the review right now just click here.

Marie will be attending Alt.Fiction at the Assembly Rooms in Derby this month, on 26th to be precise. This is the third year she’s attended and the line-up is no less impressive this time around, featuring such luminaries as Brian Lumley, Mike Carey, Simon Spurrier, Michael Marshall Smith, Eric Brown, Mark Morris, Stephen Gallagher, Sarah Ash, Sarah Pinborough, the aforementioned Conrad Williams and many more. Tickets can be booked directly from the Assembly Rooms Box Office on 01332 255800 for £20/£16 concessions, or contact Alex Davis on alex.davis@derby.gov.uk.

March

Following on from her piece in Fortean Times Marie’s article about black magician Aleister Crowley is appearing in March’s edition of Shroud magazine. In it she examines the life and history of the man some called The Great Beast. Pick up your copy soon by visiting the website here

A review roundup now, and we begin with the DVD release of Blackwater Valley Exorcism (above) which Marie cover for Dreamwatch Presents Total Sci-Fi. A rural take on the exorcism sub-genre you can check out what Marie thought of this by going to the site here. She has also just completed a review of the forthcoming Ramsey Campbell book from Virgin, The Grin of the Dark (below).

Marie has also reviewed the book for The Hub magazine, plus the DVD release of the outstanding new series Jericho which follows the survivors of a nuclear war (below).

Marie had a wonderful time at the latest British Fantasy Society Open Night and Basil Copper book launch (see last month for details). A good night was had by all and, to prove it, here are some of the photographs.

The book display at Ye Olde Cock Tavern

The assembled revellers…

Publisher of the book and owner of PS, Peter Crowther introduces the signers, the first of which is Michael Marshall Smith (left)

Including the editor and compiler Stephen Jones (left), Basil Copper himself (right) and Basil’s wife Anne (middle)

Author and critic Kim Newman is in attendance.

The signing in full flow.

Hellraiser star Doug Bradley at the event.

Copies of Basil Copper, A Life in Books can be obtained from PS publishing here

 

February

Marie was recently invited along to a set visit of the new adaptation of Clive Barker’s Book of Blood. Directed by John Harrison (who brought us the Sc-Fi Channel version of Dune) it stars BBC TV’s Robin Hood, Jonas Armstrong as Simon McNeal, Sophie Ward as Mary Florescu and Hellraiser’s Doug ‘Pinhead’ Bradley as Tollington. More news about when and where this will appear later on, but in the meantime you can read a production diary by producer Joe Daley on the Revelations site here.

Marie has been busy again reviewing for Dreamwatch Presents Total Sci-Fi. First up, are reviews she has done of the Canadian TV series Blood Ties based on the novels from Tanya Huff (above). In addition, she also passed comment on the films Like Minds, Furnace, and the brand new novel from Stephen King: Duma Key (below).

Marie enjoyed this one so much, she reviewed it for The Hub as well, alongside Old Devil Moon, Blood Ties, Day Watch and Dr Who Beneath the Surface, which gathers together three of the aquatic adventures from classic Who – starring Jon Pertwee and Peter Davidson (below).

On the web design front, Marie has just finished major updates for three of her clients. The first is BFS award-winner Allen Ashley, who can be found at www.allenashley.com. The second is French artist Michelle Blessemaille and you can find new galleries by visiting the site at www.michelleblessemaille.com. Lastly, another award-winner: this time publisher Andrew Hook’s Elastic press, which you can find at www.elasticpress.com .

News now of the publication of an interview we told you about a little while ago. In the latest issue of Dark Side magazine (above) you can find an interview Marie conducted with director William Malone. Best known from movies such as Titan Find, House on Haunted Hill and Fear Dot Con, Malone is a genuine Master of Horror – having contributed the episode ‘The Fair Haired Child’ to Mick Garris’ anthology series (below). You can read all about these and more in the informative interview, so pick it up today.

Finally, you can catch Marie out and about this month at the Basil Copper Book launch on 23rd February from 6pm at Ye Old Cock Tavern in Fleet Street, London. There Stephen Jones will be launching his new PS book about the classic writer (below), alongside artists Randy Broecker and Les Edwards plus publisher Peter Crowther and designer Michael Marshall Smith. A wealth of other horror talent will also be in attendance. Hopefully she’ll see you on the day.

January Extra

We've been informed by the makers of Hatchet that - if you go over to their website and play the Cabin Fever game online, you stand a chance of winning a Nintendo Wii. So if you fancy your chances, click here.

January

As Chairperson of the British Fantasy Society, Marie is delighted to be able to announce their new Special Publication: H.P. Lovecraft in Britain, written by award-winning anthologist Stephen Jones and with a cover by award-winning artist Les Edwards. A limited edition signed by both contributors, this is free to members but is also on sale at the BFS site here so what are you waiting for?

Marie has just reviewed Christopher Fowler’s superb new collection, Old Devil Moon (above), for Dreamwatch Presents Total Sci-Fi which you can find online here.

She has also just reviewed the movie Rise: Blood Hunter for them. The film, which stars Lucy Liu from Charlie’s Angels (below) and Michael Chiklis from The Fantastic Four, is an erotic vampire adventure with the female heroine as a vampire seeking revenge on those who turned her - so look out for this on the site when it appears.

Marie had a fantastic time at the BFS Christmas Open Night back in December, as the pictures above and below illustrate. She got to meet science fiction author Cory Doctorow (above, with Marie) for the first time as well as Afterblight author Scott Andrews and Dr Who fiction writer Simon Guerrier, plus catch up again with friends like Michael Marshall Smith, Stephen Jones & Mandy Slater, Simon Clark, Doug Bradley and Nicholas Vince (Pinhead and Chatterer from the Hellraiser series of movies), Phil and Sarah Stokes from the Revelations site, Adam Nevill, Val and Les Edwards and Christopher Fowler (below with Marie).

Finally Marie has just updated the website of author Tony Richards, who has recently signed a deal with Eos Books (HarperCollins). To visit the site, just click on the link here.