A spooky story about a great man

We're busy organising the John Grace conference at work and on Thursday, we had a really spooky moment. John died in March 2004, but his presence still affects us every day, and the conference has really brought home how much we miss him. Me and John used to talk about spooky things all the time, he was a real fan of anything Fortean, and talked at length about past lives and extraordinary people and phenomena.


When I joined the University, I was still really interested in all forms of ghostly electronic communication, mainly because of the EVP stuff I'd used on 'Angels' and a pitch I was working for an animated documentary about an EVP researcher.

John was convinced that his illness and suffering was part of the cosmic plan, and that this was only a part of a longer set of lives and forms, something I have to say I was a little uncomfortable with, but fascinated by, and we'd share ghosty, psychic and mediumistic stories throughout the days.

A few days after his death, I went back into work and as I sat at my desk, I heard John's monitor spring to life. I looked round and true enough the monitor was on, and on the screen, the cursor was moving around, clicking open emails, documents and folders. I was absolutely petrified! I backed out of the office and nearly ran to the other side of the building where Andy's office is. Luckily, rather than run into Andy's office burbling lke Shaggy trying to explain to Fred that there's a ghost behind him, I looked through the window, and saw that Andy was using remote desktop to access John's computer! I skulked off, releived that I hadn't made a first class idiot of myself. I think it took me about 6 months to admit that to Andy!

The other day, we had another spooky moment. Me and Andy have both become slightly obsessed with Pocoyo, and Andy has been talking to Zinkia for the book he is writing about CGI, as well as filling his office with Pocoyo vinyl toys. Anyway, on Thursday, we were talking on the phone about images for the booklet for the conference, and as we spoke, Andy began to sift through the backup of John's hard drive, looking for Portland Bill images. Suddenly he stoppped, I thought the phone had got cut off cos he went completely silent. Then, after an interminable pause, he said 'I don't believe it'. He had discovered three script outlines by John for Pocoyo from 2003! The format was the same, except the character names were different (Pocoyo was the same). None of us knew anything about it till that moment. Were the scripts ever commissioned? Did John create Pocoyo? We were in a real tizzy, and I guess we'll never know what actually happened. The thing is, one of the reasons Andy loves Pocoyo is because he always says 'John would have loved this', as he was a brilliant pre-school writer; Pablo and Zoo Lane are still on now.

I don't quite know how to finish this (and I've wanted to blog about John for some time), but without sounding mawkish, those spooky stories are SO John and seem to ensure his presence is a constant in the Fairbairn. I'm not suggesting for a minute that he is haunting us, which would be crass, but it's a seductive notion, and one that he would have found delicious. What I think it has done is made us determined to fight to continue the legacy of his work, which was the inspiration behind the Animation Academy and this conference.

Befriendification

I just joined www.comicspace.com, a MySpace for comic makers, drawers, fans etc, which I read about on Drawn. It's great, and also a wee bit humbling when you see all these fantastic artists out there. I've never joined a kind of 'open' networking site before, especially one that has 'Befriendification' (as comicspace calls it), as it's always seemed a bit - well pointless i guess - and a bit wrong for a 36 year old! But I'm really interested in the way webcomics have grown, and the idea that a non-print comic can have a global audience, it's kind of perfect Web 2.0, so I joined, cos i figured that it makes sense to join a network like this, one where you're sharing work, rather than just hanging out, and it's exciting because it feels like being involved in a Zine culture, which I always imagine the web should be - ie free, homebrew, social.

I've been getting back into the comic subculture, which I've missed. I used to make a comic called Eek!, a small press thing that I used to pay for with my housing benefit cheques just after leaving University. It was a great thing to do, and linked me in with a whole network of really nice people who were really into making, reading and sharing underground leftfield comics. After a while though, I couldn't sustain it, writing 36 pages bi-monthly and dodging the landlord on my way to the copy-shop. And when I stopped, I felt a bit embarrassed, for no good reason really, and didn't enter Page 45 (our local comic shop) for about 10 years, thus missing out on so much good stuff.

I guess getting back into comics has partly come from Steve, who buys comics like I drink coffee (many and often), and his links to sites like scans daily, which puts up obscure strips from yesteryear, and from reading Drawn. I realised that the web is a perfect structure for comics - for instance the chronological nature of a blog allows the release of a comic in small, episodic chunks, whether that be your 12 part graphic novel or daily (syndicated!) 3 panel strip.

I'm going to add a webcomic links bar down the side, so I can show off what I've found, and if you find any gems, please let me know! - by the way, my comicspace page is http://www.comicspace.com/garethhowell

McWrong

This was parked outside work today, just on the edge of campus where thousands of students walk every day.

How wrong is that? You might as well save those tuition fees, and just get straight on down to McD's at 16 (if you're a bit posher, try Pret). You'll need those fees for the buckets of Clearasil you'll need to get the grease out of your increasingly disappointed face.

Predictive Text

My brother gave me a fancy phone at Xmas, with Flash Lite player on it, and I've started making some little experimental games/novelties on it.

The first thing I made (and am going to develop it with nice graphics etc.) was a little wish machine, essentially a randomly selected response to a question. It was basically to work out what Flash Lite can do, and to re-learn old-school Flash programming, rather than fancy stuff it can do now.

I've always been fascinated by oracles and seers, and the idea of predicting the future, and especially in January, there's a wealth of fortune telling fun to be had. One of the highlights of miserable old January is Mystic Meg's guide to your year ahead, which is in the News of the World. Mystic Meg is the absolute queen of Horoscopes, her predictions are absolutely ludicrous, but they are brilliant! What I like is that she is always really specific, suggesting that for instance, every Taurean in the country will be linked romantically to a soap star in May, or that a meeting in a butchers will unearth a 'hidden family mystery'. I'd love to be around to see that! I know it's complletely made up, but I love it, and it gives you a bit of time to dream of that lottery win, or the soap star linked romance. I think that, whether it's Horoscopes or not, or how pragmatic we are, we've all got a bit of wish in us, and we'll focus that on almost anything, from Meg, to lucky coins, to a specific set of lottery numbers. So this little oracle I'm making is a tiny, personal digital version of that.

I like the idea of having your own personal teller on your phone, like a magic 8 ball that you can call upon when you like. I'm going to make a series of them, using similar programming methods that you seen on Horoscope sites, like star sign compatibility etc. While they are clearly a trick, they are seductive and powerful in a way, and tap into our need to glimpse the future and to wish for better things.

Besides, if I make a load of them, and expel the magic, maybe I'll begin to live like a Human Adult Male, rather than walking around with my head in the clouds like some kind of dreamy goon. Or maybe not. I still think the Internet is magic, even after four hours staring at PHP code in Notepad.

In the real world;

We closed the shop today, handed the keys back and everything. It was a bit sad, but I've really enjoyed it, so I'm really glad we did it. Hopefully it'll be a success in Cardiff, when Nicola and Stuart get back from travelling. Here's Stuart, travelling;



Went home for my Mum's 60th birthday last weekend, which was nearly cancelled after a nasty virus tore through the family. Luckily, my Mum recovered in time and we had a great time, made even better by an ageing DJ who looked like Jack Duckworth with a skinhead. We're taking my Mum away in March to a nice cottage in Wales for a week, the first time we've been away as a family since me and Paul were teens. It'll be weird, but I'm already looking forward to doing Poster Art kits and playing Frustration as it tips down outside.



At work, I'm busy organising this conference, a memorial to my old boss, John Grace, who is sadly missed since his death in 2004. I'm eternally grateful to have been able to spend at least some time with the creator of Portland Bill, Reboot and Pablo. At his funeral, his friend played the theme from Portland Bill on guitar, it was amazing, in a very sad way. Anyway, you can find out more about it at http://www.animationacademy.co.uk

When you wish upon a cake

I won this lucky coin in a new year cake, so I thought I'd spread the lucky vibe about in a kind of Uri Geller way.

If you concentrate on the coin for a minute and clear your mind of everything, the coin will grant your deepest wishes. Or something.

Either way, have a great new year!