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anti-clockwise The Bird Who Wrote Too Much
Joined: 17 May 2013 Posts: 1683
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Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2014 4:23 pm Post subject: |
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Alan wrote: | Rodders wrote: | Don't give up, Alan. Similar books on the filmed era will sell like hot cakes. It's simply that there is a limited market for a season which barely exists in its visual form. |
You are probably quite right, Rodney. Typically, Series 1's very missingness is what has fired my obsession since even before Girl on the Trapeze was found. | I wonder with the interest from fans that get Big Finish audio will have an impact. After all, it is now in at least an audio form. _________________ "He likes his tea stirred anti-clockwise." |
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2014 2:39 am Post subject: |
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A small impact, I'd say. These Big Finish releases will sell in hundreds or possibly the low thousands and be seen as a success. Not enough to shift the balance.
I'd say that the majority of their audience is already aware of the lost episodes. _________________ Alan
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Last edited by Alan on Tue Jan 06, 2015 5:15 am; edited 1 time in total |
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mousemeat A Touch of Brimstone
Joined: 04 Sep 2008 Posts: 4285 Location: Elvis Central, U.S.A.
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Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2014 7:50 am Post subject: |
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any amount sold, has to be good...right ? |
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Rodders The Big Thinker
Joined: 03 Jan 2013 Posts: 1328 Location: Avengerland
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Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2014 12:55 pm Post subject: |
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Alan wrote: | Series 1's very missingness is what has fired my obsession since even before Girl on the Trapeze was found. |
I understand that and it added to the mystery and charm as I read your wonderful books. However, for the less die-hard fans, they want to compare the finished article to your text. I'm sure that future books on seasons which can be seen will sell well. _________________ The Avengers: a product of the sixties and a timeless piece of sublime art |
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2014 3:32 pm Post subject: |
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Rodders wrote: | Alan wrote: | Series 1's very missingness is what has fired my obsession since even before Girl on the Trapeze was found. |
I understand that and it added to the mystery and charm as I read your wonderful books. However, for the less die-hard fans, they want to compare the finished article to your text. I'm sure that future books on seasons which can be seen will sell well. |
That's something that I'm not so sure about. I'm less likely to read a book about something I can just grab off the shelf and see. Richard and I get a special thrill out of uncovering the unknown, the intangible and hard to come by (or impossible to come by!), and I do fear that people will be satisfied with the books they already have, like Mike Richardson's excellent Bowler Hats and Kinky Boots.
Time will tell, I suppose.
Of course, the best way for people to ensure that this becomes a series, if that is what they want, is to buy the books as they are published. _________________ Alan
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Sam Have Fingers... Will Type!

Joined: 02 Sep 2008 Posts: 483 Location: Gilbert, AZ
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Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2014 3:38 pm Post subject: |
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Alan wrote: | Rodders wrote: | Don't give up, Alan. Similar books on the filmed era will sell like hot cakes. It's simply that there is a limited market for a season which barely exists in its visual form. |
You are probably quite right, Rodney. Typically, Series 1's very missingness is what has fired my obsession since even before Girl on the Trapeze was found. |
If A&E had started their video sales with Seasons 1, 2, etc, we may never have gotten the Emma and Tara releases. While the die-hards like us enjoy the early years, the more casual viewers mostly know Emma, Tara, and TNA. Those are the people you need to drive the sales up.
Don't give up Alan. Your work has been awesome so far! |
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2014 4:36 pm Post subject: |
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Thank you, Sam. The question is, are those "casual viewers" interested in production detail?  _________________ Alan
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Frankymole A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 4069 Location: Carmadoc research establishment
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Posted: Sat Nov 22, 2014 5:17 pm Post subject: |
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Alan wrote: |
Of course, the best way for people to ensure that this becomes a series, if that is what they want, is to buy the books as they are published. | Given the current discounts by Lulu, I'll have to buy more copies as presents! _________________ Last watched: The Man in the Mirror. |
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Rodders The Big Thinker
Joined: 03 Jan 2013 Posts: 1328 Location: Avengerland
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Posted: Sun Nov 23, 2014 2:59 pm Post subject: |
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Alan wrote: | The question is, are those "casual viewers" interested in production detail?  |
I think it's always harder to appeal to a public when the product in production doesn't exist (anymore). For us it adds mystery and fascination; for others it simply doesn't appeal. I'm sure you won't have the same problem with the Gale, Peel and King eras. _________________ The Avengers: a product of the sixties and a timeless piece of sublime art |
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anti-clockwise The Bird Who Wrote Too Much
Joined: 17 May 2013 Posts: 1683
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Posted: Fri Nov 28, 2014 4:21 pm Post subject: |
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Alan am really enjoying your book. I laughed a bit when you mentioned Patrick not understanding the title Hot Snow. Not being a heroine addict, it took me a minute as well.
The biographical piece is really interesting. It sounds like the writers were top notch like Ray Rigby. So this makes me wonder, why did Ian Hendry feel the need to rewrite many of the scripts? Were they truly done poorly? Or was it so rushed that it came out sloppy? Just wondered what your opinion was on that.
Also you mention Brawn was involved in a behind the scenes tv show looking at the production of the Cybernauts in 1965. have you seen it? Is it available and if so where?
Also how did you figure out Tony O'Grady is Clemens? And why would any writer, go under a pseudo-name like that? I would think they would want to get credit for their work? And especially years later, it is just confusing. This nonsense with Brian Sheriff was also quite strange. Perhaps funny at the time, but now no one (but a few) knows who actually wrote the episode! Amazing. _________________ "He likes his tea stirred anti-clockwise." |
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Sat Nov 29, 2014 9:36 am Post subject: |
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anti-clockwise wrote: | Not being a heroine addict, it took me a minute as well. |
With a male partner in Series 1, it wasn't until Series 2 that Steed became a heroine addict.
Sorry, couldn't resist.  _________________ Alan
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Sat Nov 29, 2014 9:51 am Post subject: |
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anti-clockwise wrote: | The biographical piece is really interesting. It sounds like the writers were top notch like Ray Rigby. So this makes me wonder, why did Ian Hendry feel the need to rewrite many of the scripts? Were they truly done poorly? Or was it so rushed that it came out sloppy? Just wondered what your opinion was on that. |
I don't know that they were "poor", or that Hendry genuinely thought them so, more that he thought they hadn't captured the series that had been sold to him. Clearly, as the series developed and Hendry and Macnee grew to know their characters, it would be quite understandable for the actors to pick out when something was inconsistent with what they'd already done.
I think there's definitely an element of the pressure on the production caused by the compressed lead-in to the series that led to scriptwriters perhaps playing safe and not pushing themselves into unfamiliar territory. Hendry and Macnee were very committed to the series being a success, and both realised that by demanding better of the writers, they'd get a better series for their pains.
However, I do think that the idea that Macnee and Hendry rewrote scripts is unreliable. They would have suggested changes, and the writers would have made the changes, or the story editors. I think it's fair to say that they asked for rewrites, suggested changes, but never actually rewrote anything themselves.
Quote: | Also you mention Brawn was involved in a behind the scenes tv show looking at the production of the Cybernauts in 1965. have you seen it? Is it available and if so where? |
It's called London Line and is on the Series 4 DVD set available in the UK.
Quote: | Also how did you figure out Tony O'Grady is Clemens? And why would any writer, go under a pseudo-name like that? I would think they would want to get credit for their work? And especially years later, it is just confusing. This nonsense with Brian Sheriff was also quite strange. Perhaps funny at the time, but now no one (but a few) knows who actually wrote the episode! Amazing. |
The Tony O'Grady is something that has been known for longer than I've been a fan of the show. I didn't figure anything out. It's in the open.
There are many reasons that writers don't always write under their own names.
• Sometimes it's contractual (for instance on some series script editors weren't allowed to script episodes themselves, so wrote under pen-names to hide the fact that they were taking two payments).
• Sometimes it's because throwing a few pseudonyms in with scripts written under their own names gives the public the impression of a bigger team, and that the writing isn't as dominated by one voice as it in fact is.
• Sometimes writers use different names for different genres.
• Sometimes scripts are written by a few people who decide on one name rather than have a messy credit with four or five names.
• And sometimes they simply want their name taken off (the Alan Smithee of the writing world - look the name up. ).
The Brian Marshall credit is an example of the latter - Roger Marshall was very unhappy with what Clemens did to his script for what became A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Station and the pen-name used was a compromise. _________________ Alan
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Frankymole A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 4069 Location: Carmadoc research establishment
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Posted: Sat Nov 29, 2014 3:30 pm Post subject: |
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Alan wrote: | anti-clockwise wrote: | Not being a heroine addict, it took me a minute as well. |
With a male partner in Series 1, it wasn't until Series 2 that Steed became a heroine addict.
Sorry, couldn't resist.  | Very sharp! _________________ Last watched: The Man in the Mirror. |
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Darren The Bird Who Wrote Too Much

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 1845 Location: UK
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 3:36 pm Post subject: |
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I got the book yesterday. I've read the majority of the episode chapter so far and they're very compelling. That stuff at Dennis Vance was fascinating and very sad (intrigued that Norman Kay was involved - composer of incidental music for Doctor Who in its first year - I didn't know he'd been responsible for ABC music). It's also great to read bits of interview from people like Ribert Fuest, that stuff about his working relationship with Peter Hammond was mostly new to me (aside from what he shared on the Dvd commentary).
Exactly my kind of book, great work guys. It makes me more keen that there be some surprising season one episode finds - especially as the three chunks we have feel superior to stuff in season two. |
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Tue Dec 02, 2014 4:22 pm Post subject: |
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Thank you, Darren. So glad that you're enjoying the book! _________________ Alan
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Wed Dec 17, 2014 2:52 am Post subject: |
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Please note that all Hidden Tiger ebooks offered by Lulu.com in EPUB and PDF formats will be discontinued in one week's time on Christmas Eve. This is a result of a draconian EU VAT change that comes into effect on 1st January.
If you want them, get them now... or never.
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/alan_hayes _________________ Alan
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denis rigg The Bird Who Wrote Too Much

Joined: 06 Sep 2008 Posts: 1754 Location: Moscow, Russia
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Posted: Thu Dec 25, 2014 5:45 am Post subject: |
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Congratulations to all the fans a Merry Christmas and wish you have the positive mood, great joy and many nice surprises all these holidays.
I wish Alan all the best and always such a wonderful creative approach to all things!
I very pleased with these books about first season The Avengers which written with true love.
Merry Christmas!!!
 _________________ Russian fan-site Steedumbrella.
http://steedumbrella.ru
Denis |
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Thu Dec 25, 2014 8:30 am Post subject: |
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And a Merry Christmas to you too, Denis.
Thanks for the kind words!  _________________ Alan
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anti-clockwise The Bird Who Wrote Too Much
Joined: 17 May 2013 Posts: 1683
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Posted: Thu Dec 25, 2014 3:53 pm Post subject: |
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Merry X-Mas Alan. To your most creative project as the Sherlock Holmes of TA.  _________________ "He likes his tea stirred anti-clockwise." |
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Alan A Touch of Brimstone

Joined: 01 Sep 2008 Posts: 2987 Location: The Edge of Avengerland
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Posted: Fri Dec 26, 2014 12:26 am Post subject: |
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Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you too! _________________ Alan
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