Bryan Talbot signing at Forbidden Planet

Bryan Talbot will be signing his graphic novel Grandville, Mon Amour at Forbidden Planet, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London WC2H 8JR on Thursday 2nd December, from 6.00-7.00 pm.


"The Badger is back! Set three weeks after the finale of Grandville, Grandville Mon Amour pits Detective Inspector Archie LeBrock of Scotland Yard against an old adversary, Edward 'Mad Dog' Mastock -- a psychotic serial killer whose shocking escape from his execution at the Tower of London begins this fast-paced, Hitchcockian steampunk thriller. With a range of new and fascinating characters and a mix of Holmesian deduction, knowing humour and edge of the seat action, Grandville Mon Amour continues the vein of high-octane adventure begun in the first volume. Can even LeBrock escape the past or do heroes have feet of clay? Follow the badger!

Listing the accomplishments of Bryan Talbot is a daunting task – arguably the creator of the first British graphic novel, The Adventures of Luther Arkwright. He started in the underground comics scene of the late 1960s and his work has spanned the flagship series of 2000AD as well as Batman, Sandman, Hellblazer amd Fables. The Observer described his last graphic novel, Alice in Sunderland, as ‘…one of the most exhilarating books in years’."

Brian Froud book signing

Brian Froud will be signing the deluxe collector’s edition of Faeries at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London WC2H 8JR on Saturday 2nd October from 1 to 2 pm.

"A quarter of a century after its initial publication, and with more than a million copies in print worldwide, Faeries is a fantasy classic. Now, Froud returns to hs most enduring and beloved work in this deluxe anniversary edition. This ultimate collector’s book features eight new pieces of art by Brian Froud and Alan Lee with the original pencil drawings and watercolors. More than just a reissue, this deluxe revised and updated edition contains essays from both Froud and Lee on the continuing influence of Faeries. There is also a foreword by bestselling author Jane Yolen."

Peter Hamilton signing at Forbidden Planet

From Forbidden Planet's press release, and another date for your diary:

Peter Hamilton will be signing The Evolutionary Void at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2 H 8JR, on Friday 10 September from 6.00pm


Described by the Guardian as ‘the master of widescreen baroque’, Hamilton is one of Britain’s most respected science fiction authors whose work includes the highly successful Pandora’s Star. He has also written the Judas Unchained and the Greg Mandel and Night’s Dawn series.

Completing the epic and massively acclaimed Commonwealth Saga that unfolded in The Dreaming Void and The Temporal Void, Peter Hamilton’s startling perspectives on tomorrow’s technological and cultural trends continues to be both compulsive and wonderfully readable. Spanning huge tracts of space and time, his stories are as epic in scope, and yet they are always grounded in characters – human, alien and other – who touch our hearts and fire our imaginations.

Michael Moorcock signing

If I need an excuse to visit London, here's a good one. On Thursday 21 October, from 6.00 pm, Michael Moorcock will be signing his new Doctor Who novel The Coming of the Terraphiles at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR.

The press release says: "There are no words to describe the massive effect that Michael Moorcock has had on the growth of the fantasy genre – and on all our lives. He has won the Guardian Fiction Prize for The Condition of Muzak, and been shortlisted for the Whitbread Prize for Mother London. He’s best-loved through, for the epic characters he has created Elric, Jerry Cornelius and Colonel Pyat. This is rare opportunity to meet the genre’s own Eternal Champion." Can't say fairer than that. Oh yes, Moorcock also won several British Fantasy Awards plus other SF/fantasy awards.

Back in 1970 I read my first Moorcock novel, Behold the Man. I recall the year, if not the precise date, because I had just started working in the pathology labs at Portsmouth and one of my new colleagues loaned me the book. From that moment I was hooked by the mercurial mind of Michael Moorcock (as they used to say), and bought every MM title I could find. Fond memories...

Hellblazer signing

Simon Bisley and Peter Milligan will be signing Hellblazer: Hooked at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR, on Saturday 7th August at 1.00pm. According to FB's press release:

"Chain-smoking occultist anti-hero John Constantine is back in this new volume! After getting dumped by his girlfriend, Constantine goes to extremes to get her back. But will he sink to a new low by using a love potion? Constantine’s enemy, the Babylonian shape-shifting demon Julian, and the hot young alchemist-gangster’s daughter Epiphany will certainly have something to say about this turn of events."

I doubt I can make this event. Nevertheless, my copy is on order.