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  • 162: Do You Have Stirrups on Your Bicycle?

    162: Do You Have Stirrups on Your Bicycle?
    2026/06/18
    John wasn’t overcrowded, Alison likes it small, and Liz has never been. An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode: Drug use, war (John’s pick) Letters of comment Christopher J Garcia (email)DC (Bluesky)Els (Bluesky)Ivan Sinha (Facebook) Premier Inns in Llandudno Jonathan Harden (Bluesky)Nicholas Whyte (email) “Best Related Work eligibility for the Hugo Awards” Scott Edelman (Bluesky) Eating the Fantastic Tommy Ferguson (email)Trish Matson (Bluesky) Shokz OpenSwim Pro Alison: Raj (Mastodon)We also heard from Ali Baker Brooks, aoanla, Jonathan Baddeley, Neil Ottenstein Satellite 9 Ottoman CoffeehouseBlood on the ClocktowerBristol 1350Codex Naturalis Farah Mendlesohn is running a one-day event about Frances HardingeWorldcon 2028: Former bid for Nuremberg, GermanyWorldcon 2028: Bid for Brisbane, Australia Paul Weimer (email)Clouds and stuff UK Games Expo 2026 “UK Games Expo 2026 breaks NEC attendance records as infrastructure buckles under massive crowds” at GeekNative by Andrew Girdwood“Stupid Games, Stupid Prizes” by Tim ClareSome discourse on Bluesky Picks John: Starship Salvager by Jarrom StrongAlison: Hades IILiz: Play Nice: The Rise, Fall and Future of Blizzard Entertainment by Jason Schreier Game Over by David Sheff Credits Cover art: “Scenes of the Village” by Alison Scott Alt text: A photograph of Portmeirion made to look like a stamp or a postcard, with words overlaid saying “Holiday greetings from Portmeirion, be seeing you…”. Above reads “Octothorpe 162” and below reads “Alison has gone on holiday again”. Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
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    1 時間 11 分
  • 161: You Pay Your Money, You Send Your Books

    161: You Pay Your Money, You Send Your Books
    2026/06/04

    John, Alison and Liz read the Clarke Award shortlist.

    An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.

    Content warnings this episode: Gun control and dystopian government (The Dream Hotel), body dysmorphia (Luminous), child abuse (The Salt Oracle)

    • The Arthur C Clarke Award
      • Medium
      • Substack
      • Website
    • This year’s shortlist
      • Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
      • The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami
      • Luminous by Sylvia Park
      • There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm
      • When There Are Wolves Again by EJ Swift
      • The Salt Oracle by Lorraine Wilson
    • This year’s submission list
    • Credits
      • Cover art: “Judge Coxon’s Last Stand” by Alison Scott
        • Alt text: John, wearing a Judge Dredd-style helmet with the Clarke Award logo on it and holding a lightsaber, dispenses judgement from behind a wall of books. The words “Octothorpe 161” appear above him, whilst words below say “Arthur C. Clarke Award 2026: Judge Coxon’s Last Stand”.
      • Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
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    48 分
  • 160: Global Nando’s Correspondents

    160: Global Nando’s Correspondents
    2026/05/21

    John is not firing on all cylinders, Alison has a code, and Liz downloaded the packet.

    An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.

    Content warnings this episode: Worms (Alison’s pick)

    • Letters of comment
      • Andrew Thompson (Mastodon 1, 2)
      • Chris Garcia (email)
      • Farah Mendlesohn (Facebook)
        • BSFA accounts
      • Jake Casella Brookins (Bluesky 1, 2)
      • Kate Macdonald (email)
      • Kiesa (Mastodon)
      • Mike Scott (Facebook)
      • Patrick Garvey (email)
      • Paul Weimer (email)
        • The Theory of Related-ivity by Heather Rose Jones
        • “Seattle Worldcon Poet Laureate Brandon O’Brien’s Opening Ceremonies poem”
        • Also pointed out by Kathy Bond (Bluesky)
      • Raj (Mastodon 1, 2)
      • We also heard from Ali Baker Brooks, Ang Rosin, Caroline Mullan, Constanze Hofmann, Dave Mansfield, DC, Duncan MacGregor, Els, Ivan Sinha, James Shields, Jonathan Baddeley, Kev McVeigh, Lilian Edwards, Phil Dyson, Tammy Coxen
    • Hugo Awards
      • Intergalactic Mixtape #50
      • Intergalactic Mixtape #53
    • Tim Vine is Plastic Elvis as Sam Salono in Rocker ‘Brella Fella
    • Picks
      • John: Citizen Sleeper
      • Alison: Falmouth Worm-Charming Championships
      • Liz: Hades II
    • Credits
      • Cover art: “Cover-Mounted CD-Rom” by Alison Scott
        • Alt text: A drawing of a CD-Rom with the words “Octothorpe 160” and “New!! Exclusive Octothorpe cover-mounted CD-Rom”.
      • Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
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    1 時間
  • 159: Taking a Stand

    159: Taking a Stand
    2026/05/07

    John ran the Games Room, Alison ran the Newsletter, and Liz was on holiday.

    An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.

    Content warnings this episode:

    • Ancillary Review of Books
      • Kickstarter ending at 04:59 BST (UTC+1) on 14 May 2026
      • “First of May”
    • Eastercon 2026: Iridescence in Birmingham
      • Batik
      • ConRunner
      • Daves Hot Chicken [do not get me started on the lack of apostrophe—John]
      • HaruhiCon
      • Alison’s 365 Play challenge
    • Eastercon 2027: Unconfined in Glasgow
    • Eastercon 2028: Contract in Birmingham
      • Guests of Honour: Adam Roberts, Aliya Whiteley and Chris Lintott
    • Eastercon 2029: Bid for Chronologicon in Chester
      • Aiming to cap at 650 people
    • Eastercon 2030: Bid from BSFA to join with Eurocon
      • British Science Fiction Association
    • Eastercon “early 2030s”: Rumblings from Northern Ireland
    • Picks
      • John: Scavengers Reign
      • Alison: What We Are Seeking by Cameron Reed
        • The Fortunate Fall by Cameron Reed
      • Liz: Slow Gods by Claire North
    • Credits
      • Cover art: “Thanks Guys” by Alison Scott (comic by Randall Munroe used under a CC BY-NC 2.5 licence, typeface by Phil Elson used under a CC BY-NC 3.0 Unported licence)
        • Alt text: A stack of grey blocks being held up by two small stacks underneath. The stack is labelled “all current Eastercon digital infrastructure”, while the two small stacks are labelled “bits being thanklessly maintained by Andrew January” and “bits being thanklessly maintained by James Shields”. The words “Octothorpe 159” appear at the top.
      • Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
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    1 時間 11 分
  • 158: I Am the Worldcon Chair in Avignon

    158: I Am the Worldcon Chair in Avignon
    2026/04/21
    John, Alison and Liz dissect this year’s Hugo Awards finalists! An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode: None Hugo Awards Best Novel A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson BennettDeath of the Author by Nnedi OkoraforShroud by Adrian TchaikovskyThe Everlasting by Alix E HarrowThe Incandescent by Emily TeshThe Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson Best Novella Automatic Noodle by Annalee NewitzCinder House by Freya MarskeMurder by Memory by Olivia WaiteThe River Has Roots by Amal El-MohtarThe Summer War by Naomi NovikWhat Stalks the Deep by T Kingfisher Best Novelette “Kaiju Agonistes” by Scott Lynch“Never Eaten Vegetables” by H H Pak“Rapport: Friendship, Solidarity, Communion, Empathy” by Martha Wells“The Girl That My Mother Is Leaving Me For” by Cameron Reed“The Millay Illusion” by Sarah Pinsker“When He Calls Your Name” by Catherynne M Valente Best Short Story “10 Visions of the Future; or, Self-Care for the End of Days” by Samantha Mills“In My Country” by Thomas Ha“Laser Eyes Ain’t Everything” by Effie Seiberg“Missing Helen” by Tia Tashiro“Six People to Revise You” by J R Dawson“Wire Mother” by Isabel J Kim Best Series Emily Wilde by Heather FawcettOctober Daye by Seanan McGuireOld Man’s War by John ScalziThe Chronicles of Osreth by Katherine AddisonThe Craft Wars by Max GladstoneWhite Space by Elizabeth Bear Best Graphic Story or Comic Absolute Wonder Woman Vol. 1: The Last AmazonA Girl and Her FedA Wizard of Earthsea: A Graphic NovelThe Invisible ParadeThe Power Fantasy Volume 1: The SuperpowersThe Space Cat Best Related Work Colourfields: Writing About Writing About Science Fiction by Paul KincaidInventing the Renaissance: The Myth of a Golden Age by Ada PalmerLast War in Albion: “The Cuddled Little Vice (Sandman)” by Elizabeth SandiferPositive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E Butler by Susana M MorrisHistory of Westeros: “Ragnarök vs the Long Night”The Hugo Spreadsheet of Doom, maintained by Renay Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form Andor (season 2)FrankensteinKPop Demon HuntersMickey 17SinnersSuperman Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form Doctor Who: “The Story & the Engine”Murderbot: “All Systems Red”Murderbot: “The Perimeter”Pluribus: “We Is Us”Severance: “Cold Harbor”The Wheel of Time: “The Road to the Spear” Best Game or Interactive Work Blue PrinceCitizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector “Tabletop roleplaying in the world of Citizen Sleeper 2!” on Quinns Quest Clair Obscur: Expedition 33DispatchHades IIHollow Knight: Silksong Best Editor Short Form Scott H AndrewsJennifer BrozekNeil ClarkeLee HarrisMichael Damian ThomasSheila Williams Best Editor Long Form Carl Engle-LairdJaymee GohLee HarrisJenni HillJoe MontiDiana M Pho Best Professional Artist Lulu ChenKelly ChongDave KellettTran NguyenJohn PicacioTom Roberts Best Semiprozine Escape Podkhōréō magazineOn Spec: The Canadian Magazine of the FantasticStrange HorizonsThe DeadlandsUncanny Magazine Best Fanzine Ancillary Review of BooksAn Unofficial Hugo Book Club BlogGalactic JourneyIntergalactic MixtapeJourney Planetnerds of a feather, flock together Best Fancast A Meal of ThornsEating the FantasticHugo, Girl!OctothorpeThe Coode Street PodcastWorldbuilding for Masochists Best Fan Writer Jay Brantner for “Tar Vol”Alex BrownJames Davis NicollRoseanna PendleburyJason SanfordÖrjan Westin Best Fan Artist Terri AshGeneva BowersSara FelixRichard ManEspaña SheriffYuumei Best Poem “Care for Lightning” by Mari Ness“Hex Supply Customer Support Log” by Elis Montgomery“How to Become a Sea Witch” by Theodora Goss“Landing: Seattle” by Brandon O’Brien“The Mourning Robot” by Angela Liu“The World to Come” by Jennifer Hudak Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book Among Ghosts by Rachel HartmanCoffeeshop in an Alternate Universe by C B LeeHoly Terrors by Margaret OwenOathbound by Tracy DeonnSunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne CollinsThey Bloom at Night by Trang Thanh Tran Astounding Award for Best New Writer Sophie BurnhamKamilah ColeAntonia HodgsonMolly O’NeillH H PakJared Pechaček Credits Cover art: “Vibrant Award Culture” by Alison Scott Alt text: A cartoon. John, Alison and Liz are wearing Octothorpe T-shirts and matching purple baseball caps while standing behind a market stall clad in a very slightly different purple and with various delicacies upon it. The sign above the stall reads “Octothorpe 158 Hugo HOT takes”, with “HOT” in a little tiny fire. The sign below the stall reads “Always half-baked! Fresh off the griddle! Three-pack special!” Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
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    1 時間 18 分
  • 157: Moist or Shiny?

    157: Moist or Shiny?
    2026/04/09

    John is gaming, Alison is a pirate, and Claudia is dancing.

    An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.

    Content warnings this episode: It’s a live recording! Also, we say the words “dicks” and “moist” a lot; sorry about that.

    • Claudia Rapp:
      • Website
      • Bluesky
      • Facebook
      • Instagram
    • The Hay lecturer was Tasha Phillips, and the lecture was “Stranger than Fiction: Creatures of the Deep”
    • John was wrong about that sketch, it was on the radio and is also on YouTube
    • Eurocon 2026: Metropol Con 2026 in Berlin, Germany
      • Gamma Rats
      • Die Leere im Kern deiner Hoffnung
    • Worldcon 2028: Bid for Nuremberg, Germany
    • Worldcon 2028: Bid for Brisbane, Australia
    • Picks
      • John: World on a Wire/Welt am Dracht
      • Alison: The Eastercon Business Meeting
      • Claudia: Lyneham by Nils Westerboer
        • Athos 2643 by Nils Westerboer
        • A movie is underway!
    • Credits
      • Cover art: “Best panel confirmed” by Simon Bubb
        • Alt text: A picture of John, Alison and Claudia sitting behind the panel tables during the live recording. A thread from the convention Discord is being projected onto the screen behind them, with messages reading “Malcolm H: Song for Alison… Da Da Da”, “Roseanna: We’ve passed the discord comment count for the highest other item!! Best panel confirmed [rocket emoji]”, “Meg MacDonald: Teach us your wisdom”, “Frances Dowd: Drink drink drink your Heineken, oodles and oodles for everyone!”. Words have been added to the top reading “Octothorpe 157” and to the bottom reading ‘Live from Iridescence: “Best panel confirmed”’.
      • Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
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    58 分
  • 156: Surprisingly Well-Adjusted Young Gentlemen

    156: Surprisingly Well-Adjusted Young Gentlemen
    2026/03/26
    John has a headache, Alison has a cold, and Liz is fine, thanks for asking. An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media. Content warnings this episode: None Letters of comment Liz said “RoboCup world championship” not “RoboCop world championship” RoboCup GermanyRoboCup FederationRoboCup on Wikipedia Alexandra Lanes (Bluesky)Ali Baker Brooks (Facebook)Ang Rosin (Facebook)Ed Morland (Bluesky)Farah Mendlesohn (Facebook)Fredrik V Coulter (Facebook)Juan Sanmiguel (email)Kin-Ming Looi (Facebook)Neil Ottenstein (Facebook)Paul Weimer (Bluesky, email)Phil Dyson (Facebook)Renay (email) Hugo Award Recommendations! We also heard from Alex Holden, Finbarr O’Reilly, Kev McVeigh, Roseanna Pendlebury, Shi Lala GUFF result Farah’s Facebook group: From Perth to Perth! Nebula Awards The Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers AssociationThis year’s nominees “How SFWA Is Administering the Nebula Awards Policy Against LLM-Use” on File 770“Indie Game Awards rescinds Clair Obscur’s GOTY wins over use of generative AI” on Polygon G Willow Wilson’s thoughts on the Best Comic category Locus 2026 fundraiser Eastercon 2026: Iridescence The program is outYou can find John here and Alison here and Liz here“Falsehoods Programmers Believe About Names – With Examples” Picks John: VantageAlison: Slay the Spire 2Liz: Formula 1: Drive to Survive Credits Cover art: “Eastercon Planning” by Alison Scott Alt text: A black-and-white cartoon. John is behind a stack of games, saying “Games Room”; Alison is behind a stack of printers and paper, saying “Newsletter”; Liz is on a beach reading with sunglasses and a cocktail. In purple, the words “Octothorpe 156 Eastercon Planning:” appear at the top and “questioning our life choices” at the bottom. Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
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    59 分
  • 155: Ed! Ed! ED!

    155: Ed! Ed! ED!
    2026/03/12

    John is a bit rum, Alison is taking a drink, and Liz is buying beer.

    An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to comment@octothorpecast.uk, join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.

    Content warnings this episode:

    • Letters of comment
      • Abigail Nussbaum (email)
        • Neon Hemlock
      • Brian Nisbet (Facebook)
      • Chris Garcia (email)
      • Ed Morland (Bluesky)
      • Elias Helfer (email)
        • Roseanna Pendlebury on fan writer
      • Florian Bailey (email)
        • Nuremberg in 2028
      • Paul Weimer (email)
        • Down Under Fan Fund (DUFF)
        • Going Under Fan Fund (GUFF)
        • Transatlantic Fan Fund (TAFF)
        • European Fan Fund (EFF)
      • Scott Edelman (email)
        • Eating the Fantastic
        • Chicken Shop Date
      • Tammy Coxon (Bluesky: convention sports, deduplications, staff rates)
      • Trish E Matson (email)
        • The Skiffy and Fanty Show
      • We also heard from DC, Farah Mendlesohn, Jonathan Baddeley, Kev McVeigh, Mike Scott, and Neil Ottenstein
    • British Science Fiction Association
      • BSFA members and Eastercon members can now vote on the shortlist
      • Nicholas Whyte writes on this topic
      • The Incompleat Register
    • Eastercon 2026: Iridescence in Birmingham
      • Lucky for None
      • Lucky for None in Space
    • Eastercon 2028: Bid for Birmingham by Marcus Streets
    • Picks
      • John: Alien and Aliens
        • they’re small indie movies you probably haven’t heard of them
      • Alison: Small Prophets
      • Liz: Dark Winds
    • Credits
      • “Homunculeeses” by Alison Scott
        • Alt text: Three homunculi in jars with cork toppers who look reminiscent of John, Alison and Liz. Alison’s has a little stick with a moose head on it and a cup of coffee. The jars are on a shelf. The words “Octothorpe 155” appear at the top and “Small Podcasters” at the bottom.
    • Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
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    1 時間 5 分