4 minute read
Pat Pope
In 2018, the rock music and celebrity photographer Pat Pope suffered a stroke. He was the man who photographed everyone who mattered in the 90s and noughties, from Pixies to PJ Harvey, Bowie to Beastie Boys, and Human League to Haley Joel Osment. In the immediate aftermath of his illness, his hometown of Tunbridge Wells set up a fundraising gig called Patstonbury. A new campaign has been set up to create a publication that will capture many of those top stars who ended up in front of his lens between 1992 and 2012. If you want to contribute and get your hands on a signed copy of the book, head to indiegogo.com
ks bo o boo ks
tv • tv• tv • tv • PICTURE THIS
Clockwise from top: Natalie Imbruglia, David Bowie, Foo Fighters, Jon Bon Jovi, Beastie Boys, Billy Childish
ks bo o boo ks
In this Q&A, we throw some questions about ‘fi rsts’ at debut authors. This month we feature Kate Maxwell, author of Hush, a story about motherhood, womanhood and career identity
What’s the first book you remember reading as a child? D ogger by Shirley Hughes, about a boy who loses his toy dog. It’s a picture book page turner: will Dave find Dogger? I now read it to my daughter and son and love its 70s illustrations and gentle learning moments: ‘then Bella did something very kind’, Hughes writes when Dave’s sister gives him the teddy she won at the fair. If only my children were as thoughtful to each other . . .
What was the first book you read that made you decide to be a writer?
To K ill A M ockingbird. The idea that such powerful, important themes could be communicated so effectively in literature made a huge impact on me. I was reminded how moving the book was when I saw Aaron Sorkin’s brilliant stage adaptation recently, with Rafe Spall as the perfect Atticus Finch.
What’s your favourite first line in a book? ‘124 was spiteful’, from Beloved by Toni Morrison. Opening lines don’t get more intriguing.
Which debut publication had the most profound effect on you?
Martin Amis’ TheRachelPapers: I thought it was so smart and funny. Years later, when I was working at Condé N astTraveler magazine in New York, I sat next to Gully Wells, Amis’ then girlfriend, to whom he dedicated the book. She claimed she wasn’t the inspiration for Rachel, but I’m not so sure. I re-read it recently and it was just as good.
What’s the first thing you do when you wake up on a writing day? Make a pot of coffee. That first mug, the sun rising and the rest of the house still asleep: nothing is as conducive to writing.
What’s the first thing you do when you’ve stopped writing for the day? Go for a run. I’ve found it’s the best thing for unknotting plot tangles and making characters behave themselves.
PICTURE: CHARLIE HOPKINSON
In a parallel universe where you’re a tyrant leader in a dystopian
civilisation, what’s the first book you’d burn? Last Christmas, I was given The Life-ChangingM agicO fTidying. Ironically, it has remained unopened, its only role to add to our house’s clutter, so the fire is probably the best place for it.
What’s the first piece of advice you’d offer to an aspiring novelist?
Keep going. As a wise author friend once told me, the novels that get published aren’t necessarily the best ones they’re the ones that got fi nished.
Hush is published by Virago on Thursday 12 May.
GAMES
THE EVIL DEAD: THE GAME
In recent years, there’s been a surprisingly successful trend of adapting classic horror films as video games. We’ve had Blair Witch, Friday The 13th: The Game and DeadByDaylight, a hugely successful multiplayer effort which assembles a who’s who of horror icons from the likes of Halloween, TheTexasChainSaw Massacre and ANightmareOnElmStreet.
Evil Dead: The Game is a survival horror featuring co-op and PVP, similar to Left4Dead and its recent follow-up, Back4Blood. The legendary Bruce Campbell returns as hero, Ash, alongside other characters from the original films and TV series AshVsEvilDead. Taking control of Ash, or one of his friends, you’ll need to use a variety of tricks (and weaponry) to survive the night, or you could possess the Kandarian Demon and hunt down its human prey.
This one is an asymmetrical multiplayer game akin to Friday The 13th which did a good job of pitting a seemingly unstoppable force (Jason) against a team of victims, although a licensing row brought a premature end to the fun. Hopefully, the vast legion of EvilDead fans will help maintain a healthy player count, something that’s crucial to this type of game’s success. (Murray Robertson)
Released by PlayStation 4 & 5, Xbox One & Series X/S and Nintendo
