WCL podcast: Doctor Who 60th anniversary special

day of the doctor GIF

Doctor Who Title sequence Via giphy

Many of us at Wellington City Libraries love Doctor Who and are excited to celebrate its 60th anniversary. We can’t wait for the Christmas special, or the Doctor Who exhibition coming to Tākina, Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre. In this special podcast episode, big Whovians and librarians Patrick and Neil talk about some of the more unusual aspects of the show and highlight their favourite Doctors.

You can find this podcast episode here, or on your preferred podcast app.

Patrick talks about Matt Smith (the eleventh Doctor) and why Matt’s take on the iconic character makes him so appealing. Patrick then explores the themes of Britishness, national identity and politics to be found in the show.

Neil then takes us way back in time to the fourth Doctor Tom Baker to dissect why this Doctor is his favourite. He then delves into the wonderous, innovative and far-reaching sounds of Doctor Who across its 6o years of existence, including a brief look at the legendary BBC radiophonic workshop.

We have an extensive collection of Doctor Who items in our collection, including full DVD stories from across the series, Graphic novels, novelisations of stories for both adults and children, music CD’s, nonfiction titles and other various other assorted goodies. You can peruse our full collection here.

Below is just a tiny sample of our collection.

Doctor Who : the tenth doctor. Vol. 6, Sins of the father / Abadzis, Nick
“Trombones turn to terror when the Doctor, Gabby and Cindy visit New Orleans at the height of the jazz age… the Nocturnes are back! This time the threat comes from their terrifying chief, intent on enslaving the human race through sound! And speaking of enslaving, it would appear that Anubis is up to his old tricks – will the Doctor and his friends be able to stop this God from damaging the whole of Time? Could there be something even more sinister behind all of this, hidden in the shadows?” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Doctor Who : the thirteenth Doctor. Vol. 2, Hidden human history / Houser, Jody
“This critically acclaimed new story sees the Thirteenth Doctor, Rian, Yaz, and Graham stumble upon a sinister alien race with a thirst for human blood! Their second comic book adventure sees the gang track the Stilean Flesh Eaters throughout history, encountering friends, old and new, along the way. For once, the humans seem to know more about what’s going on than the Doctor, thanks to a podcast (Hidden Human History) that everyone is listening to — everyone except the Doctor, that is…” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Doctor Who, the twelfth doctor : time trials. Volume 1, The terror beneath / Mann, George
“The brand new Year Three comic adventures of the critically acclaimed Twelfth Doctor, played by Peter Capaldi! First, it’s the return of fan-favourite comics companion, space bassist Hattie, as the Twelfth Doctor takes her for the best fish and chips in the galaxy, in a sleepy seaside town in the 1970s. But there’s something ancient and evil beneath the waves, something that has mired its twisted tentacles into the local people, something that weaves itself into Hattie’s dreams and drags itself up onto land in mounds of shambling seaweed. Can the Doctor and Hattie get to the bottom of a cosmological horror before it devours them – and wipes the town off the map? And, in a solo adventure, the Twelfth Doctor heads back to the 1950s for a creep slice of small-town Americana, in ‘The Boy With the Displaced Smile’!” (Adapted from Catalogue)

BBC Doctor Who : a brief history of Time Lords / Tribe, Steve
“The High Council, the Inner Council– in fact all the great minds of Gallifrey– are determined that you should never read this book. The history of the universe is re-written by its future, and when you hold this book in your hands is at least one truth. Of course it is also official hogwash, and the pages are time-sensitive. Still, some of it may be true….” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

Doctor Who, the ninth doctor. Vol. 2, Doctormania / Scott, Cavan
“The Ninth Doctor, Rose, and Captain Jack continue their trip through the Universe! Someone is impersonating the Doctor — and has made him into a galactic celebrity! But something far more sinister is going on, as the trio are plunged into yet another shapeshifting civil war… The Slitheen are back! And just as they think their trip can’t get any worse, living gargoyles invade San Francisco and residents begin to fly…” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

The who’s who of Doctor Who : a Whovian’s guide to friends, foes, villains, monsters, and companions to the good doctor / McEwan, Cameron K
“This is the ideal Whovian guide to exploring the dynamic characters in Doctor Who over the past half century. Organized by character type, it includes top 10 lists, family trees, charts, graphs, and more.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

 

Doctor Who : the writer’s tale : the untold story of the BBC series / Davies, Russell T
“The definitive story of how Doctor Who is made, by the show’s executive producer” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

 

Doctor Who : the eleventh hour : a critical celebration of the Matt Smith and Steven Moffat era
” Published to celebrate the Doctor’s anniversary, this book provides a valuable record of the Matt Smith Doctor, who arrived in 2010 and is set to bow out in this year’s Christmas special. This first book devoted solely to the Steven Moffat/Matt Smith era is written by experts on the Doctor. It is wide-ranging and varied in viewpoint and explores such issues as the performance of the Doctor, the gothic and fairy tale genres, the portrayal of history on screen, gender and sexuality, the phenomenon of Christmas television, the transatlantic dimensions of the programme, its look and sound, promotional culture and audience response.” ( Adapted from Catalogue)

Books from the vault: Episode 7

Welcome to our latest exciting and scintillating episode of Books from the Vault, to be found on Wellington City Libraries’ very own podcast channel called Kōtare: Wellington City Libraries Presents. Books from the Vault is where three intrepid librarian explorers take an in-depth and fascinating look at some of the treasure trove of titles to be found in our stacks.

Listen now! Books from the Vault: Episode 7

Continue reading “Books from the vault: Episode 7”

“Renaissance Man’ Peter Coates in interview

Peter Coates is what can only be described as a true ‘Renaissance Man’.

Peter Coates has several lifelong passions, including: being an acclaimed opera singer, a director, a major pioneering television creator in New Zealand (directing or producing over 390 programmes from soap operas to documentaries). His work particularly championed arts on TV, rugby documentaries and programmes about disability.

Peter has also pursued a career as an artist who has exhibited internationally, including at the prestigious Mexico International Watercolour Biennial and the National Art Museum of China.

Peter was also a major force in the New Zealand Opera scene, both here and abroad, having worked on major operas for the NZ Opera Company, Wellington City Opera, De La Tour Opera, and TVNZ. Productions that he has worked on include: The Magic Flute, The Barber of Seville and Hansel and Gretel, to name but a few.

When Peter approached the Ruth Gotlieb (Kilbirnie) Library about staging a retrospective art exhibition we jumped at the opportunity. That exhibition is now open.

Ruth Gotlieb (Kilbirnie) Library

Exhibition runs until 26 May.

In this audio interview, Peter talks candidly and extensively about his life, career and art.

This interview was done in conjunction with Caffeine and Aspirin, the arts and entertainment review show on Radioactive FM.

All art is copyright Peter Coates and used with kind permission.

Ross Harris in conversation

The Kugels are a Klezmer group that features two former NZSO members, one Kiwi Jazz maestro, a fabulous vocalist and the New Zealand classical composer and Arts laureate Ross Harris. The members are Anna Gawn – vocals, Ross Harris – accordion, Robin Perks – violin, Debbie Rawson – clarinets xaphoon, and Nick Tipping – bass

The tunes they play include new compositions from both Robin Perks and Ross Harris as well as a selection of more traditional tunes. We were thrilled when Ross Harris agreed to be interviewed about The Kugels to tie in with the release of their second evocative CD The kugels at Breaker Bay and to tell us all about Klezmer; its history and its place in the contemporary music scene. The interview was done in conjunction with the Caffeine and Aspirin arts and entertainment review show on Radioactive FM.

Both Kugels CDs are available to borrow from the library along with a wide selection of Ross Harris compositions.

The Kugels at Breaker Bay. / Kugels
“This is the second release from the Wellington based Kugels the five-piece outfit which specialises in Klezmer and features some of New Zealand’ s finest classical musicians in their line-up. For a long time, they have been a bit of a hidden gem in the NZ music scene, but that changed recently when they did a sofa session with Bryan Crump. This latest release really shows how good they are, and includes emotive and atmospheric renditions of both traditional and original Klezmer pieces composed by arts laureate, and renown classical composer, Ross Harris.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

The Kugels play Klezmer by Ross Harris. / Kugels
“Ross Harris – The Kugels play Klezmer. … Melancholic, lyrical, delicate and beautiful , the music is played with grace and finesse by the Kugels who are the Wellington based quartet to which Ross Harris  belongs….” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

 

Symphony no. 5 ; Violin concerto / Harris, Ross
“Ross Harris’s Symphony No.5 uses as its core poems by Panni Palasti.  The moving poems in the piece are based on the personal experiences of the poet during World War Two and the subsequent Hungarian Revolution. The work creates complex orchestral movements around these poems. This particular recording has conductor Eckehard Steir steering the orchestra and he judges well the balance between the moments of ferocity and the work’s sonic ebb and flow.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Free Radicals / Free Radicals (Musical group)
“Wellington based Free Radicals :-Ross Harris and Jonathan Besser were active in the early 80s, described by one reviewer as ‘Eno meets industrial punk meets Stockhausen’. This compilation of archival recordings show the full range, scope and ambition of the pioneering outfit.” (adapted from Catalogue.)

 

Requiem for the fallen / Harris, Ross
“Requiem for the fallen honours the memory of soldiers who died in the First World War. Poetry by Vincent O’Sullivan is woven through the Latin of the Requiem Mass and carries many homespun New Zealand references. Horomona Horo’s taonga pūoro improvisations add a haunting beauty that could only be from Aotearoa.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

 

Author interview: Rajorshi Chakraborti

Rajorshi Chakraborti is one of the most interesting and exciting voices in New Zealand literature at the moment; a superb novelist, essayist, and short story writer. Rajorshi grew up in Calcutta and Mumbai and now lives in New Zealand.

He is the author of six novels and his novel The Man Who Would Not See was longlisted for the 2019 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. Set in Calcutta, it is the story of a family split apart by a very small error that moves ahead thirty years, so a possible apparent reconciliation, but is it?

His latest novel Shakti is a supernatural magical realist mystery thriller set in India, that delves into the murky and dark waters of modern Indian politics in a carefully chosen, considered  and unique fashion.

And as an accompaniment to this exceptional book, we recently had the pleasure of interviewing Rajorshi in conjunction with  Caffeine and Aspirin arts and entertainment review show on Radioactive FM. The interview was conducted by Caffeine and Aspirin host Liam Wild.

You can also borrow his books:

Shakti / Chakraborti, Rajorshi
“Amid a climate of right-wing, nationalist politics, three Indian women find themselves wielding powers that match their wildest dreams. There is one catch: they come with a Faustian price.” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Also available as an eBook. 

 

The man who would not see / Chakraborti, Rajorshi
“As children in Calcutta, Ashim and Abhay made a small mistake that split their family forever. Thirty years later, Ashim has re-entered his brother’s life, with blame and retribution on his mind. It seems nothing short of smashing Abhay’s happy home will make good the damage from the past. At least, this is what Abhay and his wife Lena are certain is happening. A brother has travelled all the way from small-town India to New Zealand bearing ancient – and false – grudges, and with the implacable objective of blowing up every part of his younger brother’s life. Reconciliation was just a Trojan horse. But is Ashim really the villain he appears to be, or is there a method to his havoc?” (Catalogue)

Shadow play / Chakraborti, Rajorshi
“An international conspiracy thriller in the vein of The Parallax View— a Salman Rushdie-esque figure uses his latest novel to explain his own disappearance after a journalist’s murder   Raj Chakraborti, internationally renowned novelist and commentator, has disappeared from public view. What’s worse, the police want to question him about the murder of a young journalist. Raj claims to explain everything in chapters from his latest work of fiction about a serial-killer-turned-hired-assassin. Is Raj right to believe that he is being hunted, or is it his past that has finally borne down to haunt him?” (Catalogue)

Lit : stories from home
“Home-grown literary heroes, established contemporary authors, and award-winning emerging writers have been brought together in this new short story collection. Exploring ideas about identity, activism awareness, coming-of-age, society, and family in Aotearoa, New Zealand” (Catalogue)

Comicfest 2015 roundup – the podcasts!

Sadly Comicfest is over for another year, but you can relive it right here! We mentioned in our last post that you could listen to podcasts of the panel discussions on Mixcloud, but we thought it would be good to have them all here on the blog too, for your convenience. We had a great turnout to the panels, and some exciting discussion came out of them, thanks to the input of our fantastic Comicfest guests. Have a listen below!

Thursday 30th April 2015: Cartoons to comics: Sharon Murdoch, Toby Morris, Cory Mathis, Tim Bollinger & Melinda Johnston

Friday 1st May 2015: Panel: On NZ comics with Jonathan King, Tim Gibson, Matt Emery and Tim Bollinger

Saturday 2nd May 2015: New Zealand Women’s Comics with the editors of Three Words – Rae Joyce, Indira Neville and Sarah Laing, with Matt Emery