By Simon Knight It was nineteen eighty-one and I was ten years old when my mum came home with Bandit and said that she was mine. She was a tiny little black and white kitten with a black stripe across her eyes that went up at the nose. This gave the appearance of a dominoContinue reading “What’s for Dinner?”
Author Archives: simonmandrake
The Shiny, Green Lustre Of Folk Horror
By Nasir Ali Hussain “From the brown, bark trees, the green hanging leaves, the stone faerie forts to the power and fury of the horned, cloven-hoofed god.” It could be said that where science fiction is concerned with the future, and fantasy with a time that never was, the genre of the supernatural is almostContinue reading “The Shiny, Green Lustre Of Folk Horror”
This is Brenda – Part 4
A Web Series in Several Iterations Brenda & Kitty – Part 3 Brenda & Kitty – Part 3 was filmed during the time between doing The X Factor auditions and finding out that we had been busted. Kitty came up with the idea of filming at the St Werburgh’s Art Trail during the late SpringContinue reading “This is Brenda – Part 4”
This is Brenda – Part 3
A Web Series in Several Iterations Brenda & Kitty – Part 2 We started work on Episode 2 straight after episode 1 and it was at this point that things became complicated. Our plan was to go into The X Factor, in character, and tell them that Brenda wanted to be the first trans winnerContinue reading “This is Brenda – Part 3”
The Dignity Of Violins
By Nasir Ali Hussain Nobody walks the streets at night like me. Sometimes, when it’s late and the streets are cold and empty, I go for a walk. There’s something about those tense, otherworldly silences where the only sounds you hear are those of your own feet and yet still, there’s the feeling that you’reContinue reading “The Dignity Of Violins”
This is Brenda – Part 2
A Web Series in Several Iterations Brenda & Kitty – Part 1 In 2010, I moved to Bristol after spending several years living in Japan. After a settling in period, I felt it was time to bring back Brenda. I contacted Annie to see if she would be up for some more, but she wasContinue reading “This is Brenda – Part 2”
Let’s Play
By Nasir Ali Hussain When I was eleven years old a new kid joined our class in the last term of school, the one before the summer holidays. His name was Manfredo. He had short, light brown hair that curled at the ends, but was otherwise straight. He also had startling blue eyes. Manfredo wasContinue reading “Let’s Play”
This is Brenda – Part 1
A Web Series in Several Iterations Brenda & Annie The idea for the first iteration of Brenda came about in mid 2002. Before then I had not had any real awareness of, or any interaction with the transgender community. At around that time I met three women in various stages of their transitions. One ofContinue reading “This is Brenda – Part 1”
The Beckoning Stars Way Beneath Us
A Short story by Nasir Ali Hussain “Why struggle to open a door between us when the whole world is an illusion” Rumi The night was almost as striking as she was. Alice was pretty alright, in this soulful, doe-eyed way that could make a certain type of man yearn and burn. Maybe that wasContinue reading “The Beckoning Stars Way Beneath Us”
A, B, C.
By Simon Downham-Knight “When you wake up in the morning, I want the first thought to enter your head to be: ‘How much lovely money am I gonna make today?’” The ginger, red faced, stuffed suit at the front of the packed conference room said in a thick London accent. “Fellas, when you look upContinue reading “A, B, C.”
Spiral Staircase 