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Friday 13 November 2015

The fantasy podcast


If you want to interview Jamie, invite him down the pub. Oliver McNeil, who recently ran a sort of theatrical Knightmare-type Kickstarter involving Tom Baker instead of Tregard, cornered the Thomsonian one in The Snowdrop in Lewes and there grilled him with questions about the Fabled Lands, Dirk Lloyd, and various other projects.

The only bit Jamie was evasive about is when Oliver asks him how he got his first job on White Dwarf. The truth is that Jamie's mum got him that job. Knowing that he wouldn't bother to apply, she rang up Ian Livingstone and told him all about her immensely talented, smart, personable, diligent son. Unfortunately his elder brother Peter couldn't make it to the interview, so Jamie got the job instead.

If you don't have the time to watch it, download the mp3 podcast here.

10 comments:

  1. My, Jamie has such a deep voice!

    Very nice interview, a great watch!

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    1. Thanks Efrem

      Glad you enjoyed it. Jamie does have a fantastic voice.

      Olly (the Fantasy Podcast)

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  2. Great interview, always interesting to hear the history of these books from the horse's mouth, as it were. You're probably due a video interview yourself Dave...

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    1. Jamie is an absolute natural at this, Mike - much better than I would be. If I did it you'd get a lecture. Jamie entertains.

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  3. Very entertaining and insightful interview.

    Jamie forgot about the very boring The Way Of The Tiger and not too bad Avenger computer games made for the 8-bit computers.

    Andy Fletcher

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    1. Weren't Avenger and WOTT one and the same, Andy?

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    2. Hi Dave

      The Way Of The Tiger was a sideways scrolling Way Of The Exploding Fist variant that had ok graphics but playing was akin to watching paint dry. Avenger was a top down Gauntlet variant which I remember enjoying but was rubbish at.

      Regretted getting rid of my C64 and Amiga just as much as dismantling my gamebook collection. However, just got a retro arcade machine and had to drag myself away from playing Kung Fu Master and Shinobi to be able to write this!

      Andy F

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    3. I don't think I played any of those games (though I do remember enjoying Gauntlet) but I'll bet Jamie remembers them all with great fondness!

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  4. Yeah, I remember those games. Min and I were quite surprised by the Way of the Tiger beat 'em up, as they'd paid for the license and then didn't really use it. Or at least only lightly in terms of names. Having said that, it did go to number one and sell a shedload, so we stopped complaining. Then came Avenger which was much more in the world, though it was kind of top down Gauntlety type game. More of an RPG. Anyway, they did well in their day. What would be great now though, is some kind of Skyrim version of it. Orb would look great in a proper modern engine linked to some kind of Batman/Shadow over Mordor/Mad Max combat system. It'd get great!

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  5. Hi Jamie

    Glad to hear my paper round money went to a good cause! The Last Ninja was the game I always thought The Way Of The Tiger could or should have been. Think it came out a year or so after but definitely had overtones of or inspiration from your books.

    Not proud to admit I had to look up Skyrim on Wikipedia. I've had some sort of computer game fugue since Commodore went bust! Orb 2015 could be just what the Doctor ordered to drag me into this millennium. After I eventually get around to downloading Dave's Frankenstein that is!

    Andy

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