Good gracious I’m sorry…

You start a blog and then look what happens. You disappear for a month or two. To all of you I am very sorry. It is completely my fault. I have been stupidly busy. So very stupidly busy. So sorry for being rubbish and that.

I finished my first draft of Dinoball on election night (what fun that was) and I’m currently working on draft two. It’s been tricky. There was quite a bit wrong with it – I knew there was quite a bit wrong with it but was hoping no one else would notice. Surely we’ve all done that. But there’s no point trying to smuggle shoddy work past the eagle eyed guardians of Piccadilly Press. Oh no! And quite rightly they sent me back to ‘Go’ without picking up £200.  Nevermind.

In other news Andy and I have become the goto boys for CBBC for a short period. It’s great but partly explains why I haven’t been here much! Contrary to popular belief that Children’s TV doesn’t write itself.  We’ve been working  on Scoop and Hotel Trubble, picking up another episode of each. Then our good friend Steve Ryde asked us to write something for the new series of The Slammer. Which we did. And then he asked us to do three acts. Which we will. So watch out for us doing silly things on the telly in the autumn!

As if that wasn’t enough I’m acting in an ancient Greek play – The Phoenician Women. Not many chuckles on the stage but plenty off it! You may even get to see me in shorts if you come.  That’s worth the entry price alone!

And my third book got published. Dinoburps. Available now from all good book shops

I also just found out how to insert images into posts! Woo-hoo!

In other news I’m having a new kitchen and bathroom installed so can’t go for a wee or a poo. But as I have no kitchen to cook anything I’m not generating much of either. It’s all part of the world’s mystical plan.

Until next time nose pickers…

Eat My Book

Yesterday the lovely Andy Stanton came round for tea and cake and to record the first in my new series of podcasts all about books – Eat My Book! We chatted about everything he did, laughed about funny words, he read from his wonderful Mr Gum books and nibbled on cake made for us by my beautiful girlfriend Laura Houstoun.

We both managed to dribble cream and jam down our chins but we soon got over it.

I’m hoping the podcast will be a fun thing for you to download and listen to. I’m working on editing it all together over the next few days (we talked for a while and I don’t think you want 55 minutes of the stuff). And I’m learning all about how to make music stings, theme tunes and new websites so that it all sounds dead snazzy and that.  There’s even a competition with an autographed Mr Gum book as the prize! So listen in and it’ll be ace. I’ll tell you where to find it when it’s all done.

In the meantime I have to go and write Hotel Trubble. This is all going very well. Andy and I are having a lot of fun doing it and the very nice David Schneider (Uncle Max to younger fans, Alan Partidge’s boss to others http://daveschneider.co.uk/) is helping us along. A very funny man, do check him out.

After that I have to write my new Dino book – Dinoball! It should be a bucket of fun. I know the story, I just need to put the words in the right order. It’s got a great cover and it’ll be out in September, after my latest opus Dinoburps! Check them out!

Until then I’ll be in Cumbria for shows on Friday and Saturday if you fancy coming a long. And here’s a scary picture of me as a jester for you to look at!

Til the next time!

Love and hugs

Ciaran x

www.ciaranmurtagh.com

The Legend of Dick and Dom

Hello!

As I write this I am sitting in a theatre dressing room in Lyme Regis – Darling!

One of the great things about this job is that you get to see the country. That can also be one of the bad things about this job (I’m looking at you Hull), but on the whole you get to see some beautiful places and meet some wonderful people.

The theatre in Lyme Regis has to be one of the nicest places to sit. As I type I can hear the sea crashing against the walls and taste the salt in the air. It’s been raining like nobody’s business today – of course it has, it’s a bank holiday weekend! – and one of the fun things about walking around Lyme is watching those plucky Brits who have chosen to holiday at home trying to “make the best of it.” I lost count of the number of times I heard damp, wet children demanding to know what time Nanny McPhee and The Big Bang started. I don’t think they really wanted to see it. They just wanted to be dry. And warm. And not be rained on ever again. 

Anyway I’m here to do The Joy of Politics and I should be writing a satirical sketch, but I’m not, nothing interesting has happened in the news today so it’s been a bit of a struggle.

Away from performing I’ve been hard at work scripting Hotel Trubble. We’ve got two episodes in Series 3 which will be ace. They’re both making us laugh. My episode of The Legend of Dick and Dom was on telly on Wednesday and very fine it was too. You can watch it again here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00rwmvv

It’s called Garlic Tuesday and is all about a fictional character called Farty Whiffmass who flies through the air in a magical trough pulled by a team of red bummed skunk-pigs. I can’t believe I get paid for this sometimes.

Dinopoo is out now so please go and buy it here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d.html?qid=1262898174&a=1848120583&sr=1-1!

Also hello to the children at Lea Valley Primary School who made some wonderful stories and listened beautifully when I came into their school to bother them last week. Top work!

In other news I am starting a podcast so you’ll be able to hear me as well as read me. The first one will be with the wonderful Andy Stanton http://www.mrgum.co.uk/ who writes all those ace Mr Gum books! We hope to have a laugh and of course I will tell you where you can find it once it goes live.

That’s all! I have to go and entertain some damp people in Lyme Regis. If you’re on holiday in Lyme and fancy a laugh there are still tickets on the door – RUN!

Big love

Ciaran

Hello interweb!

I’ve decided to set up a blog. Obviously. Here it is. Neat isn’t it? Oh, you were expecting more. Very well.

It’s a bit like a first date this isn’t it (those of you yet to go on dates, it’s a bit like your first day at school, or karate club or whatever it is you young people do with your time these days).

We should probably get to know each other. I’m 32, 6ft, redheaded and I write stuff. Loads of stuff. All the time. See I’m even writing now and this is supposed to be “down time”. I like a-ha (www.a-ha.com), chocolate and I still suck my thumb. I’m going to regret revealing that now aren’t I? OK. I don’t suck my thumb. Better? Good. So that’s me. What about you?

Well you’re one of up to 5 billion people, you’re probably sitting in a chair and it’s likely you’ll have hair. Not necessarily on your head, but you will have some. Even if it’s only little downy stuff between your toes.  See I’m a psychic. That’s psychic not psycho. Get them right.

Well that’s the get to know you bit out of the way. I suppose it would be good to let you know what I write. In the past I’ve written lots of things. I’ve written for all three series of The Legend of Dick and Dom, The Slammer, Scoop, Hotel Trubble and Planet Ajay. If what I’ve just written is a load of gobbledeygook to you then get with the programme daddy-o! Check it!

I’ve also written for Radio 4 – the boring one with no music on it. Well if it does have music on it it’s always classical or chosen by some bloke who wants to go and sit on a desert island and listen to it all by himself, which is fine by me cos his choices are usually rubbish. Apart from when David Tennant did it, he liked Billy Bragg and Deacon Blue, so there must be some good in him! Although I’d have ironically chosen The Timewarp from The Rocky Horror Picture Show just to prove I have a sense of humour.

Anyway, where was I? Oh yes! I also write books. My first book Dinopants came out late last year and my second book Dinopoo is out later this month. Please buy them if you can, I have an a-ha addiction to work through. I have two more books out later this year – Dinoburps and  Dinoball. Nice.

And as if that wasn’t enough I write stage shows too. My latest The Joy of Politics is currently touring the UK. We’re in Lichfield this weekend. Come along! It’s ace. I’m in it too – I act as well. Is there nothing this boy can’t do! (Yes. Many things. I don’t like to talk about them.)

This blog is going to be a collection of random thoughts. Some might be about the process of writing or about children’s books in general. Others may be about what I had for lunch or the special offers on at my local Sainsbury’s (chocolate eclairs half price and buy one get one free on . I am becoming a fat man. Cheaply.). So it’ll be part diary and part social resource. If you have any questions for me about anything I do feel free to ask them. I will probably give you a straight answer.

So, voyeur fans, what am I doing right now? Well yesterday I was working on a book called Frankenstein Stole My X-Box which I hope to see published very soon. It is a great little book and it’s nice not to be writing about dinosaurs or poo for a bit. I love writing about dinosaurs and poo you understand, but I do have other interests. So Frankenstein has gone off to an editor at a nice publishing house who has been helping me get it up to scratch -lets hope she likes it and then you may get a chance to judge it for yourselves!

Now I am about to go off and start another draft of my third dino book Dinoburps which is getting there and will be getting to you in June. We are at the tinkering stage with this one. Hopefully I’ll get it sorted today. Then I’m going to go for a walk in Finsbury Park which is just across the road. Then tomorrow I start writing Hotel Trubble and I learn my lines for a show I’m doing at The Soho Theatre on Monday which I also wrote which should make learning the lines easier. Or if it doesn’t I’ll be able to say I’ve edited on the hoof when I get them wrong.

It’s all packed in.

Well it’s been lovely meeting you. I hope you come back. Tell your friends. Ask me questions. Listen to a-ha. See you soon.

Love as always

Ciaran

www.ciaranmurtagh.com