60: Dungeons & Dragons

This is it, my brand new audiodrama, The Greatest Matter. There's murder and mystery, crime and conspiracy, gothic and ghosts - if you are a fan of Words To That Effect, I think you are going to like this! You can listen to all the episodes and subscribe/follow at TheGreatestMatter.com or by simply typing "The Greatest Matter" into your podcast player of choice.

So it's been a while! Here's a quick update of what's been going on over at WTTE HQ, including an announcement of my brand new audiodrama: The Greatest Matter. You can have a listen to the trailer and, if you like what you here, subscribe to the show wherever you're listening now. All the details at thegreatestmatter.com

Unfortunately there aren't going to be any new episodes for a little while but have a listen to this short update letting you know what's going on at WTTE and where things are heading next.

Dungeons & Dragons plays a huge part in fiction and popular culture more generally, but it is often overlooked or misunderstood. In this episode I gather together an experienced Dungeon Master and some complete novices (including myself) to play D&D for the first time. Joining me to explore this new world is academic, and life-time D&D fan, Professor Curt Carbonell, who has recently published a book on the subject.  WTTE is part of the HeadStuff Podcast Network. You can support the show and get bonus content and more by becoming a member of HeadStuff+. Go to HeadStuffPodcasts.com For full transcripts, links, references, and more the home of the podcast is wttepodcast.com

From medieval ballads to the poetry of John Keats, stage productions to children’s songs, novels to comic books, silent movies to glorious technicolour, Disney classics to Kevin Costner blockbusters to Mel Brooks parodies to gritty reimaginings and lots, lots more, Robin Hood is certainly one of the most recognisable characters in all of western popular culture. Joining me to explore the legendary outlaw is Prof Valerie Johnson, from the University of Montevallo, Alabama. WTTE is part of the HeadStuff Podcast Network. You can support the show and get bonus content and more by becoming a member of HeadStuff+. Go to HeadStuffPodcasts.com For full transcripts, links, references, and more the home of the podcast is wttepodcast.com

What does the word "Gothic" mean to you? Gothic cathedrals and castles? Gothic fiction? Teenage goths dressed in black? Horror and the supernatural? This episode explores the origins of the gothic and one man's lasting influence on this most important of genres. Joining me as my gothic guide is Prof Dale Townshend, Professor of Gothic Literature at Manchester Metropolitan University. WTTE is part of the HeadStuff Podcast Network. You can support the show and get bonus content and more by becoming a member of HeadStuff+. Go to HeadStuffPodcasts.com For full transcripts, links, references, and more the home of the podcast is wttepodcast.com

A Word To That Effect is a new series of bonus mini-episodes about a single word or phrase with a distinctly literary origin. This week: serendipity. WTTE is part of the HeadStuff Podcast Network. You can support the show and get bonus content and more by becoming a member of HeadStuff+. Go to HeadStuffPodcasts.com For full transcripts, links, references, and more the home of the podcast is wttepodcast.com

A Word To That Effect is a new series of bonus mini-episodes about a single word or phrase with a distinctly literary origin. This week: cliffhanger! WTTE is part of the HeadStuff Podcast Network. You can support the show and get bonus content and more by becoming a member of HeadStuff+. Go to HeadStuffPodcasts.com For full transcripts, links, references, and more the home of the podcast is wttepodcast.com

Sensation fiction was a hugely popular genre in the 1860s. The novels were sensationally popular, but they also caused a sensation, with their plots of bigamy and murder, forgery and blackmail. In so many ways the influence of sensation fiction can still be felt today. WTTE is part of the HeadStuff Podcast Network. You can support the show and get bonus content and more by becoming a member of HeadStuff+. Go to HeadStuffPodcasts.com For full transcripts, links, references, and more the home of the podcast is wttepodcast.com

Knights in shining armour, damsels in distress, castles, chivalry and courtly love, heroic quests, dragons. King Arthur, Camelot, Merlin, the Knights of the Round Table, the Holy Grail. Think of King Arthur and the medieval romance and a huge number of images and tropes and cliches spring to mind. Where does all this come from? WTTE is part of the HeadStuff Podcast Network. You can support the show and get bonus content and more by becoming a member of HeadStuff+. Go to HeadStuffPodcasts.com For full transcripts, links, references, and more the home of the podcast is wttepodcast.com