Discworld Appendages and Related wossnames
This area of my page deals exclusively with things that, while not created by Mr Pratchett, deal with his magnificent creations. Here you will find:
- Assorted publications, or what to spend any spare change on
- The maps, or what is the nearest tavern from Cockbill Street
- The plays, or how do you do it in Thespia
- The figures, or where to put the Bill Door
- CMOT Briggs, or where to buy an UU degree
- The cartoons, or Lancre Holy Wood
- The beer, or a wizzaaaard's staff has a knooob on the eeee....[thump]
- The music (sorry, out of funny associations)
Assorted publications
The main books have sprouted quite a lot of spin-offs. Each year a diary comes out (the latest is, apparently, the "Reformed Vampires Diary"), and those are chock-full of references and jokes that often surface again in books. There are also two popular-science books, "Science of the Discworld" and "Science of the Discworld 2: The Globe", in which Ian Cohen and Jack Stewart use the framework of a story by Terry Pratchett to explain intricacies of Roundworld science. Finally we have the acclaimed "Nanny Ogg's Cookbook", in case you ever wanted to make Banananana Surprise, and the "Discworld Companion", a reference book.
The Discworld maps
Those are drawn by Stephen Briggs or Paul Kidby and based on Pterry's ideas. The unstable reality of everyone's favourite spinning object makes them a bit inconsistent with what particular books say (e.g. there are the Morpork Mountains about halfway between Ankh-Morpork and Lancre, yet Vimes said once "Once outside the city, it's loam all the way to the Ramtops"). They are still superb and one of the ultimate reference tools. Or so people say. Their only fault is low availability outside the UK, though through diligent hunting I am now the owner of the whole set - Streets of Ankh-Morpork, The Discworld Mapp, Death's Domain and A Tourist's Guide To Lancre.
The plays
Another Discworld-related service courtesy of Stephen Briggs. Those are fairly exact adaptations of the most popular Pterry books. Availability outside the UK is not very good, so I can supply no further information. I believe they are quite often performed across the UK, and you can refer to the Discworld Monthly or alt.fan.pratchett.announce for times and places.
The figures
A company called Clarecraft has an awfully large assortment of Discworld figurines. They're very good and a lot of the character pics on my pages (especially the ones that look 3D) are of their merchandise. As for availability, see Maps. Ah, and you can order a free brochure from their site, no strings attached. If your taste runs to wax, the Cunning Artificer does DW candles, pre-dribbled.
Also, Dream House are doing a doll-house of the Mended Drum. Arrgh!
CMOT Briggs
The illustrious Stephen "CMOT" Briggs wrote me himself to put a link to his various Discworld merchandise (temporarily hosted at L-space). Ever wanted an Unseen University degree or a UU scarf? So go buy it!
The animated adaptations
Two of Pterry's creations have been converted to cartoons. Cosgrove Hall animated Soul Music first. I've caught parts of it on a Scandinavian channel -- perhaps I'm spoiled by anime, but I just couldn't watch. The sense came across well, but the animation was totally wooden. The special effects were done in 3D and they didn't even pretend to fit them with the rest of the animated action; the characters' faces weren't even shadowed. Well... tastes are not to be disputed.
Wyrd Sisters has been shown on the British Channel 4 in 6 parts. People say it's worse than the first adaptation (which makes me wonder, at the least), and the way characters' names are pronounced defies the instinctive way we speak of, e.g. Gytha Ogg as "guy-thah ogh" (Cosgrove version: Gheethah oghgh, apparently). People say... there's no way I can watch it here.
Wyrd Sisters is now available on DVD, and here's a review from VCI. A new adaptation of the Bromeliad is being prepared by Dreamworks - the same team who did Shrek.
Discworld Beer
Used to be, you could buy scumble and assorted Discworld beverages. Unfortunately, according to Discworld Monthly issue 26, the producers' license has been terminated as a result of of their failure to keep to the terms of their contract. Too bad...
Discworld-inspired music
There are two CDs -- "Music from the Discworld" and the soundtrack from the Soul Music cartoon. I have more information about the latter, which is mainly Music With Rocks In -- inspired, as you might guess, by early rock and pop. Discworld Monthly reviewers say the songs range from the likes of Chuck Berry to the Beatles to Jimi Hendrix (although some say "The Touchstone" has some Metallica references). As for availability, Amazon and others stock both -- at Cheap or What! CDs the price is said to be as low as GBP 9 for "Music from the Discworld", and GBP 13 for the soundtrack at CD Zone.