The Male Online by Barney Farmer, art by Lee Healey
If you’re in the Lancaster area next Friday, then you’re in for a treat, because VIZ writer Barney Farmer, co-creator of the acclaimed “Drunken Bakers” for VIZ with artist Lee Healey takes to the boards at the local “Spotlight” writing and performance event.
It’s the latest of many stage appearances, with Barney heading to Gullivers in Manchester’s Northern Quarter later in the month and London’s Horse Hospital in June.
Writer, raconteur, pessimist, sceptic and “aspirant public scourge from the North of England”, Barney has written for VIZ since 2002, with work including “Drunken Bakers”.
Through The Male Online, self-published on his Twitter feed, he regularly lampoons the Little Englander keyboard warriors who embody the spirit of the country’s middle-market tabloid the Daily Mail.
“They don’t like it up ‘em,” he said of Leavers (people who voted for the UK to leave the EU) during a wide-ranging interview with Good Trouble last year, but the comment could easily apply to any of the reactionary groups at work today. “They talk about free speech, but they’re tremendously pious. That’s the lethal combination – giving but not taking, it’s the mentality of the bully.”
His first novel, Drunken Baker, was published last May to some small glib critical acclaim, and it is anticipated a similar fate, at best, awaits his second, Coketown, when it appears this summer.
Spotlight at The Storey, Lancaster is a live-writing venue that’s been running since 1995, dedicated to bringing new and different writing, performers, readers and musicians to the stage every third Friday of the month. After the regular ”Open Mic” session (in which, literally anything has been known to happen) also on stage will be poets Rose Proudfoot, Ruth Snowdon and Steeve The Poet, writer Chloe MacDonald with music from Andy Whitfield rounding the evening off.
The longest-running regular performance event in Lancaster, Spotlight was recently awarded a grant from the Big Lottery Fund which will ensure it keep running until May 2020.
• Spotlight – Friday 17th May, The Storey, Lancaster in The Auditorium | Doors Open 7.00pm | Open Mic 7.15 – 7.45pm | (£5 / £3 students/unwaged/concessions) | Web: www.spotlightlancaster.co.uk | Facebook
• Barney Farmer is online at barneyfarmer.com (where you can also find out where he’s appearing) and you can pursue him on Twitter @barneyfarmer
• Read a 2018 interview with Barney Farmer on Good Trouble
The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.
Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.
He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.
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