Pratchat
  • Home
  • News
  • Episodes
  • The Books
  • More!
    • Reading Challenge
    • The Guild of Recappers & Podcasters
  • Support Us
  • About

Mort

#Pratchat2 – Murdering a Curry

08/12/2017 by Pratchat Imps 2 Comments

In our second episode, writer and editor Stephanie Convery joins us as we discuss the runner-up in our poll for which book to read first – Mort! Published 30 years ago, it’s the fourth Discworld novel, and the first to put Death in a starring role.

Mort (short for Mortimer), a daydreaming farmer’s son, is offered an apprenticeship by Death himself. Travelling outside of space and time to Death’s home, he finds things aren’t what he expects: Death has an elderly manservant, an adopted daughter, and an unusual interest in fly fishing. Mort, left to do the job alone, tries to defy fate in a very human (and teenage) moment  – but can he possibly succeed? And why does an immortal anthropomorphic personification need an apprentice, anyway?

Mort is often cited (including by us) as the first book in the series that feels like the Discworld we know and love, so if you’re joining us for the first time this episode, this is a great place to start. (And don’t worry: we will go back and read the first three books at some point!)

https://media.blubrry.com/pratchat/pratchatpodcast.com/episodes/Pratchat_episode_02.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:33:48 — 86.6MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSS | More

Guest Stephanie Convery is deputy culture editor of Guardian Australia, a writer and an author. Her first book, After the Count: The Death of Davey Browne, was published in March 2020 by Penguin Books. You can follow Stephanie on Twitter at @gingerandhoney, and find her work on Guardian Australia.

You can find the full show notes and errata for this episode on our web site.

Want to make sure we get through every Pratchett book? You can support Pratchat for as little as $2 a month and get access to bonus stuff, including the exclusive supporter podcast Ook Club! Click here to find out more.

Posted in: Podcast Tagged: Ben McKenzie, Death, Discworld, Elizabeth Flux, Mort, Rincewind, Stephanie Convery

#Pratchat3 Notes and Errata

08/01/2018 by Ben Leave a Comment

Theses are the show notes and errata for episode 3, “You’re a Wizzard, Rincewind“, featuring guest Cal Wilson, discussing the fifth Discworld novel, 1989’s Sourcery.

  • The episode title riffs on Hagrid’s famous words to an unbelieving Harry Potter in the first novel (and film), Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone: “Your’s a wizard, Harry!”
  • Freddie Mercury was a first son of a son of undetermined order, so his magical powers clearly came from somewhere else.
  • Ben talks a lot about Dungeons & Dragons this episode; if you’ve no idea what it’s all about, his article “What Even Is Dungeons & Dragons?” will get you up to speed. (Content note: the article is a little sweary.)
  • Terry’s thoughts on J K Rowling can be still be found online in his interview with The Age here: “Mystery lord of the Discworld“, Peter Fray, November 6, 2004.
  • A person who doesn’t realise they’re no good at what they do might have a form of cognitive bias known as the Dunning-Kruger effect, named for a 1999 psychological study.
  • Hook turns might not be widely used by cars outside of Melbourne, but they’re a common way for bicycles to turn across traffic at cross intersections in many parts of the world.
  • The Annotated Pratchett File (APF for short) is a brilliant source of information on the various references in the novels. We also recommend the Discworld & Terry Pratchett Wiki, also hosted by the L-Space Web.
Posted in: Episode Notes Tagged: Ben McKenzie, Death, Discworld, Elizabeth Flux, Mort, Rincewind, Stephanie Convery

#Pratchat2 Notes and Errata

08/12/2017 by Ben Leave a Comment

Theses are the show notes and errata for episode 2, “Murdering a Curry“, featuring guest Stephanie Convery discussing the fourth Discworld novel, 1988’s Mort.

  • Sir Terry’s own thoughts on where to start reading the Discworld are most clearly outlined in the essay “Straight from the Heart, Via the Groin”, which is most easily found in the 2014 non-fiction collection A Slip of the Keyboard.
  • “Mort” does mean death, but it’s not Latin – it’s French (or in Discworld terms, Quirmian).
  • A “squib” in the world of Harry Potter is the rare child of a magical person who is not magical themselves.
  • The lead Gentleman in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode Hush was played by Doug Jones, now famous for playing Abe Sapien in the Hellboy films, the Faun and the Pale Man in Pan’s Labyrinth, and Saru in Star Trek Discovery. He plays Count Orlok, the titular vampire, in the upcoming remake of Nosferatu. And he’d make a great Death.
  • Christopher Lee was the voice of Death in both Cosgrove Hall animated adaptations (Wyrd Sisters and Soul Music), and The Mob’s live-action adaptation of The Colour of Magic, following Ian Richardson’s death. And his Death. (Richardson played Death in The Mob’s first Discworld adaptation, Hogfather.) The body of Death was played by Marnix Van Den Broeke, who also played the golem Mr Pump in Going Postal.
  • The horse that plays Bucephalus in Gilliam’s The Adventures of Baron Munchausen is, unfairly, not named in the credits of the film.
Posted in: Episode Notes Tagged: Ben McKenzie, Death, Discworld, Elizabeth Flux, Mort, Rincewind, Stephanie Convery

#Pratchat0 – And the Winner is…

08/10/2017 by Pratchat Imps 5 Comments

Welcome to Pratchat! In this special 10-minute introductory episode, Liz and Ben talk about their first Pratchett experiences, introduce the Discworld, and put forward their cases for which book they should read first, Mort, or Men at Arms, before announcing the winner of the closely contested public poll. If you want to go in not knowing which one it will be, then don’t look below!

https://media.blubrry.com/pratchat/pratchatpodcast.com/episodes/Pratchat_episode_00.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 9:59 — 19.3MB)

Subscribe: Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | RSS | More

Okay, I think all the spoiler-concerned have looked away now…

It was Men at Arms! So get yourself a copy and get reading, as we’ll be discussing it on the very first proper episode, which will be released on November 8th. We’ll probably even have art and a theme tune and everything by then! In the meantime, you can watch this site for more info about the book itself, and our plans – including some thoughts about our long-term reading order. But if you have thoughts on anything we mention in the intro, please leave a comment and let us know!

Posted in: Podcast Tagged: Ben McKenzie, Discworld, Douglas Adams, Elizabeth Flux, Men at Arms, Mort

Mort vs. Men At Arms: Help Us Choose!

02/10/2017 by Elizabeth Flux 9 Comments
A section of Josh Kirby's cover art for the original edition of Mort, 1989.

We’re almost set to release our episode 0 — but we need your help. Deciding what book to begin with is a hell of a thing, and Ben and I have been arguing, debating, grumbling and then debating some more and we finally have it down to two options. So, in the interests of fairness, we are turning it over to you to help us decide which book will be kicking off our podcast!

“The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it.”

Posted in: News Tagged: Discworld, Men at Arms, Mort, poll

Follow Pratchat

Apple PodcastsGoogle PodcastsAndroidby EmailRSSMore Subscribe Options

Latest episode:

  • Pratchat63 - Decline by Committee
    #Pratchat63 – Decline by Committee

Next time…

#Pratchat64 - Rincemangle, the Gnome of Even Moor08/02/2023
11 days to go.

We’re on Podchaser!

Podchaser - Pratchat

We’re on Twitter!

My Tweets

We’re on Facebook!

We’re on Facebook!

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

Copyright © 2023 Pratchat.

Pratchat WordPress Theme by Ben McKenzie

 

Loading Comments...