The first weekend of September will witness an intriguing first, in the shape of Britain’s only ever academic werewolf conference. Held at the University of Hertfordshire, and entitled ‘The Company of Wolves: Sociality, Animality, and Subjectivity in Literary and Cultural Narratives – Werewolves, Shapeshifters, and Feral Humans’, attendees can hear papers with intriguing titles like ‘Wolf Children’, ‘The Sound of the Cinematic Werewolf’, and ‘Werewolves and Paranormal Romance’. Other events include a visit to the 18th century grave of a local ‘wolf boy’, a lycanthropic antique magic lantern show, and an opportunity to ‘walk with wolves’ at the nearby UK Wolf Conservation Trust.

Although I have been to many German festivals before, this was the first time I sampled M’era Luna. Just a half hour from Hannover, this festival has been going since 2000 in its current incarnation (FKP Scorpio, the organsing body, previously ran this festival in conjunction with Zillo magazine, and decided to keep it on under the flag “M’era Luna” after the cooperation ended in 1999 – you can read my interview with the organisers here). Based at what appears to be a disused airport in Hildesheim, just a half hour from Hannover, it’s a relatively easy journey from the UK – although does
involve a train and bus from the Hannover airport. Another, slightly more fun option, would be to join the annual “Goths on a Bus” tour! Picking up from various spots around England and ferrying the black clad masses across the channel, ensures you’ll arrive ready for the party with your fellow goth horde. (see the facebook group to find out about next year’s trip)

Alchemy Open Day

July the 1st saw the very first Alchemy open day! It was the hottest day of the Year so far, with the UK basking in record temperatures! This did not deter our loyal friends and customers, old and new, from attending a very special day. Which enabled our customers to see where the magic happens and gain an insight into all things Alchemy, with a few surprises along the way! A huge thanks to all who attended the day it was a pleasure to have you, we sincerely hope that that you enjoyed the day as much as we did! We have already put July 1st 2016 in the diary for the next open day. Make sure you save the date too!

Dating becomes rather complicated when you see all your potential partners as…food.

On October 16th 2015, the long awaited Crimson Peak will be released in cinemas and is set to be the next great gothic horror.

This week the spacecraft New Horizons started sending back images of Pluto. The dwarf planet made of ice aptly named after the cold hearted Roman god of the underworld.

On Wednesday 1st July, Alchemy Carta opened it’s gates to our customers for the very first Alchemy Open Day! The sun was shining as we welcomed people from the hours of 10am-4pm to gain a sneak peak into how the magic happens from concept to production

Dear Reader,

They called me the Black Widow. They accused me of doing horrible things, cruel things. They hated me and despised me. But, before you do the same, I would like to clarify a few things. I would like to tell you my story.

This month, one of the great icons of British cinema passed away. Christopher Lee gave over seventy years of his life to cinema and played some truly great roles along the way. His more recent roles as Saruman in Lord of the Rings and Count Dooku in the Star Wars prequels sealed his name into the history books as one of the greats, but his earlier roles in gothic cinema paved the road to his later endeavours.

London has more museums than anywhere else in England and I think I may have just located its most unusual. Tucked behind Hackney’s fried chicken shops and green grocers is a modern-day cabinet of curiosities that’s guaranteed to intrigue as much as disgust. The Viktor Wynd Museum Of Curiosities is a museum-come-bar where you can enjoy a Zombie cocktail and a crocodile burger (vegetarian options available on request!) while admiring skeletons and eclectic fine art – some of which is for sale. But it’s down a narrow, winding staircase where you’ll find the most bizarre curios displayed in what’s called The Wunderkabinett.