"Kim Newman - The Serial Murders" - читать интересную книгу автора (Newman Kim)

Fred and Vanessa tensed, ready for a scrap.
"Heel," said June firmly.
As one, the pack looked to her.
"You lot, there's work to do. I'll be taking more of an interest in the writing from now on. Porko, tomorrow you
will sign Leslie Veneer and Gaye Brough to six months' contracts. Roget and Canberra will be staying in
Bleeds to mop up after the Bogey. No decapitations necessary."
The chubby writer checked his colleagues' faces and nodded vigorously. The rest agreed with him. June
O'Dell was in charge.
"Professor Corri," she said, "we've had our differences, but I'd like to offer you a job as Head Writer. This is
yours for the taking тАж"
She snatched the school cap from one of the writers' pockets and offered it to Barbara.
"I'll think about it," said the professor.
Beside June, Mama-Lou smiled, eyes glittering.
The Moo and Mistress Voodoo exerted a tug on Barbara, which Richard knew would have an effect. He was
more worried about how the professor would fare in the television jungle than he had been when she was only
under a deadly curse. But she could take care of herself.
Richard acknowledged these women of power, trustingтАФagainst prior experienceтАФthey would wield it only for
good. He might have to keep watching the blasted programme to make sure they avoided the shadow of the
Saturday Man.
He helped the professor, now steady on her feet, out of the room.
The Rolls awaited.
He turned to look into Barbara's eyes and kissed her. Her terror had passed, and new, exciting feelings were
creeping in.
"Did we win?" she asked.
"Handsomely," said Richard.
The End


Annotations
1. BBC2. At the time of this story, British television had only three channels. The BBC (British Broadcasting
Corporation) channels BBC1 and BBC2 were, and remain, free of commercial interruption, supported by the
TV license fee; BBC1 is fairly populist, while BBC2 purportedly caters to more select interests. The third
channel was ITV (Independent Television), not so much a network as a loose grid of franchise-holding local
broadcasters (e.g., Thames Television in the South-East, Westward in the South-West) who carried a great
deal of programming in common but with many regional variations. ITV shows might air on different days of
the week and in different timeslots in diverse parts of the country. This author remembers manually retuning
the family set to catch the blurry, distant signal of HTV Wales to watch Hammer Films not being shown in
our area.
2. Doctor Who. UK TV programme (1963-89, 1996, 2005- ) about a time-travelling adventurer, the Doctor
(originally William Hartnell).
3. Scotland Yard. The original Scotland Yard, so called because before the union of the crowns of Scotland
and England it was a London residence for the Kings of Scotland, was headquarters of the Metropolitan
Police from 1820 until 1890, when they moved to New Scotland Yard on the Victoria Embankment. From
1967, the Met has been headquartered in a new New Scotland Yard, which is the place with the revolving sign
out front.
4. Daleks. Doctor Who's most persistent foes, introduced in "The Dead Planet" (1963)тАФmachine-encased
evil mutants from the Planet Skaro, with distinctive croaking voices ("Ex-ter-min-ate!"). Beneficiaries of a
major merchandising blitz in the 1960sтАФyou could even bake Dalek cakes.
5. Autons. Lesser-known alien villains from Doctor Who, introduced in "Spearhead From Space" (1970). They
returned in "Terror of the Autons" (1971) and, after a long absence, "Rose" (2005). Plastic entities resembling