Octothorpe

By John Coxon, Alison Scott, Liz Batty

A Hugo Award-winning podcast about science fiction and SF fandom from John Coxon, Alison Scott, and Liz Batty.... more

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FAQs about Octothorpe:

How many episodes does Octothorpe have?

The podcast currently has 149 episodes available.

Octothorpe episodes:

December 04, 2025149: Real-Time Toilet Monitoring
John is going to Smofcon, Alison has FOMO, and Liz is a horrible person.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Andreas Davour (email)
Chris Garcia (email)
Ed Morland (BlueSky on 147, 148)
Cyclo-cross
Mathmo.org
Emily January (email)
Karen Schaffer (email)
Literal antivirus
Paul Weimer (email)
Centrale Montemartini
We also heard from Alan Fleming, Ali Baker Brooks, Andrew Thompson, Brian Nisbet, Bridget Bradshaw, DC, Duncan MacGregor, Ivan Sinha, Jan Harley, Kev McVeigh, Malcolm Hutchison, Mike Scott, Neil Ottenstein, Shi Lala, and Tommy Ferguson
Famous Belgians: Simon Stevin
Smofcon 2025: Smofcon 42 in Stockholm, Sweden
Smofcon Q&As
Salute of the Jugger
How to stream it in the UK
John would like to thank Glasgow 2024 for a travel bursary allowing him to attend!
Novacon 2026: Novacon 55 in Buxton
Una McCormack
Picks
John: The Truman Show
Alison: Pluribus
Liz: The Summer War by Naomi Novik
Credits
Cover art: ”Archaeologists“ by Alison Scott
Alt text: John and Alison, dressed in clothes reminiscent of The Mummy, look down some stairs upon Liz’s tomb, in which her skeleton still holds her Hugo Award, framed by stonework. The words “Octothorpe 149” appear at the top of the image.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
1h 2min
November 20, 2025148: I’m With Liz
John, Alison, and stunt Liz Emily Tesh are live from Novacon 54!
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: It’s a live recording!
Thanks to Emily Tesh for being our stunt Liz!
You can find Emily at her website, with links to socials at the bottom of the page
Eight Days of Diana Wynne Jones
Visit Stow Shirts for all your Octothorpe merchandise needs
Picks
John: The Life Impossible by Matt Haig
Alison: Where the Axe is Buried by Ray Nayler
Emily: The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps by Kai Ashante Wilson
Credits
Cover art: “Live from Novacon” by Steven Cain and Alison Scott
Alt text: Emily Tesh, John, and Alison stand in front of a suspiciously purple background which may indicate that the real background has been subtracted by nefarious photo editing. The words “Octothorpe 148 Live from Novacon” are overlaid.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
1h 7min
November 06, 2025147: What? What?! No!
John is ready, Alison had forgotten, and Liz is surprised.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Animal torture (letters of comment)
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia (email)
Ed Morland (BlueSky)
Farah Mendlesohn (Facebook)
Pictcon 2026: PictCon 2 in Perth, 17 October
Finbarr O’Reilly (email)
Kev McVeigh (Facebook)
Kin-Ming Looi (Facebook)
Paul Weimer (BlueSky, email)
Tammy Coxen (Facebook)
Terry Gibbs (Facebook)
Raj (Mastodon)
We also heard from Mike Scott, Neil Ottenstein and Tammy Coxen
2025 Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction
Ebon Moss-Bachrach on the red carpet
Event broadcast on YouTube
LAcon V opens Hugo Awards Base Contest
36th Galaxy Awards
Roderick Leeuwenhart
Tianwen Awards
Ersatz Culture on Mastodon
BKK Comics Art Festival #4
The Blaft Book of Anti-Caste SF
Belgian comics
Asian Board Games Festival (ABGF)
“Walking The Walk With RPGs In Malaysia” (paywalled on Rascal)
Picks
John: The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship
Shut Up & Sit Down’s review
Board Game Arena
The dice tower
Alison: The Word for World exhibition at the Architectural Association
Secret Maps at the British Library
Liz: Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
Star Wars is being properly remastered?
Credits
Cover art: “Nepal Spotter’s Guide” by Paul Weimer (text by Alison Scott)
Alt text: A photograph of the mountains of Nepal with text overlaid, reading “Octothorpe 147 Official Octothorpe Nepal Identification Guide* (*apparently never gets old)** (** Liz might like to go to a comics con there)”.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
1h 6min
October 23, 2025146: It Winds Me Up Something Chronic
John is on holiday, Alison said she’d have T-shirts ready, and Liz is back!
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Doug Faunt (Facebook)
Corflu 2026: Corflu Pickled in Santa Rosa, CA, USA
Ian Hillman (DM)
Jonny Baddeley (Facebook)
Eastercon 2026: Iridescence in Birmingham
Hotels are open: Check your emails for the link
Merch should be available by the time you read this
Bursaries are open for applications, deadline of 31 October
The volunteer form is open
Haruhicon 2026: Birmingham
Carrots, vitamin A, radar, and British propaganda
BristolCon 2025
World Fantasy Con 2025: Brighton
Armadacon 2025: Plymouth
British Firework Championships
Novacon 2025: Novacon 54 in Buxton
Pictcon 2025: Pictcon1 in Perth
Satellite 2026: Satellite 9 in Glasgow
Worldcon finances
Worldcon 2013: LoneStarCon 3 in San Antonio, TX, USA
Worldcon 2015: Sasquan in Spokane, WA, USA
Worldcon 2016: MidAmeriCon II in Kansas City, MO, USA
Worldcon 2020: CoNZealand in Wellington, New Zealand (but mostly online)
Worldcon 2023: Chengdu, China
Worldcon 2024: Glasgow, UK
Smofcon 2025: Smofcon 42 in Stockholm, Sweden
Picks
John: Tactical Breach Wizards
Alison: Here East
Conrad Shawcross – Umbilical (The Nervous System)
V&A East Storehouse
Liz: The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson
Credits
Cover art: “Treasures of the V&A Storehouse” by Alison Scott
Alt text: The Torrijos Ceiling at the Victoria & Albert East Storehouse. An elaborate, gilded and octagonal ceiling. Why yes, Alison has a new phone, how could you tell?
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
54min
October 09, 2025145: James Bacon and His Enthusiasms
John might, Alison won’t, and Tommy would (in a heartbeat).
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Animal torture (aftershow)
Letters of comment
Brian Nisbet (Bluesky)
Chris Garcia (email)
Jonathan Baddeley (Facebook)
Paul Weimer (Bluesky)
Scott Edelman (Bluesky)
Tommy Ferguson (email)
We also heard from Caroline Mullan, DC, Farah Mendlesohn, Ivan Sinha, and Neil Ottenstein
Octocon 2025 in Dublin
Tommy’s fanzines:
TommyWorld
Götterdämmerung
Götterdämmerung Redux
Prolapse’s issue for Irish Fandom Day
James Bacon’s article on the fan history starts on page 5!
Corflu 2023 in Belfast: Corflu Craic
Corflu Craic’s programme book
Including the con report of the Leeds Corflu that Tommy mentions
Marcin Kłak’s con report
Eastercon 2025 in Belfast: Reconnect
Eastercon 1986 in Glasgow: Albacon III
Previous Belfast conventions:
Nicon
MeCon
TitanCon
Replay is not quiiiiite ready yet, sorry listeners, it’ll be there soon!
Pictcon 1 in Perth (8 November 2025)
Novacon 54 in Buxton (7–9 November 2025)
Norncon 2026 in Belfast (8–9 May)
GoHs: Anna Smith Spark and Adrian Tchaikovsky
The Norn Scene from Wagner’s Götterdämmerung
Eastercon 2027 in Glasgow: Unconfined
Tommy is working on Communications
Worldcon bid for 2029 in Dublin
Picks
John: Spirit Island
App Store
Steam
Alison: Strong Message Here
Tommy: Sleeper Beach by Nick Harkaway
The sequel to Titanium Noir
Cahokia Jazz by Francis Spufford
Credits
Cover art: “Norns Weaving the Rope of Fate” by Alison Scott
Alt text: John, Alison and Tommy are weaving ropes of fate as norns. The ropes lead to little spools, above their heads, reminiscent of a sculpture called Umbilical by Conrad Shawcross which Alison will explain in more detail in Octothorpe 146. The words “Octothorpe 145” appear at the top, and “Looking forward to Norncon” at the bottom.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
1h 5min
September 25, 2025144: I Have Opinions on Women
John, Alison and Liz watch Dredd (2012).
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Justice.
Things that happened since we recorded:
Going Rogue released an episode about Dredd
Taika Waititi is making a Judge Dredd movie
Credits
Cover art: “Judge Coxon Pain Scale” by Alison Scott
Alt text: Six cartoons of John as a Judge from MegaCity One with the Clarke Award logo on his helmet, all of which are identical. Beneath them follows text. 0: NO HURT. 1: HURTS A LITTLE. 2: JUST A FLESH WOUND. 3: MINOR GUNSHOT. 4: BULLET THROUGH GUT. 5: FALL OFF SKYSCRAPER. The JUDGE COXON Pain Scale™. The words “Octothorpe 144” appear at the top of the cover.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
48min
September 11, 2025143: A Major Movie in the Sand Genre
John skips leg day, Alison skips art day, and Liz skips opinions.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Alan Fleming & David Bamford (email)
Eastercon 2027: Unconfined in Glasgow
Christopher J Garcia (email)
Doug Faunt (Facebook)
Fredrik Coulter (Facebook)
Jake Casella Brookins (email)
Jesi Lipp (Facebook)
Meg MacDonald (Facebook)
Paul Weimer (Bluesky)
Raj (Bluesky)
Sari Polvinen (email)
Shi Lala (Facebook)
Next episode, we are going to watch Dredd!
2025 Worldcon: Seattle
Seattle apologised after we recorded
The Hugo Awards longlist is now out!
Donald E Eastlake III at the MPC
2026 Worldcon: LAcon V in Los Angeles
‪Weyodi OldBear‬: first post, second post
Apology from the chair
2027 Worldcon: Montréal
Old bid site
Jeph Jacques’s Questionable Content
Picks
John: FlickFleet
Eurydice Games
Alison: Slay the Spire again
Liz: Luminous by Sylvia Park
“More Real Than Him”
Credits
Cover art: “Inside Coverage” by Arthur Thomson
Alt text: An abstract, geometric figure stands, their torso through a panel which has various trailing wires. There is a radio or walkie talkie on the floor and a textured background which is also geometric. The words “Octothorpe 143” appear at the top, “Walt Willis” appear at the right, and “Inside Coverage” appear at the bottom.
Explanation: This is a previously unused piece of art by Atom (Arthur Thomson), originally intended for a Walt Willis column in Hyphen that never happened. Alison wants to use it as an Octothorpe cover to make Atom eligible for Best Fanzine Cover in the FAAn awards. Except, you know, not.
Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
50min
August 28, 2025142: A Lot of Double-Sided Bra Tape
John is going to have lunch, Lori is going to brunch, and Liz is not hungry?
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Mispronounced names (chapter 4), class structures (chapter 7)
Worldcon 2025: Seattle
Hugo Awards
The ceremony
Pronunciations
Grigory Lukin
Nisi Shawl on Bluesky: first, second
K Tempest Bradford on X in 2020: first, second
K Tempest Bradford on Bluesky
The winners
Billy on the Street
“For a dollar, name a woman!”
Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes
Worldcon 2030: Edmonton bid
Picks
John: The Sentence by Gautam Bhatia
The Wall and The Horizon
Andrew Openshaw’s review
Lori: The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson
Liz: The Friend Zone Experiment by Zen Cho
Credits
Cover art: “Ceremony Script Revealed” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A picture of a book entitled “Hugo Award Pronunciation Guide” written by George R R Martin. The cover design is in the style of the A Song of Ice and Fire series, with an Iron Throne made of Hugo Awards. The words “Octothorpe 142” are at the top in a Game of Thrones-y typeface.
Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
1h 12min
August 14, 2025141: A Whole Episode Without Business Meeting Content
John is worried, Alison volunteers, and Liz is warm.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Chris Hurley (email)
Dave O’Neill (Bluesky, DM)
Ivan Sinha (Facebook)
Jesi Lipp (email, Facebook)
John Hertz (typewritten letter with pasted image from File 770 scanned by Fedex and sent by email)
Mike Glyer (email)
Neil Ottenstein (Facebook)
Nicholas Whyte (email)
Nuala (Bluesky)
Paul Weimer (Bluesky)
Rory Hennell James (Bluesky)
Tammy Coxen and Jesi Lipp (Bluesky)
We also heard from Doug Faunt and Farah Mendlesohn
Worldcon 2025: Seattle
Business Meeting
Jesi Lipp posted some excellent infographics on JOF
Jesi also posted a small table on our Facebook of attendances back to 2014 and John made them into a graph
NASFiC is gone
The USA has a national con now and it’s Dragon Con, so why compete? We will return to this question…
The end of fan-run conventions in the USA
NASFiC is gone, leaving Dragon Con as the de facto national convention
The Westercon by-laws have been repealed
Wiscon has not got enough volunteers to run an in-person convention
Gallifrey One is coming to an end, Showmasters Events are running a commercial replacement
GeekGirlCon and Penguicon are struggling
Arisia, Baycon, Boskone, Loscon have all shrunk (anecdotally)
The end of fan-run conventions more widely?
New Zealand: Fan-run conventions have been struggling since CoNZealand
Finland: SMOF News recently reported that Finncon is not running due to lack of volunteers
More widely to do with volunteering?
Maybe more true in the UK?
Picks
John: The Tyrant Philosophers by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Alison: Control Room B at Battersea Power Station (and Battersea Power Station Station)
Liz: Woodworking by Emily St. James
Credits
Cover art: “Mildly Wes” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A photograph of a cocktail bar at Battersea Power Station. The words “Control Room B” are above the cocktail bar, and the words “Octothorpe 141” overlaid in similar style.
Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
1h 3min
July 31, 2025140: Nerdiest Nerds Who Ever Nerded
John is laughing, Alison is coughing, and Liz has already eaten.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on Bluesky or on Mastodon) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Coughing (aftershow)
Letters of comment
Ali Baker Brooks (Facebook)
Constanze Hofmann (Facebook)
David Bamford (Bluesky)
Farah Mendlesohn (Facebook)
Jake Casella Brookins (Bluesky)
Jonathan Baddeley (Facebook)
Tommy Ferguson (email)
We also heard from Olav Rokne, Shi Lala, Tammy Coxen
2025 Worldcon: Seattle
Business Meeting
Business Meeting Agenda and Recaps
File 770 reporting: 4 July, 19 July, 25 July
YouTube recordings: 4 July, 19 July, 25 July
13 July was not reported/recorded because of executive session
Trial Committee
Doctor Science, España Sheriff, Ian Stockdale, Kat Kourbeti, Kris “nchanter” Snyder
Mark Protection Committee
Nicholas Whyte, Alan Bond, and Chris Rose have benefitted quite massively from shortcomings in the WSFS voting mechanism, reports Nicholas Whyte
University of Cambridge’s Single Transferable Vote regulations
There’s a new way to remove MPC members
Ben Yalow jumped before being pushed
E.2 got ratified and then un-ratified again
Andrew January visualised what the changes imply
Nicholas Whyte pointed out this would accidentally hugely disenfranchise Attending Memberships
Meg MacDonald pointed out in the Business Meeting that Glasgow had 1390 “First Worldcon” members
We should vote with “Everybody Votes” style
Smofcon 42 bursaries are available
2027 Worldcon: Montreal bid
The prospective co-chairs have been announced
Picks
John: One Soul by Ray Fawkes
Alison: Bitter
Liz: Superman
Credits
Cover art: “WSFS Everybody Votes Channel” by Alison Scott
Alt text: Three Miis in the style of John, Alison and Liz on a background reminiscent of the Everybody Votes Channel from the Nintendo Wii. The words “Octothorpe 140” appear at the top and “WSFS Everybody Votes Channel” at the bottom.
- Theme music: “Surf Shimmy” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
...more
1h 15min

FAQs about Octothorpe:

How many episodes does Octothorpe have?

The podcast currently has 149 episodes available.

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