IT IS SUNDAY: Here is a photo of two baby platypuses wearing fedoras. You're welcome.

GAIL-NINA SENT THIS

HAUNTED SKIES: Sun (The) 16.8.67.

http://hauntedskies.blogspot.com/2012/07/sun-16867.html

I'M YER GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN

It's sunday, so again its time
to do the Gonzo blog in rhyme,
and Scoop-it is playing up you see,
I'm inputting stuff manually,
the links won't be as cool and swish
as I (the editor) would wish,
but there are still stories here for you,
and this work-around will have to do
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/07/technical-hitch.html


My computer is playing up to,
and I'm not quite sure what to do,
or what the error message means
God, I bloody hate machines!

I promised Michael De Barres,
that if he travels reasonably far,
and faced a journey that was frantic,
deciding to fly cross The Atlantic,
to visit us, he can have cake
so here's a pic for goodness sake
of my missus and Ma-in-law
offering Lord Des Barres some more

The cake is delicious, satisfying and sweet
quite a bit like the CD of Carnaby Street
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/i-did-promise-that-my-lovely-wife-would.html

Paul Kantner's intrepid crew,
(that's Jefferson Starship to me and you)
have got a set of four CDs
about some distant galaxies
recorded in New Mexico
at the Roswell Festival don't you know,
expect stuff about Flying Saucers,
and lyrics just as good as Chaucer's
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/link-jefferson-starship-anniversary.html

Peter McAdam is a funny guy,
but I have to admit that I don't know why
his book is really worth your money,
'cos its so insanely funny

9 Henrys inhabit a universe,
where the drawings are crude and the puns are worse,
but its clever and literate intelligent stuff
and bloody hell it makes me laugh
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/nine-henrys-book-launch.html

Nik Turner plays a damn fine sax,
and in an interview packed full of facts,
he looks back at the time he grinned,
co-founding a band called Hawkwind.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/link-nik-turner-interview-about.html

And Graham found this awesome vid
of an obscure German band who did
some busking (what intrepid boys)
with a song that sounds a bit like Neu's

and I think despite having reached the page,
of my life when I'm a certain page
the fact that stuff like this still moves me
means that I'm probably still slightly groovy
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/now-thats-what-i-call-busking.html

And I don't regret the time I spend on
finding things to rhyme with 'Lenten',
cos of all the people in this biz
one of my favourites is our Liz,
her 'Indian Summer' album's great
I've played it quite a lot of late
and I've sat down with my cat and dog
perusing her back catalogue.

and its always fun to see what new
links that I can come up for you
Sometimes it is an interview,
but this week its a great review
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-auburn-review.html

And finally Yowsa Yowsa Yowsa,
I got a note from Merrell Fankhauser,
(yes, I know that rhyme was slightly forced,
but its just about par for the course)

His surf guitar playing is best,
and he's playing the Monterey Fest,
and making a documentary which,
has people from Hendrix's Rainbow Bridge.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/merrell-fankhauser-writes.html

And my inspiration's getting weak,
so that's about it from this blogging freak,
so, unless we get a chance to speak,
I'll be back again with rhymes next week.

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1976 Anneliese Michel died from starvation and dehydration reputed to have been brought on by an attempt to exorcise her of demons she believed were possessing her. The exorcism of Emily Rose and two other films have been made loosely based on the case, for more info see the Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anneliese_Michel

And now the news:

• Rabies outbreak in Carlsbad prompts warning to avo...
• Catwalk pigs could hold the key to improving anima...
• How Sticky Toepads Evolved in Geckos and What That...
• Dinosaurs Were Warm-Blooded Reptiles: Mammal Bone ...
• Militia attack Okapi Wildlife Reserve & kill guard...
• Critically Endangered 'Tree Lobsters' Hatched at Z...
• Scottish salmon companies have killed 300+ seals s...
• EU to ban exotic species imports?
• Rare mussels almost 'wiped out'
• New species of dandelion discovered on St Kilda is...
• Elephant-Nosed Fish Has Funky Eyes, Too

The trailer for The Exorcism of Emily Rose:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSy7DldFdUI

A NEW CRYPTO NOVEL (NOT PUBLISHED BY US) DUE LATER IN THE YEAR

http://www.amazon.com/Hopsquatch-Michael-Newton/dp/1432825968/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1340797976&sr=1-1&keywords=newton+%2B+hopsquatch

INTERESTING INSIGHT ON SOME BIGFOOT SIGHTINGS?

CFZ CANADA: Could Bigfoot Be The Killer/Kidnapper on the "Highway of Tears" in British Columbia?

I have noticed many negative comments about this article, some are saying that the article is disrespectful to the families and the missing and killed woman.In the article I wanted to bring to light to the public the horrific incidents that have been occurring in Highway 16 and other nearby highways in the BC area of Canada. In no way was my intent to make any one upset specially the families of these women. The connection to Bigfoot been the killer kidnapper of these woman to me is also absurd...

Read on...

HAUNTED SKIES: Sun (The) 15.8.67.

http://hauntedskies.blogspot.com/2012/06/sun-15867.html

ANDREW MAY: Words from the Wild Frontier

News and stories from the remoter fringes of the CFZ blogosphere...

From Nick Redfern's World of Whatever:

• Spaghetti and a Space Girl — An anthology of articles on Bigfoot and much more...
• From Snake To Snakes — Another weird creature report from Stan Gordon...
• Gigging on Boggy Creek — A lecture from Lyle Blackburn...
• Stan Gordon: Sunday Night — On Beyond the Edge radio...

From CFZ Canada:

• Could Bigfoot Be The Killer/Kidnapper on the "Highway of Tears" in British Columbia?

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1908 the Tunguska event occurred. There can be few people with an interest in Forteana who haven't heard of the event but if you're one of those people why not educate yourself with this wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event

And now the news:

• Help record the UK’s bumblebee population – Upload...
• Wandering Cape Cod bear captured in Boston suburb
• British oil company to drill for oil in Virunga Na...
• Pet piranha bites off toddler's fingertip
• Ants call for emergency backup with chemical trail...
• Six-legged cane toad found
• Appeal to save Oxon wildlife site launched
• Brown-banded carder bee amongst rare bees spotted ...
• Early human ancestor chewed bark
• Sharp decline in upland birds in Wales

Meanwhile, in Space:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBtb_jSk5fw

I'M THE GONZO BLOG GOO-DAH MAN

It is still a little chilly and windy but at least the sun is shining. We have a distinguished visitor - a famous Australian cryptozoologist - so as soon as I have finished blogifying we are packing him and mother into the car and taking him around the sights and scenes of North Devon.

In the meantime, check these out:
Michael Des Barres is a busy fellow these days. I am finding it hard to keep up with all his many and splendiferous media appearances like this interview. In the meantime, may I say how much I like his echinoderm hat (ever the zoologist)
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-michael-des-barres-silverhead.html

Basically this next story is me explaining how the Gonzo scoop-it widget works and how you can embed it on your own website, but if you are viewing this story on scoop-it you probably already know all this, and if you are not...well, you should be!
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/new-look-gonzo-daily.html

My old mate Dave McMann has some news about Yes alumnus Billy Sherwood. As he so rightly says, we are particularly into Yes/Wakeman here at Gonzzo Daily, so we pounce on every scrap of news like Prudence the Gonzo Daily bulldog pouncing on a biscuit...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/dave-mcmann-writes.html

There is something about the ethos of Jefferson Starship that I, for one, find refreshing in these increasingly cut-throat and capitalistic times. Old hippies like us should stand together man!http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/share-your-jefferson-starship-pix.html

Another great review for Rick Wakeman's new Live CD. I actually find it rather pleasant to find how many reviewers seem to share my opinions about things. Maybe my time has come and I am no longer a lone voice singing in the cultural wilderness..
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-rick-wakeman-review_30.html

Trevor Rabin gets a prestigious award, and a video tribute from Jon Anderson. No-one can say that he doesn't deserve it! Congratulations Trevor from all at the Gonzo Daily...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-arts-entertainment-ascap-fetes.html

I am getting ever more impressed by the work of Helen McCookerybook. She is an intriguing artist, and one whose work really does deserve to reach a wider audience, which is why I shamelessly plug her on the Gonzo Daily at every chance I get.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/helen-mccookerybook-brittletwist.html

That's about it for today. I shall be back tomorrow, and being sunday, it will be in rhyme...

LARS THOMAS: The Strange Case of the Dog-Loving Shieldbearer (Part Two)

Publish Post It seems that I haven't been doing my homework properly. Several people have called my attention to the fact, that the extinct fly which may still be living in southern Denmark and northern Germany, is in fact not extinct. It was rediscovered in Spain in 2009 and 2010. Oh well - nevertheless, I intend to carry on looking for it here, as this would be several hundred kilometers outside of its formerly known distribution.

Read on

DALE DRINNON: Back with bigfoot

JON: We would like to welcome Dale back, and although we are sad that his health problems continue, we are glad to hear that they are not as bad as we at one time thought they were. Welcome back, old friend.

I have a regular doctor's appointment on Monday and I am going to try to get back into a regular schedule of blog postings.

New at the Frontiers of Zoology: Pending for two weeks, finally ready to release:http://frontiersofzoology.blogspot.com/2012/06/we-have-met-bigfoot-and-he-is-us.html

STAFFORDSHIRE SEA-SERPENT SIMULACRA

1. 
   
   
   ​
   
   
   
   SCARY: Miriam Bestford's image of the 'Loch Ness Monster'.
   
   
   
   http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/saw-Nessie-trip-lake/story-16456249-detail/story.html

Bigfoot Research - Washington Sasquatch Research Team Expedition 7-10Jun12

I'M YER GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN

It is still grey and close here. I am not feeling at my best (as one of the stories here will explain) and it is probably not the best time for me to be expecting a visitor from Australia who is an old friend that I have not met in 14 years. But I am looking forward to his arrival immensely. I thought that we had bad weather yesterday but Anne Marie tells me "We had just got off the Tyne Bridge when the lightning struck and it took us 5 hours to go home 15 miles!!! Nightmare." So there is always someone worse off than you. Thus ends my philosophical message for today. On with the postings:

A few weeks ago we started a new series called SONG-BY-SONG and it does exactly what it says on the tin. Basically I go through an album song by song, and then pass my notes on to the artist who made the album in the first place, and see what they have to say. And we started off this exciting new series with the irrepressable Martin Stephenson and his smashing new album California Star. We did the first two thirds of the album, and then nothing. But here is the concluding part, and we shall be back with Michael Des Barres in a day or two.http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/song-by-song-martin-stephenson-and.html

Mimi Page is an industrious young lady, and makes so many guest appearances on other people's records that it is sometimes quite hard to keep track of them all. This is a new remix that I don't think that I have heard before. It is, by the way, massively groovy (Golly, I am showing my age calling something 'groovy')http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/another-mimi-page-remix-i-dont-think-i.html

In which our hero has one of his turns and has to proffer his apologies to Tony Hawks. However, I can report that the book by Drumbo is excellent, and I look forward to chatting to him in a week or two. Forgive me for all this chaps and chapesses, but I am as mad as a bagful of cheese at the moment.http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/drumbo-book-mask-replica-post-bag-and.html

As regular readers will probably have worked out by now, I am really quite fond of Michael Des Barres (whose new album is sooooooooo good, and which I am playing constantly). This photograph, which I think I nicked from his Facebook page, might go a little way towards explaining why.http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/and-you-wonder-why-i-am-fond-of-michael.html

As regular readers will have gathered (and as anyone who has ever visited the Centre for Fortean Zoology over the past fifteen years will attest - if you haven't gathered, the CFZ is what we do when we are not gonzifying) - we are all rather fond of Hawkwind. Graham, in particular is very much a fan. In fact, calling Graham a 'fan' of Hawkwind, is as much of an understatement as saying that I could do with losing a little weight. He is a complete obsessive! So it was to his great delight that we linked to a particularly insightful interview with the band..http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-hawkwind-interview.html

I think that Peter McAdam's skewed take on life is one of the funniest things that I have ever come across. I am so enamoured of his book 'The 9 Henrys' that I shall be plugging it unmercifully until every person in the western world owns at least 1.3 copies of this remarkable work. So there!http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/invitation-to-social-event-of-season.html

Another of the vintage hippy bands of which I in particular am very fond is Jefferson Starship. I am very much looking forward to this 4CD set of them live at the Roswell UFO Festival back in 2009, and am desperately doing links to every article that I can find about it and them. Like this one...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-jefferson-starship-set-to-release.html

So ends another day. I will be back on the morrow....

HAUNTED SKIES: Sun (The) 13.6.67.

http://hauntedskies.blogspot.com/2012/06/sun-13667.html

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1920 Ray Harryhausen was born. Harryhausen is a pioneer of stop-motion animation in films, the most well known of which draw on classic legends and monsters like Jason and the Argonauts, Clash of the Titans and The 7th Voyage of Sinbad.

And now the news:

• Scientist spends 40 years studying Skomer Island’s...
• Human Insulin Suppresses Mosquito Immune System: I...
• Undercover investigation reveals whales killed for...
• Cambodia Remains Last Vulture Bastion in Southeast...
• Military forces clear LRA from Congo park – But fo...
• Mystery of the Flatfish Head Solved
• Rare Sumatran rhino gives birth at Indonesian sanc...
• Antarctic sea ice loss could lead to loss of 80% E...
• Green shoots of recovery for House Sparrows?
• Runaway penguin 'No 337' to be named in Japan
• Wildlife officer finds fish dumped on Plymouth rou...
• Migratory Bats Use Both Fat Reserves and Food to F...

Even today when film-makers can seamlessly blend motion capture CGI with real actors, this Harryhausen animated scene from Jason and the Argonauts can still lay claim to being one of the greatest accomplishments in special effects:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pF_Fi7x93PY

WW2012: Hanging my head in shame

How could I have forgotten the most important part of the Weird Weekend? Mrs Joanne and Ms Rosie Curtis and their Crypto arts and crafts kids' stall. It is fantastic and it is free and each year it gets better and better.

However, they always insist on bringing that weird bloke with them....

For more Weird Weekend details and to buy tickets check out www.weirdweekend.org

LARS THOMAS: The Strange Case of the Dog Loving Shieldbearer

Publish Post Although I have never considered myself an entomologist, I have nurtured a growing interest in insects the last 5 or 6 years. I have even managed to rediscover a beetle everybody thought had died out in Denmark in the early 1990's, but nothing REALLY cryptozoological - until now that is.
Read on...

BIG CAT NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Whilst the focus of the CFZ Mystery Cat study group is predominantly the search for proof of the British big cats, it would be unrealistic to forget that this is only part of a global mystery cat phenomenon.

Here are a selection of mystery cat stories from around the world.

Cougar hounds in demand as big cats sighted
Sooke News Mirror
Hounds are used to track and tree cougars when they threaten humans.

Big cougar prowls Victoria-area prison
MetroNews Canada
Police say they want to warn local residents that the large cat has been seen in the area. Conservation officers weren't called in because police say the cougar ...]

And one from Scotland

Wild cat sighting in New Cumnock
Cumnock Chronicle
NEW Cumnock was this week plunged into a wild cat mystery - after the alleged sighting of the unusually large black moggy in the village. , Byline: Editorial, ...

MATT AND EMMA OSBORNE: Our Zazzle Shop

We have a Zazzle shop which we use to promote our merchandise for the CFZ which raises funds and supports us in the work we do.

For those looking for unique and unusual items of cfz memorabilia please visit the link below and take a look around http://www.zazzle.co.uk/cfzjon.

So far people who have bought merchandise through the site have helped us to raise in total since its launch in January 2010 £40.97 this is good but we can do so much better!

Do not forget that many of these items will not be available at the Weird Weekend event so why not purchase them now to wear at the event itself and we will see you there!

HAUNTED SKIES: Sun (The) 11.12.67.

http://hauntedskies.blogspot.com/2012/06/sun-111267.html

I'M YER GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN

It is cold and grey but surprisingly muggy. Unfortunately the English summer seems to have come and gone, and I have a horrible suspicion that it may be like this until September. However, we do have some nice things for your amusement and edification today.

Bizarrely, just as I typed that, the sun came out. But my remark about the blog posts being particularly good today still stands:

Jefferson Starship are one of the iconic bands of the counter-culture. Yes, there still is a counter culture, just about, and we are very proud to be a tangental part of it. The forthcoming 4CD set live from the Roswell UFO Festival is provoking a lot of interest in the band, like this article explaining how the band are still true to their idealistic roots.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-starship-enterprise-music-is-still.html

I have just finished reading Helen McCookerybook's academic tome on the role of women within Punk Rock, and I found it most edifying. There will be a most positive critique in a day or two, but in the meantime, it is obvious that she still stays true to the DIY ethic of Punk. Check these out...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/look-what-helen-mccookerybook-has-for.html

This is totally peculiar. Back in the 1970s all sorts of things happened that would not be dreamed of today, like this gloriously UN-IRONIC (note the capital letters boys and girls) cover version of 'Silver Machine' by the M-O-R icons the James Last Orchestra. This is possibly the greatest thing that I have heard in my life.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/easy-listening-medley-of-hawkwind-t-rex.html

For the past few months I have been working on a new book for Gonzo. I think that Peter McAdam's creations are hysterically funny. My wife thinks they are stupid. It is good to have differences of opinion in a relationship. Healthy like.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/meet-9-henrys.html

There is a new Live CD/DD package from Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman and Howe out any day on Gonzo Multimedia. Coincidentally (and as we note regularly on these and our more fortean pages, there ain't no such thing as a free coincidence), ABWH stories are appearing across the net...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-anderson-bruford-wakeman-howe.html

And here we have a particularly insightful interview with Jon Anderson, who seems to be undergoing somewhat of a re-birth at the moment. His last two solo outings were magnificent, and the new gaggle of recordings, which are just over the horizon, promise to be even better.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-voice-of-yes.html

Someone else who is out and about at the moment is Michael Des Barres. His new album, which is due in a couple of weeks, is absolutely fantastic. Expect a song-by-song critique of it from me any day now. In the meantime, here is a touching little anecdote that goes some way to explaining why he is such a well-loved artist...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-michael-des-barres-video-du-jour.html

I have just noticed that I posted these notifications everywhere and forgot to put the links in, so I am going back to do it all over again. I am afraid I am not firing on all four cylinders, or as a friend of mine puts it several Rizlas short of a suspiciously long cigarette today...

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

Now here's a thing... On this day in 1491 King Henry VIII, who founded the Church of England was born and in 1703 John Wesley, founder of Methodism, was born so today is certainly a popular day to be born if you want to start your own religion Mel Brooks (of Spaceball's and Young Frankenstein fame) was born on this day in 1926 though and he has not, at the time of press, created a branch of protestantism yet so maybe you can't take that too seriously after all...

And now the news:

• Habitat of Rare Hawaiian Forest Birds Expanding
• Legal Victory for Sea Shepherd U.K. Today in the B...
• Lead poisoning ‘epidemic' plagues California condo...
• Nonfiction: Nabokov Theory on Butterfly Evolution ...
• Campaigners go to court to overturn cull decision
• Bandhavgarh tigress visits secret spa hideaway
• Complex thinking goes beyond primates: Dolphins un...
• Faithful pet fights off black bear in US
• Family rides a camel when they need to nip out for...
• From the Mouths of Monkeys: Swab Technique Spots T...
• Waste land or 'brownfield' sites are vital for wil...
• Noisy Environments Make Young Songbirds Shuffle Th...
• Our Microbes, Ourselves: Billions of Bacteria With...
• Spiders Enlisted in Fight Against Woodworms: Could...

A classic scene from Mel Brooks' Spaceballs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVZUVeMtYXc

THE ECLECTARIUM OF DR. SHUKER: Heavy Metal dragons

http://eclectariumshuker.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/heavy-metal-dragons.html

SHUKERNATURE: The Park of the Monsters

Several years ago, while browsing through a series of bookstalls in the indoor market of Bridgnorth, a town in Shropshire, England, I came upon a hardback travelogue book, dating from around the 1950s/early 1960s as far as I can recall, in which the writer described various sights that he had visited during his journeys around Europe (and possibly elsewhere). One chapter particularly interested me, as it described an extraordinary park located somewhere in continental Europe that was filled with huge, grotesque stone statues of monsters and other bizarre entities, but which had long since been abandoned and was now exceedingly overgrown, heightening its nightmarish aspect.
Read on...

I OWE RICHARD THORNS AN APOLOGY

This forthcoming Weird Weekend we once again have an eminently groovy selection of speakers for your delectation. However, as regular ww-watchers will know, every year I proudly present a new discovery: someone who is not yet a regular on the Fortean conference circuit. This year that speaker is Richard Thorns, an explorer who has made it his life's work to find the fabled Pink-Headed duck which is usually thought to have been extinct for decades.

However, although I booked him months ago, I totally forgot to put him on the speakers' list on the WW website.

He has waited patiently for me to do so, to no avail, and finally (ever so gently) prodded me yesterday. It is up now. CHECK IT OUT. And, once again, please, Richard, forgive me for my tardiness.

BIG CAT NEWS: Somerset, Patcham, and Steeple Bumstead

The hunt for British Big Cats attracts far more newspaper-column inches than any other cryptozoological subject. There are so many of them now that we feel that they should be archived in some way by us, so we should have a go at publishing a regular round-up of the stories as they come in.

It takes a long time to do and is a fairly tedious task so I am not promising that they will be done each day, but I will do them as regularly as I can. JD

New 'big cat' sighting reported on moorland near Glastonbury
This is Somerset
A central Somerset man has reported a sighting of a wild cat – the first since February this year. On Monday, artist Paul Branson had been painting near Rocks ...

So we start off in Somerset, with an interesting report, and an artist's impression of the creature to which I was unable to link. I stop short of nicking the pics unless I have to. Now over to Nick Redfern with the story of The Patcham Panther...

Cryptomundo » The Patcham Panther

By Nick Redfern
Once again, there's a sighting of a mysterious, large cat in the UK. This one has been dubbed the “Patcham Panther.” As the Argus newspaper tells us: Greg and Sophie Horne contacted The Argus to tell how they spotted a big cat as they ...

But now over to Suffolk...

Is there a puma on the prowl around Haverhill?

Haverhill Echo
“Most big cats live to 18 in captivity with private medical care. “I have never ... The Dangerous Wild Animals Acts 1976 outlawed people keeping big cats as pets.

The fact that there are reports of a big cat near a village called Steeple Bumstead makes me proud to be English. In fact, the fact that there is a village called Steeple Bumstead makes me proud to be English.

HAUNTED SKIES: Sun (The) 11.9.67.

http://hauntedskies.blogspot.com/2012/06/sun-11967.html

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1898 Joshua Slocum of Nova Scotia completed the first solo circumnavigation of the world. If I were him I'd have just gone as far as somewhere nice and warm docked the boat, sipped cocktails by the beach for a few weeks with a good book and then headed home saying “Ooh what a trip I've just had, what about those Australians? Nice chaps, did you know they have corks hanging from their hats? How would I know that if I hadn't just been there?” and everyone would be in awe of me for being so terribly brave. (well they didn't have GPS in those days, how are they going to prove me wrong?).

And now the news:

• Rare species of Borneo jungle frog wave to each ot...
• Grumpy Leon the Lemur has enough of rainy June and...
• Get a bargain at Poundland, now with rat bonus!
• World’s most famous tortoise, Lonesome George, is ...
• Top Predators Key to Extinctions as Planet Warms
• The world's oldest clove tree
• UK hare numbers decline by 80% - Time for a close ...
• First Paternity Study of Southern Right Whales Fin...
• Novel Animal Reservoir for Group of Tick-Borne Dis...
• Birds Can Recognize People's Faces and Know Their ...
• Chemical Analysis of Pottery Reveals First Dairyin...
• Six lions killed after they strayed from Nairobi N...
• Bee swarm attack lands Thailand monks in hospital

Predictable vaguely related video number 23:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9MszVE7aR4

I'M YER GONZO BLOG DOO DAH MAN

Once again I am up surprisingly early. Corinna has an appointment in Barnstaple and everyone else (including Prudence the dog) is fast asleep. I have to admit, I quite like these times when I have the whole house to myself and can get on with stuff in a leisurely manner. So, what do we have today?

We have details of the contents of the Extended edition of Michael Des Barres forthcoming album 'Carnaby Street', and also a link to preorder. And whilst on the subject, yesterday I heard the album in its entirety for the first time. It is even better than I had expected, and you can expect a song-by-song breakdown in the next few days.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/michel-des-barres-carnaby-st.html

We have the legendary Chris Thompson (yes, him out of Manfred Mann's Earthband) being interviewed on Dutch radio. We even have a link from which you can download the MP3. Aren't we groovy? Answers on a postcard please...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/chris-thompson-dutch-radio-show.html

You will have probably noticed that Rick Wakeman has a new Live CD out, (as well as the new - and rather swish - biography by Dan Wooding, designed by yours truly). The CD is garnering a fair degree of praise, like this review...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-r.html

I am getting really rather fond of the music of neo-prog metallers (golly, I find these new genre distinctions confusing) Galahad. They are much more subtle, literate and well crafted than other such things that I have heard, and I am rapidly becoming quite a fan.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-galahad-review.html

News of a major new release from pro-rockers GPS, featuring Asia guitarist John Payne. Gosh. This should be really good, and the two tracks I have heard so far definitely are.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/progressive-rock-band-gps-releases-live.html

More details of the forthcoming 4CD set from San Francisco psychedelic legends Jefferson Starship. I hope to be speaking to the band in the near future, and attempting to find out what makes them so damned groovy! I doubt whether I shall find out, however, because if it were possible to bottle a mojo like that, the world would be an entirely different place.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/classic-rock-legends-jefferson-starship.html

I really am a fan of Martin Stephenson. In this insightful article it is revealed how and why he sabotaged his own career at its creative peak. By the way, I have not forgotten about posting the second half of my song-by-song of California Star. I finally got around to writing it late last night, and I emailed it to Martin for his comments. I look forward to hearing what he has to say.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/link-how-martin-stephenson-sabotaged.html

And that, boys and girls, is about it for today. See you on thursday...

BIG CAT NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Whilst the focus of the CFZ Mystery Cat study group is predominantly the search for proof of the British big cats, it would be unrealistic to forget that this is only part of a global mystery cat phenomenon.

Here are a selection of mystery cat stories from around the world.

Big cat sighting at Smythesdale?
Ballarat Courier
A SMYTHESDALE man has taken photos of what he believes is the footprint of a giant puma, after the reported mauling of a Shetland pony on his neighbour's ...

Big cats could roam Ballarat: expert
Ballarat Courier
MYTH or menace? For decades it has been rumoured that giant cats could exist in the wild around Ballarat.

Big cats in Ballarat, Australia: Why the idea endures | Doubtful ...
By idoubtit
Big cats could roam Ballarat: expert. History and anthropology lecturer Dr David Waldron has been researching stories about the existence of so-called pumas or.

David Waldron is, btw a CFZ associate, and one of the board of the Journal of Cryptozoology..

Wild Kingdom? Bear, Big Cat Sightings in Portage Co.
Cleveland News - Fox 8
SHALERSVILLE, Ohio -- Some wild visitors have people on edge in Portage County.The area is known for its serene farmland and, from time to time, a visitor of ...

KARL SHUKER: Goodbye to Lonesome George

It is rare indeed for the precise date of extinction of a species or subspecies to be known, but there are a few notable examples. 1 September 1914 marked the death of the world's last known passenger pigeon Ectopistes migratorius (in Cincinnati Zoo); 21 February 1918 saw the death of the last verified Carolina parakeet Conuropsis carolinensis (also, remarkably, in Cincinnati Zoo); and on 7 September 1936 the last confirmed specimen of the Tasmanian wolf Thylacinus cynocephalus died (in Hobart Zoo). Now, tragically, we can add another black day to that list - 24 June 2012, the day when Lonesome George, the world's only known surviving Pinta Island giant tortoise, died. He was approximately 100 years old, and, with ironic inevitability, he was alone when death finally releaased him from decades of isolation from any other member of his subspecies.

Read on...

CFZ PEOPLE: Richard Downes

He may be a high ranking Army Chaplain,
but he's still my little brother.

Happy Birthday dude

ANDREW MAY: Words from the Wild Frontier

News and stories from the remoter fringes of the CFZ blogosphere...

From Nick Redfern's World of Whatever:

• Really weird... — A phantom video with echoes of the Thunderbird photo...
• UFOs, Slugs and Worms — ... and More On That Worm...
• Pterosaurs of the Mind? — 1970s sightings echo a 1969 movie...

HAUNTED SKIES: Sun (The) 10.11.67.

http://hauntedskies.blogspot.com/2012/06/sun-101167.html

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1904 the actor Peter Lorre was born. Lorre found fame often playing creepy or dishonest characters in movies including Casablanca and Fritz Lang's M (perhaps the greatest film ever made).

And now the news:

• Forest Green Frogs laying eggs in Fukushima villag...
• New swift tracking project reveals migration surpr...
• Slowest Greenland sharks hunts sleeping prey
• Primitive Eye, Tiny Liver Grown in the Lab
• Crucial US bird conservation programs cut by 50 pe...
• Preserved Frogs Hold Clues to Deadly Pathogen
• Dino Dealer Says He's Not a 'Smuggler,' Calls Foss...
• 11 new species of ants discovered
• Wind farm impacts on rare birds must be minimised
• Lawndale, Illinois Thunderbird Witness Comes Forwa...
• What If There Were No Cockroaches?
• Welsh Government launches Badger TB vaccination pr...
• Huge INTERPOL crackdown on wildlife trade in 14 co...

A trailer for Fritz Lang's M, as I said above perhaps the greatest movie ever made, in which Peter Lorre gives a career defining performance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIj3Bk0bhL8

I'M THE GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN

Another jolly day of fun and frolics lies ahead. Actually it is grey and muggy and I am waiting for a visit from a dude to talk about databases. But he is a very nice dude, and I think I shall be able to persuade Corinna to make some diabetic apple cake, so all is not lost. Over to today's featured posts.

Why are the mainstream music press being so churlish about the Beach Boys? The surviving members of the band including David Marks, who was booted out by Murray Wilson in the early 1960s and Murray’s son Brian, the tortured genius responsible for all their greatest songs, have got together and made a 50th Anniversary album. And I think it’s rather nice. The trouble is, that your more conventional music journalist types don’t agree with me.http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/thats-why-god-made-radio.html

JON ANDERSON IS ON TOUR: “Everywhere I go, all over the world, people sing this song. I hear it in Brazil, Argentina, Japan. They don’t know what the words mean, but they sing it. I don’t know what the words mean, either.” One really cannot help but warm to the man.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/link-jon-anderson-live-at-napa-valley.html

The inside story of how our very own Dan Wooding got a photograph of him, Rick Wakeman and Elton John for his smashing biography of The Caped Crusader.http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/dan-wooding-secret-picture.html

Imagine the scene. Middle-aged bass player, cryptozoologist, and occasionally rock music journalist limps into his sitting room, shoos the orange cat off his favourite chair and sits down. His nephew and niece have come for the evening. “What are your plans for the evening Uncle Jon?” asks Jessica. “Rob Ayling has sent me a DVD about a mate of his who hitchhiked around Ireland with a fridge, as a drunken bet. I’m going to watch that this evening,” he says with a cheerful smile. For some reason this was a cue for niece and nephew to leave hurriedly, his lovely wife to suddenly decide that there are things to do in the other room, his equally lovely mother-in-law to immerse herself in a jigsaw puzzle and the also equally lovely boxer-cross-bulldog bitch to curl up in a corner, go to sleep and snore loudly. They were all completely unfair, because it is a lovely film...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/round-ireland-with-fridge.html

Today we present the third and final part of our interview with Roy Webber, front man of Wally and the sublime Jackson Webber.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/exclusive-roy-webber-jackson-webber_5255.html

Oh dear, I hear you thinking. Not just another picture of Jon making a stupid face whilst clutching the contents of today's postbag.Well, no. Not quite. Yes, Jon is indeed making a stupid face whilst clutching the contents of today's postbag, but there is a difference today. The difference is Helen McCookerybook:
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/jons-postbag.html

The eagle-eyed amongst you will probably have noticed that we at the Gonzo Daiy are all very excited about the imminent release of 'Carnaby Street' by Michael Des Barres. Here, the man himself talks about it.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/michael-des-barres-carnaby-street.html

And that's about it for today. We re-convene on the morrow.

SOMETIMES ONE KNOWS EXACTLY WHEN AN ANIMAL BECOMES EXTINCT: Lonesome George is dead

He had become an unofficial ambassador for the Galapagos Islands and a symbol among environmentalists of disappearing species, but now he shall be known simply as the late Lonesome George.

The giant tortoise, believed to have been the last of the Pinta island subspecies, died on Sunday at an estimated 100 years of age.

The Jurassic-looking creature had become a symbol of the islands scattered off the coast of Ecuador and notorious for his inability to produce any offspring.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-2164299/Lonesome-George-dead-The-giant-tortoise-symbol-Galapagos-Islands-died-aged-100.html#ixzz1ynrnh1Mr

MUIRHEAD`S MYSTERIES: A MANCHESTER SINGING MOUSE

I found the following story the other day: “A SINGING MOUSE- Some time ago I had the opportunity of hearing one of these animals, and was struck with the sweetness of its song. So loud and sweet did it sing that I could not distinguish it from a loud singing bird. It was caught in a cellar, and lived about four months in confinement. One individual offered half a guinea for it. – H.P” ( Bradford-street, Manchester) (1)

1. The Manchester City News December 22nd 1883

I REALLY AM AGHAST THAT PEOPLE CONSIDER THIS NEWS

RETURN TO THE WILDLIFE GARDEN BALCONY

It has been a while since we last visited the wildlife garden balcony. It is a magnificent project "Creating a mini "wildlife habitat" on a tiny balcony in Hulme, inner-city Manchester UK". The latest two posts are particularly interesting:

http://valiantveggie.wordpress.com/2012/06/25/common-earwig-forficula-auricularia/
Because I have always been fond of earwigs

http://valiantveggie.wordpress.com/2012/05/22/the-dustbin-lid-meadow/
The most delightfully quixotic thing I have read in years

I'M YER GONZO BLOG DOO-DAH MAN

And so the weekend is over, and we have bought a new tumble dryer on eBay. Not that this piece of news has any relationship whatsoever with the rest of the contents of the Gonzo Daily, but I just felt like sharing it. Whilst on the subject of appliances, I recently wrote a song about washing machines. I was influenced by various rap songs about major criminals doing nasty things to each other. Like the one quoted in a 'Preacher' Comic:

"I knew a crack dealer, his name was Peter
I blew him away with my nine millimetre"

So I wrote a song about a mate of mine called Ian who once (30 years ago in his mis-spent youth) stole a vanload of second-hand washing machines when he was drunk, only to find out that none of them worked properly.

It had to be done.

But I digress (although it IS monday). Today's posts are many and varied.

A rather charming Polish review of the new live CD/DVD from Chris Thompson. I have left the text completely unedited to retain that aforementioned charm...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/chris-thompson-polish-review_24.html

MEMO TO GONZO SUPREMO ROB AYLING:

Re. Bigfoot Guitar.

Is there any concievable excuse we can think of which would get me to buy one of these and charge it as expenses? I sooooo want one!
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/bigfoot-guitar-finally-mixing-my-day.html

Gail Skelly is an unsigned folk singer. Rob met her the other day, and we decided to feature her on the Gonzo Daily. Why? Because we can.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/introducing-gail-skelly.html

What? Another part of the exclusive interview with Wally and Jackson Webber mainman Roy Webber? Mr Ambassador, you are spoiling us...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/exclusive-roy-webber-jackson-webber_25.html

Journalists have got a bad press lately. They have been maligned as low life scum who will stoop to anything to get a story. But what sort of low-life scum would stoop to stealing pictures from a girl's Facebook page. Well, me actually. There are some very cool pics of Mimi Page on stage at the Lightning in a Bottle Festival. They were on her page, now they are here. Capisce?
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/mimi-page-lightning-in-bottle-festival.html

As regular readers will probably know, for some reason not entirely understood by me (although it was me who started it) when I send out the blog notifications each sunday, I do them in rhyme.And Liz L, chanteuse of Auburn, quite often answers me in the same style...
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/here-comes-rhyming-liz.html

A sneak preview of the title track of the new Michael Des Barres CD, which you may have read me wittering on about sometimes. It really is bloody excellent.
http://gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.com/2012/06/michael-des-barres-get-sneak-preview-of.html

We will be back tomorrow,
toodle-oooh

HAUNTED SKIES: Sun (The) 9.11.67

http://hauntedskies.blogspot.com/2012/06/sun-91167.html

OLL LEWIS: Yesterday's News Today

http://cryptozoologynews.blogspot.com/

On this day in 1981 William O'Neil, allegedly, received his first successful communication on his invention the 'spiricom'. This was supposedly an electronic device that would allow verbal real-time evp communication between the living and the dead. Despite his free distribution of plans enabling people to make their own spiricoms nobody has been able to replicate his results, which may or may not be due to the distributed plans not involving a person sitting inside the machine with a microphone and a voice modulater that makes them sound like Sparky's Magic Piano, or maybe I'm just being cynical.

And now the news:

• Venezuela Bans Shark Finning, Establishes Shark Sa...


• Police confronted by alligator having a bath on ca...


• Teenagers used bird for a game of catch


• Why Having a Dog Helps Keep Kids Asthma-Free


• Woodbridge: Farmers claim playing music to their p...


• Ukraine attempts to avert PR disaster by sending ‘...


• Tracks leave bigfoot imprint


• Police: Man claims leprechauns beat him up for dan...


• The 'Beast Of The Loughor' was seen 25 years ago


• Bird Flu Pandemic Facts From The CDC


• The Secret to Cheetahs' Speedy Stride Found


• Rarest kiwi species reintroduced to New Zealand’s ...

What the spiricom sounded like (the spirits are with us at around the three and a half minute mark) :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3etiNLAFi0

INTERESTING ARTICLE ABOUT THE MAPINGUARI

Check it out...

PLEASE TELL ME THAT THIS IS A JOKE: How American fundamentalist schools are using Nessie to disprove evolution

It sounds like a plot dreamed up by the creators of Southpark, but it's all true: schoolchildren in Louisiana are to be taught that the Loch Ness monster is real in a bid by religious educators to disprove Darwin's theory of evolution.

inShare0

Nessie is used in the ACE teaching materials as proof that Darwin's evolution theory is false

Custom byline text:

EXCLUSIVE by Rachel Loxton

Thousands of children in the southern state will receive publicly-funded vouchers for the next school year to attend private schools where Scotland's most famous mythological beast will be taught as a real living creature.
These private schools follow a fundamentalist curriculum including the Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) programme to teach controversial religious beliefs aimed at disproving evolution and proving creationism.
One tenet has it that if it can be proved that dinosaurs walked the earth at the same time as man then Darwinism is fatally flawed.
Read on...