WELCOME TO THE CFZ BLOG NETWORK: COME AND JOIN THE FUN

Half a century ago, Belgian Zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans first codified cryptozoology in his book On the Track of Unknown Animals.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ) are still on the track, and have been since 1992. But as if chasing unknown animals wasn't enough, we are involved in education, conservation, and good old-fashioned natural history! We already have three journals, the largest cryptozoological publishing house in the world, CFZtv, and the largest cryptozoological conference in the English-speaking world, but in January 2009 someone suggested that we started a daily online magazine! The CFZ bloggo is a collaborative effort by a coalition of members, friends, and supporters of the CFZ, and covers all the subjects with which we deal, with a smattering of music, high strangeness and surreal humour to make up the mix.

It is edited by CFZ Director Jon Downes, and subbed by the lovely Lizzy Bitakara'mire (formerly Clancy), scourge of improper syntax. The daily newsblog is edited by Corinna Downes, head administratrix of the CFZ, and the indexing is done by Lee Canty and Kathy Imbriani. There is regular news from the CFZ Mystery Cat study group, and regular fortean bird news from 'The Watcher of the Skies'. Regular bloggers include Dr Karl Shuker, Dale Drinnon, Richard Muirhead and Richard Freeman.The CFZ bloggo is updated daily, and there's nothing quite like it anywhere else. Come and join us...

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Unlike some of our competitors we are not going to try and blackmail you into donating by saying that we won't continue if you don't. That would just be vulgar, but our lives, and those of the animals which we look after, would be a damn sight easier if we receive more donations to our fighting fund. Donate via Paypal today...




Sunday, April 25, 2021

HOPPING WITH THE HENS

 The Gonzo Daily: Sunday

So far I am having a much better day than Louis. He had a fire in his car engine, whereas I had a lie in, got up and did some chicken impersonations. You think I’m joking? You will just have to wait-and-see. But if you want another hint check out the first verse of Invocation of my Demon Brother from 1995.
Yesterday we published the latest episode of On the Track. It features Carl Marshall hunting for big cats and wild boar in the Forest of Dean, and showing a useful technique by which one can tell a big cat pawprint from that of a big dog. It also has me talking about a species of cicada which only shows its face above the surface of the ground once in seventeen years. There is also a song about Wally the Comedy Rhinoceros and one time Apple records artist Brute Force. You truly couldn’t make this stuff up.
If you want to attend a visual entertainment consisting of hard science and a smattering of weird shit, interspersed with us dicking about in an increasingly surreal manner, check it out:
My book ‘Wild Colonial Boy’ is the story of my early life in Hong Kong, and how I first became interested in Natural History, and more specifically cryptozoology, and there are several very little known cryptozoological mysteries discussed therein. It is very much like a darker analog of Gerald Durrell’s memoirs of his childhood in Greece, and I would’ve called it “My Family and other Sociopaths” if it wasn’t for the fact that I didn’t want to be sued either by Durrell’s estate, or my family. You can find out more and buy it signed from the link below:
C’mon, make a curmudgeonly old bugger happy.
AND HERE'S TODAY'S NEWS
PLAYLIST: 25-10-2020 – SHOW 381 – Leyland Kirkby: ...
THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem
Frank Zappa’s last show
GONZO TRACK OF THE DAY: Russian Orthodox Choir Ch...
FOR THOSE OF YOU INTERESTED IN MY DAY JOB: PREMIER...
Gonzo Weekly #439/40
AND OTHER STUFF FEATURING VARIOUS GONZO CONTRIBUTORS:
Our webTV show:
And if you fancy supporting it on Patreon:
And by the way chaps and chappesses, a trip to the Jon Downes megastore may seem to be in order:
Meanwhile I continue to pretend that I am a popstar, because now I have sold eleven whole copies of my new album Coldharbour. If I continue at this rate I will get a silver disc sometime at the beginning of the next millenium. Coldharbour, by the way, can be found here: https://jondownes1.bandcamp.com/releases
I think it is really rather good, but then again I would say that wouldn't I?
AND THE LATEST ISSUE OF THE GONZO MAGAZINE:
Gonzo Weekly #439/40
THE CHANGING ISSUE
This magazine continues to go off on strange tangents that I never expect, but I am very happy to see it do so. What is in this week? Ooooh lots of things. Such as Prince Phillip, Dutch Covid Fest, Louie Louie guitarist dies, Alien Jakes, Mik the Artistik,Incredible String Band, Bapu, Traveller's Tales
and more....
And there are radio shows from Mack Maloney and Friday Night Progressive, AND Merrell Fankhauser, and the Real Music Club, AND Strange Fruit, and Mr Biffo, there is a column from Kev Rowland, and C.J Stone, but Mr Biffo, Tony Klinger and Neil Nixon, are on hiatus. There is also a collection of more news, reviews, views, interviews and dibblers who have got the blues (OK, nothing to do with tiny marsupials who are listening to the new Bob Dylan album, but I got carried away with things that rhymed with OOOOS) than you can shake a stick at. And the best part is IT's ABSOLUTELY FREE!!!
..And the last few issues are:
All issues from #70 can be downloaded at www.gonzoweekly.com if you prefer. If you have problems downloading, just email me and I will add you to the Gonzo Weekly dropbox. The first 69 issues are archived there as well. Information is power chaps, we have to share it!
You can download the magazine in pdf form HERE:
SPECIAL NOTICE: If you, too, want to unleash the power of your inner rock journalist, and want to join a rapidly growing band of likewise minded weirdos please email me at jon@eclipse.co.uk The more the merrier really.
* The Gonzo Daily is a two way process. If you have any news or want to write for us, please contact me at jon@eclipse.co.uk. If you are an artist and want to showcase your work, or even just say hello please write to me at gonzo@cfz.org.uk. Please copy, paste and spread the word about this magazine as widely as possible. We need people to read us in order to grow, and as soon as it is viable we shall be invading more traditional magaziney areas. Join in the fun, spread the word, and maybe if we all chant loud enough we CAN stop it raining. See you tomorrow...
* The Gonzo Daily is - as the name implies - a daily online magazine (mostly) about artists connected to the Gonzo Multimedia group of companies. But it also has other stuff as and when the editor feels like it. The same team also do a weekly newsletter called - imaginatively - The Gonzo Weekly. Find out about it at this link: www.gonzo-multimedia.blogspot.co.uk
* We should probably mention here, that some of our posts are links to things we have found on the internet that we think are of interest. We are not responsible for spelling or factual errors in other people's websites. Honest guv!
* Jon Downes, the Editor of all these ventures (and several others) is a recently widowed old hippy of 61 who - together with a Jack Russell called Archie, an infantile orange cat named after a song by Frank Zappa, three other cats, one totally coincidentally named after one of the Manson Family, purely because she squeaks, puts it all together from a converted potato shed in a tumbledown cottage deep in rural Devon which he shares with various fish. He is ably assisted by a motley collection of social malcontents. Plus.. did we mention Archie and the Cats?

PREMIERE: Lynx in the Forest of Dean; 17 Year Cicadas in Illinois; Brute Force and the Royal Mail (OTT #125​)


In this episode:
- Jon explains stuff - Carl and Geordie return to the Forest of Dean - How to tell a big cat print from that of a big dog - A Discordian interlude - The insects that hide underground for 17 years - A cult music artist has problems with the British Post Office - Jon sings a song about it all whilst Wally tap-dances If you want to volunteer to join in the Forest of Dean fieldwork with Carl and Geordie email cfzjon@gmail.com

Gonzo Weekly #439/40

Gonzo Weekly #439/40

THE CHANGING ISSUE
This magazine continues to go off on strange tangents that I never expect, but I am very happy to see it do so. What is in this week? Ooooh lots of things. Such as Prince Phillip, Dutch Covid Fest, Louie Louie guitarist dies, O-Love, Alien Jakes, Mik the Artistik,Incredible String Band, Bapu, Traveller's Tales
and more....
And there are radio shows from Mack Maloney and Friday Night Progressive, AND Merrell Fankhauser, and the Real Music Club, AND Strange Fruit, and Mr Biffo, there is a column from Kev Rowland, and C.J Stone, but Mr Biffo, Tony Klinger and Neil Nixon, are on hiatus. There is also a collection of more news, reviews, views, interviews and dibblers who have got the blues (OK, nothing to do with tiny marsupials who are listening to the new Bob Dylan album, but I got carried away with things that rhymed with OOOOS) than you can shake a stick at. And the best part is IT's ABSOLUTELY FREE!!!
..And the last few issues are:
All issues from #70 can be downloaded at www.gonzoweekly.com if you prefer. If you have problems downloading, just email me and I will add you to the Gonzo Weekly dropbox. The first 69 issues are archived there as well. Information is power chaps, we have to share it!
You can download the magazine in pdf form HERE:
SPECIAL NOTICE: If you, too, want to unleash the power of your inner rock journalist, and want to join a rapidly growing band of likewise minded weirdos please email me at jon@eclipse.co.uk The more the merrier really.

NEWS FROM NOWHERE: Sunday

ON THIS DAY IN - 1590 - The Sultan of Morocco launched his successful attack to capture Timbuktu.

And now some more recent news from the CFZ Newsdesk


  • BBC: 'World's oldest' Humboldt penguin celebrates ...
  • A halved gynandromorph?

  • AND TO WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK... (Music that may have some relevance to items also on this page, or may just reflect my mood on the day)