Frank Collins

@cathode-ray-tube

🌈 🏳️‍⚧️ He/him. Film/TV writer-researcher for hire. Black Archives books, Age of Thrills, Fantastic Fifties and Sensational Sixties magazines, booklets for Indicator & Arrow Films. Writing: Letterboxd:

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Website Bluesky

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¿Es tu perfil?Reclámalo y cathode-ray-tube.dirty.social es tuyo.Reclamar perfil

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· 15d

Latest issue of The Fantastic Fifties magazine is on pre-order from Hemlock. I discuss classic submarine warfare flick Run Silent, Run Deep as part of a ‘submarine tales’ edition, plus year in review 1956, Vincent Price profile, and more. www.hemlockbooks.co.uk/Shop/categor... #Filmsky #Magazines

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· 22d

On our way back from a break in the countryside around Salisbury staying with our old friends. We haven’t seen them since before Covid and it was just lovely to see them again. And the views from their house were just sublime.

Bright blue, cloudless sky above sun kissed hills and trees. In the foreground a wrought iron farm gate at the end of a long uphill track.

Brightly coloured flowers in pots around the perimeter of a patio that becomes lawn down to a row of hedges and shrubs. Being that fields and trees to the horizon. Bright blue sky, blazing sun.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· 24d

Self-portrait: Sunday morning with floating fish.

64-year-old man stands reflected in front of a circular mirror. The mirror is surrounded by brightly coloured fish hanging from a mobile suspended from the cupboard (out of shot) above. Sunlight catches his figure on the cleft side.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· 27d

I’ve put this copy of Blake’s 7 Production Diary Series C (Book One) on eBay. It has a minor production error and I’ve since received a replacement. But this is fine apart from the contents page. Details in listing. Whatever it fetches goes to the Alzheimer’s Society. #Blakes7 #eBay ebay.io/m/qSQzdb

Cover of Blake’s 7 Production Diary Series C Book One. It’s a colour portrait of the crew of the Liberator - from left to right - Cally (Jan Chappell), Tarrant (Steven Pacey), Avon (Paul Darrow), Vila (Michael Keating) and Dayna (Josette Simon).

Back cover of the Production Diary. The text reads:
BLAKE'S 7 PRODUCTION DIARY SERIES C BOOK ONE

STEP BEHIND THE SCENES OF BLAKE'S 7 ONCE MORE IN THE LATEST INSTALMENT OF THE CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED PRODUCTION DIARY SERIES. THIS VOLUME EXPLORES THE FIRST HALF OF SERIES C, FROM SCRIPT DEVELOPMENT AND PRE-PRODUCTION THROUGH TO LOCATION FILMING AND STUDIO RECORDING OF AFTERMATH, POWERPLAY, VOLCANO, DAWN OF THE GODS, CITY AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD, AND CHILDREN OF AURON.

Behind the scenes, the production team faced a fundamental challenge: how could a series called Blake's 7 continue with no Blake and only five returning members of the Liberator crew?

Series creator Terry Nation envisioned an epic season-long quest to find Blake, but script editor Chris Boucher and producer David Maloney had other plans:

On screen, Avon took command of the Liberator as two new recruits joined the crew.

Dayna Mellanby was a fearless fighter, skilled in both the use and creation of high-tech weaponry.

Del Tarrant, a former Federation pilot turned mercenary, arrived with the confidence of someone who believed he should be in charge.

When filming began, the drama extended beyond the scripts. Extreme weather, difficult guest stars, and a new regime at the BBC all created challenges for the production team. Despite this, the third series became the most popular yet, with a significant rise in viewing figures for and a rapidly growing fan base.

Packed with previously unseen photographs and behind-the-scenes revelations, this is the definitive account of the season that proved there was life after Blake.

WRITTEN & RESEARCHED by JONATHAN HELM • BOOK DESIGNED by GRAHAME ROBERTSON

This book is not-for-profit and raising money for UNICEF and ALZHEIMER'S SOCIETY

This shows the production error on the contents page. The contents list hasn’t been bound fully into the book. The page is only half bound and is also misaligned. Nothing else wrong with the book bar a few dings on the corners courtesy of the mail.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jul 9

I’m tried to break it to her gently. She’s now taken to climbing over the furniture in protest. She will be missed. #notourcat

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jul 3

#letterboxdfriday #lastfourwatched #filmsky Chuck Russell harnesses the talents and relentless energy of Jim Carrey; cannibalistic capitalism as the world fries; the ailing actor-manager, his dresser and troupe of actors offer a microcosm of England during wartime; true crime with a noir complexion.

Letterboxd Friday last four watched:

The Mask 1994
Soylent Green 1973
The Dresser 1983
The Honeymoon Killers 1970

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jul 3

Trip to garden centre, plug plants for hanging baskets, two lovely house plants and a quick coffee. A zhuzh for the inside and outside of the house. A lovely morning pottering and gardening with the hubby. #notourcat delegating all responsibilities.

Man in white fedora sits at garden table sorting out plants. In the shade of the table there is a tuxedo cat stretched out snoozing.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jul 2

An afternoon packing the space toys away. Who knows where they’ll end up… the decluttering continues. We’ll see what happens at the end of the month.

A selection of Doctor Who toys all put to bed in their original packaging. The packaging has survived relatively intact in the loft for over 20 years apart from some water damage.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jul 1

Thank you @arrowvideo.bsky.social for my comp copy of Soylent Green. Very happy with the booklet and how my essay is laid out with the images. Rewatched the film last night and, heck, Eddie Robinson made me cry again! Such a lovely performance and swan song. Added a few words here: boxd.it/f1yv4P

Cover and booklet title page of the new 4K edition of Soylent Green.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 29

Really enjoying the Japanese dating reality show The Boyfriend. Finished S1 and have S2 lined up. どうもありがとう Dai, Gensei, Ikuo, Shun, Alan, Kazuto, Ryota, Taeheon and Usak. Gentle men in the true sense of the word. Who would have thought running a coffee truck would be so romantic. #LGBTQ

The cast of The Boyfriend Season 1 - ALAN
アラン／IT関連・ブラジル出身（28）
DAI
ダイ／大学生（23）
GENSEI
ゲンセイ／ヘアメイク・台湾出身（34）
IKUO
イクオ／飲食店勤務（22）
KAZUTO
カズト／和食料理人（27）
RYOTA
リョウタ／モデル・カフェ店長（28）
SHUN
シュン／アーティスト（23）
TAEHEON
テホン／デザイナー・韓国出身（34）
USAK
ユーサク／GOGOダンサー（36）

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 27

Struck by the beauty of the lavender in the front garden at twilight. It’s really put on a show this year.

Deep purple hues lavender by a gate in the twilight, white flowers of sea kale continue in the same border.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 17

Especially at 4am when the cat you’re looking after decides it’s breakfast time and wakes the entire street up with wailing and mewling for three hours. #notourcat Public enemy number one:

Tuxedo cat snoozing on a big fluffy beanbag.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 15

Farewell David Hockney. Huge inspiration and #LGBTQ+ legend (the film A Bigger Splash was a big influence on younger me). “I believe my duty as an artist is to overcome and alleviate the sterility of despair...New ways of seeing mean new ways of feeling.” artscouncilcollection.org.uk/artwork/we-t...

This painting was completed towards the end of Hockney's second year at the Royal College of Art at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in England. The painting derives its imagery from a poem of the same title by the nineteenth-century American writer, Walt Whitman: two lines of the poem have been scribbled on the right-hand side to offer a commentary on the men's activities. The painting also references a newspaper clipping detailing a climbing accident ('Two Boys Cling to Cliff all Night'), which Hockney interpreted as an allusion to his idol, Cliff Richard.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 8

Added four bundles of six issues of Dreamwatch magazine to #eBay (24 issues May 96 - October 98). Complete run from issues 21 to 42 plus issues 49 and 50. VG condition. #X-Files, #StarTrek, #Babylon5 coverage, other shows and films too. Plus posters and art cards. www.ebay.co.uk/usr/fracol9

24 issues of Dreamwatch magazine from May 1996 to October 1998. Six issues to a bundle. Lots of X-Files, Star Trek, Babylon 5 and other shows. Film coverage too. Freebies like posters and art cards.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 7

#notourcat has now found a new place to pursue her interests.

Tuxedo cat nestled on big fluffy beanbag.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 6

#caturday

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 2

Chazza shop finds: John Barry and Ennio Morricone scores. Yes, please. Cleaned the sleeves and the vinyl. View to A Kill playing perfectly and there are some lovely cues among the Barry Bond motifs.

Burt Lancaster, wearing some age slap and a grey wig looking out from the sleeve of the Moses original soundtrack by Ennio Morricone. The poster art from Moore’s final Bond frolic adorns the Bond score by the ever reliable John Barry.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 1

Repair done to the torn page and it’s been pushed back into alignment with the spine. Added some glue into the spine itself just to secure it. Also did some minor tidy up on the dings to the top corners. Might clean the pages with a very damp wipe to lift the nicotine stench off the book. 3/3

The dinged corners. Loose vinyl and feathered boards glued back into place and looking tidier.

Repaired centre page. Much more secure now.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 1

The spine hasn’t split (which is good) but two pages seem to have come adrift with tiny tears. Might just need some book binding glue along the tear and spine. 2/3

The tear extends two thirds along the spine. It needs repair and the page needs realignment.

Another view of the tear reveals a gap beneath at the bottom of the spine which will securing with glue and a small tear on the opposite page.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· Jun 1

Second hand purchase. Very cheap but actually in good condition. Needed a very good clean. You can see that the wipe I used on the cover has lifted a layer of what is probably is nicotine/smoke. Ugh. It certainly smells like it. First, I need to repair the book 1/2

Copy of the 1981 The Black Hole annual. Second hand purchase, smelling g of smoke and needing TLC.

Cleaned covers and spine with a wipe. Wipe covered in brown and yellow deposits. Nicotine!

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 29

#lastfourwatched #letterboxdfriday #letterboxd #filmsky Gritty noir - British and American - bookends the 1996 Doctor Who pilot and Peter Hyams’ space western this week.

Recent watches this week:
Odds Against Tomorrow 1959
Doctor Who 1996
Outland 1981
Strongroom 1962

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 28

It’s taken five years but we’ve finally got irises flowering.

Yellow and white iris in full bloom against a backdrop of variegated grasses.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 24

#notourcat’s dad might have locked himself out. The spare set of keys I hold will come in handy tonight. Puss totally not bothered.

Tuxedo cat comatose in the shade of our garden.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 24

Finished! Reunited with its cover. Confident I can have a go at similar book mishaps. Thanks for the encouragement.

Amateur book repairer with a repaired edition of Doctor Who and the Invasion from Space.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 24

Final stage. Applied the tissue with starch paste the full length of the inner cover and spine of Invasion from Space this morning. It went on a lot easier than it did yesterday. Now that I know what the heck I’m doing! Now, wait for it to dry.

Japanese tissue carefully put into place along the length where the cover board joins the body of the book. Then a watered down application of paste, brushing in one direction. That avoids mushing the fibres up. Then I used a skewer to gently push the overlap into the join. That will create a strong hinge.

Hinge in place on the Invasion from Space. Drying time!

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 23

Next job will be to tidy up the inside cover joint. Tissue, starch paste and some careful manipulation. The tissue is pliable but if you’re heavy handed it mushes up and doesn’t look clean. Paste needs watering down to help with that. Tomorrow’s job!

Inside cover joint. Looks very rough at the moment but a strip of tissue should tidy it up and add more strength.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 23

Looking at the annual, it was clear spine already had been repaired, its remnants pieced back together. Fairly decent job. Didn’t want to undo that and redo it. Just get the cover on. Sourced a very thin Japanese tissue and starch paste. It would provide an almost invisible but robust hinge. Voila!

Billy Hartnell cover reunited with the rest of the book. The Japanese tissue runs down the spine in a thin strip. Some sections were glued with a bookbinding PVA. Trimmed the glued tissue back by wetting it, then used a thin brush to push the fibres into holes along the spine.

The spine, the Japanese tissue is so thin and translucent you wouldn’t know it was there. It’s incredibly strong and has secured the cover back to the spine. Some minor areas of touching up done but it’s always best to keep that to a minimum. It can never be fully restored but at least it’s a whole book now.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 23

Crafting afternoon. Husband purchased a damaged copy of Doctor Who Invasion from Space a while ago. Entire front cover torn off! So, how to repair? Not much to work with along the torn edges. As we often shout when we see a book repair on Repair Shop: Japanese tissue! (Alt text for more details)

Sacrilege! Doctor Who and the Invasion From Space ‘annual’ from 1966 and some fool has turn the cover off. Lovely illustration of Billy Hartnell on the cover.

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 21

Managed to catch up on May’s reviews on Letterboxd. I have now added words to diary entries for Negatives (1968) and Mona Lisa (1986) and added in quick takes on Nouvelle Vague (2025) and Hidden Master: The Legacy of George Platt Lynes (2023). boxd.it/6V3z #Filmsky

Diary entries between 8 - 20 May on Letterboxd.
Nouvelle Vague 2025
Hidden Master: The Legacy of George Platt Lynes 2023
Mona Lisa 1986
The Black Hole 1979
Scarface 1932
Negatives 1968

Frank Collins@cathode-ray-tube· May 15

Stuffed peppers for tonight. With lightly fried rice, green parts of spring onion, green parts of leek, tomato, courgette and red pepper pieces with sun-dried tomatoes and herbs and a bit of Cajun seasoning. Gluten free.Topped with vegan cheese. Air fry for about 15 mins, job done. #coeliac