The episode, presented by Ben Elton, is quite well done and offers a solid dose of nostalgia for those of us old enough to remember those times. Among the interviewees are Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson of Games Workshop, as well as Albie Fiore of White Dwarf. The episode is only about 30 minutes long, but it's well worth your time. Take a look when you have the chance.
Saturday, January 8, 2022
Fantasy Games on South of Watford
South of Watford was a documentary series broadcast on London Weekend Television, an ITV franchise, in the mid-1980s. Not having lived in the United Kingdom, I'd never heard of it, until reader Thaddeus Moore pointed me in the direction of the following video. It's an episode of South of Watford from 1984 (not 1980) that focuses on "fantasy games," a broad category including RPGs, solo game books, and early LARPing.
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Is Ben Elton well known in America?
ReplyDeleteI don't think so.
DeleteThis is a couple of years before Elton became a hugely successful stand up comic and then novelist. Watching them play, I could never bear all that fiddling about with miniatures, just seemed a distraction to me
ReplyDeleteIt's a wonder that anyone ever thought we were a bunch of weirdos.
ReplyDeleteThis is why I wish we had like/love/laughing buttons on here.
DeleteThose LARP sections were painful to watch. I'm reminded of why I prefer to keep my roleplying at a table, and ideally someplace relatively private. Just not that kind of extrovert, I guess.
ReplyDeleteI'd seen this a few months ago, wonderful episode from the early days.
ReplyDelete