The Corona Diaries

Of the things that fly-in-and out of this week’s TCD (….sorry Lucy) Gene Wilder was already lodged well and truly at the front of the ol’ synapses. Having finished my evening in Berlin with him (and Anthony having a similar soft-spot), perhaps it wasn’t too much of a surprise that he found his way into the chat. Combining the letters D, M and T with the number 8 however, wouldn’t have even been a...

Well it feels like quite a while since we were here last… how have you been? What with the Leicester Weekend, and then dashing off on holiday I can't really remember where we had got up to, not that it really matters because this week was always going to be a bit of a catch-up and reset as far as TCD goes (...sorry Lucy). What I can tell you is that Lionel Plain, who is one of the Purple folk, cam...

There is a school of thought that TCD (...sorry Lucy) is just like listening to two blokes chatting in a pub, and there is indeed a lot in that observation that has merit. It would certainly go a long way to explain the slightly juvenile humour, the occasional grumpy chunter and the fact we often giggle uncontrollably and sound a bit pissed. And, as is the case with most good pub conversations, ev...

There is a paradox at the heart of this weeks episode of The Corona Diaries (see what I did there…) and it is this. Getting Lucy Jordache on the zoom call was easy, she was more than up for a repeat appearance on the pod. Getting her to actually talk about herself and her life, was a darn sight more tricky. But we are nothing if not determined (creatives code for just bloody nosey) and between the...

We have hit a bit of a milestone, and it is sort of crept up on us. Would you believe it has been five years (and a few days) since we announced the upcoming launch of The Corona Diaries, and pretty much five years to the day that the first chapter (This Strange Podcast) was offered up for your consumption. And haven't we been through some crazy stuff; in fact haven't we helped each other through...

I bet you never thought we would remember to pick up the Holidays in Eden chat. You know, the one we started before the first weekend at PZ. Well we did and we have. Of course it’s not without the usual TCD (…sorry Lucy) eccentricities. I was post-pub, post-airing cupboard and Ant was in a hotel library (who knew) that had more than a whiff of the Shining about it. But we did manage to get through...

I am not really sure how to describe this episode of TCD (...sorry, Lucy). If it helps to set the scene then you might want to consider the following; I am/was in Montreal at the time of recording, and Ant was ensconced in his villains lair, in Heckmondwike. The wi-fi was more than a bit iffy, in fact for the first five minutes so it was looking like a bit of a non-starter. I hadn't put much thoug...

Here we go then, an episode recorded over the kitchen table at Ant's chalet in PZ. Nothing too complicated in the notes because we are up against it for time, needless to say there are a few Marillion Weekend night one spoilers in here, so please consider swerving this one for the time being if you don't want that kind of intel. Right I have to dash, stuff to do, gin to drink. Love'n'four doors do...

Would you believe it’s been 34 years since we wrote and recorded the Holidays in Eden album… Yes of course you can, because you and I both know that a whole heap of stuff had happened since then. But still, 34 years, it does make you stop and think. Which is of course what I did, when I listened back to it the other day. So for this chapter of TCD (…sorry Lucy) we ar going to talk about side one o...

For your discerning palette. Appetiser: A fact-free riff on the history of the Rolling Stones, complete with rugs, confectionary and transfusions. Entree:  Quite an interesting chat about Holidays in Eden and its significance in terms of both the back catalogue, and the evolution of our work. Not the conversation we set to have, in true TCD style (sorry Lucy), but worth a listen. Dessert: A s...

As we approach the five year anniversary of the podcast (and who would have thunk that would have been a thing) I never thought I would have been reading a recipe out loud. But after a bit of kerfuffle at Ant's end, I received the JPEGs required to make it possible. There is of course good reason, and it's a little complicated, but it involves fish finger apathy and me forgetting to listen to Holi...

Apologies in advance for the first 5-10 minutes of this episode of TCD (sorry, Lucy) as Ant faffed around trying to get his microphone to send a signal to his recording software. We kept it in because it's a little insight into the technical challenges that men of a certain age often face. And on that subject I did finally manage to send Ant those two pictures I promised, only took three days... A...

Well hello, thanks for coming...it really is lovely to see you! Ant thought it might be nice to begin 2025 (HNY by the way, I hope you had a good 'un) with a bit of a pop quiz, based around what I can actually remember about my own podcast. Clearly he thought this would be hilarious, particularly as the only bit of a clue I was allowed was the chapter title and the date it was published. And becau...

If everything has gone to plan, and you are a Purple, then I am currently in East Sussex, preparing for the second of my Christmas h Natural affairs at Trading Boundaries. Let me tell you that last night was amazing, and I’ll try to improve on it tonight. If everything has gone to plan, and you are listening to this upon general release, then Trading Boundaries was an absolute blast and to quote o...

We are going back to '95 today as we continue on the promo-video chat, and get deep into the making of the Beautiful video. This if course is quite opportune, as most of these vids have finally been uploaded to the Marillion YouTube channel. Which means you can watch it right now by clicking here and then be slightly prepared for what is to come. Not much more you need to know before diving in, wh...

If you are a purple patron of TCD (sorry Lucy) then you will have heard some of this before, because we had a chat about the Brave movie (and working with Richard Stanley) in a recent Q&A. Well today we build on that conversation, as we have arrived at that point in our loose 'promo-video-reminiscences' timeline. And because of that slight crossover, now would be a good time to remind you that...

This week’s episode of TCD (sorry Lucy) is one of those where we really benefit from having a clever and creative voice in the room. You may recall that we have been talking about the Marillion promo vids on a kind of ad-hoc basis, and that the last time we touched on that topic we talked about the singles from Holidays. That took us to the legendary Howard Greenhalgh, a bit of a creative trailbla...

Greetings from NYC…. I have to say that this week has gone by in a a bit of a blur. Indeed, it seems a long time since I was strapped to the chair, recording this week’s TCD (sorry, Lucy) pondering what I still had left to do, before I could set-off to board a plane and cross the Atlantic. Certainly, I wasn’t expecting Ant to take me back to shooting the promo videos for Holidays in Eden, or to be...

Here we go then, the second half of my Seasons End musings, based on having listened to the album again for the first time in ages. Of course since we last spoke it has tipped past its 35th Anniversary, which is a statement that has the power to stop you dead in your tracks, particularly if it feels like last year. Anyway we got as far as Holloway Girl on TCD #219 (sorry Lucy) so today we start wi...

Who says you can’t teach on old dog new tricks, well to be fair lots of people - including me as it goes - but you know what I mean. So for this episode of TCD (sorry Lucy) we are having a crack at something a bit different, based around an idea that Ant had. I happened to mention a few weeks ago that I rarely listen back to the Marillion albums and haven’t done for quite a while. Consequently my...

The first TCD of September (sorry Lucy) and we are starting with what could be loosely called ‘a plan’. Following some imaginative intervention from the Purples, we have a rich vein of chat suggestions to mine over the coming weeks, starting with a belter from Roger Harvey. But I ain’t going to spoil the surprise, so you will just have to listen for the details - and of course we will also be requ...

It’s literally two years since we had an episode quite like this one. And in an unusual foray into accuracy I can give you the exact details, because it was Chapter 122 The reason I know this is because that week Ant was on holiday in Catalonia, and as such he recorded his half of the conversation in a lively cafe in Platja d’Aro. And, literally just for the hell of it, he is back in the same spot...

Big shout out to Roger Harvey, who in a round-about way has filled the middle of the TCD doughnut this week. Confused? Well let me explain.. As you know I read a bit of something in the middle of each week's pod. Since I got through all of The Invisible Man diaries, I have been rooting around the bottom of the digital drawer looking for interesting (and previously unread) stuff to include. And, as...

It struck me as I was listening to chapter 215 that one of the quirks of recording TCD (sorry Lucy) is that the process is often interrupted by what has gone before. It isn't exactly a 'ghost in the machine' because it is all very explainable, and indeed predictable. Let me try and enlighten you. The way I record my half of the conversation involves overdubbing onto a file that contains snippets o...

I was minded on listening back that we spend years fine-tuning our quirks, in fact I am not convinced it's a process we ever actually get to the end of. But these are the things that define who we are. So to know me is to know both my caffeine routine and how I close an overhead locker when I am on a plane. So I say 'embrace all quirks without fear or self consciousness' and respect and cherish th...