Frank Key
Encyclopedia
Frank Key is a British
writer
and broadcaster
best known for his self-published short-story collections and his long-running radio series Hooting Yard on the Air, which has been broadcast weekly on Resonance FM
since April 2004. Key co-founded the Malice Aforethought Press with Max Décharné
and published the fiction of Ellis Sharp
.
's literature columnist Sam Jordison has described Frank Key as one of the most prolific living writers of literary nonsense
. The Guardian's David Stubbs wrote that Frank's prose "reminds of Max Ernst
engravings gone Bonzo Doo-Dah
". The SF critic David Langford
wrote "Frank Key's lumbering machinery is like nothing since Ralph 124C 41+
and other pillars of SF's wooden age, only more decrepit. He may even conceivably be writing steampunk
.". Edmund Baxter, the director of programming for Resonance FM
wrote "Frank Key is one of the most important writers in English today".
, since 14 April 2004 when his show Hooting Yard on the Air was first commissioned. The programme is broadcast live from Resonance FM's studios and consists almost entirely of Key narrating his own short stories and observations. Hooting Yard is the longest continuously running series on Resonance FM, with only the ClearSpot Show (which is technically not a series) having existed on the schedules for longer.
Resonance has broadcast a number of Hooting Yard special episodes. In December 2007 Key and the performance artist Germander Speedwell performed the whole of Jubilate Agno
., an epic devotional poem by Christopher Smart
This was the first and only time that this poem has been performed in its entirety on live radio. The entire performance was in excess of three hours.
Key appears in Episode 3 of Resonance FM's Tunnel Vision, a series recorded entirely in the sewers under London.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and broadcaster
Presenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
best known for his self-published short-story collections and his long-running radio series Hooting Yard on the Air, which has been broadcast weekly on Resonance FM
Resonance FM
Resonance 104.4 FM is a London based non-profit community radio station run by the London Musicians' Collective .The station is staffed by four permanent staff members, including programme controller Ed Baxter and over 300 volunteer technical and production staff.Until September 2007, ResonanceFM...
since April 2004. Key co-founded the Malice Aforethought Press with Max Décharné
Max Décharné
Max Décharné is a rock'n'roll musician, author and journalist, probably best known for his being the drummer for Gallon Drunk and fronting his own band The Flaming Stars.-Music and writing:...
and published the fiction of Ellis Sharp
Ellis Sharp
Ellis Sharp is an experimental British writer, based in London. He is the author of ten books of absurdist metafiction, distinguished by their dense, allusive prose and their interest in re-imagining themes from history, literature and cinema, sometimes from a radical socialist perspective...
.
Critical reception
The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
's literature columnist Sam Jordison has described Frank Key as one of the most prolific living writers of literary nonsense
Literary nonsense
Literary nonsense is a broad categorization of literature that uses sensical and nonsensical elements to defy language conventions or logical reasoning...
. The Guardian's David Stubbs wrote that Frank's prose "reminds of Max Ernst
Max Ernst
Max Ernst was a German painter, sculptor, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was one of the primary pioneers of the Dada movement and Surrealism.-Early life:...
engravings gone Bonzo Doo-Dah
Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band are a band created by a group of British art-school denizens of the 1960s...
". The SF critic David Langford
David Langford
David Rowland Langford is a British author, editor and critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science fiction fanzine and newsletter Ansible.-Personal background:...
wrote "Frank Key's lumbering machinery is like nothing since Ralph 124C 41+
Ralph 124C 41+
Ralph 124C 41+, by Hugo Gernsback, is an early science fiction novel, written as a twelve-part serial in Modern Electrics magazine beginning in April 1911. It was later compiled into a novel/book form in 1925. While one of the most influential science fiction stories of all time, modern critics...
and other pillars of SF's wooden age, only more decrepit. He may even conceivably be writing steampunk
Steampunk
Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, and speculative fiction that came into prominence during the 1980s and early 1990s. Steampunk involves a setting where steam power is still widely used—usually Victorian era Britain or "Wild West"-era United...
.". Edmund Baxter, the director of programming for Resonance FM
Resonance FM
Resonance 104.4 FM is a London based non-profit community radio station run by the London Musicians' Collective .The station is staffed by four permanent staff members, including programme controller Ed Baxter and over 300 volunteer technical and production staff.Until September 2007, ResonanceFM...
wrote "Frank Key is one of the most important writers in English today".
Publications
Prior to 2006 Key's published work consisted almost entirely of short-run, self published pamphlets. All of these original printed releases are out of print. Some of these books have become collector's items which have traded at many times their original value. In 2009 Key began re-publishing stories from his small-press releases. The most recent publication, We Were Puny, They Were Vapid, includes the short stories The Phlogiston Variations and The Book of Gnats which were originally published in the Massacre anthology series.Out of Print
In 1986, inspired by the postpunk DIY ethic, Key founded the Malice Aforethought Press with Max Décharné. Over the next few years they published a large number of short-run pamphlets.| Title | Year | Cover Art |
|---|---|---|
| Twitching and Shattered | 1989 | |
| Stab Your Employer! (with Maxim Decharne Max Décharné Max Décharné is a rock'n'roll musician, author and journalist, probably best known for his being the drummer for Gallon Drunk and fronting his own band The Flaming Stars.-Music and writing:... ) |
1986 | |
| Smooching With Istvan (with Maxim Decharne Max Décharné Max Décharné is a rock'n'roll musician, author and journalist, probably best known for his being the drummer for Gallon Drunk and fronting his own band The Flaming Stars.-Music and writing:... ) |
1987 | |
| Forty Visits To The Worm Farm | 1987 | |
| Tales Of Hoon | 1987 | |
| Hoots Of Destiny | 1987 | |
| A Zest For Crumpled Things | 1987 | |
| The Churn In The Muck | 1988 | |
| Crop Circles : The Crunlop Experiment | 1991 | |
| House Of Turps | 1989 | |
| The Brink Of Cramp | 1989 | |
| Volleyball, Tar & Shuddering | 1989 | |
| The Immense Duckpond Pamphlet | 1989 | |
| Penitence And Farm Implements | 1990 | |
| He Keeps His Gutta-Percha In A Gunny Sack | 1990 | |
| Sidney The Bat Is Awarded The Order Of Lenin | 1990 | |
| Bring Me the Head of Derek the Dust-Particle! | 1990 | |
| Danny Blanchfowler : A Life In Football | 1991 | |
| Testimony Of A Tundist | 1993 | |
| Obsequies For Lars Talc, Struck By Lightning | 1994 |
In Print
In 2003 Key launched "Hooting Yard", originally intended as an internet archive of his writing. In addition he has released three volumes of stories which originally appeared on his web-site.| Title | Year | Cover Image |
|---|---|---|
| Befuddled By Cormorants | 1996 | |
| Unspeakable Desolation Pouring Down From The Stars (and other tragedies) | 2007 | |
| Gravitas, Punctilio, Rectitude & Pippy Bags | 2008 | |
| We Were Puny, They Were Vapid | 2009 |
Resonance FM
Key has broadcast weekly on Resonance FMResonance FM
Resonance 104.4 FM is a London based non-profit community radio station run by the London Musicians' Collective .The station is staffed by four permanent staff members, including programme controller Ed Baxter and over 300 volunteer technical and production staff.Until September 2007, ResonanceFM...
, since 14 April 2004 when his show Hooting Yard on the Air was first commissioned. The programme is broadcast live from Resonance FM's studios and consists almost entirely of Key narrating his own short stories and observations. Hooting Yard is the longest continuously running series on Resonance FM, with only the ClearSpot Show (which is technically not a series) having existed on the schedules for longer.
Resonance has broadcast a number of Hooting Yard special episodes. In December 2007 Key and the performance artist Germander Speedwell performed the whole of Jubilate Agno
Jubilate Agno
Jubilate Agno is a religious poem by Christopher Smart, and was written between 1759 and 1763, during Smart's confinement for insanity in St. Luke's Hospital, Bethnal Green, London. The poem was first published in 1939, under the title Rejoice in the Lamb: A Song from Bedlam, edited by W. F...
., an epic devotional poem by Christopher Smart
Christopher Smart
Christopher Smart , also known as "Kit Smart", "Kitty Smart", and "Jack Smart", was an English poet. He was a major contributor to two popular magazines and a friend to influential cultural icons like Samuel Johnson and Henry Fielding. Smart, a high church Anglican, was widely known throughout...
This was the first and only time that this poem has been performed in its entirety on live radio. The entire performance was in excess of three hours.
Key appears in Episode 3 of Resonance FM's Tunnel Vision, a series recorded entirely in the sewers under London.
Podcasting
Key has narrated for all of the Escape Artists podcasts: Escape-Pod, Pseudopod and Podcastle. In addition his short stories Bubbles Surge from Froth, Boiled Black Broth and Cornets, and Far Far Away have been performed by Norm Sherman on the short-fiction series Drabblecast.External links
- Hooting Yard: Frank Key's Weblog, which includes transcripts of his radio shows;
- The Hooting Yard 2003-2007 Archives, including serializations of some of Frank Key's novellas.