AT BLOGGERHEADS

What's that I can hear? Shh, there is is again. Oh hang on, I know what it is...it's my brand new blog calling out for a little bit of attention. I've decided that in order to help art historians archive my work more easily, I'd create a new blog to keep my children's book work separate from my other stuff. I'm so charitable, it's silly. So in effect, the picture that comes with this post shouldn't really be here at all- it belongs on the other blog. I've just put it here to highlight the fact that there is another blog and if you'd like to see more drawings like this then my other blog is where you ought to be.

My new blog goes by the clever title of Drawings and Paintings and can be found by clicking on the link. Thanks chums.

O2 SEE LEONARD COHEN LIVE

'Baby I have been here before

I know this room, I've walked this floor

I used to live alone before I knew you.

I've seen your flag on the marble arch

Love is not a victory march

It's a cold and it's a lonely Hallelujah.'

Leonard Cohen

Last week I went with both my brothers to see Leonard Cohen at the O2 Arena in London. I ain't ashamed to admit that when this brilliant man of seventy-something years dropped to his knees and sang Hallelujah, I blubbed like a baby. And my older brother blubbed. Everybody blubbed except my little brother who saved his tears for Famous Blue Raincoat.

It's not often I nick off to a concert but when Leonard's in town you have to put work to one side and sit in opened-mouthed awe at his genius.

The above pic was done at rapid speed (probably took 30 minutes) in pen and ink and got a bit messy but is a welcome distraction from all the black and white book illustrations I've been doing so much of lately. If you'd like to see an earlier post relating to more Leonard Cohen goodness by way of a charcoal portrait I've done, you can do so by clicking here.


There's a new Leonard Cohen drawing on my Drawing and Painting blog here.

CHIMPANZEE THAT, MONKEY NEWS!

When I'm up late at night and working away on my drawings, I usually listen to a bit of Monkey News to keep me going. Monkey News is a brilliant piece of nonsense from Karl Pilkington (above centre, head like an orange) as he tells Ricky Gervais (above left) and Stephen Merchant (above right) what monkeys have been up to an' that. The above three people are responsible for forcing me to start more drawings from scratch than anyone else as it's hard to draw whilst laughing so much.

The reason I'm mentioning all this is because I've generous permission from Rory Binks to show his brilliantly animated Monkey News on this blog (right hand side of the screen, very near the bottom). The animations add a clever new dimension to Karl's stories and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Rory can be contacted via his email address, rory@abundant.co.uk.

READING BETWEEN THE LIONS

YOU:

Woah, slow down Leighton, what are you some sort of maniac or something? What are you doing rattling off yet another book cover when surely you're busy enough doing tons of other books and stuff?

ME:

'Slow down' isn't in my vocab, not when there's a cover needing doing for my friends over at Tamarind.

YOU:

Oh you're so brilliant, you are- selfless even.

ME:

Well that's not for me to say but thanks.

YOU:

Always a pleasure. I'm going to pop over to read your fantastic blog with your fantastic thoughts more often. You're a genius.

ME:

Stop it, you're making me blush.

YOU:

And you're beautiful.

ME:

Well yeah, goes without saying but cheers anyway. Almost unnaturally handsome some might say.

YOU:

Can I see you later?

ME:

Really, just stop it now...it started out as a nice little comment about the latest book cover I'm doing and how brilliant I am an' all but you've taken it too far as usual and now you've overstepped the mark as...Hello?

Are you still there? Hello?

I didn't mean it, come back.

Please come back.

GONE FIRE NIGHT

Well it's the 5th of November and the Thief of November has struck again. I half expected him to. Some guy's sneaked into my garden in the dead of night and had it away with my bonfire. I'd built it up all nice an' that, ready for tonight but it's gone and this is the third year in a row it's happened.

I haven't even got any fireworks because I'd planned to surreptitiously watch next door's display from behind my rhododendron with my daughter. All I've got is three jacket potatoes and two of those are on the turn, which means I'll be ok but Elodie and her mum are bound to whinge about theirs.

So I've thought things through carefully and next year I've decided to have the last laugh by drenching my bonfire wood with water, rendering it unlightable.

Stay safe and follow the firework code, kids.

TOBY CONTINUED...

I can't stop for long as there's still much to be done and I'm flying by the seat of my pants as it is.

Regular readers of this blog may remember a post revealing Toby, one of the new Gargoylz from the new book series I'm doing by the same name. This past fortnight I've been losing sleep and working 23% harder than usual getting cover and first chapter artwork completed and I've not slept for the past 35 hours. Of course I'm joking- this blog doesn't have any regular readers.

Well time's beaten us again, my friends. I've still got several pictures to finish for tomorrow so I'd better ink me pen up and get started...

JUGGOLE'EN AND HALLOWE'EN

If there's one thing I enjoy when I'm not drawing, it's juggling my fire clubs and knives. I've just started to learn after I got taken to a circus and was dazzled by a man doing it in a spangly suit and as he made it look easy, I thought I'd give it a whirl. I've also found that I quite enjoy doing it in a spangly suit myself. But anyway, that's all by the by.

I don't know where this guy in the picture thinks he's going with his birdcage but wherever it is, the bird ain't too chuffed about it although this time of year of course he might be out 'trick or treating'. The thing I like best about this drawing is that it's a teeny bit macabre. When I was at college I had a tutor (hello Vicki Morley) who reckoned my drawings of picnics looked more like funerals and I think she probably had a point. But that's by the by too as I passed that phase, although it's good to revisit on occasion.

As for trick or treating this year, I won't be doing that because...

1. I'm 37.
2. I don't believe in asking strangers for sweets.
3. I need time to recover from some horrific cuts and burns to my hands.