Shakespeare Sunday: Happy Deathday, Mr Lovecraft!

Today is the 83rd anniversary of H P Lovecraft's death, in 1937. This event coincides with the world generally shutting down because of COVID-19.

I have seen much mention, on social media, of the fact that, whilst he was in quarantine during a time of plague, England's foremost playwright wrote not just Macbeth but also King Lear.

Lovecraft-corrupted versions of both these tales appear in the anthology Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu. In The Terrors of the Earth, Pat Kelleher gives us his squamous take on The Tragedy of King Lear, while noted Scottish author Graham McNeill, re-imagines the Scottish Play for a modern, genre audience, with his tale, Something Wicked This Way Comes.

So in case you find yourself in lockdown due to the Coronavirus, why not make sure you have a copy of Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu to hand, just in case.

Shakespeare Sunday: Pat Kelleher - The Terrors of the Earth

The last story to be previewed from Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu is Pat Kelleher's The Terrors of the Earth. I first met Pat when we were both working for Abaddon Books, the imprint for which I created the Pax Britannia steampunk series and Pat wrote the No Man’s World trilogy.

Pat and I got chatting about Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu back at Edge-Lit last year, when I was there promoting my first short story anthology SHARKPUNK. Pat has taken King Lear as the inspiration for his story, The Terrors of the Earth, and here's an extract...

Gazing out through rheumy eyes at his three daughters, gathered courtiers, nobles and servants, Great Leyh’r, son of Bladud, son of Lud, King of the ancient Isle of Albion, sat throned in Troynovant’s Great Hall.  

Outwardly, he bore the stately manner of a King of Albion. Inside he howled like a man condemned, beating at the confines of his cell, unable to escape his fate; a fate thrust upon him by Divine Right of Succession and the Blood of Albion that ran in his veins. He had seen some fourscore years, threescore of those upon the throne of Albion, the previous score in the company of his father, King Bladud, and his dark obsession, of which the rule of the kingdom was but the least of it. 

Leyh’r felt the ineffable yoke of his office press down upon him like the years on his back that weakened his sinews, agued his bones and misted his sight. If he could bear it a little longer he might yet do some good, even though he must still carry the heavier portion of that burden alone toward death.

Pat Kelleher is a freelance writer. He served his time writing a wide variety of TV licensed characters, across a bewildering array of media, has several non-fiction books to his credit and a collection of children’s stories published by Bloomsbury. His No Man’s World series of pulp sci-fi novels is published by Abaddon Books, along with his Gods and Monsters e-novella,Drag Hunt. He also worked on Sniper Elite 3, the latest in the video game series from Rebellion and has short stories published by Tickety Boo Press and the award-winning Fox Spirit Books.