Richard Coles, led a pilgrimage to all the major historic sites of the Holy Land: from Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee in the North, via Jericho and the Jordan River, to Bethlehem and, finally, Jerusalem. All of the pilgrims in his care were practising Christians, except one: the writer Kevin Jackson, a diffident and sympathetic atheist intrigued by the chance to take part in this modern-day version of an ancient act of piety, and to learn some more about his old friend, the media clergyman.Coles to Jerusalem is Kevin Jackson’s light-hearted diary of that pilgrimage, and a close-up portrait of Richard Coles both as priest and as man. As the journey proceeds, Coles reminisces at length about his past life as a rock star and radical gay agitator, his new life as a spiritual leader and a popular broadcaster on BBC radio and television, and the strange, unpredictable path that led him from self-destructive debauchery to faith and vocation.With a lively supporting cast of fellow pilgrims, Coles to Jerusalem ranges among the magnificence of ancient monuments and the banalities of the guided tour, the grim political background of contemporary Israel and the comedy of a group of idiosyncratic English folk abroad, the intensity of worship and the lightness of banter. It will be irresistible to all admirers of Richard Coles, who has contributed a foreword; and a revelation to those who have never encountered his wisdom and warmth.

    I’m a Dragon Today ********************** One day the monster woke up and declared “I’m a dragon; I hope you’re all scared!” Totally thrilled to be covered in spikes, For a dragon can do whatever he likes.

    But the machine men have a long-term plan to regain everything they’ve lost. They will slip away into the wider galaxy from their secret base on Tyche in the Oort cloud. They will go to a nearby star system to rebuild and return stronger than ever.The Sunbeam can’t reach into the Oort cloud. A spaceship will take three years to reach the cyborg base. Despite the distance, Marten Kluge orders Task Force 7 to make the lonely trek.In the Oort cloud, the cyborgs spring a trap. Now, in the darkness far from home, the last Space Marines enter their insertion pods for the methane-icy surface. They plan to sell their lives if they must in order to end the cyborg menace forever.Previously published in the anthology Planetary Assault.