Image © Michael Flint / John Slater, 1984

 

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The Basics

Place of Origin:
Kirk Ireton, Derbyshire, UK

Producer and Editor:
Michael Flint and John Slater

In Production:
1984-85

Distribution Media:
 Audio Cassette

Tape Lengths:
 #1-4: C-90

Issues Produced:
4
 

 

Issue 1 of The Logopolitan, from the Derbyshire-based producer-editor team of Michael Flint and John Slater, was released in March of 1984. Three further issues followed, featuring contributions from familiar names from the early days of DWAS fandom such as Richard Woffenden, Alan Disdale and, from the then imminent Sonic Waves, Alan Hayes. The fourth and last issue was advertised in Celestial Toyroom in August 1985 and featured a new look and improved sound recording techniques.

 
 

 

Commenting in The Tapezine Zone section of Zero Room Audiozine Issue 7 (April 1985), David Balston shared his thoughts on the first three issues of The Logopolitan: “The highlight of the first issue had to be the John Leeson interview – not really an interview, more John replying to preset questions, but this was by no means a bad thing since we didn’t have to listen to some interviewer butting in every so often. Issue 2 contained a rather interesting review of the various records connected with Doctor Who... A feature looking at the guest artists in Doctor Who just turned out to be a list of the famous people who have appeared in the show – with a few clips. The Tapezines in Focus [review] didn’t seem to like Zero Room 4 very much, mainly because of the suspension of the Ambassadors of Death review. Ironically, after this review it was announced that the proposed Caroline John interview had to be cancelled and was replaced with a – rather weak – Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy feature, the quality of which was dreadful. The Logopolitan 3 consisted mainly of book reviews and reviews of The Time Warrior, The Evil of the Daleks and The Keeper of Traken and a rather dull history of the Earth, based on Marvel’s TARDIS Log. They even tried to do their own comedy, Doctor Gummidge, exploiting the fact that Jon Pertwee has played a certain television scarecrow. This wasn’t very good, partly because I couldn’t hear a word of it.”

The Logopolitan Issue 4 (July 1985) carried a review of its previous issue by Sonic Waves producer Alan Hayes: “Thanks for The Logopolitan 3. For the most part, I must say I quite enjoyed it. My major criticism was the poor sound quality and the poor mix between music and voice, in the Evil of the Daleks review especially. My second moan is the overuse of clips, especially in Alan Disdale’s and Richard Clarke’s articles about The Time Warrior and The Keeper of Traken respectively. They were far too long. The Time Warrior one was poorly written anyway and revolved entirely around the clips. I must admit to a dislike of archive pieces. Reviews are always much, much more interesting. It seems that you or at least your contributors regard the inclusion of clips to be the most important part of an article. When I buy a tapezine, I do so to hear people’s views, not to hear five-minute-long clips. That’s probably an exaggeration, but you get my point. Content, with the exception of the aforementioned two pieces which, to be honest, I found dead boring, is very promising. I loved John’s editorial and also the bridges between articles. The book reviews were interesting, as was what I could hear of the review of The Evil of the Daleks. An excellent inclusion, however, was The Time Guide or whatever it’s called! If the clips were mixed down, though, below your own voice, perhaps it would be a helluva lot less of a struggle to listen to. The high point was Doctor Gummidge, which was so bad, so nauseating, so utterly chronic, that I actually found it very enjoyable. Generally, a very good tapezine, streets ahead of some others, though with a little more work, it could be motorways ahead of them! God, that’s an awful joke, but anyway I’m certainly looking forward to The Logopolitan 4.”

The Logopolitan later received a one-line review from Roy Stevens on The Master Tape Issue 6 (June 1988): “The Logopolitan is another [tapezine I’ve heard], although it’s a nice effort.” This review came nearly three years after the publication of the final Logopolitan, suggesting that taped copies were still in circulation and being listened to some time after the tapezine ceased production.

 
 

 

THE LOGOPOLITAN – ISSUE 1:
BAKER ISSUE
February 1984 (advertised March 1984), C-90

Side A:

  1. Jingle: The Logopolitan

  2. Introduction by John Slater

  3. Season Overview: Season 21 by John Slater (Part 1 – Stories 1-2)

  4. Humour: Beyond the Unknown – Episode 1: The Land of Make Believe by Michael Flint and John Slater

  5. Tapezines in Focus: Dr. Who: Tapezine 1, WOTAN 1 and Zero Room 3 by Michael Flint

  6. Season Overview: Season 21 by John Slater (Part 2 – Stories 3-4)

  7. Record Spot: Who is the Doctor by Jon Pertwee

  8. Review/Synopsis: Logopolis by Michael Flint

Side B:

  1. Humour: Beyond the Unknown – Episode 2: Out of the Frying Pan Into the Fire by Michael Flint and John Slater

  2. Review: The Tom Baker Years by John Slater

  3. Interview: John Leeson with Michael Flint

  4. Interview Outtakes: John Leeson

  5. The Logopolitan 1 Sign Off by John Slater

THE LOGOPOLITAN – ISSUE 2
June 1984 (advertised July 1984), C-90

Side A:

  1. Introduction by John Slater

  2. Season Overview: Season 21 by John Slater (Part 3 – Stories 5-7)

  3. BBC Trailer: Season 21

  4. Humour: What Did People Think of Logopolitan 1? by John Slater

  5. Humour: Regurge-A-Tape – When Doctor Who Went Wrong

  6. Record Spot: The Doctor Who Singles Scene 1964-1984 by Michael Flint

  7. Archive: Planet of the Spiders by John Slater

Side B:

  1. Guest Stars in Doctor Who by Michael Flint

  2. Excerpt: Planet of the Spiders Part 6 (Regeneration Scene)

  3. Record Spot: Dr. Who by Mankind

  4. Tapezines in Focus: Zero Room 4, WOTAN 2 & 3, UNIT Tapezine 1 and Trakenites Times 1 by John Slater

  5. Latest News: The Two Doctors and Season 21 Ratings by John Slater

  6. An Apology about advertised Caroline John Interview by John Slater

  7. Review: The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by John Slater

  8. The Logopolitan 2 Sign Off by John Slater

THE LOGOPOLITAN – ISSUE 3
October 1984 (advertised November 1984), C-90

Side A:

  1. Introduction by John Slater

  2. Archive: The Time Warrior by Alan Disdale

  3. Book Reviews: John Lucarotti’s The Aztecs and Ian Marter’s The Dominators by Michael Flint

  4. Record Spot: Dr. Who by Eric Winstone and his Orchestra

  5. Review: The Evil of the Daleks by Andrew Thompson, read by Michael Flint

  6. Humour: Regurge-A-Tape – Why Adric Was Left to Die

  7. Brief Book Review: Peter Haining’s The Key to Time by John Slater

  8. Humour: Regurge-A-Tape – Ultravox-Cybermen Crossover

  9. Fanzine Review Summary: Cygnus Alpha, An Unearthly Child, Paradise Lost 2, Delta Magma, Frontier Worlds, Who and Crew, Mondas 2, DWB, Experiential Grid and Telos by Richard Woffenden

Side B:

  1. Review: The Keeper of Traken by Richard Clarke

  2. The Anthony Ainley Master by John Slater and Michael Flint

  3. The History of the Universe According to Doctor Who by Peter Kessler, read by John Slater and Michael Flint (Part 1, B.C.)

  4. Humour: Doctor Gummidge by Michael Flint and John Slater

  5. Outtakes from this issue by Michael Flint and John Slater

  6. The Logopolitan 3 Sign Off sung by John Slater and Michael Flint

  7. Outtakes from The Logopolitan 3 Sign Off by John Slater and Michael Flint

THE LOGOPOLITAN – ISSUE 4
July 1985 (advertised August 1985), C-90

Side A:

  1. The Logopolitan Broadcasting from Another Dimension by Michael Flint and John Slater

  2. Introduction by Michael Flint and John Slater

  3. Season Overview: Season 22 by Michael Flint

  4. What Makes An Atmosphere? by John Slater

  5. Fanzine Review: Cosmic Masque 9, Delta Magna 5, Stock Footage, Paradise Lost 2, TARDIS Vol 10 No 1 by Richard Woffenden

  6. Review: The Visitation by Alan Hayes

  7. Commercial: CVE Tapezine 2

  8. Australian Commercial: The Doctor Who Technical Manual at the ABC Shop

  9. Logopolitan Letters from Richard Clarke, John Marsh, Stephen Broome, Bill Cook, Alan Disdale, Geoffrey Connal, Linda Badrick and Alison Johnson

Side B:

  1. Review/Synopsis: The Sensorites by Michael Flint

  2. Tapezine Review: The Logopolitan 3 by Alan Hayes

  3. Humour: Doctor Gummidge: The Fifth Force by Michael Flint and John Slater

  4. Humour: Doctor Gummidge: The Krittles of Krettos – Episode 1: Combustion by Michael Flint and John Slater

  5. Outtakes from this issue by Michael Flint and John Slater

  6. The Logopolitan 4 Sign Off by Michael Flint
 

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