The Occasional Musings of a Gentle Fellow

Hey folks!

Let's talk about Beck's End and why you should support it!!

In the UK historically, Northern voices and rural voices are too often left out of the conversation. A lot of this is just straight up classism - for Americans, think Appalachia or the Deep South.

It also has very deep historical roots here in the UK - the Northerners resisted the Norman invasion after 1066 and were punished for that by having all their woodlands and farmlands burned and then sown with lime (the mineral) to poison the soil so that they had to be dependent on southern agriculture for food. You can still see the effect this scarring of the landscape had on the land today (it's why we have the Yorkshire moors that Kathy and Heathcliffe are so fond of).

Much like the way this phenomenon plays out in many countries, even today Northerners are thought of as violent, small-minded and stupid: regardless of our contributions to culture (hi, The Beatles). The North of England is profoundly and unfairly underfunded by the government for things like state infrastructure - from transport to healthcare.

So for me, (Ella), as someone who lives in the North, making Beck's End isn't any old audio drama project. It's really meaningful to me that it's a series that's set in the North of England, starring a cast from the North and working with a crew from the North. That's actually kind of a big deal.

Right now we're 69% (nice) funded with 8 days to go. If you're able to lend us some financial support, please consider doing so. If you can't for any reason, please consider giving us a signal boost.

Thanks to your support, we have successfully reached our goal for funding the naturalistic sound design (i.e. sending Mark into a soggy field with a microphone and some wellies) and the prequel episode, which we have some really interesting plans for. Super exciting stuff, but the fun doesn't stop here! We're beyond hyped to let you know that:

At £19.500 we will unlock the musical score! You may have noticed that this was not included in our base budget; this was one of the ways we minimised the amount necessary to successfully fund the project. When we hit this goal, though, not only will we be able to hire a talented composer to score Beck's End, but we will share the entire score as a free add-on to anyone who pledged £20 or more!

At £20.500 we will be able to expand our cast and further populate Beck's End. This means more voices, more agendas, more scheming, possibly more drama, who can say? You can, when we achieve this goal! Additionally, this goal will allow us to give all our actors a well deserved bonus payment 💚

With 7 days left of our campaign, cast member Karim Kronfli introduces us Nicholas Hickman — the so-called 'Lord of Beck’s End'.

Support for Beck's End has been amazing, but we won't be able to make it unless we achieve at least 100% funding. Consider backing us at becksend.com

You like queer female leads, intriguing mysteries that hint at conspiracy and things grander and older than anything human, gorgeous music and soundscapes, spectacular performances from incredible actors, and uplifting historically underrepresented voices, right?

Many people on my dash enjoy horror and audio drama, I know. And I hope some of you might want to support the kickstarter for Beck’s End! It´s a folk horror that will be produced by Shadows at the Door (@shadowsatthedoor) and distributed by Rusty Quill. I’m really hoping to get to hear it!

The kickstarter goes until Friday July 17th.

"When I first played The Excavation of Hob's Barrow, Dave Jones' voice immediately jumped out to me. I remember thinking, I'd love to work with him one day. So it's a real joy to welcome him to Beck's End. It feels especially fitting given that Hob's Barrow and Beck's End both draw from that rich tradition of folk horror."

- Mark Nixon, creator and lead producer

We have assembled an incredible cast to populate the tiny village of Beck's End.

Check our blog for the gorgeous concept art we have of each character, and check out our Kickstarter page to see some of these amazing people in action and to help us bring Beck's End and the folk horror story found therein to your RSS feeds!

This is so exciting, guys, only one week in and we've already surpassed 40% funding for Beck's End!!! We even got the esteemed Project We Love badge 👀

We're so thrilled and grateful for everyone who has already contributed to this project, and we hope many more of you will join us as we work to bring the creeping, seeping horrors of this Lake District town to your feeds and ears. Tiers start as low as £4, and all thirteen of them feature perks like art prints, stickers, annotated scripts, early episode drops, and access to ad free feeds for both Beck's End and Shadows at the Door!

Don't miss your chance to be part of this exciting project, and please help us spread the word so as many people as possible can hear the news 💚

We have assembled an incredible cast to populate the tiny village of Beck's End.

Check our blog for the gorgeous concept art we have of each character, and check out our Kickstarter page to see some of these amazing people in action and to help us bring Beck's End and the folk horror story found therein to your RSS feeds!

Meet Bailey: the girl who plays it safe.

Bailey once left the confines of Beck's End, but life in the city was too loud. People seemed to look right through her. Back home, where she's needed, where she's a respected chef, things are safer. Nobody pressures her, nobody asks too many questions. That is, until a journalist comes to town...

(The patches on her jacket are real bands, see if you can spot which!)

Meet Bailey: the girl who plays it safe.

Bailey once left the confines of Beck's End, but life in the city was too loud. People seemed to look right through her. Back home, where she's needed, where she's a respected chef, things are safer. Nobody pressures her, nobody asks too many questions. That is, until a journalist comes to town...

(The patches on her jacket are real bands, see if you can spot which!)