A passable adaptation of the Aldiss novel, but with most of the intelligence stripped out. Written for the screen and directed by Roger Corman. The pretty good cast included John Hurt, Raoul Julia, Michael Hutchence, Bridget Fonda and Jason Patric.
A. I.
The essence of Brian’s story remains, but it’s had all the things American moviegoers can’t do without bolted on: pursuits, explosions and a general dumbing down of what was a sensitively handled central concept when in written form. Entertaining enough. Spielberg directed.
Brothers of the Head
This adaptation of Brian’s short novel, in which he has a cameo role, was liked by many critics and by moviegoers who had the chance to see it, but suffered from lack of distribution in the UK (and probably most other countries. Directed by Keith Fulton & Luis Pepe. Cast: Luke Treadaway, Harry Treadaway, Bryan Dick, Sean Harris, Elizabeth Ryder, Nick Millard
Aldiss's roadshow Science Fiction Blues, based on his own writing, has been a great success over the last 15 - 20 years. Performed at many SF conventions and literary festivals around the world, it consists of readings and dramatic re-enactments of a number of the author's stories, performed with minimal props and usually with the support of the actor Ken Campbell and actress Petronilla Whitfield. Shown are the paperback book based on the show (left) and the programme booklet.
Kindred Blood at Kensington Gore was specially written by Brian for a Philip K. Dick event in London. It has since been performed at other venues.
Shown below are two of Brian's handmade posters for his own performances
Two Aldiss novels have been published in audio format.
Frankenstein Unbound, adapted and read by the author himself, was released as a two cassette set, with a running time of around 2 hours, by Listen for Pleasure in 1978. In 2004 Isis released a 7 cassette set of Brian reading one of his most recent novels, Affairs at Hampden Ferrers; this is unabridged and has a running time of close to 11 hours. Frankenstein Unbound is currently unavailable; you can buy Affairs at Hampden Ferrers through the site bookstore.
Another audio version of Frankenstein Unbound is this BBC Radio London production broadcast in two parts on 8th and 15th July, 1974, with Brian as the narrator. This vinyl album is an abridgement of the original four and a half hour radio show. Alternat World Recordings 1976. Not released on CD.
Brian Aldiss has a fine appreciation of art and has written on the subject both in his own books (see Science Fiction Art, for example) and for newspapers and magazines. Less well known is the fact that he has been a dabbler himself for most of his life. He has even provided illustrative material for some of his own small press books, most recently the eight coloured plates in the poetry collection At a Bigger House. A small selection of Brian's own work can be viewed by clicking the gallery bar above.
Avernus, also known as Avernus Creative Media and Avernus Media, is Brian Aldiss' own publishing imprint. It was established in the 1980s when Aldiss got together with Frank Hatherley as a business partner. The principle books issued when the two were working together were the collection Science Fiction Blues, the Science Fiction Blues roadshow Programme Book and a novel by another writer. Frank Hatherley now lives in Australia and Brian uses the Avernus imprint for personal publishing projects.
Voice & Media 
