Saw "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" again last night. It's not long since I saw it at the cinema, but I just fancied watching it again on DVD. My opinion didn't change -- inferior to the original, but fun, nicely shot and cast, suffering only from a truly clunky finish.

Spent today catching up on bits and pieces, answering e-mails which had been mounting up, paying a few bills which came while I was away, etc. Also, some of my copies of "Demon Thief" arrived last week, so I signed several of them for family and friends. Still have stuff to be done over the next few days, and I have the final draft of "Slawter" to edit, and a Christmas tree to get, put up and decorate, and ...

*sigh*

Looks like I won't be resting up properly any time soon!!!!

One piece of good news -- watched Spurs beat Portsmouth 3-1 on the TV, to cement our position in fourth place in the league. It was a strange match. We completely dominated the first half, but went behind to a flukey goal. We didn't play so well in the second half, but managed to score three goals and win!!! Anyway, the three points are all that really matter. I can't remember the last time we went into Christmas this high up the table!!!!!!

There's an auction on Ebay for signed first editions of all 12 of the UK versions of "The Saga of Darren Shan". The last time a signed set like this came up, it sold for over £300!! Thought I'd let you all know about it, in case any of you fancy buying an extra nice Christmas present for yourself or anybody else!!!! Please note, I have nothing to do with the auction -- I'm just letting fans know about it, in case any of you are interested. The link to the auction is: http://cgi.ebay.com/Darren-Shan-Books-1-to-12-SIGNED-1st-1sts_W0QQitemZ6994392173QQcategoryZ2232QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Watched "Edward Scissorhands" again last night, for the first time in several years. Nice to see that it's aged well. Sometimes films can dissapoint when you see them as an older viewer, but I still got a big kick out of this one. It works beautifully most of the time, a nice mix of the absurb and romantic, the kitsch and morose. I think Burton's at his best when he mixes the surreal humour with a dark, strong emotional core -- like here, and in "Ed Wood". The films where he just focuses on the laughs - "Mars Attacks", "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" etc - are fun, but don't do as much for me. You need characters you can care in, and who go through some pain -- otherwise it's just 2D.

Did some work on my web site today, adding new covers to it. Watched the first episode of the recent "Doctor Who" series. I saw it on a plane a few months ago, but it was nice to see it on a big screen in all its glory. I was never a big "Doctor Who" fan -- it wasn't on Irish TV when I was growing up, so I never had any real exposure to it. But I'm looking forward immensely to the rest of this series!

Also saw a film called "Murder Set Pieces". It's a truly gruesome piece of work, extraordinarilly bloody and vicious. It has no moral redeeming features whatsoever, though it's technically very well made, with better dialogue and acting than most slasher movies. As a movie designed to shock and nauseate, it achieves exactly what it intended. But there's nothing else to it apart from the bloodshed. It could have done with more plot drive -- it would have been even more disturbing if it had been able to draw viewers in a bit more closely. Still, whether you love or loathe it, it's certainly a film you won't forget in a hurry, which is a rarity for a slasher flick. I suspect that this is a movie that will prove a talking point for many years to come ...

The touring is finally over!!! Well, for 2005 at least!!

Got up early on Friday and caught the train down to Cork for my busiest day of the "Thief in the Night" tour. Did my first event at Torytop library. A couple of schools had sent kids to the event, and there were some members of the public there too. I did my "Lord Loss" extract, took lots of questions, then signed lots of books. Went to Douglas library next. Ate a sandwich when I got there, then did another talk and Q&A session. There were kids from one school at this event, and quite a lot of individuals -- mostly Mums who'd been sent by their kids to get books signed!!! Lots more signing to do at the end of the event, then it was on to Mayfield library for a public event. Read my "Lord Loss" extract for the final time on the tour, took lots more questions, then signed for those who'd come.

Waterstones beckoned after the libraries. I went straight there from my final event, and got signing immediately. I didn't have as large a crowd as the last time I was here, but it was a very good turnout, and I was there an hour and a half in total. Signed lots of stock, then popped into Easons and signed all their stock too -- so there are plenty of signed copies of my books in Cork right now!!!

Checked into my hotel, the Gresham Metropole, about 18.45. A nice place. Then met up with three of my old friends from school -- Cathy Kelly, and Liam Marian FitzGERALD. Went for a nice Thai meal, then moseyed on for some drinks. One of Cathy's other friends, Moira, joined us, and we stayed out drinking until 02.00a.m. Wasn't too drunk, though I did drink a bit more than usual. Walked back to my hotel, went to bed and fell asleep almost instantly ...

... but I woke up at 07.30ish and couldn't get back to sleep!! It was just one of those  nights. Stayed in bed and dozed, then got up at 09.00, shaved, and got a taxi over to Cathy's house. She drove me back to Limerick, to an accompaniment of some very dodgy tunes on her MP3 player!!! There was a huge crowd in Easons when I arrived. I was signing for over two hours twenty minutes in total. It was great to see such strong support on my home territory -- my Limerick fans have never let me down!!!!!! Popped into O'Mahony's when I was finished and signed lots of stock there too. And that's it -- I'M DONE!!!! The touring is over, at least for a month! It's been a long, hard year of travel, but I've enjoyed everywhere I've been and I think the hard work's been worth it -- the books are selling stronger than ever in most countries, and the transition from "The Saga" to "The Demonata" has been pretty seamless. Book tours aren't easy, but they play an important role in the lifespan of a book, they keep writers close to their fans, and I don't see myself retiring from the road any time in the near future!!!!!

Had fish and chips in the Lobster Pot afterwards, then got a taxi home. Checked my e-mails and watched a recent horror flick, "The Descent". It was pretty good, with some nice creepy moments and a strong line in cruelty. I'll probably watch another film in a while, then hit the sack.

Had a nice lie-in. Was checking my e-mails on the TV internet in my room about 10.00a.m. when the phone rang -- a local radio station, Galway Bay FM, had read last night's blog, saw that I was in the Great Southern, and wanted to interview me. Liking their cheek, I agreed and gave a short interview a bit later.

Did a talk and signing in Glaway library. The librarians there are very enthusiastic and sweet -- always a nice library to go to! Got a good crowd, full of questions about my books. Most were about "The Saga", naturally, but I'm pleased to see that I'm already getting quite a few questions about "The Demonata" -- the majority of fans here have followed me to the new series and seem to like what they've seen of it so far!!!

Had a quick bite, then went to sign in Easons. Another strong turnout, including a family who'd driven a hundred miles to come see me! Signed LOADS of stock after I'd got through the line, of all my books, and was there for almost two hours in total. Caught the bus down to Limerick. My Dad picked me up at the station and drove me home. Spent almost three hours sorting through my mail and e-mails. ALMOST finished -- just have to unpack a stack of DVDs, and then I'll be able to slip upstairs and have a nice long soak in my oversized, oh-so-welcome Jacuzzi tub -- one of the best luxury items I've ever treated myself to!!!!!!!!!! My only regret is that Bas won't be there to scrub my back -- she's gone over to England for the weekend, for a friend's 30th birthday party. Boo!!!!!

Had a very large crowd at Easons O'Connell Street in the afternoon -- far more than the staff in the store anticipated!! They wanted me to give a reading and answer questions. They hadn't told me about that in advance, but that was OK -- I guessed it might happen, since the same thing happened the last time I was there!!! Unfortunately their speakers weren't working, so I had to do it without a microphone and pretty much shout the whole time in order to be heard!!!!!! Oh well, it was still fun! Spent over an hour signing everybody's books (I only did one or two messages per person in most cases, otherwise it would have been MUCH longer, and I had a train to catch!!!). Then signed lots of stock, of all my books. After that I caught a bus to Heuston station, then a train to Galway, and now I'm ensconsed in the very nice Great Southern Hotel, where I'll shortly be hitting the sack!!! Night night, Shansters!!!!!!!

Flight to Dublin was fine -- only 35 minutes in the air -- those are the types of flights I like!!! Stayed at Jurys Ballsbridge. Got a taxi over to Dundrum shopping centre this morning. It was an 11.00am event, which I thought was strange -- I didn't think anyone would be able to make it for that hour, and imagined myself just signing stock. But lots of people (mostly mums, whose kids were at school) turned up, and the store had also arranged for a school to come in, so I ended up giving a talk too!!!! I was there for two hours in total -- so much for a nice easy morning!!! :) But that's the way I like to be -- busy signing! I had some spare time after that, so I went around several bookshops in central Dublin, including Waterstones, Hodges & Figgis, Easons, and Dubray. Signed lots of stock in each shop. Now I'm off for my 4.00pm signing at Easons O'Connell Street -- I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a big crowd!!!!

Got up at a ridiculously early hour (by my standards!!) on Monday - 06.45!!!! Flew up to Edinburgh from London City airport. Met Nic, my publicist in Edinburgh. Went to the Scottish Book Trust to give an interview to some Teens Times kids, then discussed some of my travel plans with the Book Trust -- thy're arranging events for me in several Scottish locations in May -- more news on that next year!!

Did stock signings in Ottakars Cameron Toll, Ottakars George Street, and Waterstones George  Street. Then did a public signing in Waterstones Princes Street at 4.00pm. Was signing for 2 hours, and also signed lots of stock. My Edinburgh fans are as loyal as ever!! Also had some fans who came up from London just for the signing!!!!!! Finished the night off with a delicious meal at the Witchery -- yum!!!

Train over to Glasgow on Tuesday morn. Did a school event at St Aloysius College, then had lunch with Anne Johnstone (a journalist), then signed in Ottakars Buchanan Galleries. Had a good crowd, signed LOADS of stock, ate dinner in Pizza Hut, and now I'm at the airport, en route to Dublin and the final leg of my tour!!!!!!!!!

A quickie before I head off for bed!!!

Went to see "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" -- very enjoyable, possibly the best movie in the series yet. But I still don't think any of the movies have worked anywhere near as well as the books. While the books are long, they don't really feel long when I read them. Yet as much as I liked the new movie, I think it could have done better by being half an hour shorter. Maybe the magic of Harry is just too magical to capture on-screen ...

Went to see "The League of Gentlemen are Behind You" later. Nice to see the familiar faces from the show in new routines. I didn't enjoy the panto-based show as much as the TV series, but it's a lot of fun and the three actors are amazing, moving seamlessly from one role to another, going through more costume changes than should be humanly possible!!!!!!

Went to see Spurs play Sunderland yesterday. Got up there early, met up with my friends, had a few drinks, then went to the match. Sunderland are bottom of the table, and look almost certain to be relegated at the end of the season, but we all felt a bit nervous regardless -- Spurs have a habit of dropping points against weak teams. We started well, but fell behind to a lovely free kick. We drew level shortly before half time, then went ahead early in the second half. That should have been the end of matters, but somehow they equalized!! When Robbie Keane missed a penalty (the first time I've ever seen him miss one), I felt certain we weren't going to win -- but luckily we sneaked a third goal and took all 3 points to go fourth in the table!!!! Cue more drinks and much celebrating over the course of the night, and lots of talk about football!!

Spent this morning answering fan mail. I'm off to see the latest "Harry Potter" film soon, and then "The League of Gentlemen Are Behind You!" in Hammersmith! Tomorrow I set off for Scotland for the next leg of my tour. I'm not sure if I'll be able to get online over the next few days, so it may be a while before my next update.