JK Rowling almost starred in a HARRY POTTER/DOCTOR WHO crossover

This is old news, but it's still news to me: apparently, back in the Russell Davies era of Doctor Who, J.K. Rowling was in talks to guest star in an episode as herself, in an absolutely nutty story that would've seen the Harry Potter author getting sucked into the magical world of her books, with the Doctor venturing in to rescue her. It sounds like it could've been great fun, or totally embarrassing, or perhaps both, in that uniquely Russell Davies-ian way.

The whole thing was shut down by David Tennant, who found the idea too "spoofy." It was probably for the best...

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Catching up with Derek Riggs, Iron Maiden's cover artist

Growing up as a heavy metal goon, I spent entirely too much time staring at the art of Derek Riggs, Iron Maiden's album cover artist from the late 70s to the early 90s. Riggs' work crackled with nasty, lurid energy and was filled with endless, fiddly little details for angry loner teens to get lost in. It's all pretty embarrassing now... but I have to admit that some of this stuff is still kind of awesome.

I stopped following the band about five minutes after I graduated from high school, but recently I got curious about what Riggs had been up to and a quick Googling led me to his website. He offers up lots and lots of his artwork, along with his cranky, poorly-spelled commentary. (Apparently he had a bad falling-out with the Maiden guys some years back, a development that makes me sad. Pouring over Riggs' art was at least half the fun of being an Iron Maiden fan!)

There are some fascinating oddities on the site, such as this Christmas card featuring Maiden's zombie mascot, Eddie, giving directions to the Three Wise Men. If you're an old Maiden fan, seeing the massive temple from the cover of Powerslave in ruins is kind of heartbreaking. But fear not! Eddie never stays dead for long.

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THE X-FILES: 20 years old this month

Believe it or not, September 10th was the 20th anniversary of the debut of The X-Files. To mark the occasion, here's a few minutes of David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson clowning around on set and screwing up their lines. (Mostly this is just an excuse to hear Anderson's adorable cackle.)

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