Book:Good Omens: Difference between revisions

From Discworld & Terry Pratchett Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
 
(17 intermediate revisions by 2 users not shown)
Line 3: Line 3:
|cover=[[File:Good Omens.jpg|240px|Cover art for {{PAGENAME}}]]
|cover=[[File:Good Omens.jpg|240px|Cover art for {{PAGENAME}}]]
|coauthors=[[Neil Gaiman]]
|coauthors=[[Neil Gaiman]]
|illustrator=
|date=10 May 1990
|date=10 May 1990
|publisher=Victor Gollancz
|publisher=Victor Gollancz
|isbn=057504800X
|isbn=057504800X
|pages=
|pages=
 
|rrp=
|series=  
|series=Good Omens
|characters=[[Aziraphale]]<br/>[[Anthony Crowley|Crowley]]<br/>[[Adam Young]]
|characters=[[Aziraphale]]<br/>[[Anthony Crowley|Crowley]]<br/>[[Adam Young]]
|annotations=
|annotations=
|notes=
|notes=
}}
}}
{{GO}} is a comic novel about demons, angels, prophecies and Armageddon, in which a mix-up at a hospital causes the Antichrist to be brought up as a perfectly normal kid with bizarre consequences as he develops his special talents with neither demons nor angels for guidance.  
{{GO}} is a comic novel about demons, angels, prophecies and Armageddon, in which a mix-up at a hospital causes the Antichrist to be brought up as a perfectly normal kid with bizarre consequences as he develops his special talents with neither demons nor angels for guidance.  


Line 27: Line 27:
**[[Pepper]]
**[[Pepper]]
**[[Wensleydale]]
**[[Wensleydale]]
*Demons and Angles etc
*Demons and Angels etc.
**[[Aziraphale]]  
**[[Aziraphale]]  
**[[Beelezebub]]
**[[Beelezebub]]
Line 34: Line 34:
**[[Ligur]]
**[[Ligur]]
**[[Earl Beezlemoth]]
**[[Earl Beezlemoth]]
**[[Dog]]
**The [[Metatron]]
**The [[Metatron]]
*Riders Of The Apocalypse
*Riders Of The Apocalypse
Line 51: Line 50:
**[[Shadwell]]
**[[Shadwell]]
**[[Thou-Shalt-Not-Commit-Adultery Pulsifer]]
**[[Thou-Shalt-Not-Commit-Adultery Pulsifer]]
 
*The [[Chattering Order of St. Beryl]]
**Sister [[Mary Loquacious]]
*[[Anathema Device]]
*[[Anathema Device]]
*[[Julia Petley]]
*[[Julia Petley]]
Line 59: Line 59:
*[[Deirdre Young]]
*[[Deirdre Young]]
*[[Greasy Johnson]]
*[[Greasy Johnson]]
*[[Mary Loquacious]]
*[[Agnes Nutter]]
*[[Agnes Nutter]]
*[[Beryl Ormerod]]
*[[Beryl Ormerod]]
Line 66: Line 65:
*[[Warlock Dowling]]
*[[Warlock Dowling]]
*[[Horace Gander]]
*[[Horace Gander]]
*[[Dog]]


==Locations==
==Locations==
Line 76: Line 76:
The United States edition of Good Omens had numerous alterations to the text. The most significant alteration to the main text is the addition of an extra 700-word section just before the end, dealing with what happened to the character of Warlock, the American diplomat's son, who was swapped with Adam. The American edition also adds numerous footnotes not found in British editions as well as changes to the spelling throughout so that the text corresponded to American English norms rather than British English. One howler of an error has "Aziraphile nipping across the city of Hell" early on. Comparing this to the British text, it appears the American editor was correcting a non-existent error, not knowing ''Hull'' is an English port city on the east coast. It may be grim, it may have had the pugnacious John Prescott as its MP and it may be in the East Riding of Yorkshire - but it isn't quite Hell...
The United States edition of Good Omens had numerous alterations to the text. The most significant alteration to the main text is the addition of an extra 700-word section just before the end, dealing with what happened to the character of Warlock, the American diplomat's son, who was swapped with Adam. The American edition also adds numerous footnotes not found in British editions as well as changes to the spelling throughout so that the text corresponded to American English norms rather than British English. One howler of an error has "Aziraphile nipping across the city of Hell" early on. Comparing this to the British text, it appears the American editor was correcting a non-existent error, not knowing ''Hull'' is an English port city on the east coast. It may be grim, it may have had the pugnacious John Prescott as its MP and it may be in the East Riding of Yorkshire - but it isn't quite Hell...


Editions since 2006 have contained [[Contributions to other works|extra material]] by [[Terry Pratchett]] and [[Neil Gaiman]]: a new Foreword to the book, 'Good Omens, The Facts' an interview with the two authors and two articles by each author, 'Neil Gaiman On Terry Pratchett' and 'Terry Pratchett On Neil Gaiman.'
Editions since 2006 have contained [[Contributions to other works|extra material]] by [[Terry Pratchett]] and [[Neil Gaiman]]: a new Foreword to the book, 'Good Omens, The Facts' an interview with the two authors and two articles by each author: 'Neil Gaiman On Terry Pratchett' and 'Terry Pratchett On Neil Gaiman.'
 
[[Deleted Scenes|''Crowley & Aziraphale’s New Year’s Resolutions'']] were released on the author's extra section on the HarperCollins website; this section no longer exists but the material can be found on Neil Gaiman's Tumbler account. This was a set of promises by the respective characters for the year ahead.
 
Illustrations by [[Paul Kidby]] and revised text in [[Book:The Definitive Good Omens|''The Definitive Good Omens'']].


==Adaptations==
==Adaptations==
[[File:GO Radio.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Radio Drama CD Cover]]
{{TV Data
Good Omens was adapted by BBC Radio 4 as a [[Radio Adaptations|full audio drama]], this was later released on CD.
|title=Good Omens
|cover=[[File:GO TV DVD.jpg|thumb|200px|DVD Cover]]
|asin=
|imdb=1869454
|date=31st May 2019
|channel=Amazon Prime, BBC Two
|director=Douglas Mackinnon
|producer=[[Neil Gaiman]], Caroline Skinner, Chris Sussman, [[Rob Wilkins]], Rod Brown
|cast=Michael Sheen, David Tennant, Sam Taylor Buck
|duration=60 minutes
|episodes=6
|series=Good Omens
|annotations=
|notes=
|prev=[[TV and Film:Troll Bridge|Troll Bridge]]
|next=
}}
===[[TV and Film:Good Omens|TV Series]]===
In 2017 Neil Gaiman announced that he would be partnering his Blank Corporation with [[Narrativia (production company)|Narrativia]] to create a [[TV and film adaptations|TV series adaptation]]. A six episode TV mini series was produced by both companies along with Amazon.com and the BBC. A [[Book:The Nice and Accurate Good Omens TV Companion|companion book]] and a [[Book:The Quite Nice and Fairly Accurate Good Omens Script Book|script book]] were released alongside the series.
 
Cast:
*[[Aziraphale]]: Michael Sheen
*[[Crowley]]: David Tennant
*[[Anathema Device]]: Adria Arjona
*[[Adam Young]]: Sam Taylor Buck
*[[Brian ("Good Omens")|Brian]]: Ian Galkoff
*[[Wensleydale]]: Alfie Taylor
*[[Pepper]]: Amma Ris
*[[Mary Loquacious|Sister Mary Loquacious]]: Nina Sosanya
*[[Ligur]]: Ariyon Bakare
*[[Hastur]]: Ned Dennehy
*[[Newton Pulsifer]]: Jack Whitehall
*[[Shadwell]]: Michael McKean
*[[Madame Tracy]]: Miranda Richardson
*Gabriel: John Hamm
*Satan: Benedict Cumberbatch
 
On May 1st 2020 a short voice-over vignette, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quSXoj8Kob0 'Good Omens: Lockdown'] was released on Youtube to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Good Omens, with David Tennant and Michael Sheen reprising their roles from the TV series.
 
===[[Book:A Screenplay|Screenplay]]===
A screenplay adaptation titled '''A Screenplay''' for a potential Good Omens film was written by Neil Gaiman. This was published in 2004 by Hill House in a limited number of copies as a premium for subscribers to their Author's Preferred Series.
 
===[[Radio Adaptations|Radio]]===
Good Omens was adapted by BBC Radio 4 as a full audio drama in 2014, this was later released on CD in 2015.
 
Cast:
*Mark Heap: [[Aziraphale]]
*Peter Serafinowicz: [[Crowley]]
*Adam Thomas Wright: [[Adam Young]]
*Bobby Fuller: [[Wensleydale]]
*Hollie Burgess: [[Pepper]]
*Lewis Andrews: [[Brian ("Good Omens")|Brian]]
*Josie Lawrence: [[Agnes Nutter]]
*Colin Morgan: [[Newton Pulsifer]]
*Charlotte Ritchie: [[Anathema Device]]
*Clive Russell: [[Shadwell]]
*Julia Deakin: [[Madame Tracy]]
 
===[[Book:Good Omens The Official (and Ineffable) Graphic Novel|Graphic Novel]]===
''Good Omens: The Official (and Ineffable) Graphic Novel'' is a graphic novel adaptation illustrated by Collen Doran. The book was funded through the website Kickstarter with an initial goal of £25,000.


==Annotations==
==Annotations==
The book satirizes some aspects of the '70s movie ''[[wikipedia:The Omen|The Omen]]'', where an American diplomat has Damien, the Antichrist, for a child. Although Damien is dismissed as a name, and isn't the Antichrist anyway, he is raised by a supernatural nanny, and with a birthday party that gets out of hand.
The book satirises some aspects of the '70s movie ''[[wikipedia:The Omen|The Omen]]'', where an American diplomat has Damien, the Antichrist, for a child. Although Damien is dismissed as a name, and isn't the Antichrist anyway, he is raised by a supernatural nanny, and with a birthday party that gets out of hand.


Right on the very last page of the book, there is a line stating:  
Right on the very last page of the book, there is a line stating:  
Line 95: Line 158:
This is softened in ''Good Omens'' to a sneaker, or trainer, with untied laces, on the foot of the Antichrist, who has just succeeded in thwarting the desire of both Heaven and Hell to stamp on the collective face of the human race until something breaks beyond repair. (What else is Armageddon, after all)  
This is softened in ''Good Omens'' to a sneaker, or trainer, with untied laces, on the foot of the Antichrist, who has just succeeded in thwarting the desire of both Heaven and Hell to stamp on the collective face of the human race until something breaks beyond repair. (What else is Armageddon, after all)  


[[Category: Books by Terry Pratchett|Good Omens]]
==Gallery==
{|
|-
| valign="top" | [[File:Good Omens.jpg|thumb|120px|First Edition Cover by Chris Moore]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO Proof.jpg|thumb|110px|Book Proof]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO Kirby.jpg|thumb|110px|Cover by [[Josh Kirby]] (German)]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO Black.jpg|thumb|110px|Paperback 2004]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO CD.jpg|thumb|140px|Audio CD]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO GW.jpg|thumb|110px|Cover by Graham Ward]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO DF.jpg|thumb|120px|Cover by David Frampton]]
|}
{|
|-
| valign="top" | [[File:GO MA.jpg|thumb|110px|Cover by Michael Astrachan]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO MA2.jpg|thumb|110px|Cover by Michael Astrachan-alt]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO JB.jpg|thumb|110px|Cover by Jim Burns]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO HC.jpg|thumb|210px|Dual covers by Hayden Cornner 2005]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO HC2.jpg|thumb|210px|Dual covers by Hayden Cornner 2006]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO HC3.jpg|thumb|210px|Dual covers by Hayden Cornner 2007]]
|}
{|
|-
| valign="top" | [[File:GO Ace.jpg|thumb|110px|Cover by Ace Books]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO HCUK.jpg|thumb|110px|UK cover by Hayden Cornner 2014]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO G.jpg|thumb|110px|Gollancz hardcover 2007]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO Radio.jpg|right|thumb|150px|Radio Drama CD Cover]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO PI.jpg|thumb|110px|Cover by Patrick Insole]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO CL.jpg|thumb|110px|Collectors Library Edition]]
| valign="top" | [[File:GO TV Cover.jpg|thumb|110px|TV Series Tie-in]]
|}
{|
|-
| valign="top" | [[File:GO W.jpg|thumb|110px|Cover by Marianne Issa El-Khoury]]
|}
==External Links==
[https://www.lspace.org/books/apf/good-omens.html  ''Good Omens'' on the Annotated Pratchett File]
 
[http://goodomenslexicon.org/ The Good Omens Lexicon]
 
[http://neil-gaiman.tumblr.com/post/15162006933/crowley-aziraphales-new-years-wishes-from Crowley & Aziraphale’s New Year’s Resolutions]
 
[[Category:Books by Terry Pratchett|Good Omens]]
[[de:Buch:Ein gutes Omen]]
[[de:Buch:Ein gutes Omen]]
[[Category:Good Omens]]
[[Category:Good Omens|Good Omens]]

Latest revision as of 15:12, 6 August 2023

Good Omens
Cover art for Book:Good Omens
Co-author(s) Neil Gaiman
Illustrator(s)
Publisher Victor Gollancz
Publication date 10 May 1990
ISBN 057504800X
Pages
RRP
Main characters Aziraphale
Crowley
Adam Young
Series Good Omens
Annotations View
Notes
All data relates to the first UK edition.

Good Omens is a comic novel about demons, angels, prophecies and Armageddon, in which a mix-up at a hospital causes the Antichrist to be brought up as a perfectly normal kid with bizarre consequences as he develops his special talents with neither demons nor angels for guidance.

Terry Gilliam would make a movie of this book if those with the money and inclination to make such a thing possible were not as rare as Klatchian Mist.

Blurb

According to the Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter – the world's only totally reliable guide to the future – the world will end on a Saturday. Next Saturday, in fact. Just after tea...

Characters

Locations

Additional Material

The United States edition of Good Omens had numerous alterations to the text. The most significant alteration to the main text is the addition of an extra 700-word section just before the end, dealing with what happened to the character of Warlock, the American diplomat's son, who was swapped with Adam. The American edition also adds numerous footnotes not found in British editions as well as changes to the spelling throughout so that the text corresponded to American English norms rather than British English. One howler of an error has "Aziraphile nipping across the city of Hell" early on. Comparing this to the British text, it appears the American editor was correcting a non-existent error, not knowing Hull is an English port city on the east coast. It may be grim, it may have had the pugnacious John Prescott as its MP and it may be in the East Riding of Yorkshire - but it isn't quite Hell...

Editions since 2006 have contained extra material by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman: a new Foreword to the book, 'Good Omens, The Facts' an interview with the two authors and two articles by each author: 'Neil Gaiman On Terry Pratchett' and 'Terry Pratchett On Neil Gaiman.'

Crowley & Aziraphale’s New Year’s Resolutions were released on the author's extra section on the HarperCollins website; this section no longer exists but the material can be found on Neil Gaiman's Tumbler account. This was a set of promises by the respective characters for the year ahead.

Illustrations by Paul Kidby and revised text in The Definitive Good Omens.

Adaptations

Good Omens
DVD Cover
ASIN [1]
IMDB 1869454
First Broadcast 31st May 2019
Broadcast Channel Amazon Prime, BBC Two
Director(s) Douglas Mackinnon
Producer(s) Neil Gaiman, Caroline Skinner, Chris Sussman, Rob Wilkins, Rod Brown
Writer(s) {{{writer}}}
Starring Michael Sheen, David Tennant, Sam Taylor Buck
Duration 60 minutes
Episodes 6
Series Good Omens
Annotations Annotations for Book:Good Omens
Notes
Preceded by Troll Bridge
Followed by '
All data relates to the UK home release.

TV Series

In 2017 Neil Gaiman announced that he would be partnering his Blank Corporation with Narrativia to create a TV series adaptation. A six episode TV mini series was produced by both companies along with Amazon.com and the BBC. A companion book and a script book were released alongside the series.

Cast:

On May 1st 2020 a short voice-over vignette, 'Good Omens: Lockdown' was released on Youtube to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Good Omens, with David Tennant and Michael Sheen reprising their roles from the TV series.

Screenplay

A screenplay adaptation titled A Screenplay for a potential Good Omens film was written by Neil Gaiman. This was published in 2004 by Hill House in a limited number of copies as a premium for subscribers to their Author's Preferred Series.

Radio

Good Omens was adapted by BBC Radio 4 as a full audio drama in 2014, this was later released on CD in 2015.

Cast:

Graphic Novel

Good Omens: The Official (and Ineffable) Graphic Novel is a graphic novel adaptation illustrated by Collen Doran. The book was funded through the website Kickstarter with an initial goal of £25,000.

Annotations

The book satirises some aspects of the '70s movie The Omen, where an American diplomat has Damien, the Antichrist, for a child. Although Damien is dismissed as a name, and isn't the Antichrist anyway, he is raised by a supernatural nanny, and with a birthday party that gets out of hand.

Right on the very last page of the book, there is a line stating:

"If you want to see the future, imagine a boot..."

Pratchett and Gaiman amend "boot" to "sneaker", but the reference is clearly to the closing paragraphs of George Orwell's 1984:

"If you want to see the future, imagine a boot, stamping on a human face, forever."

This is softened in Good Omens to a sneaker, or trainer, with untied laces, on the foot of the Antichrist, who has just succeeded in thwarting the desire of both Heaven and Hell to stamp on the collective face of the human race until something breaks beyond repair. (What else is Armageddon, after all)

Gallery

First Edition Cover by Chris Moore
Book Proof
Cover by Josh Kirby (German)
Paperback 2004
Audio CD
Cover by Graham Ward
Cover by David Frampton
Cover by Michael Astrachan
Cover by Michael Astrachan-alt
Cover by Jim Burns
Dual covers by Hayden Cornner 2005
Dual covers by Hayden Cornner 2006
Dual covers by Hayden Cornner 2007
Cover by Ace Books
UK cover by Hayden Cornner 2014
Gollancz hardcover 2007
Radio Drama CD Cover
Cover by Patrick Insole
Collectors Library Edition
TV Series Tie-in
Cover by Marianne Issa El-Khoury

External Links

Good Omens on the Annotated Pratchett File

The Good Omens Lexicon

Crowley & Aziraphale’s New Year’s Resolutions

Retrieved from "http://caddy.osiris-web.com/index.php?title=Book:Good_Omens&oldid=34822"