Rankin, Robert
Entry updated 11 September 2023. Tagged: Author.
(1949- ) UK author who began writing his highly idiosyncratic sf novels with the Brentford sequence beginning with The Antipope (1981), The Brentford Triangle (1983) and East of Ealing (1984), these three assembled as The Brentford Trilogy (omni 1988); the final volume in the sequence, Retromancer (2009), is a spoof Hitler Wins Alternate History tale, set in New York and London and featuring its protagonist's ultimately successful attempts to create a better world (ours). In the first volume, two layabouts and their friends challenge Forces from the Beyond ranging from an undead sorcerer to an alien invasion fleet. In later volumes the series satirizes Clichés taken in equal measure from horror, sf and fantasy, setting them off against the thoroughly down-to-earth London suburb of Brentford, the best of these novels perhaps being The Witches of Chiswick (2003), whose title parodies John Updike's The Witches of Eastwick (1984) and which features an appearance by Nikola Tesla. In the end humanity is (apparently) destroyed. Rankin's Armageddon series – Armageddon: The Musical (1990), They Came and Ate Us: Armageddon II: The B-Movie (1991) and The Suburban Book of the Dead: Armageddon III: The Remake (1992) – features a time-travelling Elvis Presley and is based on the premise that the whole of human history has been stage-managed for transmission as an extraterrestrial soap opera. Further (and similar) works include the Ultimate Truths tales, comprising The Book of Ultimate Truths (1993) and Raiders of the Lost Car Park (1994); and The Greatest Show Off Earth (1994). A more recent series, the Japanese Devil Fish Girl sequence – comprising The Japanese Devil Fish Girl and Other Unnatural Attractions (2010), The Mechanical Messiah and Other Marvels of the Modern Age (2011) and The Educated Ape and Other Wonders of the Worlds (2012) – carries Rankin's familiar characters and venues into Steampunk country. [NT]
Robert Fleming Rankin
born London: 27 July 1949
works
series
Brentford
- The Antipope (London: Pan Books, 1981) [Brentford: pb/Alastair Graham]
- The Brentford Triangle (London: Pan Books, 1983) [Brentford: pb/photomontage]
- East of Ealing (London: Pan Books, 1984) [Brentford: pb/Graham Humphreys]
- The Brentford Trilogy (London: Abacus, 1988) [omni of the above three: Brentford: pb/Josh Kirby]
- The Sprouts of Wrath (London: Abacus, 1988) [Brentford: pb/Josh Kirby]
- The Brentford Chainstore Massacre (London: Doubleday UK, 1997) [Brentford: hb/Ian Murray]
- Sex and Drugs and Sausage Rolls (London: Doubleday UK, 1999) [Brentford: hb/John Alexander and Robert Rankin]
- The Witches of Chiswick (London: Gollancz, 2003) [Brentford: hb/Robert Rankin]
- Knees Up Mother Earth (London: Gollancz, 2004) [Brentford: hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Brightonomicon (London: Gollancz, 2005) [Brentford: hb/Robert Rankin]
- Retromancer (London: Gollancz, 2009) [Brentford: hb/Robert Rankin]
Armageddon
- Armageddon: The Musical (London: Bloomsbury, 1990) [Armageddon: hb/Jeff Fisher]
- They Came and Ate Us: Armageddon II: The B-Movie (London: Bloomsbury, 1991) [Armageddon: hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Suburban Book of the Dead: Armageddon III: The Remake (London: Bloomsbury, 1992) [Armageddon: hb/Robert Rankin]
Ultimate Truths
- The Book of Ultimate Truths (London: Doubleday UK, 1993) [Ultimate Truths: hb/Ian Murray]
- Raiders of the Lost Car Park (London: Doubleday UK, 1994) [Ultimate Truths: hb/Ian Murray]
- The Greatest Show Off Earth (London: Doubleday UK, 1994) [Ultimate Truths: hb/Ian Murray]
- The Most Amazing Man Who Ever Lived (London: Doubleday UK, 1995) [Ultimate Truths: hb/Ian Murray]
Pooley and Omally
- Nostradamus Ate My Hamster (London: Doubleday UK, 1996) [Nostradamus: Pooley and Omally: hb/Ian Murray]
- Web Site Story (London: Doubleday UK, 2001) [Pooley and Omally: hb/John Alexander and Robert Rankin]
The Trilogy That Dare Not Speak Its Name Trilogy
- Sprout Mask Replica (London: Doubleday UK, 1997) [The Trilogy That Dare Not Speak Its Name Trilogy: hb/Ian Murray]
- The Dance of the Voodoo Handbag (London: Doubleday UK, 1998) [The Trilogy That Dare Not Speak Its Name Trilogy: hb/John Alexander and Robert Rankin]
- Waiting for Godalming (London: Doubleday UK/Transworld, 2000) [The Trilogy That Dare Not Speak Its Name Trilogy: hb/John Alexander and Robert Rankin]
Eddie Bear
- The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse (London: Gollancz, 2002) [Eddie Bear: hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Toyminator (London: Gollancz, 2006) [Eddie Bear: hb/Robert Rankin]
- Eddie Bear, Private Detective (New York: Science Fiction Book Club, 2006) [omni of the above two: hb/Omar Rayyan]
Japanese Devil Fish Girl
- The Japanese Devil Fish Girl and Other Unnatural Attractions (London: Gollancz, 2010) [hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Mechanical Messiah and Other Marvels of the Modern Age (London: Gollancz, 2011) [hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Educated Ape and Other Wonders of the Worlds (London: Gollancz, 2012) [hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Chickens of Atlantis and Other Foul and Filthy Friends (London: Gollancz, 2013) [hb/Robert Rankin]
The Final Brentford Trilogy
- The Lord of the Ring Roads (Brighton, Sussex: Far Fetched Books, 2017) [ebook: The Final Brentford Trilogy: na/]
- The Chronicles of Banarnia (Brighton, Sussex: Far Fetched Books, 2019) [ebook: The Final Brentford Trilogy: na/]
individual titles
- The Garden of Unearthly Delights (London: Doubleday UK, 1995) [hb/Ian Murray]
- A Dog Called Demolition (London: Doubleday UK, 1996) [hb/Ian Murray]
- Apocalypso (London: Doubleday UK, 1998) [hb/Robert Rankin and John Alexander]
- Snuff Fiction (London: Doubleday UK, 1999) [hb/Robert Rankin and John Alexander]
- The Fandom of the Operator (London: Doubleday UK, 2001) [hb/Robert Rankin and John Alexander]
- The Da-Da-De-Da-Da Code (London: Gollancz, 2007) [later editions capitalize the title variously: hb/]
- Necrophenia (London: Orion/Gollancz, 2009) [hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Abominable Showman (Brighton, Sussex: Far Fetched Books, 2015) [hb/Robert Rankin]
graphic novels
- Empires Vol. One (Auckland, New Zealand: Beyond Reality Media, 2011) [graph: illus/hb/Robert Rankin]
- Alice on Mars (Auckland, New Zealand: Beyond Reality Media, 2013) [graph: illus/hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Divine Commodore (Auckland, New Zealand: Beyond Reality Media, 2014) [graph: illus/hb/Robert Rankin]
- The Kiwi Chronicles (Auckland, New Zealand: Beyond Reality Media, 2014) [graph: vt of the above: illus/pb/Robert Rankin]
nonfiction
- I, Robert: The Far-Fetched Autobiography of Robert Rankin (Brighton, Sussex: Far Fetched Books, 2015) [nonfiction: hb/]
links
- Order of the Golden Sprout (official fan site)
- Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- Picture Gallery
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