#another one for the booshlrs

[a-bit-over-the-top]

"You ever drunk Bailey's from a shoe?"

Mar 22nd 2021

[anciientboosh]

WIP Wednesday

I've been battling away with a huge Boosh piece since about Nov 2019 (when I reentered the Boosh fandom after many many years away) and I’m now in the final editing process. All of booshlr has been so welcoming and sweet and supportive of content from the gifs I make to the small drabbles I’ve posted.. So I thought I'd perhaps show the little opening section of it? Might help me get over the initial fear of posting something so big in a (relatively) new fandom for the first time! Be gentle, I'm a delicate flower haha!

Show Me What I Can't See

It had been funny at first. 

Before the words really had a chance to sink in, it was so funny. 

Not just funny; side-splittingly hilarious. Vince had started with huffed giggling, hands clutching at his stomach in an effort to stave off the sound before he descended into full-blown cackles. Tears gathered in his eyes. He couldn’t breathe around his laughter. One of his hands reached for the nearest surface, an old chipped wooden table, and used it to hold himself upright. His chest was tight with the lack of oxygen but he couldn't stop. It wasn't laughing anymore, not really. Instead it was that soundless heaving people do; the kind where something is clearly so amusing you might actually die because of it. 

He looked desperately at Howard, as one does when sharing a joke with a friend. The expectation being that he would be in a similar state. That they'd both be left, barely able to stand for the humour of it all. Isn't it hilarious, Howard, what a genius joke. Instead, he found the man was regarding him with an expression of confusion and something else - something dangerously close to hurt. 

He stopped laughing at once. 

“Something funny, little man?” 

Vince stifles the response he wants to give by biting his lip so hard he tastes copper. There’s a deep impulse to scream Have you gone barking mad? Instead, he simply shakes his head because that appears to be the path of least resistance. “Nope. Nothing.” He insists, pushing himself upright again. On his feet, his legs are wobbling with the whiplash of it all. That could also be his nerves, though. "Nothing you said anyway. Just being daft." 

Howard gives a soldierly nod. “Well, consider yourself warned.” And that’s that. Palm pressed to the small of Vince's back, Howard urges him towards the door of the keeper’s hut. “Let’s go, I’m putting you on frogs.” 

For once Vince is grateful for his friend's ability to move on from a conversation. Frankly even his high tolerance for the bizarre would be tested having to decipher what just happened. Luckily his limbs move on autopilot, more than used to following Howard’s direction dumbly, and they head out into the zoo at large, business as usual. No time to dwell on the verbal rollercoaster they have just ridden together. 

He doesn’t ask why on earth Howard had felt the need to deliver such a warning on his first day working at the Zoo. “You have to promise me that you won’t fall in love with me.” Really. What the hell was he supposed to make of that, other than for it to be a joke?

Even then it was a bit of a weird joke. 

Well. That was just Howard all over, really. Weird. The man attempts logic and the end result is still utter nonsense. That’s partly why Vince likes him in the first place.  

Howard’s logic had led him to leave school at sixteen to pursue his ‘dream’ of becoming a zookeeper (alongside becoming a jazz musician, poet, actor, or a novelist… Howard had a lot of dreams). That very same brand of Moon reasoning was why three short years later, here he was, also sixteen and also abandoning school before his exams were finished. GCSE’s weren’t important, Howard had told him. 

Which was fine, in Vince’s opinion. All the great frontmen worked with animals and school certainly wasn’t helping him on his journey to stardom. All the other students had looked at him as if he were insane when he’d announced the news. They weren’t wrong, but it was a brilliant kind of insanity that only he and Howard were capable of appreciating.  

On the upside, he’d be earning his own money and hanging out with his best mate all day. Plus his foster parents were quite pleased with him for demonstrating his independence, or something to that effect. He hadn’t listened much past the initial gushing praise. 

And on the downside, apparently Howard thinks it puts him at risk of suddenly falling for his best friend? 

Weird. 

Though, it wasn’t completely off brand for Howard; making outrageous claims that is. He’d throw around statements with enough sincerity that Vince just couldn’t find it in himself to doubt their truthfulness. After all, Howard was the smart one in this duo - no one was disputing that. His peppering of ‘facts’ into their everyday conversation had oft shaped how a young Vince viewed the world. Whether they were correct or not did not factor into it.  

It means he isn’t entirely sure if he’s supposed to take this warning seriously or if it was just another one of those wacky things that Howard said (and believed) but the rest of the population found odd. 

“You have to promise me that you won’t fall in love with me.” 

Promise easily kept. 

Howard was so far from his type. The opposite end of the spectrum to his type. 

Which brings him back to his initial conclusion; it was just a bit of a shit joke from his socially dense friend. His best friend. 

More than anything, Vince expected it was probably a way to lighten the mood a little. An attempt at easing the gentle trembling that’s wracking Vince’s thin frame. While he wouldn’t openly admit being nervous, Howard has more than likely noticed and was trying to help. That’s all it was. 

No way is he ever gonna fall in love with that tall northern jazz freak.

[concupiscence66]

Everything Bagel Prompt-a-Thon

Calling all Booshlrs, Fieldmice and Barrattones! It is I, the woman who gave you the term Bagelling and the month of Julianuary, and I would like to present you with another wonderful gift: The First Annual International, End of Summer, Month-Long Everything Bagel Prompt-a-Thon!

That’s right, August is the month of prompting all things related to the Mighty Boosh! Be as intellectual, perverse, schmoopy or predictable as you please because we want everyone to get involved! No one “claims” a prompt. Everyone is welcomed to fill as many prompts as they like and in as many ways as they can imagine. This is for the writers, painters, singers, song writers, bakers, crafters, fanmixers, cosplayers and the blessed gif makers.

To submit a prompt, comment on this post The community is open to all so anyone can post. Now get prompting!

[yeahwehadatime]

Do you think it might be time to circulate another Booshlr PSA about the bad-faith serial reposters? Recently a new Booshlr has had an edit stolen that they spent an hour on and the repost got a lot of attention while the new Booshlr has few followers.

:/

this is definitely one of my top pet-peeves and it hurts to hear that a newer creator has had the experience. so here goes…

PSA

for newer booshlrs/fieldmice/barrattones/luxury beans (and because we all need a refresher every once in a while), there are several blogs out there that are chronic re-posters/gif stealers/edit thieves.

some common urls are:

vince-noir-666

glam-rock-british-comedy

noel-fielding-web-page

dominic-fielding

svetik666

there are a couple of giveaways for this person - yes, person, they have created m a n y urls for themselves - which include:

using the hyphen between every word

when you check the notes, they’ve liked it a TON of times and the various urls reblog from one another over and over

what can you do?

check the source - who posted that? does it match a watermark? (BUT please be aware that watermarks are not always correct, at least one of those urls listed above has a history of cropping or editing out the watermark of the original post and replacing it with their own

check the notes (see above)

reblog from trusted sources - there is a great list here (it probably needs an update, let me or andie know if people who should be on there are missing)

does the single gif look like it may have come from a set? it probably did

when in doubt, please feel free to send a message my way to ask - I have a weirdly good memory for content and who may have made it. most of the creators have a style that’s uniquely theirs! 

and finally, report thieves when you see them. it may feel futile, but if we all did it every time who knows what staff might do.

[booshlrsarebrilliant]

Another toddler!Vince to cheer us up!

P.S. wasn’t quite sure how to share already blogged posts on Booshlrs.  Hope this works…

Certainly did work! So effin cute - definitely one to help cheer up this ex-pat Londoner. Thank you so much from all of us. x

[popvultvre]

Happy holidays, Booshlrs! (And merry Christmas, if you celebrate it!)

Here’s a little something that I’ve been writing over the last ~month~ or so, still a work in progress, but what I’ve got so far points to it being wayyyy longer than ‘I Want The Style...’

So here’s a still fairly draft-y version of the first chapter, hope you enjoy it!

They met on Brighton Pier, because where else in the world would Howard meet a mod and get talking to him. It was practically a cliché in the making.

He was weird – and it was evident right off – and that made Howard’s heart warm a little, because that kid with the motorbike at the newsagent had sneered at him but this kid was maybe a little like him. He was dressed mod – but like if Twiggy decided she’d had enough of modelling and Mary Quant and became the fifth member of The Who, whilst keeping her makeup largely the same.

And he caught Howard’s eye and the perfect lines around the eyes hardened and then melted into a smile. Because maybe he could tell that Howard didn’t belong too. And Twiggy boy opened his mouth and laughed like a crow and let a single phrase escape his smirk, “Hey, Ted.”

Howard shifted uncomfortably. “I’m not… I just like the music. Of jazz. The music of the jazz movement… And these clothes.”

Crow boy just laughed again.

That’s when two girls walked out of the shop behind them: one blonde, the other with black hair. They were dressed almost like him but with leather jackets thrown over the top and hair greased back. Right away, Howard knew they were the kind of girls his mother told him to stay away from; the kind of girls who kick just as hard as the boys. They ran the show, not the men in their lives. But as they walked easily towards Vince, Howard knew for all their posturing, they didn’t fit either.

“He bothering you, babe?” The blonde one asked Vince while staring Howard down.

“Nah, he’s fine,” was the reply from the mod, smirking at him.

The black-haired one gave Howard one last glare that made his stomach toss. “Don’t be spending too much time round here, Teddy Boy. Not unless you want a fight.” And then she walked to a motorbike a little ways down the pavement and climbed on, tailed by the mod. The blonde climbed onto another bike, whereas the boy hesitantly climbed on behind the still-scowling black-haired girl. She started the engine and drove by, holding up two fingers as she went past.

He wasn’t on the Pier the next time, just the corner shop. Howard was comparing the prices of two local newspapers. He was deep in thought trying to work out which was closest to the paper his dad would usually get back home in Leeds.

“Hey, Ted.” Howard jumped. He turned and saw the Twiglet (that’s boy-who-looks-like-Twiggy, not the savoury snack) from the Pier. At Howard’s surprise he started laughing again, and Howard realised they had an inside joke now, almost.

“It’s Howard.”

“Howard. Howard,” Crow boy seemed to be testing it out how it sounded. “Howard, Howard, Howard, Hooooooooward. Howard!” He grinned, clearly it had met his standards. “I’m Vince.”

Howard was tempted to repeat Vince’s name alike, but decided against it. That would be undignified.

Howard’s eyes darted briefly about for the girls from before. “Your girlfriend and her mate aren’t here, are they?”

Vince looked surprised, then giggled. “Nah, Judy’s not my girlfriend. They’re just my mates.” He grinned and, laughing, said, “Trust me though, you’re not their type.”

Howard was confused. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure they hate me.”

Vince laughed a little nervously at that. “Yeah, they ain’t fond of strangers.”

“And I’m not interested in them romantically, Howard Moon only goes with girls with finesse.”

“Moon!?” Vince’s eyes lit up. “Like Keith!?”

Howard should’ve seen this coming, but somehow he never does. “Same spelling, but we’re not related.”

Vince’s face fell a little, but he shrugged it off. He scanned one of the shelves behind Howard and picked up a small bag of sherbet flying saucers. “You going to pay for that?” He pointed at the papers Howard was holding.

“Oh,” Howard looked down. “I haven’t decided yet.” He stood there uncomfortably for a few seconds. “My father likes things to be perfect.”

Vince seemed to have none of the stress Howard had over the decision. “Well, they’re both pretty much the same, right? Same news has happened, they just use different words, right?” He plucked the newspaper from Howard’s right hand and placed it messily back on the shelf. “There you go.” He grinned, walking toward the till. “Come on!”

Howard followed.

The shopkeeper took one look at the two of them and rolled his eyes, muttering something about ‘the youth of today’, but Vince only grinned and the man seemed fairly charmed. They handed over the money they owed (although Howard was sure the shopkeeper had knocked down the price of Vince’s sweets).

When they had left, Vince grabbed Howard’s sleeve to stop him walking home. “Hey, I’m going down to the beach. Do you wanna come?” He smiled, looking up at Howard. One hand was playing with the back of his brown hair - a typical mod cut, but with more volume.

He was insane, he had to be. What if the relative seclusion of the beach on a cold and windy day was just what Howard was waiting for to knock Vince about? It‘s not like Brighton doesn’t have a reputation for rockers punching mods into the tarmac while mods kick them back. But, then again, Howard got the feeling that Vince had missed all that. That everyone he knew just existed outside of any clashes. A small bubble of sunshine in an otherwise frequently grim world. Still, Vince was either a fool to trust him so soon or just too naïve to think anyone could be a bad person.

“Yeah, alright.”

Vince grinned.

So that’s how Howard found himself sat on the beach in weather that no-one in their right mind would, side-by-side to the strangest boy he’d ever met. Someone call the Picture Post. Howard could already imagine the headlines: ‘Teddy Boy Jazz Maverick Meets Girly Boy Mod, Form Odd Friendship and No-One Gets Slashed up!’

Vince shook the bag of sweets under Howard’s nose, snapping him out of thought. “Don’t sit there moping! You can have one if you want.”

Howard looked down at Vince. He seemed perfectly content to sit on the pebble beach with just a towel underneath them. He didn’t seem at all worried about his suit – or, at least, his worry was far outweighed by the enjoyment he was getting from watching the sea.

“I’m not moping, sir, I’m purely observing the beauty of our surroundings. I’m a poet, Vince, you wouldn’t understand.”

Vince shrugged at that and ate another flying saucer. “So how did you end up here?”

“Well,” Howard locked eyes with Vince, then uncomfortably looked away. “I followed you.”

Vince started giggling, and Howard bridled. “No, I mean in Brighton!”

Howard’s eyes darted about the place, but he didn’t feel in control of them anymore. “Oh, my family are on holiday here.” A queasiness had developed in his stomach the second Vince had started laughing at him.

“Yeah, mine too. I wanted to go to France though, that’d be marvy!” Vince was fiddling with the buttons on his suit. “We’ve never left England, yeah? We hardly ever leave London.”

“I’ve never been abroad either. I mean, they took me to Scotland once, but I was tiny. We always come down here though, so long as we have the money. Mum says the sea air keeps us strong.”

Vince nodded at this, like it was some wisdom being passed down to him. “Yeah, I think there’s something in that. The girls are down here all the time – ‘cause Susie’s aunt or something lives nearby – and they’re proper strong!”

After that they were a bit quieter, still talking but more like scattered chatting. Howard’s never been good with new people – he’s not a man on the streets or the life of a party. But Vince sat by his elbow (almost too close) and didn’t seem to fazed.

He shook the bag again. “Sure you don’t want the last one?”

Howard shook his head. Vince shrugged. He stuck his tongue out, Howard watching as the rice paper dissolved on his tongue.

Then his mouth closed again, and Howard’s head snapped back to watch the sea.

“Dunno what the time is-”

“You don’t have a watch?” Howard’s mind boggled. How did this boy get anything done? But Vince grinned cheekily, like he wasn’t all that bothered. Like he didn’t believe in the concept of time, didn’t feel trapped by it like Howard, but instead just obliged to follow everyone else following it.

Vince stood up then. “Dunno what the time is but its getting dark. See you later, Howard!” And then he almost half-hugged Howard, pressing his chest to his upper body and giving him a quick and gentle squeeze.

And then he was gone, running down the beach with the wind filling his open jacket like sails or a seagull’s wings.

They hadn’t really agreed to meet again or where, but Howard had a feeling in his chest that said they would.

[anciientboosh]

I just wanted to say how happy your gifs make me. They really brighten the old dash and make me smile (or sometimes want to sob a bit but that’s definitely a me thing). Thanks for creating for the fandom - you’re doing Charlie’s work (Charlie’s a bit like God, right?)

Oh my gosh you're so sweet 😭 and don't worry, I often too get the urge to sob over the boosh boys - because they be like that. Honestly this meant SO much, thank you, I have never before been part of such a wholesome, supportive, mutually appreciating fandom before. Its honestly been so wonderful to be able to share everything from gifs to writing with Booshlr because it feels like sharing things with a group of close friends (family even). And everyone is out here just supporting one another and being encouraging. Is this becoming a weird reply now? Haha. I'll stop rambling - tysm 💕💕💕