Innocence and Experience: The influence of William Blake on Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials

By Tony Watkins10 November 201910 November 2019 Literature Atheism, Dark Matter, His Dark Materials, innocence, Philip Pullman, the Fall, William Blake

Image: William Blake, God Judging Adam. ca. 1795. Metropolitan Museum of Art. Public domain This article is an extract from my book, Dark Matter: A Thinking Fan’s Guide to Philip Pullman. I have edited it lightly to remove the worst plot spoilers, but inevitably I must mention some events towards the end of the trilogy….

David Mitchell on atheism

By Tony Watkins11 October 201324 January 2017 Media Agnosticism, Atheism, Belief, David Mitchell, God, Video, War 1 Comment

This is very interesting from David Mitchell. I have tended to assume that he was an atheist as I’ve heard him say some very strident things about Christians in the past, but this is a very thoughtful explanation of why he’s an agnostic. H/T Neil Powell These posts may be related: Review of Creation by…

Talking About . . . Darwin

By Tony Watkins11 September 20098 February 2010 Film Atheism, Belief, Charles Darwin, Creation, Doubt, Evolution, Film & Bible Blog (Culturewatch), Religion, Science, Science and Faith, Suffering 1 Comment

As the world marks the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth, his influence on the world is as enormous as ever. Whatever you think of his ideas, there’s no doubt that they have shaped science and profoundly affected many aspects of contemporary culture. Darwin’s meticulous work established the natural sciences as a serious scientific discipline for the first time. If this was Darwin’s only legacy, he would still be a towering figure in the history of science. But for most people, his name is linked only with On the Origin of Species. […]

Agenda Squabbles – Filming The Golden Compass

By Tony Watkins30 November 200717 August 2015 Film, Literature, Writing Atheism, Catholicism, Chris Weitz, His Dark Materials, Northern Lights, Philip Pullman, The Golden Compass

There’s nothing like controversy to promote a film. A row in the media grabs the public’s attention more effectively than official publicity campaigns ever can. So New Line Cinema and director Chris Weitz must be delighted at the fuss being made over The Golden Compass which opens in cinemas next week. There was already a…

The God Question

By Tony Watkins14 October 201324 January 2017 Media Atheism, Belief, Christianity, Iain Morris, John Lennox, Philosophy, Science, Science and Faith

This is the trailer for a television series examining science and faith, origins and explanations. It’s been put together by Iain Morris of Kharis Productions (he has been working on it for as long as I’ve known him, which is three years). It features probing interviews with prominent atheists, including Sam Harris, the late Christopher…

Philip Pullman and his atheist fiction

By Tony Watkins31 March 20101 April 2010 Literature Atheism, Children's Fiction, Literature, Philip Pullman, Writing 3 Comments

Philip Pullman CBE is the acclaimed author of around thirty books, mostly aimed at older children. He is best known for His Dark Materials, a brilliantly written, ambitious trilogy (Northern Lights/The Golden Compass (1995); The Subtle Knife (1997); The Amber Spyglass (2000)). He has received many awards, including the highly prestigious Astrid Lindgren Award. His…

Interview with Philip Pullman (from 2004)

By Tony Watkins7 September 200913 May 2019 Literature Atheism, Bible, Children's Fiction, Christianity, Fiction, Interview, Jesus, Philip Pullman, Wisdom

I interviewed Philip Pullman back in 2009, before I started work on my book, Dark Matter: A Thinking Fan’s Guide. It was an interesting experience, partly because I’d had car problems on the way there and arrived a little flustered. Looking at it again now, there are some ways in which I don’t think I handled it all that well. If I’m honest, I guess I was somewhat intimidated. Anyway, here it is, for what it’s worth (it’s also available on the Culturewatch site, where it’s been since 2004). With news today of his forthcoming book, The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ, it seemed a good time to repost it here.