VoK 498: The Vollop #4 – Operation Pimlico


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Join Bina007 as she vollops Varley and It Rhymes With Sleek / Jack about the most successful Soviet spy ever to work for the West – Oleg Gordievsky. Active in the 1970s and 1980s, Oleg was simultaneously briefing Reagan, Thatcher and Gorbachev and may have prevented all-out war during Abel Archer 83.  Best of all, he was the subject of a thrilling exfiltration from Soviet Russia.  The after show begins at 1hr 20m.

Music credit – Alpine Universe & Paul McCartney

Picture credit – as shown

Book recommendation – The Traitor and the Spy by Ben McIntyre

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VoK 497: The Worst Decision in Planetos aka The Great Linear ASOIAF ReRead (Part 79)


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Our journey into FeastDance goes further as we get three epic chapters – Cersei re-arms the Faith in Cersei 6 (4m35s); Jon learns of Ramsay’s marriage plans in Jon 6 (35m); and Tyrion gets kidnapped in Tyrion 6 (59m)! These events take place between April 10th and 15th 300 AL.

Your crew for these events are first time MC, QueenJames, OG Vassals FTWard/Thomas and Nadia, podcast newbie Abby/Darceymormont, and our beloved peanuts Khal Wadege/Michael, Jock/MunroJock2 and Zander/The Lord Baron.

The podcast is dark and full of spoilers for anything in George R R Martin’s ASOIAF series. Content from TWOW preview chapters will be clearly flagged and avoidable. We do not discuss or spoil the show.

For those following along at home the next episode of the re-read will be hosted by Marie/Nymeria and will cover Jaime 4 from Feast and Dany 5 and Davos 4 from Dance.

Picture credit – HBO

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“Moot of the World” (ASOIAF song) by Jed O’White Hart


VoK 496: FeastDance Blue Balls aka The Great Linear ASOIAF ReRead (Part 78)


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Ironmen get flayed – a Prince is Tattered – and a woman wanders around Westeros without a clue in the 78th episode of the epic linear ASOIAF reread. Join Bina, Varley, Adam, Zack, Marie and Jock as they wade balls-deep into FeastDance, with Reek/Theon 2, Quentyn 2/The Windblown at 18m, and Brienne 5 at 29m. These events take place between the 5th and 9th April 300.

The aftershow starts at 45m with the superb Moot Of The World song by Ged O’White Hart!

The podcast is dark and full of spoilers for anything in George R R Martin’s ASOIAF series. Content from TWOW preview chapters will be clearly flagged and avoidable. We do not discuss or spoil the show.

For those following along at home the next episode of the re-read will be hosted by QueenJames for the first time!! and will cover Cersei 6 from Feast, Jon 6 from Dance and Tyrion 6 from Dance.

Picture credit – HBO

Music credits – Alpine Universe and the Podcast Bard – Ged O’White Hart

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VoK 495: The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu series) – Season 2



Praise be! The Vassals have delivered us a blessed review of the second season of The Handmaid’s Tale. Join Michal (inkasrain), Stephanie (gsdg), David (davidhhh), Duncan (Valkyrist), Matt (Varley), and Adam (drownedsnow) for  a sermon on female agency, radicalisation, systems of oppression, and symbolic wolves. Under his eye…

Credits:
Edited by Valkyrist
Music from Malia J and Goldfrapp

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VoK 494: Sorrows and Stutters aka The Great Linear ASOIAF ReRead (Part 77)



The re-read moves swiftly(ish) through some of the most depressing chapters in the series as we see Jon running out of food, Tyrion without power, and Sam ready to give up hope.

These events take place between March 30th and April 5th 300 AL.

Jon 5 – ADWD – 02:00
Tyrion 5 – ADWD – 28:00
Sam 3 – AFFC – 55:00

Hosts: Adam (drownedsnow), Matt (Varley), James (Queen James), and Hannah (Shadowbaby).

Edited by Adam

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VoK 493: Mindhunter (Netflix series) – Season 1


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Join the psycho sickos Thomas, Dana, Bina, Hannah, and Varley as they do a deep dive into the first season of the Netflix series Mindhunter. This podcast reviews the series and takes a deeper look into the killers featured in it. The sickos will discuss dark and disturbing issues that may not be suitable for everyone. With that in mind enjoy the long awaited, poorly edited (by Varley) podcast as an early Halloween gift.

Music credit – Mindhunter theme by Jason Hill.

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VoK 492: Avengers – Infinity War [2018] (Review)



Follow along for a podcast of epic length as the Vassals discussion the biggest movie of 2018 and something that took 10 years of Marvel movies to deliver.

Hosts: Sarah (Lady Weaver), Dana (Taindana), Matt (Blu3arm0r), Leigh (ChaoticNeutral1882), Jock (Munrojock2), David (davidhhh), and James (Queen James).

Edited by Jock

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VoK 491: The Last Bran Chapter aka The Great Linear ASOIAF ReRead (Part 76)


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Join us for episode 76 of the Great Linear ASOIAF Re-Read ! Today we enjoy one of the few Sansa chapters (Alayne 1 from Feast), we learn again how great George is at writing horror stories with Brienne 4 from Feast, and we ponder over the passing of time in the last Bran chapter of the published books : Bran 3 from Dance. Your hosts are Sarah (Lady Weaver), Zach (Alias), Duncan (Valkyrist), Jock (munrojock2), Marie (Nymeria). These events take place between March 23rd and 27th 300 AL.

The podcast is dark and full of spoilers for all published works George R R Martin’s A Song Of Ice and Fire series but not for the HBO Show or TWOW Preview Chapters unless clearly marked.

For those following along at home the next episode of the re-read will be hosted by Adam. It will cover Jon 5 and Tyrion 5 from Dance and Sam 3 from Feast.

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VoK 490: Sense8 (Netflix series) – Series Finale


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The Vassals bid a fond farewell to the Netflix series Sense8 as we review the series finale. Join David (davidhhh), Marie (Nymeria), Hannah (Shadowbaby), Matt (blu3arm0r), Jock (munrojock2), James (QueenJames) as we discuss our love for this show and how much we’ll miss it… and orgies, polyamory, and rainbow sex toys too. After all, this IS VoK!
The aftershow hilarity starts at 1:58:36.

Music credits: Depeche Mode – I Feel You; Magnetic Fields feat Xoe Wise – Nothing Matters When We’re Dancing (Sense8 Remix)
Edited by davidhhh

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VoK 489: Neuromancer (by William Gibson)



The Vassals jack into cyberspace for a review of William Gibson’s Neuromancer. Join Duncan (Valkyrist) and Dana (Taindana) for an indepth discussion of cyberpunk fiction, artificial intelligence and the dark side of technology.

Credits:
Edited by Valkyrist
Music from Eurythmics and Valve Corporation

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Links:
BBC Radio Production (2-hours)

VoK 488: SoccerCast (Vol.6) – English Premier League 2018–19 (Opening Games)


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Join Bing, Noah and Leigh as they discuss the changes to the teams in the English Premier League transfer window and review the opening games of the new season, in the first of our all-new shiny monthly Soccercast! It’s the VOK series that no-one was clamouring for but everybody needs in their life.

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VoK 487: A Hymn for Spring (ASOIAF Essays) – Part 2



The Vassals return to the Tower of the Hand to address the state of the realm. Join Duncan (Valkyrist), Sara (DrBlood) and Wilson (WanderingProphet) for a review of A Hymn for Spring, a collection of essays on George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series. Essays covered in this podcast include:

09:08 – “Songs and Singers of Ice and Fire” by Amin Javadi
1:03:27 – “The Curse of Harren the Black” by Aziz and Ashaya
1:51:16 – “The Word Is Groleo” by Stefan Sasse
2:41:26 – Aftershow

Credits:
Edited by Valkyrist
“The Bear and the Maiden Fair” by christocakes
“Rhaegar’s Harp” by feliciacano

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Links:
Tower of the Hand: A Hymn for Spring (Amazon)
VoK 374: A Hymn for Spring (ASOIAF Essays)

VoK 486: Cersei See-Saw aka The Great Linear ASOIAF ReRead (Part 75)


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Join our small but perfectly formed podcast crew for the next instalment in our epic linear reread. This episode is hosted by Bina007, Tye/Enigmas, Zander/The Lord Baron, Hannah/Shadowbaby and DavidHHH. We cover Dany 4 from Dance (2m), Cersei 5 from Feast (28m) and Jaime 3 from Feast (58m) – which all takes place from March 21st to March 23rd 300 AL. The aftershow begins at 1hr45m.

The podcast is dark and full of spoilers for all published works in the ASOIAF series but not for the TV show Game of Thrones. And for those following along at home the next episode of the re-read will be hosted by Marie/Nymeria and will cover Alayne 1/Sansa 2 and Brienne 4 from Feast and Bran 3 from Dance.

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VoK 485: Pickle Rickard aka The Great Linear ASOIAF ReRead (Part 74)


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Hey there, join us for episode 74 of our Great Linear Re-Read of A Song of Ice and Fire by G.R.R. Martin ! Today your hosts are Michael (Khal Wadege), Leigh (ChaoticNeutral1882), Matt (blu3arm0r), Varley, Jock (munrojock2) and Marie (Nymeria) and we cover the events of Cersei 4 from Feast, and Tyrion 4 and Bran 2 from Dance. We get to see an epic Small Council meeting, travel aboard the Shy Maid, and finally meet Bloodraven.  These chapters take place from March 16th to 20th of 300 AL.

As usual, spoilers for the entire published series but not for the show, nor for TWOW preview chapters. Come and listen to the guffawing of Pycelle by Varley, our troubles with Australian internet, and a great parody of Rick and Morty!

For those following along at home the next episode of the re-read will cover Dany 4 from Dance, Cersei 5 from Feast, and Jaime 3 from Feast.

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VoK 484: Game of Thrones – Unsullied Bingewatch


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Long-time show hold-outs Bina007 and Nadia give in the to the hype and binge-watch Game of Thrones seasons 5, 6 and 7 while pop-culture queen Michal/Inkasrain stands aside and laughs as their heads explode.

In the first spoiler-free section, we discuss the impact of no-watchers vs show-watchers on the fandom in general and VOK in particular, and whether it’s better to watch with a crowd or alone.

At 20 minutes in we enter our show-spoiler part of the show with a general discussion of seasons 5 to 7. At 26 mins in we get into Season 5 in depth – at 48m, Season 6 and at 1hr2m, Season 7. The after show begins at 1hr 20m and there’s some TWOW spoilery-stuff at 1hr24m.

Credits:
Edited by Bina007
Music by Alpine Universe

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VoK 483: Ice & Fire Con 2018 Recap




Hey, remember Ice and Fire Con? We finally got a podcast out about it. Get an inside look at what it’s like at this wonderful event as Vassals Casey (blue-eyed-queen), Matt (blu3arm0r), Greg (claudiusthefool), Zach (Alias), Dan (Witless Chum), Thomas (FTWard), and Jon (eigenvectorjon) recap and share their experiences of Ice and Fire Con 2018.

Credits:
Edited by Alias
Music by Alpine Universe and DrumurBoy

Ice and Fire Con Links
Ice and Fire Con 2019 Tickets
Ice and Fire Con and Vassals of Kingsgrave Instagram pages for more pictures from the event
Westeros: An American Musical
The Rains of Castamere in Russian by Pasha
Mallory/Sanxrian’s Art
The Broken Man by Scad from Davos Fingers
The Floppy Fish by Tom o’Sevens
Ser Duncan the Tall vs Rohanne Webber Rap Battle

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VoK 482: The Buckethead Army aka The Great Linear ASOIAF ReRead (Part 73)


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In this episode Bina007, Matt/Varley, Adam/Drownedsnow, Marie/Nymeria and Michael/Khal Wadege discuss Arya 2 from Feast (2m in) Jon 4 (24m in) and Davos 3 (at 56m in) from Dance. The events take place from March 7th to March 12th. We get Arya’s supercool training montage in Braavos, we get Stannis hearing some home truths from Jon, and Wylla Manderley being a badass.

The podcast contains spoilers for all published works in ASOIAF but not for Game of Thrones.

For those following along at home the next episode of the re-read will cover Cersei 4 from Feast and Tyrion 4  and Bran 2 from Dance.

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VoK 481: Class of the Titans aka The Great Linear ASOIAF ReRead (Part 72)


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Join Adam/DrownedSnow, DavidHHH, Hannah/Shadowbaby, James/QueenJames, Jock/MunroJock, Sarah/LadyWeaver and Zander/The Lord Baron, as they continue the epic reread. In this episode they discuss events of the 1st and 2nd March 300 AL.  They begin, at 2m in, with Arya 1 from Feast, wherein Arya enters the temple of the many-faced god. They continue at 37m with Tyrion 3 from Dance wherein Tyrion and Illyrio come across the Shy Maid. At 1hr 11m they move to Sam 2 from Feast, in which Aemon reveals Jon’s ruse.

The podcast contains spoilers for all published works in ASOIAF but not for TWOW preview chapters unless clearly signposted, and not for Game of Thrones.

For those following along at home the next reread will be hosted by Bina and will cover Arya 2 from Feast, Jon 4 from Dance and Davos 3 from Dance.

Episode edited by Bina007

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VoK 480: SoccerCast (Vol.5) – World Cup 2018 (Finals)


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Join Bina, Bing and Leigh as they round out VOK’s World Cup 2018 coverage with a review of the semi-finals and final.  TL:DR – it ain’t coming home #sadface.  We end at 1hr in with a debate on which was the best goal, player and keeper of the tournament as well as the biggest disappointment. At 1hr 10m we look to Qatar 2022.

Music credit – official Fifa World Cup 2018 theme song, “One Life” by Will Smith, Nicky Jam and Era Istrefi.

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