Martin McGrath
Welcome to my website. I intend to use this space to hold forth on things like politics, books, technology, films and anything else that interests or irritates me.
You can also use this site to see examples of some of the work I've done as journalist, writer and designer. I'm available for freelance work and my rates are competitive and negotiable for good causes.
-
Tag Archives: academic
AYCKBOURN’S ARTIFICIAL PEOPLE
McGrath, Martin (2017) “Ayckbourn’s Artificial People.” Foundation: The International Review of Science Fiction, 46 (128) . pp. 60-72. ISSN 0306-4964 This article explores how Alan Ayckbourn’s science fiction, in particular the use of androids/gynoids in the plays Henceforward… (1987), Comic … Continue reading
SOME REASONS TO BE SCEPTICAL OF THE HYPE ABOUT CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICA (PART ONE)
Like lots of people, I’ve been thinking about the current row about Cambridge Analytica and their supposed influencing of the US election and Brexit and possibly other elections around the world. I understand people’s anger and I understand the degree … Continue reading
FRIDAY’S WORDS OF WISDOM: DEFENDING POLITICS BY MATTHEW FLINDERS
Writing in defence of politics and, indeed, politicians is always a potentially risky pastime. The overwhelming public perception of politics is so cynically negative that anyone who speaks out in favour of those who take on public office is immediately … Continue reading
Posted in Friday Words of Wisdom
Tagged academic, books, friday wisdom, parliament, Politics, reviews
Comments Off on FRIDAY’S WORDS OF WISDOM: DEFENDING POLITICS BY MATTHEW FLINDERS
LOOKING FOR EVIDENCE OF THE NEW POLITICS: GLOBALISATION, POWER & DEMOCRACY
After the break you’ll find the abstract and introduction to my PhD thesis published in 2005. Looking back, I think I was probably considerably more optimistic about the potential for resistance to the big challenges facing liberal democracies than I … Continue reading
AFTER HEINLEIN: POLITICS IN SCALZI’S OLD MAN’S WAR UNIVERSE

The publication Old Man’s War brought John Scalzi both critical and commercial success. His work was widely praised for its fast-paced action and for its updating of classic science fiction tropes but the novel was also controversial and attracted considerable … Continue reading