As published by Irwin Hirsh in 1988.
NB: all addresses could well be out of date.

GUFFAWE 4

is published on an irregular basis by the Australasian GUFF administrator Irwin Hirsh, 2/416 Dandenong Rd, Caulfield North, Victoria 3161, AUSTRALIA. The European administrator is Eve Harvey, 43 Harrow Rd, Carshalton, Surrey SM5 3QH, UK. This is the February 1988 issue and Is Late. Sorry.

GUFFAWE?

GUFF administrator reports have come under all manner of titles. In the UK Dave Langford, Rob Jackson and Joseph Nicholas put out 12 issues of The Northern Guffblower, and Eve Harvey has put out 4 issues of Guffstuff. Down Under, Leigh Edmonds published 6 issues of GUFF Fundies, but this level of consistency was discarded by John Foyster who used a wide range of titles. Justin Ackroyd published only one issue of his Australian GUFF Newsletter. GUFFAWE is a title John Foyster used three times, all in the early part of his 5 year administration.


GUFF - ITS FUTURE

One of the oft-forgotten duties of the GUFF delegate is to travel half-way across the world to conduct high level discussions with her/his co-administrator on the future of GUFF. The most recent discussion took place over a period of 4 months, with a communiqué being released in mid-December, 1987. The overall theme of the communiqué is that GUFF does have a future.

This future is made the most obvious with the call for candidates to run in the next race. The winner of this race will be a European fan who will come Down Under to attend Swancon XIV, the 28th Australian National Science Fiction Convention, in Perth, Western Australia, 24th-27th March, 1989. In order to become a candidate one must supply the administrators (preferably the European administrator) with the following:

The nomination deadline is the 20th of March, 1988. Ballots will be available by the 1st of April (Good Friday) and voting will continue through to midnight of the 27th of November, 1988.

The communiqué also states a general policy for the next Australasia to Europe race to be to send a delegate to ConFiction, the 48th World Science Fiction Convention, to be held in The Hague, The Netherlands, in August 1990. More details on this one in a year or so. Okay?


GUFF - ITS RECENT PAST

Accompanied by my wife Wendy I travelled to London on the 21st of August, 1987, went to Conspiracy 87, and then spent three-and-a-half months travelling throughout a fair bit of Western Europe, before returning home on the 18th of December. In all we visited 12 countries, crossed 36 national borders and had a damn fine time. We wish we could go back.

For about 75% of our time away we met, stayed with and enjoyed the company of fans. The other 25% is a reflection of the fact that we were unable to make connections with local fans of the places we visited (didn't meet any Vatican City residents at Conspiracy, for instance) or just a desire on our part to have some time to ourselves.

Conspiracy was something I enjoyed, except that its size was a big drain on my convention going energies. Aside from Conspiracy, we attended the regular pub meetings of the fans in London, Bristol, Leeds and Edinburgh. We also went to a Kent TruFandom meeting (thanks Vin¢.) One of the major impressions I got is that Britain is a big Place, at least in fannish terms. "Come down and stay with us for a few days" Maureen Porter and Paul Kincaid asked a couple of times. "We'd love to have you stay and Folkestone is a lovely place." People confirmed the latter for us, and we had no doubt about the sincerity of the former but we had to beg off adding another line to our itinerary. For our travel around Britain we hired a car for 25 days, going as far north as Edinburgh and Glasgow, as far west as Harlach. During those three-and-a-half weeks we visited 9 cities, for an average stay of 3 days. We had to strike a balance between going to as many places as we could and not feeling as if all the places were running into each other, and in the end something had to give. Folkestone was one of those places. The same goes for Vienna and Barcelona; we arrived on the Continent with the idea of going to those two places, but reconsidered it soon after.

So, what else do you want to know? How about ... Roelof Goudriaan tells the worst puns we heard, and Simon Ounsley can't pout. Martin Tudor has the best accent, while there is something magical about the look on Pascal Thomas' face when the cheese plate is placed on the dinner table. With the help of a batch of onions Dave Langford does a mean version of being attacked by tribbles, while you mention the word "Skippy" in the company of Jim Barker at your own peril. In some ways Peter-Fred Thompson is the best cook we met on our travels, and Maria Madar's goulash and Gary and Uschi Klupfel's dumplings are the best I've ever tasted. We were consistently amused at the British habit of pouring the beer from half-pint glasses into pint glasses, and we were passed a counterfeit French 50 franc note. We bumped into one of Wendy's old tutors in the streets of York and Edinburgh, and bumped into one of my old lecturers on London's underground. We met Walt Willis and saw John Paul II, went through many churches (my favourites: Albi Cathedral, St, Peter's Basilica and Chester Cathedral) and saw many beaut sights (my favourites: the Saar River as it bends towards Orscholz, and the view along the Petrusse Valley from the Pont Adolphe in Luxembourg, the magnificence of both coming, in part, because they were so unexpected.) And for all our trouble I was interviewed for an article in a German newspaper and Wendy appeared on British TV.

And we have quite a long list of people we'd like to thank for the use of their spare room: Eve & John Harvey, Dave & Hazel Langford, Christina Lake & Peter-Fred Thompson, Simon Ounsley, Sue Thomason and Liz Sourbat, Andrew & Heather Rose, Martin Tudor, Pam Wells, Lynne Ann Morse & Roelof Goudriaan, Cobi van Henmem, Cherry Wilder & Horst Grimm, Hans-Jurgen, Maria & Ruben Madar, Gary & Uschi Klupfel, Andre-Francois Ruaud, Charles Moreau, Pascal & Christina Thomas, and Ellen Herzfeld & Dominique Martel. Thank you, one and all. In addition Linda & Greg Pickersgill, Waldemar Kumming, Roland Wagner & Cathy Caraqua, Pierre Cuzon, Jean-Marc Leger and Jim Barker were very helpful in doing things like meeting us at train stations, having us over for dinner, giving us lifts, etc. Thank you too.


ANOTHER LIST OF NAMES

One thing which is missing from the last GUFF race is the list of people who voted through the Australian administrator. As a result Justin Ackroyd has promised to donate $40 towards the production and postage of this newsletter. Thanks Justin. (I'm still trying to work out if this means that the lack of any progress on his trip report will result in a large donation to the next GUFF trip...) Those voters were:

Alyson Abramowitz -- Michelle Armstrong -- Christine Ashby -- Derrick Ashby -- Sally Beasley -- Merv Binns -- Felicity Black -- Maria Bocxe -- Stephen Boucher -- S. Bradfield -- Nigel Bree -- Lana Brown -- Valma Brown -- Peter Burns -- Pauline Butlet -- Angus Caffrey -- Dennis Callegari -- Graham Campbell -- Jackie Causgrove -- Tom Cardy -- Susan Clarke -- Elaine Cochrane -- Michael Congdon -- Victoria Craig -- Trish Crowther -- Jo Curtis -- Keith Curtis -- A.M. Denbow -- Paul Docherty -- Larry Dunning -- Leigh Edmonds -- Roy Ferguson -- John Fox -- John Foyster -- Julian Freidin -- Terry Frost -- Ken Gammage -- Terry A. Garey -- John Gasper -- Ray Gleeson -- Bruce Grenville -- Michael Hailstone -- Carey Handfield -- Michael Harris -- Dean Haskell -- Peter Hassall -- Alex Heatley -- Karen Heatley -- Karen Herkes -- Jack R. Herman -- Mandy Herriot -- Irwin Hirsh -- Wendy Hirsh -- Gill Horman -- Stephen D. Hormann -- L.R. Horne -- Richard Hryckiewicz -- Kim Huett -- Terry Hughes -- Van Ikin -- Andrew Ivamy -- Neil E. Kaden -- Rod Kearins -- Dion Kelly -- C.E. Kerrigan -- J.J. Knight -- Mark Lawson -- John Lee -- Dennis Lien -- Eric Lindsay -- Gordon Lingard -- Mark Linneman -- Dave Locke -- Seth Lockwood -- Mark Loney -- Dave Luckett -- LynC -- Dick Lynch -- Nicki Lynch -- Lyn McConchie -- Shayne McCormack -- Cath McDonnell -- David McDonnell -- John McDouall -- Frank McEwan -- Rob McGough -- John McPharlin -- Frank Macskasy Jr -- Sue Martin-Smith -- Perry Middlemiss -- Geoff Miles -- Eileen Millington -- Lewis Morley -- Stuart Munro -- Andrew Murphy -- Janice Murray -- Michelle Muysert -- Clive Newall -- John Newman -- Aamon Nicholson -- Barry Norris -- Bob Ogden -- Roman Orzanski -- Cath Ortlieb -- Marc Ortlieb -- C.C.M. Owen -- John Packer -- D.A. Panckhurst -- Ann Poore -- Tony Power -- Marilyn Pride -- Sarah S. Prince -- Alethea A. Raspa -- Ray Raspa -- Yvonne Rousseau -- Nigel Rowe -- John Shave -- Rachel Shave -- Cindy Smith -- Gerald Smith -- Keith Smith -- Lee Smoire -- Maree Sole -- Karen Spence -- Nick Stathopoulos -- Julie Stigter -- Dave Stirrup -- John Stopa -- Joni Stopa -- James Styles -- Lucy Sussex -- Pascal J. Thomas -- Rex Thompson -- David Thornhell -- Jane Tisell -- Greg Turkich -- Mark Turner -- Karen Warnock -- Jean Weber -- Roger Weddall -- Dave White -- Wynne Whiteford -- Susanna Whiteman -- Katie Yianakis and "Luke Clutterbuck"

Thank you, one and all. Watch for your name in this spot next time. All you have to do is vote again.


FINANCIAL REPORT

There is currently $1659.97 in GUFF Australia's account. The only bit of recent fundraising is the sum of $25, raised at Swancon XIII. Thanks to the convention committee for scheduling the auction, and Carey Handfield and Jo Masters who took auction goods to Perth when I couldn't make it to the con.

I was given $2200 towards the cost of my trip. This money was used to buy my return airline ticket, my airport departure tax and my train ticket from Brighton to London. My hotel room at Conspiracy was paid for out of money in the UK account. Eve Harvey suggested that I also take out a sum of money equal to the cost of the car hire and half my Eurail ticket, the reasoning being that I visited fans with those two things. However this would mean reducing GUFF's funds by a further $1172.50. GUFF is younger than TAFF and DUFF, covers the expenses of probably the most expensive air-route in the world and doesn't have the large North American fandom from which to draw funds, so we still aren't able to do more than cover the cost of attending the convention. Maybe one day things will be different.


TRIP REPORTS

The third chapter of John Foyster's GUFF trip report was published in the January 1988 issue of the Australian Science Fiction Review. If you'd like to get a copy it'll cost you $2 or £2. The address is Ebony Books, GPO Box 1294L, Melbourne, Victoria 3001, and the British agent is Joseph Nicholas, 22 Denbigh St, Pimlico, London SW1V 2ER. Subscription rates are 6 issues for $10, £6 (surface) or £12 (airmail.) Tell 'em GUFF sent ya'.

I'm making no promises about my trip report, having watched all previous promises in this area fall by the wayside. My trip report will be serialised in the pages of various fanzines, with the first chapter in my Sikander. More news as the chapters are published.


FUND RAISING

GUFF can always use your donations of money and material to be auctioned. And I'll always do my best to acknowledge all donations.

With the next administrators report I'll be conducting a by-mail auction of some rare fanzines, and I'm particularly looking for more material of this sort. Are there fanzines in your collection which you, ultimately, won't want? Or do you have a stack of extra copies of your own fanzines which are just taking up cupboard space, but which you know could easily find some interested readers? If so, why not send them on to me. I already have some material for a by-mail auction - some passed on when Justin handed over the administrative reins, and from a recent donation from Walt Willis (thanks Walt) - but GUFF can always do with some more. How about it?

I also have some fanzines for sale. A$2 each, making all cheques payable to Irwin Hirsh. If ordering 1 or 2 fanzines include an extra $1 for postage; if ordering 3 or more fanzines include an extra $1.50. And include an alternative choice just in case the fanzine(s) you order have already gone.

The fanzines are:
Leigh Edmonds' Rataplan:
#28, articles by Leanne Frahm, Damien Broderick & Rory Barnes, Christine Ashby and George Turner.
#31, articles by Mare Ortlieb, Russell Parker, Jack Herman, the ANZAPAns and Justin Ackroyd (the first chapter of his GUFF trip report.)

My own Sikander.
#5, articles by John Berry, John Bangsund and David Grigg.
#8, articles by David Grigg, Christine Ashby and Ted White (his famous article on Australian fanzines.)
#9, articles by Mark Loney, Marc Ortlieb, John Alderson and Eric Mayor.
#10, articles by John Berry and Terry Floyd.
#13, articles by Perry Middlemiss, Mark Loney and Taral Wayne.
#14, articles by Perry Middlemiss, Mark Loney, Cy Chauvin and Bruce Gillespie.


FYI

Here is a geographical breakdown of those voters whose names are listed above:
Victoria - 33, NSW - 30, ACT - 7, WA - 13, SA - 3, Queensland - 1, New Zealand - 42, USA - 15 and Canada - 1.


GOING OUT with most copies of this report is a copy of this years TAFF ballot. Please support this worthy fund.

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