Warren Pilkington
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zawtowers.bsky.social
Warren Pilkington
@zawtowers.bsky.social
420 followers 160 following 1.9K posts
IT person by day, former Zzap! 64 and Commodore Format contributor, Man City fan, F1, snooker, writer, poet, photographer and music lover at all other times.

https://www.zawtowers.org.uk/
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zawtowers.bsky.social
Plum Pudding ale is back. Oh yes.
A pint of JW Lees Plum Pudding ale. Festive drinks in a glass. At the Elizabethan in Stockport.
November 30, 2025 at 3:32 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Attention all planets of the beer federation! We have assumed control.
Want some?
Henderson (Canada) - shophendersonbrewing.com/pages/rush-b...
Fierce (UK) - fiercebeer.com/collections/...
Two cans of beer with the Canadian band Rush's text logo and their iconc Starman graphic, complete with star and circle and the figure, on the front of each can. The left can is the Canadian Golden Ale which is brewed by Henderson in Canada and Fierce in the UK. The right can is the Canadian Lager which is brewed by Henderson in Canada and Fierce in the UK. These are both ordered from Fierce Beer in the UK and were part of a larger delivery.
November 27, 2025 at 4:55 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
What a weekend for Manchester City's women's team. They tonked Manchester United 3-0 in the Manchester derby, and then both Chelsea and Arsenal had draws on Sunday, meaning a very healthy league table so far. Got to keep going, but promising at least!
A screen shot of the Women's Super League table from BBC Sport website, which shows: 1 - Manchester City - played 9, won 8, drawn 0, lost 1, for 23, against 9, goal difference 14, points 24 2 - Chelsea - played 9, won 6, drawn 3, lost 0, for 16, against 5, goal difference 11, points 21 3 - Manchester United, played 9, won 5, drawn 2, lost 2, for 19, against 9, goal difference 10, points 17 4 - Arsenal, played 9, won 4, drawn 4, lost 1, for 18, against 8, goal difference 10, points 16
November 16, 2025 at 7:35 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Hard to believe it's 40 years this year that this superb Cabaret Voltaire 2 x 12" EP Drinking Gasoline was released. Four superb tracks and glad I picked up the initial CD reissue when that came out (hard to find now) and I have the original vinyl too.
The front cover of Cabaret Voltaire's Drinking Gasoline EP. At the top left, the lettering for Cabaret is horizontal, with Voltaire diagonally upwards with the A meeting in the middle. The cover is mainly blue and white with four film strips depicting scenes from the Gasoline in Your Eye video in the middle.
November 12, 2025 at 11:53 AM
zawtowers.bsky.social
At the Etihad for Man City v AFC Bournemouth. Should be a cracker given both sides' form. Come on City!
View from Block 302 of the Etihad Stadium overlooking the goals
November 2, 2025 at 4:16 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
No no no Avanti Worst Coast, you're not getting away with it on this customer survey. Staffed ticket offices are always the right way and any attempts from you to close them will be met with the fiercest opposition.
(alt text is provided for accessibility)
Avanti Worst Coast customer survey being filled out. The features of a train station are clearly a consultation exercise in disguise to try and not make the most important feature having staff presence in ticket offices. Unlike them, I hugely value staff in ticket offices and there are plenty of passengers who value them hugely. The text reads as follows: "Thanks for that! You said that overall, Staff presence in ticket offices was the most important feature of a train station. Why is this? Please answer in as much detail as you can." To which my response is as follows: "Not everyone can work around the convoluted ticketing systems, and not everyone has the same access to those systems either. Having staff presence is massively important as it aids accessibility because there is a reliable person who anyone can ask questions to, and also helps with security as there is a presence in the station (and should always be from first to last train too) There was a push by train operating companies to try and close ticket offices, which I was firmly against, so much so that I wrote a lengthy letter to the Department of Transport citing my opposition about this and with the detailed reasons why. If this survey is a shortcut by Avanti West Coast to try and gather information, then clearly this survey should be immediately null and void, and further more, the public will not have it - as proven by the huge opposition last time this was considered."
October 30, 2025 at 2:00 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Of course, the other option (if you had two 1530 decks) was to use the Datel Clone Master duplicator hardware. It basically allowed tape to tape recording from one to another (for, ahem, backups)
Image via Gamedude in Australia, who have it on their web site
The Datel Clonemaster manual (left hand side) and the hardware itself (on the right hand side). The device has a single connector to the Commodore 64 cassette port and two connectors for a 1530 cassette deck. Deck A is the source, Deck B is the record.
October 28, 2025 at 3:47 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
At the Etihad for Man City v Everton. Should be a good game. Come on City!
View of the North Stand and Colin Bell Stand at the Etihad Stadium from my seat in the East Stand. The new North Stand tier is nearing completion.
October 18, 2025 at 1:37 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
New Pop Will Eat Itself album has arrived this morning. Going to enjoy this.
The front cover of the Pop Will Eat Itself new album, Delete Everything. The CD is in a book style case which is still shrink wrapped, with a black sticker top left. The band's robot head logo is in the middle with a stylised PWEI logo at the bottom.
October 15, 2025 at 7:50 AM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Always a good day when the latest issue of @freeze64.bsky.social arrives. Many thanks Vinny for your continued hard work!
The front cover of issue 79 of FREEZE64 - complete with art work for the game Prince Clumsy, which is the cover feature.
October 10, 2025 at 5:19 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Twice in two days. Get in!
Yesterday - The Prince Regent, Marylebone High Street
Today - The Crown and Anchor, Drummond Street (close to Euston)
If you are in London, you know where to go!
A cask hand pump showing the Timothy Taylor's Landlord Dark ale. The pump clip is in black with a rugby player pulling a pint of the beer in the middle.
October 4, 2025 at 2:03 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Landlord Dark. On cask. Oh yes. Get in.
A pint of Landlord Dark ale in a branded Landlord glass. Very dark as it should be
October 3, 2025 at 2:21 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Still have the original of this (PAL version) and still a bona fide classic on the C64.
Front cover of the UK release of Skate or Die by Electronic Arts. The main picture has a skateboarder doing a hand plant trick on the skate ramp, with the skateboarder upside down and wearing a bright yellow top. The logo is at the top with the format (C64/128) and the disk icon with joystick on the left, anf the Electronic Arts logo with a blue square for the second E, a red circle for the O and a green triangle for the A at the bottom.
October 3, 2025 at 10:01 AM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Under the lights at the Etihad for Man City v Napoli and the return of Kevin de Bruyne. Come on City!
#MCINAP #ChampionsLeague
View from Block 302 of the East Stand at the Etihad Stadium. The sky is dark, the lights are on and the pitch looks in good condition.
September 18, 2025 at 6:39 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Playing the US CD single of this classic.
Tune. That is all.
The front cover of the US import CD maxi-single of Getting Away With It by Electronic. The sleeve is white with the Electronic logo in green, with the text "Getting away with it... compact disc maxi single" below. The centre of the picture is a top down diagonally angled view of a glass of water with some ice in it, mainly pale blue and white in composition.
September 11, 2025 at 8:13 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Vanguard Way is complete! Last section of 6 miles today past Cuckmere Haven, views of Seven Sisters, Seaford Head and Seaford, and on to Newhaven. The harbour station is very unloved though.
The iconic British Rail red and white double arrow sign above the Southern Railway sign for Newhaven Harbour station. The sign is green background with white Southern Railway font.
September 6, 2025 at 11:08 AM
zawtowers.bsky.social
At Stamford Bridge for Chelsea Women v Manchester City Women. Should be a cracker. Come on City!
View from the Shed End Lower tier away section at Stamford Bridge.
September 5, 2025 at 6:20 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
At the Etihad for Man City v Tottenham in my new home in block 302. Come on City!
View from block 302 of the East Stand at the Etihad Stadium looking over to the new North Stand extension being built.
August 23, 2025 at 11:18 AM
zawtowers.bsky.social
There are loads of great cover versions performed by C64 demo musicians on the SID chip. Well worth a peruse around HVSC via DeepSID's web interface (deepsid.chordian.net), using the search via STIL (SID Tune Information List) for who you like (see below)
The search button in DeepSID's web interface, which shows a search of the STIL (SID Tune Information List) and searching for Depeche Mode. The search results are shown on the screen above, with their file paths to their locations within the High Voltage SID Collection (HVSC) along with the date of release, the music player used, and the song length.
August 13, 2025 at 9:22 AM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Lovely stuff Natt. Did sections 8 and 9 of the Vanguard Way (11 miles total) and the final climb was rewarded with superb views too. A bit like this
View from the top of the hill overlooking Cuckmere Meanders, Cuckmere Haven and the English Channel. Well worth the 152 step climb up.
August 9, 2025 at 4:58 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
I'll give you an equivalent classic Commodore 64 one that helped kickstart the careers of Barry Leitch, Keith Tinman, and the late, sadly missed, Peter Clarke.
#Electrosound #Chiptune #Commodore64
A picture of the box and front cover of Orpheus' Electrosound 64 utility, which was used by composers of game themes on the Commodore 64. The front cover has notes ascending and descending a staircase with musical notation underneath.
August 4, 2025 at 1:07 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Terry is one of the few people to appear on the front cover of a Morrissey single (that isn't Moz himself). Namely the single Dagenham Dave, as Terry was born there (and he gave his permission to Morrissey to use the picture too.)
The front cover of the Morrissey single Dagenham Dave, featuring a photo of a young Terry Venables, the former footballer and football manager, with his tongue stucking out during training.
July 31, 2025 at 12:58 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Co-author, along with Gordon Williams. Terry used a pseudonym called P B Yuill.
Before that and before Terry took the pseudonym they co-wrote They Used to Play on Grass.
The front cover of the book They Used to Play on Grass. The top has the authors names of Gordon Williams and Terry Venables in a bold font, with the book title below, and in italics "their great football novel." The bottom shows a number of people in long coats getting off a train towards a football ground with a banner "Up the commoners" in green and black in the background.
July 31, 2025 at 12:45 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
Sat in a bar by the beach with this view. Rather lovely.
View over a beach with a bay and a hillside in the distance. The aand is golden, the sky is blue
July 15, 2025 at 5:48 PM
zawtowers.bsky.social
I'd love to know from Nigel Fletcher if the person on the cover of KGB Superspy is in fact David Darling in disguise (hence the "designed by a defector" thing..) - image via Lemon64:
The front cover of the game KGB Superspy. The top right corner has a thick red band with Commodore 64/128 in white across it. The KGB Superspy game logo is to the top left. The main picture has a helicopter shining lights on what looks like a soldier escaping a secure prison, using the rope from the helicopter, with guards standing by. At the bottom, the NEW RELEASE text shows with the Codemasters logo in the middle and a text box proclaiming "Designed by a Defector" to the bottom right.
June 27, 2025 at 4:32 PM