Dear Friends,

I promised you that there was more.

a few weeks ago I appeared on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme, and that evening Richard and I appeared at the Grant Museum of Natural History in London where, during our talk, we announced the launch of our new expedition. In a couple of weeks a five-man team from the CFZ will be travelling to Karbadino Balkaria in southern Russia, and in conjunction with Ukrainian zoologist Grigoriy Panchenko, we will be carrying out a three-week hunt for the fabled almasty or wild man. The expedition web site will be launched next week, and we have to particularly exciting news which we cannot divulge until then, but in the meantime, why not go to:

http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/

and watch the latest edition of On The Track which contains, not only Richard and me talking about the expedition, and its aims, but a whole lot of other stuff, including a world exclusive: the first film ever taken of a leucistic smooth newt. As far as we are aware, this is only the second specimen ever found, and the first to be filmed.

Tickets for this year's event, which will be held over the weekend of the 16-18 August, are already selling fast, and I would strongly suggest that people by their tickets soon. There will be a certain number put back for on the day, but you save a fiver by booking before the end of July. The latest lineup is:

7.00 p.m Cocktail party at the CFZ, Myrtle Cottage, Woolsery, Bideford, North Devon EX39 5QR

Noon - 5.00 p.m Open Day at the CFZ, Myrtle Cottage, Woolsery, Bideford, North Devon EX39 5QR

Community Centre, Woolsery, Bideford, North Devon, Doors open at 6.00

7.00 - 7.15 Introduction

8.00-8.30 BREAK

8.30 - 9.00 RONAN COGHLAN: The theology of extra-terrestrials

9.00 - 9.30 BREAK

-----the scary zone -----

9.30 - 10.15 MIKE HALLOWELL AND DARREN RITSON: The Tyneside poltergeist

10.15 - 11.00 LEE WALKER: New Ferry after dark

(Parents please note that these two talks may be moderately frightening, and should be attended by children under 11 only at their parent's discretion)

Community Centre, doors open at 10.00

(ALL AFTERNOON JOANNE CURTIS: monster making for kids)

11.15 - 12.15 NICK REDFERN: Planet of the ape men

(NICK REDFERN: UFOs for kids)

12.15 - 1.15 Dr MIKE DASH: In Search of Dr MacRae (Loch Ness)

1.15 - 1.45 BREAK

1.45 - 2.45 MATT SALUSBURY: Water elephants of the Congo

(PAUL VELLA: Bigfoot for kids)

3.15 - 3.30 QUIZ

3.30 - 4.30 TIM MATTHEWS: Weird stuff happens - my part in UFOlogy's downfall

5.00 - 5.30 Break

5.30 - 6.00 BOOK LAUNCH: `Dr Shuker's Casebook` by Dr. Karl Shuker

6.00 - 7.30 RICHARD FREEMAN ET AL: Russia 2008 Expedition report

7.30 - 8.00 Break

8.00 - 8.10 GRAHAM INGLIS: CFZ Museum - annual report

8.10 - 8.20 PAUL VELLA - the last 12 months in BHM

8.20 - 8.30 OLL LEWIS: The last 12 months of lake and sea monster reports

8.30 - 8.45 CHRIS MOISER: Confessions of a fortean zookeeper

8.45 - 9.00 CFZ AWARDS

9.00 - 9.30 BREAK

9.30 - 11.00 RICHARD FREEMAN ET AL: Guyana 2007 Expedition report

COMMUNITY CENTRE doors open 10.00

11.15 - 12.00 MICHAEL WOODLEY: In the wake of Bernard Heuvelmans

1.00 - 1.30 BREAK

(KIDS: Monsters are real - Jon Downes/Richard Freeman 30 mins)

(ALL AFTERNOON JOANNE CURTIS: monster making for kids)

3.00 - 4.00 GEOFF WARD: Spirals - the Pattern of Existence

(OLL LEWIS: Lake Monsters for kids)

4.00 - 4.30 BREAK

5.15 - 5.45 JONATHAN DOWNES: Keynote Speech and Closing Remarks.