The High King

The High King (1968) is a high fantasy novel by Lloyd Alexander, the fifth and last of The Chronicles of Prydain. It was awarded the Newbery Medal for excellence in American children's literature in 1969.

The series follows the adventures of Taran, the Assistant Pig-Keeper, as he nears manhood while helping to resist the forces of Arawn Death-Lord. In the concluding volume Taran and companions join the rest of Prydain in a great effort to defeat Arawn directly. Finally Taran must decide whether to be High King.

Thirty years later, Alexander explained to Scholastic students: "The High King was the final logical development of the first four books in the Prydain Chronicles. It was not an easy book to write, but at least I was building on a foundation that I had already made. I never considered a different ending ...". He did cry afterward, as the exchange implies many readers have done. After seven years "the characters were as close to me as my own family. ... I wept at the end – to see Taran confronted with such a brutally difficult decision."

The High

The High were an English rock group from Manchester, who were generally regarded as part of the Madchester scene.

History

The band was formed in 1989 by former Turning Blue singer John Matthews, along with former Buzzcocks F.O.C. members Andy Couzens (guitar, also formerly of The Stone Roses and pre-Roses bands The Patrol and Waterfront), Simon Davies (bass), and drummer Chris Goodwin (also formerly of Inspiral Carpets), when Steve Diggle left Buzzcocks F.O.C. to reform the Buzzcocks.

They were signed by London Records and had three minor UK Singles Chart hits in 1990 before breaking into the top 30 in 1991 with a revamped version of their debut single, the Martin Hannett-produced "Box Set Go". The band's debut album, Somewhere Soon, peaked at number 59 in the UK Album Chart.

With the Madchester scene losing favour with the critics, the band's later releases failed to chart, the band splitting up in 1993. John Matthews and Chris Goodwin went on to form the Manchester group 'One Summer' with local musicians Stephen Fitzpatrick (guitar) and Carl Wolstenholme (bass). One Summer worked with Factory Records group A Certain Ratio and recorded a demo for the label before it went into administration.

The High (comics)

The High (John Cumberland) is a fictional character, a superhero in the Wildstorm Universe. He first appears in Stormwatch #46 and was created by Warren Ellis and Tom Raney.

Publication history

The High plays a major part in the Stormwatch story arc "Change or Die." The character was later revived for the series Number of the Beast and would become a key part of the line-wide storyline "World's End".

Fictional character biography

The High came from an alternate reality. He fought as a superhero alongside Jenny Sparks in the 1930s, but became frustrated and left the crime-fighting occupation long before she did. After years detached from society (including a decade spent seated atop a throne of stone in the Rocky Mountains, contemplating his plan) he was left with a somewhat naive apprehension of others, their motives and ability shrinking in the face of his noble plan. He was overly trusting of his cohorts, quick to mistrust anyone who stepped in their way, and eager to force the world to change and be done with it - and he ultimately learned, as Jenny Sparks said, that people only want change on their own terms. His emblem was five arrows in a circle, much like the symbol for recycling - he wore this on his costume's belt and on a t-shirt he wore when out of costume.