Ms Vincent simply urged me to take a look at the official site for the upcoming Golden Compass film (based on the “His Dark Materials” series by Philip Pullman, and focusing on the first book, known as “Northern Lights” in the UK). The site is very pretty indeed, with a ‘working’ alethiometer to twist, turn and attempt to read. Certain combinations will reveal pictorial ‘answers’ – Ms Vincent sent me a few, but I’ll put them in the comments below if you want to find them for yourself. Ms Vincent is quite the fan, it must be said – and indeed has made her own alethiometers in the past! Alas, its been so long since I read the first one (my mother recommended it to me) that I’ve forgotten a lot of it – perhaps that will be to my benifit when I go to see the film! But beautiful vague recollections of wonderfilled Oxford University through the eyes of a child, coupled with perverse Steampunk technology, hot air balloons and the wonderful mystical alethiometer device itself, leave it glowing in my mind.