Impossible Podcasts
- Description:
- Lively discussion of the fiction of the fantastic on television, in books and in films, including Doctor Who fan commentaries
Homepage: http://www.impossiblepodcasts.com/
RSS Feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/ImpossiblePodcasts-DoctorWhoUniverse
- Episodes:
- 194
- Average Episode Duration:
- 0:0:05:04
- Longest Episode Duration:
- 0:1:43:06
- Total Duration of all Episodes:
- 0 days, 16 hours, 23 minutes and 57 seconds
- Earliest Episode:
- 26 June 2011 (9:30pm GMT)
- Latest Episode:
- 19 May 2013 (12:03am GMT)
- Average Time Between Episodes:
- 3 days, 13 hours, 37 minutes and 17 seconds
Impossible Podcasts Episodes
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Trials & Triumphs - A Review of the SFX Weekender 3 Event
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsThe dust has settled, the hangovers faded and the cosplay has been packed away for another year. But was this year's SFX Weekender - one of Britain's biggest sci-fi and fantasy conventions - worth the trip?
It's safe to say that not everything went according to plan, but did the stellar guest list make up for the freezing temperatures and interminable queues? P.G. Bell shares the high and low points with Caleb Woodbridge and Sarah Burrow. PLUS! a report on the inaugural cosplay competition and interviews with a few of the participants. Click on the jump below to find photos of some of the people we spoke to, but head on over to our Facebook page to see a complete gallery of the weekend's events!
Length: 45 minutes
Download: Click here (right click and "Save Target/Link As...")
P.S. The excellent 'Transdimensional Mix' of the Doctor Who theme music comes courtesy of HardWire.
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Brian Blessed Q&A - SFX Weekender 2012
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds"The greatest danger in life is not taking the adventure..."
The loudest man in sci-fi (or any other genre, for that matter) was guest of honour at last week's SFX Weekender in North Wales. P.G. Bell was there to record the action and we're very pleased to bring you Brian's complete Q&A session, conducted on Saturday 4th February, in front of a capacity crowd.
Brian explained his passion for science fiction, outlined his plans to bump off old friend Patrick Stewart and revealed why he calls Her Majesty the Queen "Knuckles".
Most importantly, he publicly announced two very important projects for the first time - one in the realm of science fiction, the other based firmly in science fact. Seriously, this is pretty big.
He also uses some rather salty language at times, so be prepared!
Length: 44 minutes
Download: Click here (right click and "Save Link As...")
If that's not enough for you, stay tuned for our full review of the SFX Weekender experience, including a gallery of this year's cosplay event and interviews with the participants. PLUS! Full Q&As with Sylvester McCoy, Eve Myles and Colin Baker! Coming soon to Impossible Podcasts!
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Points of Who 3: Doctor Who, Sherlock, The Hunger Games
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
In the third episode of Points of Who, we take a wide-ranging discussion of the latest news about Doctor Who and the wider worlds of science fiction and fantasy:
Caleb and Swithun discuss:
- (from 1 min) The recovery of missing episodes of Doctor Who from Galaxy 4 and The Underwater Menace: celebration or disappointment?
- (from 19 min) How should the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who be marked by the BBC, by fans, and by us as a podcast?
- (from 29 min) The Sherlock finale, The Reichenbach Fall, including just how did Sherlock survive that fall?
- (from 39 min) The Hunger Games trailer - how will the film compare to the book?
Listen/download: Click here
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Doctor Who - 5.1 'The Eleventh Hour' - Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsRemember all those commentaries we never got round to in Series 5? Well, here they come!
The team take advantage of Doctor Who's extended leave of absence to fill in some of the gaps in their back catalogue, starting with Matt Smith's debut adventure. Click below to find out what Caleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson, Sarah Burrow and P.G. Bell make of the newly regenerated series. Does the shadow of Russel T. Davies still loom large? How does Amy keep up her mortgage repayments on a kiss-o-gram's salary? And when will the show ever get round to a Groundhog Day episode?
Length: 1 hour, 18 minutes
Download: Click here (right click and 'Save Target As')
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Book Review - 'The Whisper Jar' - Carole Lanham
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsSome secrets are kept in jars - others, in books.
It's book review time again, so join P.G. Bell and Olivia Cottrell as they tackle a collection of short fantasy tales from acclaimed author Carole Lanham. In The Whisper Jar, you will encounter a Blood Digger who bonds two children irrevocably together; a young woman who learns of her destiny through the random selection of a Bible verse; and a boy whose life begins to reflect the stories he reads...
Length: 13 minutes
Download: Click here
Click here to buy the book via Amazon
Carole Lanham's website
Morrigan Books website
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Sherlock - Discussion
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsThere's more to Moffat than Doctor Who but is Sherlock really the series that "puts the 'sexy' in sexist?"
As the second series of Moffat's award winning adaptation draws to a close, Caleb Woodbridge, Sarah Burrow, Olivia Cottrell and James Willets put their heads together to examine the latest run of episodes. They also share their thoughts on the sexism furore and Moffat's response, how the series fares against other adaptations (Robert Downey Jr, take a bow) and the show's unique visual style.
This was our first attempt at recording an all-Skype discussion, so the sound quality does vary in places, but shouldn't be too distracting.
Length: 50 minutes
Download: Click here
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Doctor Who - 7.0 'The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe' - Christmas special spoiler-free preview
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsPreviewing the Doctor Who Christmas special is like opening presents early: a guilty yet irresistible pleasure. But is Steven Moffat's Narnia-inspired The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe a cracker or a turkey?
The story begins with a bang, literally, with a madcap escape for the Doctor. In the course of his adventure, he encounters Madge Arwell, played by Claire Skinner, in a role that isn't a million miles off her part of the Mum in Outnumbered. Mr Smith voice artist Alexander Armstrong appears in the flesh as her husband Reg, while the casting directors of Doctor Who show their talent once more at finding good child actors for the parts of Cyril and Lily. Throw in Bill Bailey and co as the comedy support act, and Matt Smith doing his patent blend of age-old wisdom and child-like enthusiasm, and you're all set for the now-traditional "Christmassiest Christmas ever!"
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Doctor Who - 3.0 'The Runaway Bride' - Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsOur Christmas countdown continues as Sarah Burrow, Swithun Dobson, James Willetts and P.G. Bell revisit Catherine Tate's fan-baiting debut as companion-to-be, Donna Noble. "For better or for worse..."
There's no denying that comedian Catherine Tate is the heart and soul of the 2006 Christmas special. But did we love her or hate her? Join us as we pick sides and discuss other noteworthy aspects of the show's second festive outing, including: cliffhangers, cleavage, Gallifrey, and why Torchwood would need Segways.
Length: 1 hour 12 minutes
Download: Click here
And there's still more to come! Visit again next week when we'll be discussing 'Voyage of the Damned'. Was it really a disaster in every sense? Until then, head down into the comments section and let us know what you thought of this latest podcast.
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Doctor Who - 2.0 'The Christmas Invasion' - Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsTis the season to be jolly! In the first of a series of festive treats, Swithun Dobson, P.G. Bell, Sarah Burrow and - specially flown in from the North Pole - James Willetts revisit the very first Doctor Who Christmas Special, 'The Christmas Invasion'.
Remember when the show was still trying to prove itself? When David Tennant was the new kid on the block? When we had yet to visit an alien world? It all seems so long ago now, so how does this yuletide special hold up to scrutiny? Join us as we discuss killer Christmas trees, why the Doctor doesn't like Christmas and try to think of some other Christmas-themed entertainment that's actually Christmassy. (Here's a clue... Die Hard).
Length: 1 hour 10 minutes
Download: Click here
How did you like this blast from Christmas past? We want to hear from you! Head down into the comments to share your thoughts, and be sure to come back next week for our next Christmas Special commentary - 'The Runaway Bride'.
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Points of Who #6 - Doctor Who Newsflash
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge and P.G. Bell bring you our monthly roundup of news, views and chatter.
It's a short and sweet one this month - just enough time to congratulate Steven Moffat on his new BAFTA, wave goodbye to the Ponds and hello to Jenna-Louise Coleman, and ponder the demise of the SFX Weekender convention. Plus, a look ahead to next month's podcasts, which are chock full of Doctor Who goodness!
Length: 13 minutes
Download: Click Here (Right click and "Save Link/Target As...")
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Visual Memory #4 - The Secret of Monkey Island
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsWelcome, ye scurvy landlubbers, to a rum-fuelled edition of Visual Memory! The grog isn't strictly necessary, but it's rather fitting for the game Christopher Bell has loaded into the cannons this month. Prepare to set sail for The Secret of Monkey Island!
This classic point-and-click adventure was created by a triumvirate of designers and writers, Ron Gilbert, Dave Grossman and Tim Schaffer, as an alternative to heavy-handed adventure games where one slip meant instant death or inability to complete the game. This was meant to be a more forgiving (there's only one place you can die, and that's by drowning), and thus more enjoyable experience.
Players take on the mantle of Guybrush Threepwood, a young scallywag out to prove himself as a mighty pirate on Melee Island. To do this he needs to complete three tasks to impress a trio of pirate lords. Along the way, he will meet the love of his life (the governess of Melee Island, Elaine Marley), as well as battling the ghost of LeChuck, an infamous pirate out to marry Elaine by any means necessary.
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Doctor Who - 5.4 'The Time of Angels'
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge and Sarah Burrow go back to commentate on The Time of Angels, the story which reintroduced River Song and the Weeping Angels for the Steven Moffat era. With the Angels returning for Amy and Rory's departure from the show in the autumn, does it hold any clues to the future?
You can read what our very own James Willetts thought of the episode at the time in his Time of Angels review. And in wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey fashion, we recorded our commentary on Flesh and Stone, the second half of the story, back in 2010 when it first aired.
Length: 51 minutes
Download: Click here (Right click and "Save Link/Target As...")
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Random Encounter #3 - Don't Stop Believing
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCan video games be good for the soul? In her ongoing examination of the state of gaming, Olivia Cottrell wonders if we couldn't all do with a bit more soul...
Video games and religion are not what you might call natural bedfellows. Even as games have grown up in the last few years and started to explore questions of race, sexuality and the more basic issues of morality (good vs evil, the needs of the many or the needs of the few and so on) religion has been a topic that most games try to avoid. As a gamer with a vested interest in religion (being a Christian), I find it frustrating that so many titles still shy away from a frank look at this fundamental aspect of the human condition. And that, when they do attempt it, they often fall very short of the mark.
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Visual Memory #3 - Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsIts cult following may be more famous than the game that spawned it but, as evidence of a Darkstalkers reboot continues to mount, Christopher Bell looks back to 1994 and the birth of Capcom's original monster mash.
As franchises go, Darkstalkers is one of the few to have flourished beyond its video game origins. It's been turned into a popular manga comic, a couple of animated series (avoid the Saturday morning American TV version at all costs!) and a 15th anniversary coffee-table tribute book, packed with gorgeous artwork. Its most popular characters, meanwhile, have gone on to star in a host of other high-profile titles including the Marvel vs Capcom series and a Magic: The Gathering-style card game. Most noticeably, they've become a mainstay of the cosplay circuit, with (mostly female) characters drawing eyes and camera lenses at conventions across the globe.
Not bad for a series that hasn't seen a new release since 1998.
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Random Encounter #2 - Tell Me a Story
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsWelcome back to Random Encounter, the monthly digest of gaming's hot topics. This month, Olivia Cottrell wants to know where all the good scripts have gone.
Last week, I had a very strange moment. I was sitting in my living room, controller in hand, and I cried. Not big, dramatic sobs, just a sudden overflow of emotion that left me scrabbling around for a tissue. This was not prompted by anything melodramatic. All the game had done was build a character up through interactions and dialogue, then scripted something for them to say that touched me in a way that only a few things ever have. This had never happened to me in a video game before - but perhaps I should have seen it coming.
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Visual Memory #2 - God Hand
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsWelcome to the latest Visual Memory, the monthly column exploring classic video games on extinct systems. This month, Christopher Bell thinks it's time to re-assess a stone cold turkey...
In a market saturated by cookie-cutter first person shooters and awful movie tie-ins, it's great to see a games company try something different. And while God Hand is remembered as the game that killed Clover Studios (the people behind the rather beautiful Okami), it did at least turn heads. Poisonous chihuahuas, a demonic Elvis, the ability to spank your female opponents... I couldn't make any of this up if I tried!
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Doctor Who - 5.02 'The Beast Below' - Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson, Sarah Burrow and P. G. Bell return to The Beast Below, the second episode of the Smith/Moffat era!
Join us as we discuss Star Wars references, political allegory, sparkly space whales, Paragon versus Renegade actions, and whether the Doctor is pro- or anti-monarchy! But watching the episode again, will the team choose to Protest or Forget?
Length: 58 minutes
Download: Click here
What did you think of The Beast Below? Should the Doctor have brought down the British monarchy? Did you care about the plight of the space whale? And just what had happened to the Welsh on Starship Britain?!
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Random Encounter #1 - Girls, Guns 'n' Games
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsWelcome to the very first edition of Random Encounter. Running as a counterpoint to our retro games column Visual Memory, this new monthly feature tackles the issues facing gamers in the here-and-now. Podcaster, reviewer and hardcore gamer Olivia Cottrell kicks things off with a matter very close to her heart...
All the Mass Effect news lately - especially the trailer featuring the female version of Commander Shepard - has gotten me thinking about the first game in the series. Mass Effect introduced me to gaming as a hobby (some might say an obsession), but why did I latch on to that particular game when I had played others before it and have enjoyed others since? What made Bioware's space opera so special? Which buttons did it press that others didn't?
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Visual Memory #1 - The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsThe Legend of Zelda celebrates its 26th anniversary next week but Christopher Bell is looking back, not forward, in the first edition of Visual Memory - a brand new monthly column exploring classic games on extinct systems...
Legend has it that the kingdom of Hyrule is protected from an ancient darkness by the Picori Blade, a sacred sword entrusted to the royal family by the Minish - a race of Borrower-sized folk who can only be seen by children. Every century, the people of Hyrule celebrate their victory over the forces of evil by holding a royal tournament, at which the winner is allowed to touch the sacred blade. It just so happens that this year's winner is an evil sorcerer by the name of Vaati, who shatters the sword, unleashing a tide of monsters on the land. To make matters worse, he turns the young princess Zelda to stone. It's up to her young friend Link to track down the mysterious Minish, re-forge the Picori Blade and restore the princess...
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Review: Mass Effect 3 Demo
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
With the demo for Mass Effect 3 out this Tuesday, Olivia Cottrell gives us a sneak preview of what we can expect from the final installment in Bioware's science fiction action/RPG epic...
It's nearly the end of a long wait. On March 9th, Mass Effect 3 will be released and a journey that began in 2007 will come to a close. Commander Shepard, fearless space marine (of either gender) will finally face the Reapers and - depending on your ability to make friends - defeat them for all time. This Tuesday, players will have the chance to experience a little of what Mass Effect 3 will be like when Bioware releases the demo for Xbox Live, Playstation and PC. I was lucky enough to get an early access code, so what does this third and final chapter in Shepard's saga have in store?
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Doctor Who - 'Worlds in Time' - Video Game Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsFor such a diverse show, Doctor Who has always stuggled when it comes to video games. Could Worlds in Time be the one to buck the trend? Olivia Cottrell takes her virtual TARDIS for a spin...
Pity the Doctor Who fan who also happens to be a video game geek. While the Doctor might initially seem a perfect fit for the video game world - his universe of strange aliens, dramatic stories and quirky characters is already one with a touch of the virtual about it - the franchise's attempts to cross into video games have so far been decidedly lacklustre. While perfectly decent for free titles, a clunky control system and broken AI meant that the recent range of downloadable 3D Adventure Games were frequently frustrating experiences. As someone who considers herself both a video games nerd (I've spent too many hours shouting at dragons over the past month to successfully argue otherwise) and a Doctor Who fan, I was ready for something more satisfying.
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Points of Who 2: Doctor Who movie rumours and series 6 DVD review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsIn the second Points of Who, we go beyond our commentaries to catch up on the Doctor Who news and rumours.
In this episode:
- Caleb and Sarah discuss David Yates' original comments on making a Doctor Who film.
- Swithun and James discuss Steven Moffat's response and what they'd like to see from a Doctor Who movie.
- Caleb and Sarah discuss the Night and the Doctor mini-episodes.
- Caleb gives his in-depth review of series 6 as a whole.
Listen/download: Click here
Should Doctor Who go to Hollywood, or is it better suited for the small-screen? How does series 6 hold up now it's out as a box-set? Let us know your thoughts below!
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Doctor Who - 7.0 'The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe' Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsMerry Christmas! Caleb Woodbridge, Sarah Burrow and P. G. Bell go through the wardrobe to discuss this year's Doctor Who Christmas special, The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe!
In our latest podcast commentary, we discuss the influence of C S Lewis on Doctor Who, whether Matt Smith should have a child as a companion, the criminal underuse of Bill Bailey, Steven Moffat's gender politics, the place of fairytales in Doctor Who, the extraordinary in the everyday and much more.
Length: 1 hour 10 minutes
Download: Click here
What did you think of this year's Christmas special? Did it enchant you, or did you feel it could have been better? What other classic Christmas stories would translate well to Doctor Who?
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Doctor Who - 4.0 'Voyage of the Damned' Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
'Twas the night before Christmas Eve... and our resident Scrooge Swithun Dobson and very own Tiny Tim Caleb Woodbridge return to do battle between humbug and good cheer in their commentary on Voyage of the Damned, a tale of the Titantic in space, evil angels, and killing Kylie Minogue at Christmas!
Join us as we discuss whether the disaster movie format is compatible with the traditional Doctor Who good versus evil showdown, the representation of angels in pop culture, the deification and deconstruction of the Doctor, and much more. And a merry Christmas to all of you at home!
Length: 1 hour 10 minutes
Download: Click here
Don't forget to check out our spoiler-free preview of this year's Christmas special, The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe, and come back in a couple of days for our podcast commentary on the same!
And please let us know, what do you think makes for the perfect Christmas special? What Doctor Who Christmas presents are you hoping for from Santa? Leave your comments below!
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The Walking Dead - 2.07 'Pretty Much Dead Already' - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsThis is the show's last chance to impress before its mid-season break. Has it succeeded? Kieran Mathers finds out...
Finally. After hours of wandering through the woods, The Walking Dead rediscovers what it's good at; theatre like intimacy and intensity; emotional engagement; a Mamet-esque development and understanding of male characters. This episode drives the plot forward and gives everyone in the wider ensemble something to actually do. It also features a climactic zombie massacre that would do the source material proud. At long last, it's television that makes you want to carry on watching.
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The Walking Dead - 2.06 'Secrets' - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsAMC's zombie thriller approaches its mid-season climax, but will we be tuning in when it return? Kieran Mathers finds out...
My word, there's an awful lot of shouting in this episode! After several plodding instalments, this season's incipient conflicts finally rear their ugly rotting heads. Gunfights, sex, violence... it's all here. I won't call it a return to form because it's still pretty poor fare compared to much of last season, but it's almost watchable again.
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Video: Doctor Who Party - Fish fingers and custard!
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
[View on YouTube]
Last weekend, we threw a party with the help of a Come Round Doctor Who party pack. As part of the evening's festivities, we decided to re-enact the Eleventh Doctor's first meal post-regeneration, as served to him by Amelia Pond: fish fingers and custard! Stay tuned for our podcast discussion on the series 6 DVD release, the movie rumours and the Christmas special trailer, all coming soon!
If you're on Twitter, please retweet his party tweet to help Caleb win Doctor Who prizes!
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Elisabeth Sladen tribute: The Sarah Jane Adventures - 'The Man Who Never Was' Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge, P.G. Bell and Sarah Jane devotee Brandon Michelle pay tribute to the wonderful Elisabeth Sladen, who as Sarah Jane Smith won the hearts of generations of fans.
We look back on The Sarah Jane Adventures in our commentary on the final story, 'The Man Who Never Was', discussing Elisabeth Sladen's return to our screens via Doctor Who, the show's place in children's television drama history, and what both she and the show mean to us.
Length: 1 hour 4 minutes
Download: Click here
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The Walking Dead - 2.05 'Chupacabra' - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsKieran Mathers watches dull things happen very slowly...
I really wasn't looking forward to reviewing this episode. For the fifth week in a row, the party of survivors wanders through the woods in search of the missing Sophia. There is also friction with the patriarchal Hershel (Scott Wilson) over access to his farm and the liberties being taken by some of the group.
So thank goodness for red-neck hero Daryl (Norman Reedus) whose Touching the Void-style survival exploits reward us with a great series of scenes. His relationship with his missing brother Merle (Michael Rooker), last seen handcuffed to a rooftop in Season 1, is revisited as a means of fleshing out his insecurities about his role in the group, and his eventual acceptance at the end of the episode is lovely - a real highlight.
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The Walking Dead - 2.04 'Cherokee Rose' - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsAfter some hit and miss episodes, is there still life in AMC's zombie horror series? Kieran Mathers finds out...
As a series, The Walking Dead has never aspired to the sprinting pace of 28 Days Later's "infected", and is usually content to amble along like a good old fashioned Romero zombie. But now it seems the series is degenerating into a legless corpse, dragging itself hand over hand, week by week, despite some occasional spikes in activity.
This week, our characters clear a well. Seriously, they hoist a zombie out of a well. Daryl (Norman Reedus) takes a walk in the woods and the little girl whom the audience no longer cares about is still missing. Some cars move ... that's about it.
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Points of Who 1: Your feedback and our new schedule
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsWelcome to our first edition of Points of Who, our new regular slot for your feedback!
Up until now, we've been discussing your comments, tweets, emails and the like on a fairly ad-hoc basis. But we've decided to have a monthly slot dedicated to your questions, views and opinions.
In this episode, we discuss your reactions to The Wedding of River Song, plus where to find Doctor Who actors in horror movies (answer: practically everywhere!). We also welcome a new guest commentator Brandon to the show, and ask for your suggestions in naming P. G. Bell's baby boy - his wife has already vetoed Stormaggedon!
Length: 24 minutes
Download: Click here
We also announce our new regular schedule for the coming months with Doctor Who off the air...
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The Walking Dead - 2.03 'Save The Last One' - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsIs The Walking Dead living up to its potential? Kieran Mathers takes a look at the latest instalment...
Zombies have it pretty easy. Robbed of their higher brain functions, all they have to worry about is food. (And what exactly happens if a zombie doesn't eat? Can they get any deader? All comments gratefully received). They certainly don't have to contend with the existential crises that beset our heroes this week; is life worth living and what are they prepared to do to save themselves?
As Lori (Sarah Callies) and Rick (Andrew Lincoln) watch their son Carl (Chandler Riggs) slowly succumb to his injuries in the farmhouse, they are forced to wonder whether it would be kinder to let him die. We're forced to wonder too - Carl's distended belly and seizing fit are really tough to watch and his parents' helplessness makes it all the more harrowing.
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Interview - Simon Marshall-Jones - Spectral Press
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
In this era of economic downturn, as e-book sales rocket, bookshop chains collapse and the publishing industry doesn't seem to know which way to jump, it takes a very brave soul to establish a small, independent press imprint.
Simon Marshall-Jones
But that's exactly what Simon Marshall-Jones, the founder and editor of Spectral Press, has done and business is booming. Some of the rising stars of fantasy and horror are writing for him, his first three publications have all sold out and there are bigger things yet to come.
Our reviews editor P.G. Bell spoke to Simon at FantasyCon 2011 in Brighton this month, to find out what he's doing right.
Length: 11 minutes
Download: Click here (right click, 'Save target/file as')
Click here for the Spectral Press website
Click here for the Spectral Press Facebook page
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Author Interview - Simon Kurt Unsworth - FantasyCon 2011
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsHundreds of fantasy, sci-fi and horror fans descended on Brighton last weekend for the British Fantasy Society's annual convention. Our reviews editor, P.G. Bell, was one of them.
There are lots of good reasons to attend the annual FantasyCon. Free wine is one. The chance to meet your favourite writers and publishers in the flesh is another. And that's why I was there. (Well, also for the free wine. But definitely not for Saturday night's tentacle burlesque show. Honest).
I got to chat with World Fantasy Award nominated writer Simon Kurt Unsworth, who was in town to launch his new book, Quiet Houses. (If you haven't heard our review of Quiet Houses yet, you can download it here). He told me how the book came into being, how a series of long bus journeys led to him becoming a writer, and why he likes his characters to be "baffled". Click the link below to hear the full story, and read on after the break for some photos of the launch and the rest of the weekend!
Length: 22 minutes
Download: Click here
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Book Review - 'Quiet Houses' - Simon Kurt Unsworth
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds"Do you live in a haunted house? Have you ever been to a place and had an experience that you cannot explain? Do you have a story to tell? Serious researcher wants to hear from you. Must be prepared to go on record. No timewasters. Tel:01524 500 501 ext 23 and leave a message."
Simon Kurt Unsworth is one of the rising stars of horror and dark fantasy fiction, and we've got our hands on his new book, Quiet Houses - a reinvention of the classic English ghost story. Our reviews editor P.G. Bell gives us his verdict with the help of a genre-appropriate (and slightly ghostly) guest star. Click below to find out what they thought!
Length: 13 minutes
Download: Click here
Title: Quiet Houses
Author: Simon Kurt Unsworth
Publisher: Dark Continents Publishing
Format: Paperback (PS9.99)
ISBN: 9780983624516
Published: October 2011
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The Walking Dead - 2.02 'Bloodletting' - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsGood news, zombie fans - AMC have announced that The Walking Dead will return for a third season next year. But will we still be watching? Kieran Mathers weighs the pros and cons of the latest episode...
Like the final floundering heartbeat of a zombie plague victim, this episode only manages sporadic moments of life. When it's good, it's very good but when it's bad it's ugly.
In this episode, Grimes has to get his son to a doctor. Realising they don't have the correct equipment to save him, Shane and a companion head back into town, where an overrun FEMA hospital might provide the equipment they are looking for...
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The Walking Dead - 2.01 'What Lies Ahead' - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
A bitter struggle to survive. Mindless, shambling antagonists. A dwindling team facing a bleak and uncertain future... But enough about the backstage politics! What did Kieran Mathers think of the Season 2 opener?
I can't imagine The Walking Dead being made by a major network. The offspring of such movies as Day of the Dead, it's very much a work of horror and lends itself to graphic dismemberments and decapitations, so credit goes to AMC for being brave enough to push the boundaries.
And, until recently, the gamble seemed to be paying off.
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Video Games - 'Mortal Kombat' (2011) - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsBeat-em-up classic Mortal Kombat rose from the dead earlier this year, looking better than ever. But, after almost twenty years and some bad mistakes (including those dreadful movies starring Christopher Lambert), has the game that launched a thousand headlines retained its power to shock? And, more importantly, is it any fun to play? Christopher Bell finds out...
I've been playing the Mortal Kombat series since it made its gore-soaked, parent-and-politician-bothering debut way back in the early 1990s and, considering that I'm now 27, that would put me at around nine or ten years old when MK1 first arrived. Don't panic; my folks were OK with it, and I didn't become the ultra-violent little so-and-so that the naysayers claimed I would.
Skip forward to the here-and-now. The digitised actors have been replaced by fully Unreal Engine 3 rendered, three-dimensional punch bags, albeit on a 2D plane; the ninja costumes are no longer re-colours (the original suit was white, and the colours changed depending on the character), giving a greater sense of visual identity and, last but not least, the series' trademark Fatalities are much more grisly.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. Because the biggest change is not merely technical.
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Review - Browncoats Mix Tape - Adam WarRock
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsWhat happens when space cowboys meet gangsta rappers? Something amazing, that's what! Resident uber-nerd Olivia Cottrell dons her headphones and brings us the lowdown on a highly unlikely mashup...
The internet is a wonderful place for creativity. Especially in terms of fandom: all kinds of talented, creative people use the genre shows, comic books and video games that they love as raw material to express themselves in media that you would never expect in a million years. So it is with the small but growing genre of 'nerdcore' rap artists - musicians who (truer to the roots of hip hop and rap than their more mainstream contemporaries) use the genre to talk about the things that are important to them. It's just that these things happen to be the aforementioned comic books, TV shows, and video games. While doing so, they often articulate wider points about life in general. So it is with Adam WarRock's newest offering, The Browncoats Mixtape, based on Firefly.
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Doctor Who 6.13 'The Wedding of River Song' Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson and Sarah Burrow discuss 'The Wedding of River Song' , episode 13 of Doctor Who series 6. As the Doctor heads to his almost certain death, something has gone very wrong with time, thanks to a woman...
We discuss alternate realities, guns'n'eyepatches, Indiana Jones, the Brigadier Alastair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, time loops, the motives of the Silence, the legend of the Doctor, stepping back into the shadows, story arcs and more, plus we look forward to the Christmas special and beyond!
Length: 1hr 13 minutes
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Video Games - 'Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine' - Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
Olivia Cottrell gives us the lowdown on Space Marine, published by THQ for Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and PC and released on September 6th 2011.
Well, it was inevitable, really. Having reviewed the promotional game Kill Team, it seemed only natural that I try Space Marine when it came out- at least, that's the excuse I used. Released on Friday last week, Relic Entertainment's vision of a grim, dark far future where there is only war is a surprisingly enjoyable romp that incorporates some of the best things about the Warhammer 40,000 universe.
The story of the game is simple enough. The player is put in the clunky armoured shoes of Brother-Captain Titus, an Ultramarine (the best kind of space marine, apparently) captain tasked with liberating a strategically vital world from the orks. Things develop quickly and, though I won't spoil the climax, there are some pretty fun action sequences that have to be seen to be believed. Combat is standard hack and slash/point and shoot, though the game's decision to omit the now-ubiquitous cover mechanic means that unwary players can quickly find themselves mobbed. You can only regain health by performing finishing moves on enemies- initially this seems alright but you can still be attacked while doing so, which can be very frustrating.
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Seven Ways the Doctor Could Cheat Death in 'The Wedding of River Song'!
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge looks ahead to 'The Wedding of River Song', considering seven possible (or impossible!) ways to cheat death when you're a Time Lord!
Theories covered include:
- "I woke up and it was all a terrible dream"
- It's the Doctor's ganger!
- It's the Tessalecta!
- "Regeneration juice" and other technobabble
- "Time can be rewritten"
- "To be fair, the universe did blow up"
- The love of a good woman?
Length: 17 minutes
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Doctor Who 6.12 'Closing Time' Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
Caleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson and Sarah Burrow discuss 'Closing Time' , episode 12 of Doctor Who series six, which sees the return of both of Cybermen and James Corden in the latest tale from Gareth Roberts!
As the Doctor's death approaches, he makes a social call on his old friend Craig Owens, but soon finds himself saving the world one last time. We discuss the Doctor's parenting skills, Cardiff filming locations, sentimental endings, and much more, as well as responding to your feedback on The God Complex!
Length: 1hr 6 minutes
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Doctor Who 6.12 'Closing Time' Spoiler-free review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge previews 'Closing Time', episode 12 of Doctor Who by Gareth Roberts.
Two hundred years later, and the Doctor is preparing to meet his end at Lake Silencio. As part of his "farewell tour", he calls in on Craig Owens (James Corden from The Lodger) to make a social call, but with mysterious power shortages and disappearing shop attendants, he can't resist investigating one last mystery...
After exploring the darker side of travelling with the Doctor in The Girl Who Waited and The God Complex (don't forget to check out our audio commentaries on those episode), we're back to a much lighter action-adventure in this week's encounter with the Cybermen. The domestic humour combined with something sinister in a department store harks back to Russell T Davies-era Who, especially the first episode Rose, which is no bad thing in my book.
As might be expected from the pen of Gareth Roberts, who brought us last series' The Lodger, as well as the witty The Unicorn and the Wasp and The Shakespeare Code, the jokes come thick-and-fast. The bromance between the Doctor and Craig reaches new levels (and the return of the so-called "Gay Agenda"!) One of the Doctor's new abilities from earlier in the series provides a great running gag too.
James Corden is one of those comedy guest stars, like David Walliams last week or Catherine Tate before, who tend to polarise opinion. I really enjoyed both Gavin and Stacey and The Lodger, and Corden's turn as the hapless but likeable Craig Owens is just as entertaining a second time round, though sadly Daisy Haggard only gets a cameo as Sophie. There's a fun reappearance for Lynda Baron, making her third guest showing in Doctor Who: she was Captain Wrack in the Peter Davison story Enlightenment, and sang 'The Ballad of the Last Chance Saloon' all the way back in 1966 for The Gunfighters!
Some might find the ending a bit too sentimental - the Doctor says as much! But I really enjoyed it - it's fun, touching and scary in the right places. The Cybermen get treated properly as monsters and are nicely effective, even on a small scale.
Although an unashamedly fun episode, the shadow of the Doctor's impending death looms large, and the closing moments lead directly in to the events we saw back at the start of the series, where the Doctor was struck down by the Impossible Astronaut. Closing time indeed...
Check back on Saturday night for our audio commentary on 'Closing Time' and to let us know what you thought!
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Doctor Who 6.11 'The God Complex' Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson and Sarah Burrow discuss 'The God Complex' , episode 11 of Doctor Who series six, penned by Being Human writer Toby Whithouse.
The Doctor, Amy and Rory face their nightmares in an infinite hotel, but has travelling with the Doctor finally become too dangerous? We discuss nightmares, blogger stereotypes, religion in Doctor Who, Rory's lack of faith, the question of what the Doctor believes in, the departure of Amy and Rory Williams, and much more.
Length: 1hr 2 minutes
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Doctor Who 6.11 'The God Complex' - Spoiler-free preview
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge reviews 'The God Complex', episode 11 of Doctor Who, a weird and twisted tale of nightmares and infinite corridors by Being Human scribe Toby Whithouse.
After last week's excellent The Girl Who Waited, this keeps up the high standard with a neat psychological tale. Although last week's events aren't referenced directly, it certainly has an impact on the Doctor's relationship with Amy and Rory. The Doctor's fallibility comes under more scrutiny as the TARDIS team face their worst nightmares...
The Minotaur makes for a great monster, and there's a strong guest cast, including David Walliams doing a typically Walliamsian turn as Gibbis, one of the most cowardly creatures in the cosmos. Amara Karan is the other stand-our performance, playing Rita, who I think is Doctor Who's first Muslim character (at least since the 1965 historical story The Crusade, which says a lot). Questions of faith form an important part of the story - it's the most theological Doctor Who has been since The Satan Pit back in Tennant's first series.
The nightmare hotel is reminiscent of Whithouse's portrayal of Purgatory in Being Human series 3, which also featured people's individual fears. It's interesting that in telefantasy, Purgatory has become a place where characters go to "Face their Issues" rather than be purged of their sins: the afterlife adapted for the therapy age. That's not what's going on here though - we're still firmly in science-fiction territory.
There are lots of easter-eggs for fans of the show, including blink and you'll miss them glimpses of old monsters (plus a member of the production team!) There's a sly link back to a Tom Baker era story, and a vital scene that echoes a moment in The Curse of Fenric.
It's not as emotional as last week, but still a strong, moving and intelligent story. Check back on Saturday night for our podcast commentary on the show!
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Torchwood Miracle Day - 10. 'The Blood Line' - Commentary & Series Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge and Swithun Dobson discuss the finale of Torchwood: Miracle Day, The Blood Line. Has Miracle Day given Torchwood a new lease of life or reduced it to shambling corpse?
We discuss Holocaust parallels, dystopian futures, sympathy for the devil (or at least Oswald Danes), the clash between its high concept science fiction concept and its action-thriller format, and deliver our verdict on the series as a whole!
Length: 1 hour 16 minutes
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Have you stuck with Torchwood through to the end? What did you think of the conclusion to Miracle Day? Do you want to see more from the Torchwood team, and if so, where should the show go next?
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Doctor Who 6.10 'The Girl Who Waited' Review
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsJames Willetts brings us his review of 'The Girl Who Waited'! Don't forget to check out our commentary, and let us know what you think!
What can you say about The Girl Who Waited? Well first of all, it's brilliant. Secondly though, it's yet another chance for the cast to showcase just how great they are.
I was speaking to someone the other day who complained that since RTD left Doctor Who hadn't been the same. They were right. It's got better. This has been touted as a little bit like Turn Left, but it's as superior to that as the Original Trilogy is to the Prequels.
This isn't just look what happens if the Doctor dies, if you make the wrong choice, go through the wrong door. This is what happens if that wrong decision is compounded again and again. None of it malicious. This wasn't a trick to make things deliberately worse. This wasn't a world threatening sequence of disasters. It was one woman who pressed the wrong button and ended up in a different time stream. That's it.
In fact the whole theme of this episode was choices. It opens with Amy making the wrong choice of what button to press (but it was one that Rory and the Doctor could easily have made too), hinged upon Amy making the decision to work with Rory to save her younger self, and ended with the Doctor leaving Rory to make the choice about which wife to save.
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Torchwood Miracle Day - 10. 'The Blood Line' - Spoiler-free preview
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 seconds
Caleb Woodbridge previews 'The Blood Line', the shocking finale of Torchwood: Miracle Day. With Torchwood split across opposite sides of the world - Rex and Esther in Buenos Aires; Gwen, Jack and Oswald in Shanghai - the race is on to reverse the Miracle before the Families can implement the next stage of their grand plan.
It's the end, but has the moment been prepared for? Well, sort of - like Miracle Day as a whole, 'The Blood Line' is a mix of the good, the bad and the just plain silly. But it carries it off with enough energy and conviction to make it compelling, if not entirely coherent, storytelling. And inevitably, not everyone is going to make it out alive...
Tough choices await Captain Jack and the rest of his team. Much of the drama centres around the decision to bring back death, giving a real sense of the weight and responsibility of the choice. This is especially true of Gwen Cooper, whose opening speech sets the tone for the episode, and Eve Myles does a great job as usual of humanising what could become a rather abstract concept. Central to the series is the theme of the danger of deciding who lives and who dies.
On a lighter note, there are also some fan-pleasing references to Doctor Who continuity. And the last few scenes come with a twist that will redefine Torchwood as a show if it returns - but whether it will be renewed is very much in question.
Perhaps more importantly, should the show return? Check back on Thursday night for our commentary and full post-mortem dissection of the undead corpse of Torchwood: Miracle Day!
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Doctor Who 6.10 'The Girl Who Waited' - Commentary
Episode Duration: 0 minutes and 0 secondsCaleb Woodbridge, Swithun Dobson and Sarah Burrow commentate on 'The Girl Who Waited' by Tom MacRae, the latest episode of Doctor Who!
With Amy Pond trapped in the Red Waterfall facility, can the Doctor and Rory rescue her before she is killed by kindness? Or will time catch up with her first?
We discuss time-travel conundrums, asking if knowing the conventions of the show's format helps or hinders the drama. We dig deep into Amy and Rory's relationship, praising Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill's performances, plus spot the connections to The Mind Robber, City of Death and Amy's Choice, keep score with Moffat Bingo and much more!
Length: 57 minutes
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