Is that the rousing sound of Carl Orff’s O Fortuna assaulting our ears? Yes, it’s time for a genuine “round table” discussion: this episode we look back at Excalibur, John Boorman’s 1981 whirlwind tour of Arthurian legend. Based on the 15th-century prose work Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory, which collected together many popular legends about King Arthur and his knights, Boorman’s film takes us from Arthur’s conception through to his death, taking in the rise and fall of Camelot and the quest for the Holy Grail. It stars Nicol Williamson, Helen Mirren, Liam Neeson, Gabriel Byrne, Patrick St ..read more

We’ve received a premonition of the future and we predict that you’re about to listen to an hour and a bit of sci-fi and fantasy chat. Thanks to our pre-cog mates, we’ve also learned that we’ll be talking about Steven Spielberg’s remarkably prescient Philip K Dick adaptation, Minority Report. We’ll be joined this episode by author, futuregazer and games industry expert Kelly Vero.  Join us on a trip back 19 years to Steven Spielberg’s thriller Minority Report, in which a troubled cop played by Tom Cruise goes on the run after his psychic pre-crime division predicts he’ll be the next guy t ..read more

Join us on a trip back 30 years, as we rewatch Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Rightly regarded as a landmark in movie special effects, James Cameron’s 1991 classic remains a much-loved action film and a high point in the Terminator franchise. The film follows Sarah and John Connor (Linda Hamilton and Edward Furlong) as they are targetted by an advanced, shape-shifting Terminator from the future (Robert Patrick). They are accompanied by a version of the original Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger), sent back in time to protect them. Are we still fans, after all this time? Which of us saw it at the ..read more

Black holes. Warped time. The end of the world! It’s all relativity as we look back – and forward – at Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar. We're joined by Andrew Glester, acclaimed science writer, award-winning radio presenter and podcast host, film producer and director. Andrew's Cosmic Shed podcast was recently named as one of the Guardian's Favourite Podcasts, and he's also worked with BBC Worldwide, The Natural History Museum, Physics World, and more. He's perfectly placed to help us understand the time- and space-bending drama of Interstellar. The 2014 epic stars Matthew McConaughey as an a ..read more

We’ve got answers, but if you’re looking for questions… Well, you’re going to have to ask Deep Thought. We take a trip through life, the universe and everything as we celebrate The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy.  Which is the definitive version of Douglas Adams' masterpiece? The radio series hit airwaves in 1978, the first novel followed in 1979, there's a much-loved 1980s TV series and oft-maligned 2005 movie, with videogames, comics and stageplays appearing along the way. Saturated with Adams unique voice, the story is infinitely quotable and hugely influential. Join us as we spend a ..read more

Don’t lose your head! Your sci-fi podcast is back for its second season. We’ll be rewatching 1986 sword-and-accents fantasy Highlander in the company of top author Guy Haley. Plus we’ll reveal the current shows we recommend, and cast our eyes over the news. It’s a lot of fun and – gasp! – features our first ever bleep censor. We check out The Nevers, the Victorian women-with-mysterious-powers show originated by Joss Whedon. And we’ve also watched Army Of The Dead on Netflix, the Ocean's Eleven meets Land of The Dead meets Escape From New York movie by Zack “Snyder Cut” Snyder. Are either worth ..read more

We're back! But we haven't yet returned to our original form... As a precursor to the upcoming, hotly anticipated second season of Robby The Robot's Waiting, we've put together an elegantly titled What We've Been Watching And/Or Reading: Special Edition rounding up the sci-fi and fantasy we've been cramming into our eyeballs since we've been on hiatus.  What does "fantasy man" Dave think of Netflix's latest dose of magic? Which superhero show caused Tanavi to rage quit? Why have we been rewatching Green Lantern, FlashForward and Terra Nova? And how much did Chewits influence Godzilla Vs K ..read more

The latest MCU series felt like a film told in six instalments. Soaring action, powerful themes, exotic locations, old allies and new foes... it's been a thrill ride. We've had a week to recover from the finale of The Falcon And The Winter Soldier, with its battles and character reveals. So what did we think of it overall? The six-episode Marvel series ran weekly on Disney+ and took us on a fraught journey across a world dealing with the outcomes of Avengers: Endgame. In many respects, it's an origin story for our new Captain America. With some familiar faces from the films and new villains in ..read more

Found it! Yes, the famous lost episode of Robby The Robot’s Waiting – the one that got lost somewhere in the deepest depths of outer space (aka the internet) – has been rediscovered and unleashed in the direction of your eardrums. After one of our audio tracks went missing, we re-recorded most of the podcast to make sure you didn’t miss out on our chat about The Black Hole. Now it’s back from the other side of reality – and it’s epic.  We’re joined by John Singh, a publicity mastermind who’s worked for companies like Disney and Lucasfilm, to talk about Disney’s first attempt to ‘do’ Star ..read more

Good news, everyone! We’re hitching a ride to the 31st century with Planet Express, to celebrate the animated comedy genius of Futurama with our guest, writer and broadcaster Yael Tygiel. You can catch up on Matt Groening and David X Cohen’s sci-fi cartoon too because all 140 episodes are available now on Disney+. Is it still funny? We think so.  A waste of time or a four-hour epic of “I told you so” proportions? We discuss Zack Snyder’s Justice League and how it deviates from the 2017 version.  Meanwhile, we’ve also been watching the start of Marvel’s latest TV offering, Falcon And ..read more