In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a sequel that was a beast to make, and a British book adaptation that Tom Hanks sort-of-unlocked.

Aliens remains the template for how to make an excellent sequel - but heck, was it beset by problems. Not least that writer/director James Cameron and the crew at Pinewood Studios making the film were not exactly on each other's Christmas card lists.

Starter For Ten was a bit more straightforward, but even then, it took American money to bring a very British book to the screen. All in a film that had a hand in launching a lot of big name careers...

Stories of both are told in this episode.

Find Simon on Twitter at @simonbrew, and the podcast can be found at @filmstoriespod.

Support this podcast: www.patreon.com/simonbrew.

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