nerdfest Podcast: Movies, TV, Trivia and Fun!

It’s time to lie to our closest friends again, as we play our Buff or Bluff quiz. Can you work out the truth from stories about the entertainment industry?

Rounds include facts about re-used props in movies, the ridiculous diets that some stars undertake to prepare for a role, Sir Christopher Lee’s record breaking antics, and the weird and wonderful guest appearances of Sherlock Holmes.

Plus, Hazel gets us all excited for Greta Gerwig’s upcoming Barbie film, by befuddling us (and herself) with the elaborate plots of previous Barbie outings.

We round today’s episode off with a “Higher or Lower” game of how many times movie stars have died in their movies.

It’s a really fun one folks - enjoy!

Dan discusses the similarities between Spielberg’s mostly autobiographical 'The Fabelmans', and Terry Pratchett biography 'A Life with Footnotes'. Andy conducts a TARiffic review of 'Tar' (sorry, the puns don’t get any better….). Jon reviews post-apocalyptic zombie thriller 'The Last of Us' (as an avid fan of the game, will he be converted?) Hazel recommends 'This is Us'. which she accidentally stumbled across when looking for 'The Last Of Us' and has completely fallen in love with. And Peter reviews the Gary Oldman MI5 thriller series “Slow Horses”, with apologies in advance to our Slough-based listeners…

Jon, Ian, Andy and Peter riffle through the dusty attic of Ian's brain, attempting to find at least ONE thing he actually enjoyed over the past few weeks!

We also play Buff or Bluff about early TV music shows, dodgy 80's computer game licences, famous actors' debut performances, and some ridiculously terse movie plotlines- Can you beat the team to guess which movies they describe?

It’s the first Nerdfest of 2023, and Jon, Peter, Kerris and Dan have each been making ‘most anticipated’ lists of the stuff we’re hyped for in ‘23. Adam Driver fighting dinosaurs! 'The Last Of Us' on TV! The return of Ghostface! A "fourth" Indiana Jones movie! And something about 'Groundhog Day'…

What’s on YOUR "must see" list? Get in touch and let us know!

It’s our end of year show! Today our nerds - Peter, Jon, Hazel, and not one but TWO Ians, are all counting down our top 3 favourite things from the world of entertainment in 2022.

It can be films, it can be TV shows, it can be games, it can be anything! So join us as we reminisce over what brought us joy in 2022. (Although, we do have to issue a warning- We start on an extremely controversial note, but the only way from a 'Moonfall' is up!)

We wish all our listeners a fantastic Christmas. We’ll see you in January with our countdown of what’s coming in 2023.

We bring new reviews and recommendations, including the return of Benoit Blanc in 'Glass Onion', the onscreen adaptation of 'Matilda the Musical', and a TV show all about everyone’s favourite day of the week: 'Wednesday' ( the new series charting Wednesday Addam’s school years).

Dan talks about his love for 'Andor', as he reflects on what this series has meant to him (no spoilers if you haven’t finished it yet!)

Plus, we finally give in and let Jon review a new 'Hellraiser' film. Strap yourselves in!

We give our initial, spoiler-free thoughts on the latest offering from the MCU- 'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.'

Plus, in our Buff or Bluff quiz we have rounds on terrible films inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s 'The Birds', and the life and career of the T1000 himself, Robert Patrick. We also delve into some political history, with facts about the movie-watching habits of US presidents, and Jon brings his special blend of nonsense with trivia about the Amityville horror franchise.

And we have the return of our 'Getting to Nerd You' segment, where we reflect fondly on some of our favourite movie-going experiences.

Here’s the crowdfunding link for Boho Arts that we talk about at the beginning. Thank you! https://www.spacehive.com/help-a-new-arts-venue-in-newcastle

We review the TV shows and films we’ve been enjoying recently, including Brendan Fraser’s welcome return in ‘The Whale’, Korean Hitchcockian thriller ‘Decision to Leave’, Stephen Moffat’s new drama ‘Inside Man’, and we head back to the Quick Stop Convenience store with Kevin Smith’s ‘Clerks 3.’

Dan went to “that London” recently and saw ‘Back to the Future: The musical’- his review has us all reminiscing about the 1985 classic, and unfortunately also inspires Jon to come up with some alternate musical ideas…

Plus, Andy has a fun film quiz for us all at the end of the episode, which sees us try to guess the film titles from their adapted synopsis.

We’re live and direct from Newcastle Fright Fest this episode, as Hazel, Jon, Peter and Ian pod in public to fill a Shameful Gap of ‘A NightMare on Elm St’. We also Buff or Bluff each other about the wide range of Freddie tat to accompany that series, some implausible film festivals, the worlds crappiest superheroes, and historically bad movie reviews.



Jon interviews Simon Donald (http:/simondonald.com), one of the founders of ‘Viz’ comic at the show, and the team disentangle some tortuous puns with a Change A Letter quiz.

In today’s episode we give our first reactions to the newest Star Wars TV show on the block, Andor (that Squeeeeeeeee you heard was courtesy of Dan Watkins).

Then it’s Buff or Bluff time, where the nerds have to work out the truth from facts about Hollywood script doctors, franchise monsters in space, film dancers and dances, and Marvel theme park attractions.

Plus, Andy has three plots for movies with tenuous links to whales, in honour of the wonderful Brendan Fraser and his return to leading man status in “The Whale”.

And finally, if you’re in the area, come and see the nerds podcast LIVE on Sunday 9th October at Newcastle Fright Fest. We’ll be recording a live episode, as well as interviewing lots of interesting guests. If you’re coming, please come along and say hi - full details can be found at https://www.boilershop.net/events/2022/10/09/nerd-fright-fest-2022