Starship Alexandria

For the fifth day of the 2025 Starship Alexandria advent calendar, Emma tries to put into words how much she loves season five of an unusual television show.

If you'd like to support the show, you can become a patron at https://www.patreon.com/c/starshipalexandria/home

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance

Adrian's most recent book: Starseer's Ruin https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/hb-starseers-ruin-eng-2025

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For the fourth day of the 2025 Starship Alexandria advent calendar, it's Adrian's turn to talk about a favourite space based SF show from the nineties!

If you'd like to support the show, you can become a patron at https://www.patreon.com/c/starshipalexandria/home

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance

Adrian's most recent book: Starseer's Ruin https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/hb-starseers-ruin-eng-2025

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For the third day of the 2025 Starship Alexandria advent calendar, Emma recommends an Australian TV show called Mr Inbetween.

If you'd like to support the show, you can become a patron at https://www.patreon.com/c/starshipalexandria/home

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance

Adrian's most recent book: Starseer's Ruin https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/hb-starseers-ruin-eng-2025

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For the second day of the 2025 Starship Alexandria advent calendar, Adrian champions the television series Spaced.

If you'd like to support the show, you can become a patron at https://www.patreon.com/c/starshipalexandria/home

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance

Adrian's most recent book: Starseer's Ruin https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/hb-starseers-ruin-eng-2025

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For our first day of the 2025 Starship Alexandria advent calendar, Emma sings the praises of Star Trek: The Next Generation and explains why it's so special to her.

If you'd like to support the show, you can become a patron at https://www.patreon.com/c/starshipalexandria/home

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance

Adrian's most recent book: Starseer's Ruin https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/hb-starseers-ruin-eng-2025

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For our eighth episode of Starship Alexandria, Adrian puts forward the novel Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock, for Emma to consider.

Our caveat from the episode: "If you have not read this book yet, go and read the book and then listen to this episode, because it really does benefit from not knowing what's going to happen."

Other talking points:

Pronunciation blues

God bless Wikipedia

Adrian shoehorns insects into absolutely everything

Readability as an overlooked virtue

Exploring the challenging female hero/love interest archetype

Was it an homage?

Sense of the numinous

Cornwall is a State of Mind

The internal document as narrative device

Media Mentions:

Diana Wynne Jones, author

Split Worlds series of novels, Emma Newman

Oppenheimer, movie dir. Christopher Nolan

Our next regular episode will look at the movie Godzilla Minus One directed by Takashi Yamazaki. However, we are taking a different turn for December and, instead of a single large episode, we will have an Advent Calendar, with one short episode every day where Emma and Adrian will discuss their favourite TV series. Meanwhile, the patron's episode will be our Q&A session.

Adrian's music recommendation: Duran Duran's Ordinary World https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqIACCH20JU&list=RDFqIACCH20JU&start_radio=1

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance

Adrian's most recent book: Starseer's Ruin https://www.warhammer.com/en-GB/shop/hb-starseers-ruin-eng-2025?srsltid=AfmBOor2S_A__evSPhVQRyFurB0Lf7CIMsVMoqxmB28ig0JRS8itagr0

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For our seventh episode of Starship Alexandria, Emma puts forward the novel The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson, for Adrian to consider.

Other talking points:

Wet Bulb Events

Nonconformist plot structures

The Doyenne of Climate Fiction

The balance of hope and despair

Asshole billionaires again

National stereotypes in spec fic

Adrian thinking he's being clever

SFF as stealth literature for change

Media Mentions:

Saturation Point, novella by Adrian Tchaikovsky, narrated by Emma Newman

The Windup Girl, novel by Paulo Bacigalupi

The Remains of the Day, film dir. James Ivory

Star Trek: The Next Generation, TV series

Piranesi, novel by Susanna Clarke

Our next episode will look at the novel Mythago Wood by Robert Holdstock.

Emma's music recommendation: Borodin's String Quartet No.2 in D Major https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKsCxvT8e8Y&list=RDRKsCxvT8e8Y&start_radio=1

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance

Adrian's most recent book: The Hungry Gods https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/the-hungry-gods-adrian-tchaikovsky/7756963

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For our sixth episode of Starship Alexandria, Adrian puts forward our first film, Battle Beyond the Stars directed by Roger Corman, for Emma to watch and consider.

Other talking points:

Idiolectic time units

Suggestive spaceship design

Doing the robot

Caiman, of the Lambda Zone

Doing a lot of spaceship on a small budget

James Horner soundtracks

The longevity of practical model work

Writing to music

Media Mentions:

The Seven Samurai, film directed by Akira Kurosawa

The Magnificent Seven, film directed by John Sturges

Logan's Run, film directed by Michael Anderson

The Waltons, TV series

Pulp Fiction, film directed by Quentin Tarantino

The A-Team, TV series

Our next episode will look at The Ministry for the Future, the novel by Kim Stanley Robinson.

Adrian's music recommendation: the soundtrack to the Skylanders computer game, by Lorne Balfe and Han Zimmer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l9Z9PCie0mo&list=PL046FFA1862CCE21C&ab_channel=SethisZurlo

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance

Adrian's most recent book: The Hungry Gods https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/the-hungry-gods-adrian-tchaikovsky/7756963

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For our fifth episode of Starship Alexandra, Emma puts forward the short story collection The Golden Apples of the Sun by Ray Bradbury to read and consider.

Other talking points:

Stories specifically talked about: A Sound of Thunder, The Foghorn, The Golden Apples of the Sun (short story), The Garbage Collector, The Fruit at the Bottom of the Bowl, I See You Never, Sun and Shadow, The Wilderness, The Black and White Game,

The butterfly effect (not the film)

Poetic and commercial prose

Lawsuits!

History, repeating itself

The prevalence of the nuclear apocalypse in fiction.

Amazing Obstructive Asshole Stories!

The Time Machine Factory Problem

The prevalence of psychic powers in fiction

Media Mentions:

Star Trek: the Next Generation, TV series (specifically the episode 'The Survivors')

The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms film directed by Eugéne Lourié

Pavane, novel by Keith Roberts

Oppenheimer, film directed by Christopher Nolan

Dune, novel by Frank Herbert

Zen in the Art of Writing, book by Ray Bradbury

Peter Pan, novel/play by JM Barrie

The Police, band

Our next episode will look at the film Battle Beyond the Stars directed by Roger Corman.

Emma's music recommendation: the album Anticlines by Lucrecia Dalt https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOL78nXzgCc&list=OLAK5uy_kirX77Moqz0sO1a2GqQ1D88fgsUvAzrS4&ab_channel=LucreciaDalt-Topic

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance and also a short story in the 'Lesbians in Space' anthology published by Space Wizard press https://www.spacewizardsciencefantasy.com/book/lesbians-in-space-where-no-man-has-gone-before

Adrian's most recent book: Bee Speaker https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/bee-speaker-adrian-tchaikovsky/7741036?ean=9781035901456

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com

For our fourth episode of Starship Alexandra, Adrian puts forward the graphic novels Top Ten volumes 1 and 2 by Moore, Ha and Cannon, for Emma to read and consider.

Other talking points:

• Police procedurals
• Graphic novel reading-fu
• Representation of minorities and prejudice
• The courage of our convictions (or lack of same)

Media Mentions:

Watchmen, graphic novel, Moore & Gibbons

V for Vendetta, graphiv novel, Moore, Lloyd & Weare

Hill Street Blues, TV series

I Robot and related stories, Asimov

ER, TV series

The Boys, graphic novels, Ennis & Robertson (also TV series)

Jess Nevins' annotations to Top Ten: https://enjolrasworld.com/Jess%20Nevins/Top%20Ten/Top%20Ten%20index.htm

The Ballad of Halo Jones, graphic novels, Moore & Gibson

Captain Britain, comics run by Moore & Davis

Invincible, TV series and comic by Kirkman, Walker and Ottley

Our next episode will look at the short story collection The Golden Apples of the Sun by Ray Bradbury.

Adrian's music recommendation: "Lass Sie Gehen" by Seeed https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAiMoUJwp7w&list=RDGAiMoUJwp7w&start_radio=1&ab_channel=Seeed

Emma's latest book: The Vengeance https://geni.us/thevengeance and also a short story in the 'Lesbians in Space' anthology published by Space Wizard press https://www.spacewizardsciencefantasy.com/book/lesbians-in-space-where-no-man-has-gone-before

Adrian's most recent book: Bee Speaker https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/bee-speaker-adrian-tchaikovsky/7741036?ean=9781035901456

Follow us at:

Emma: @[email protected] and www.enewman.co.uk

Adrian: @aptshadow.bsky.social and www.adriantchaikovsky.com