documentary – Page 3

BBC 7: Scots Gothic – the influence of Scotland on Edgar Allan Poe

SFFaudio Online Audio

If you love Edgar Allan Poe (and really who doesn’t?) you’ll want to get your mitts on today’s BBC 7 documentary!

Scots Gothic – A Portrait Of Edgar Allan Poe In Ayrshire
1 Broadcast – Approx. 30 Minutes [DOCUMENTARY]
Broadcaster: BBC Radio 7
Broadcast: June 27th 2008 @ 9am and 7pm
Billy Kay investigates the impact of Scotland and its culture on the great American author Edgar Allan Poe. As a boy, Poe made an extended visit to Ayrshire in the company of his Scots-born foster father – where the vivid local folklore, bodysnatching stories and school task of recording graveyard epitaphs are all believed to have influenced the development of Poe’s dark imagination. Local historians discuss this world of “Scots Gothic”, with readings from John Buick and Keith Fleming.

It’s already in the “Listen Again” section! Go check it out!

Posted by Jesse Willis

BBC Radio 4: A documentary on Doctor Who books!

SFFaudio Online Audio

Spotted in next week’s Radio Times, and soon to be found in my Radio Downloader folder, an item that should be of interest to those classic Doctor Who fans who collected and read the Doctor Who books in the 1980s [me].

Speaking of the 1980s and Doctor Who … did I ever tell you that I once got to shake 3 of Jon Petwee‘s 10 fingers?

It’s all true!

You envy me now don’t you?

On The Outside It Looked Like An Old-Fashioned Police Box
By Mark Gatiss
1 Broadcast – Approx. 30 Minutes [DOCUMENTARY]
Broadcaster: BBC Radio 4
Broadcast: Tuesday 23rd June 11:30-12:00
Mark Gatiss, Doctor Who writer and fanatic, explores the hugely popular Doctor Who novelisations of the 1970s and 80s, published by Target books. Featuring some of the best excerpts from the books and interviews with publishers, house writers, illustrators and the actors whose adventures the books tirelessly depicted.

In an age before DVD and video, the Target book series of Doctor Who fiction was conceived as the chance for children to ‘keep’ and revisit classic Doctor Who. They were marketed as such, written in a highly visual house style. Descriptive passages did the work of the TV camera and the scripts were more or less faithfully reproduced as dialogue.

The books were as close to the experience of watching as possible, and were adored by a generation of children who grew up transfixed by the classic BBC series. Target Doctor Who books became a children’s publishing phenomenon – they sold over 13 million copies worldwide. From 1973 until 1994, the Target Doctor Who paperbacks were a mainstay of the publishing world.

A Brook Lapping production for BBC Radio 4.

[Thanks Roy!]

Posted by Jesse Willis

BBC Radio 4: Ursula K. Le Guin biographical documentary NOW an MP3

SFFaudio Online Audio

The now 80 year old Ursula K. Le Guin looks back on her life and career and the Ursula K. Le Guin’s website is hosting the MP3 file made from the March 17th 2009 BBC broadcast interview. Have a listen |MP3|.

Writer China Mieville talks to American science fiction writer Ursula Le Guin.

Le Guin was a trailblazer – writing in the 1960s, her series of books about the adventures of a boy wizard, Ged, included characters of every race and colour. Her fiction has been acutely concerned with politics, portraying worlds destroyed by environmental catastrophe that prefigured modern concerns about global warming, and societies without gender just as modern-day feminism began to take off.

Featuring contributions and tributes from Iain M. Banks and Margaret Atwood.

This documentary aired Tuesday March 17th 2009 @ 11:30-12:00 BBC R4: Ursula Le Guin At 80

[via SFsignal.com and our ORIGINAL POST]

Posted by Jesse Willis

Weird Tales: The Strange Life Of H.P. Lovecraft (originally on BBC Radio 3)

SFFaudio Online Audio

Here’s the terrific 2006 BBC Radio 3 documentary Weird Tales: The Strange Life Of H.P. Lovecraft, broken up into 5 parts and with unnecessary images (which I’ve minimized) for YouTube.

“Geoff Ward examines the strange life and terrifying world of the man hailed as America’s greatest horror writer since Poe. During his life Lovecraft’s work was confined to lurid pulp magazines and he died in penury in 1937. Today, however, his writings are considered modern classics and published in prestigious editions. Among the writers considering his legacy are Neil Gaiman, S.T. Joshi, Kelly Link, Peter Straub and China Mieville.”

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

[via Monster Rally]

Posted by Jesse Willis

BBC Radio 4: Ursula K. Le Guin biographical documentary

SFFaudio Online Audio

Coming up on BBC R4
Ursula K. Le Guin looks back on her life and career…

Writer China Mieville talks to American science fiction writer Ursula Le Guin.

Le Guin was a trailblazer – writing in the 1960s, her series of books about the adventures of a boy wizard, Ged, included characters of every race and colour. Her fiction has been acutely concerned with politics, portraying worlds destroyed by environmental catastrophe that prefigured modern concerns about global warming, and societies without gender just as modern-day feminism began to take off.

Featuring contributions and tributes from Iain M. Banks and Margaret Atwood.

Airs Tuesday March 17th 2009 @ 11:30-12:00 BBC R4: Ursula Le Guin At 80

[Thanks Roy!]

Posted by Jesse Willis

BBC7 presents: Down and Safe (Blake’s 7)

SFFaudio Online Audio

Down and Safe: A Celebration of Blake’s 7
Presented by fan Mitch Benn.
Airdate: August 25, 2008 (aired 3 times).

Holy moly, I was busy and away and almost missed this excellent radio retrospective of Blake’s 7. (Fortunately for all of us, it is still available to listen to -see below.) Clocking in at three hours, Down and Safe covers the whole shebang, from the groundbreaking and influential late 70’s television series to the latest version reimagined and presented as audio drama, with clips and snippets and informed commentary and…

…And, speaking of audio drama, well, check out the BBC7 blurb: The BBC 7 bank holiday rebellion starts with the history and rebirth of a sci-fi classic, with episodes including The Syndleton Experiment (1999), Liberator (2007) and When Vila Met Gan (2008).

Yep, you heard right. Three complete full cast audio plays -they form the bulk of the show; three different and very entertaining takes on the Blake’s 7 universe that you shouldn’t miss (unless you have a very good excuse like, say, hives). So, space science fiction luvvers everywhere, be sure to check out Down and Safe here, here, here (RealPlayer required) or here (webpage – RealPlayer required) through Sunday, August 31!

Posted by RC of RTSF