How To Be Sci Fi

Over on the lovely BBC4 for the last few weeks there has been a season of programmes being shown under the umbrella title of Science Fiction Brittanica and what a treasure trove of goodness it’s turning out to be. I must confess to be a little remiss when it comes to tuning in to absolutely everything that I’ve wanted to watch but there have been plenty of little gems on offer that I have managed to sit down and enjoy. Highlights have been a couple of interviews by Mark Lawson with two of my favourite authors, Iain (M) Banks and Terry Pratchett, a new adaptation of John Wyndham’s Random Quest, one of favourite episodes of Star Trek The Next Generation “Yesterday’s Enterprise”, along with reruns of “Ark In Space” and “Spearhead From Space” from Doctor Who. However, it was the latest in Nigel Planer’s irregular series of mockumentaries, “How To Be Sci Fi” that has stuck in the mind. Once again, portraying classical actor, Nicholas Craig, Planer speaks to camera as he looks back at his time as a sci-fi actor. These “talking head” style segments are interlaced with clips (mainly from Doctor Who and Blake’s 7) designed to make you laugh at, rather than laugh with the medium. It’s good to see that we as sci-fi fans still have the ability to mock ourselves and get a little perspective on our peculiar hobby. It is the advent of digital TV that has enabled the BBC to produce an event such as this, much as I would like to see a sci-fi marathon like this on BBC2 I can’t really see the schedules being up in the air to such an extent on a precious terestrial channel. There’s still plenty of bits and pieces left to watch, so tune in if you can and let me know what you’ve thought of it so far.

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Tags: bbc2, BBC4, Blakes--7, Iain-Banks, Mark-Lawson, Nicholas-Craig, Nigel-Planer, Sci Fi, Science-Fiction-Brittanica, Star-Trek, Star-Trek-TNG, Terry-Pratchett