Author Archives: P G Bell

About P G Bell

P. G. Bell (Peter to his friends) is a writer, reviewer and life long fan of sci-fi, fantasy and horror. Born in South Wales, he began watching Doctor Who when he was still crawling and became a proper fan just in time to see the show disappear from the airwaves for 16 years. Needless to say, he was rather chuffed when it reappeared on his doorstep in 2005. Peter has been a regular contributor to The Western Mail newspaper and reviews website Beyond Fiction. He has also had several short stories published, including ‘The Trinket’, a dark fantasy tale from Morrigan Books. He is currently working on a full-length novel.

Author Discussion: Diana Wynne Jones

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Diana Wynne JonesJoin us for a spirited discussion of one of our favourite fantasy authors – the late, great Diana Wynne Jones!

Author of Howl’s Moving Castle, Archer’s Goon and the Chrestomanci series, among many others, Diana was described by Neil Gaiman as “…the best writer of magic there is, for readers of any age.” But, after so much success, why isn’t she a household name? What is her place in today’s crowded YA fiction market?  And just how much of her difficult childhood is evident in her stories? Our panel of intrepid fantasy fans set out to answer these and other questions on their whistle-stop tour of her life and works.

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:19:38 — 72.9MB)

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How's Moving Castle

Is Peter seeing things, or are there bits of the Welsh dragon in there?

Interview: Philip Reeve – author of Mortal Engines, Larklight, Goblins and more!

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Philip Reeve - a thoroughly nice chap

Philip Reeve – the nicest man in sci-fi

To celebrate our makeover, we’re very pleased to bring you an interview with multiple award winning author, Philip Reeve. Philip is the author of some of the finest YA sci-fi and fantasy literature on the market, including the magnificent Mortal Engines quartet, the Larklight trilogy, Here Lies Arthur and his new comic fantasy, Goblins.We’re big fans of Philip’s work, so it was a real treat to speak to him in-depth about the books and films that insprire his stories, his writing process, and why the current trend for dystopian fiction might be leading us down the wrong path. He also had a lot to say about the subject of Steampunk and why Doctor Who needs a bit of a rethink!

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:03:43 — 58.3MB)

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Points of Who #8 – We’re Regenerating!

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A sneak peek at what's to come...In a special edition of our monthly news-and-views roundup (recorded before the sad death of Mary Tamm), we look forward to some of the exciting changes in store for Impossible Podcasts.

New website! New content! Whether you come to us for our Doctor Who commentaries, our discussions on sci-fi and fantasy TV, films and books, our interviews or our video game columns, we think you’ll love our new look. Fresher and easier to navigate, the new site will launch on Saturday 18th August Saturday 25th August, with a raft of new content.

In this week’s podcast, we outline the major changes and interview acclaimed horror writer Simon Kurt Unsworth about his new regular column for us, exploring the ups-and-downs of writing for a living. Plus, we tell you, faithful listener, about the many new ways you can get involved with the podcast, so download it now if you’d like to be a part of it!

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 23:33 — 21.6MB)

Doctor Who Commentary – 5.13 ‘The Big Bang’

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It’s the end, but the moment has been prepared for. Sarah Burrow and P.G. Bell draw our Series 5 commentaries to a close.

Where can a show turn when it’s just wiped out the whole of existence? Why, the National Museum of Wales, of course! We discuss whether the show over-uses its most regular locations and wonder when the polar bears joined the alliance against the Doctor. Plus, does the wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey runaround still hold up, or is it just lots of exposition interrupted by bouts of repetitive action? And can we have Matt Smith dancing in every episode, please?

All this and more, in the latest Impossible Podcast! Download us now!

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 58:40 — 53.7MB)

That’s it for our Series 5 commentaries, but we’ll be commentating on Series 7 week by week, as it happens, so stay tuned!

Doctor Who Commentary – 5.12 ‘The Pandorica Opens’

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Join Sarah and Peter as they plough headlong into the first part of Doctor Who’s Series 5 finale!

It’s been a long journey since ‘The Eleventh Hour‘ and, as Moffat moves his pieces into position for the final confrontation, we chart his progress through the series so far. Did he deliver on his early promises? Has he beaten Russell T Davies at his own game? And, more importantly, has the production team found a way to lessen the embarrassment of those awful new-look Daleks? All this plus: zombie Cybermen, rubbish Romans, horror movie homages and the speech to end all speeches. Oh, and Rory’s back! Yay!

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 55:09 — 50.5MB)

Points of Who #7 – Caroline John, Series 7 and more

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Caroline John as Liz Shaw

Caroline John, 1940 – 2012

Welcome to our monthly round-up of Doctor Who news, views and rumours.

We reflect on the sad death of Caroline John and examine her role as Dr Liz Shaw, one of the most distinctive companions of the Classic Series. Was she dropped for being too strong a character, or did the show’s new Earth-bound format simply work against her?

We also look ahead to the debut of Series 7 and the return of the Daleks. Listen to our theories about what lies in store!

Plus, we make a couple of very exciting announcements about the future of the podcast, including your chance to take part!

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 25:47 — 23.6MB)