Science Fiction (and Fantasy) on Television

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Feb 2003: Interview with Doug Naylor (half the partnership that created Red Dwarf and now sole creator) at IGN FilmForce where he describes some of the problems in getting the Red Dwarf movie out and the consequently indefinitely postponed Season 9 of the TV series. Not to mention the ever-depressing problems in getting the BBC to treat Science Fiction with anything more than disdain.

External Links

Official Red Dwarf Site

Quite simply the best comedy space series in existence! It all starts with The End - on the deep space mining ship Red Dwarf. We meet general layabout and professional slob, third technician Dave Lister (Craig Charles) who is put into stasis because he won't reveal the whereabouts of the (pregnant) cat he has smuggled on board. The ship's computer, Holly (Norman Lovett), wakes him up a little while later. Well, actually 3 million years later. That is how long it has taken the radiation from a 'little accident' to die down to safe human levels. All the crew are dead. ("They're dead Dave. All the crew are dead. They're all dead Dave.")

But lo, the Red Dwarf, or more precisely Holly, has the ability to maintain one hologram of a dead crew-person. Holly chooses Lister's ex-immediate-superior, the very uptight officer-wannabe, but complete smeghead second technician, Arnold Rimmer (Chris Barrie). We also soon meet the last descendant of Frankenstein the cat that Lister had smuggled on board. Safe from the accident that killed the crew, the cats have been evolving deep in the bowels of the ship for 3 million years. So now we have a humanoid cat-type being. We call him "Cat" (Danny John-Jules). His main interest is dressing to impress and eating. Not very bright though. And frighteningly geeky as alter ego Duane Dibbley! (For a very different Danny, see him in Blade II)

In Season 2, we also meet Kryten (David Ross in season 2, Robert Llewellyn thereafter), a robot designed to serve humans. Lister helps him break his programming and become more "human".

Another notable is Lister's ex-love Christine Kochanski. Early seasons have Christine appearing as Clare Grogan. But later, in Season 7, when the real Christine steps through from another dimension, she is Chloë Annett.

Captain of the Red Dwarf (and very present after the ship has been reconstituted by nanobots) is Captain Frank Hollister (Mac McDonald).

For a few seasons in the middle, Holly, the ship's computer, becomes Hilly (Hattie Hayridge). There comes a point where the computer with an IQ of 6,000 appears to have been reduced to an IQ of 6.

We also meet Arnold Rimmer's alter ego from a parallel dimension - 'Ace' Rimmer - everything Arnold isn't. "Smoke me a kipper, I'll be back for breakfast." The dichotomy of the two Rimmers highlights the excellence of Chris Barrie's acting. (See him also as Lara Croft's butler in Tomb Raider.)

We should also mention the creators - Rob Grant and Doug Naylor (who become "Grant Naylor"). Rob went off and left Doug writing the series.

After eight great series (and we hope there will be more), we have the Red Dwarf movie! Well, at least we hope we do. "In production" for a frightfully long time now, perhaps it will eventually emerge this year.

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