Pilot TV

Merry Christmas! and welcome to Pilot TV’s festive round-up of the year that was. Over the course of two glorious hours, we break down the last 12 months in television, sifting through the good, the bad, and the ugly of 2024. From our official best shows list, to honourable mentions, listener questions, some of our favourite moments and an extended (and excruciating) blooper reel from our editor, Darren, we send the year out in style and pave the way for an even better 2025. So kick back, listen up and enjoy!

In our final regular podcast of the year, we speak to the legendary Nicola Walker (26:53) about The Split: Barcelona, as well as Harlan Coben and Nicola Shindler (1:28:19) for Netflix’s Missing You. Plus, we go all festive and sift through some of the great telly coming your way over the Christmas period, including A Ghost Story For Christmas (1:44:29), The Christmas episode of Doctor Who (1:49:06), and the latest season of Steven Knight’s SAS: Rogue Heroes (1:55:26). We also find time to open Santa’s sack and answer your questions in a bumper Christmas postbag, before signing off for a little chocolate-assisted R&R. Note: time stamps are approximate as the ads throw them out, so are only meant as a guide. If you want to avoid this and would like the podcast entirely ad-free (as well as 12 hours early, with a second weekly show and spoiler specials) then sign up to Pilot+ at empire.supportingcast.fm.

In an unexpected turn of events, Pilot TV’s set visit to the new third (and fourth) season of Apple TV+’s Silo resulted in a sit down interview with both Rebecca Ferguson and the big Apple himself, Tim Cook (27:24). Never one to miss a chance to wax lyrical about Foundation, James cornered the Apple CEO to discuss the streamer’s penchant for brilliant nerdy sci-fi. Elsewhere, we review BBC1’s latest Strike instalment, The Ink Black Heart (1:19:03), and speak to star Holliday Grainger while we’re at it (1:00:45), plus we catch up with Kaley Cuoco’s serial killer podcast in the second season of Based On A True Story on Sky (1:31:19). Note: time stamps are approximate as the ads throw them out, so are only meant as a guide. If you want to avoid this and would like the podcast entirely ad-free (as well as 12 hours early, with a second weekly show, and spoiler specials) then sign up to Pilot+ at empire.supportingcast.fm.

We were delighted to be joined in the studio this week by friend of the pod and Black Doves creator Joe Barton, who heroically braved Euston traffic and his post-premiere hangover to make a triumphant return to the podcast, sitting in with us this week as we chatted everything from animation to comedy and the creative powers of the ‘Merrineum’. Elsewhere, we dabble in Tim Miller’s new video game inspired Prime animation Secret Level, and Netflix’s adaptation of Gabriel García Márquez’s 100 Years Of Solitude.

We’re back in side the Agency this week as the stars of that show, Michale Fassbender and Jeffrey Wright, stop by to chat covert action (26:07). Plus, we continue the espionage theme with Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw in Netflix’s Black Doves (57:24), steal a monstrous amount of maple syrup with Margo Martindale in The Sticky on Prime (1:10:40), and end up watching Dalgliesh on Channel 5 (1:18:41) because everything else was embargoed. Note: time stamps are approximate as the ads throw them out, so are only meant as a guide. If you want to avoid this and would like the podcast entirely ad-free (as well as 12 hours early, with a second weekly show, and spoiler specials) then sign up to Pilot+ at empire.supportingcast.fm.

We have a quartet of brilliant guests for you this week as Billy Bob Thornton and Ali Larter join us to talk Taylor Sheridan’s new show, Landman, on Paramount+ (18:01), and Bene Gesserit sisters Olivia Williams and Emily Watson also drop by to chat Dune Prophecy (45:43). Elsewhere, we head deep undercover with Michael Fassbender for star-studded espionage thriller The Agency on Paramount+ (59:47), head up North for Middlesborough set sitcom Smoggie Queens on BBC3 (1:13:56), and experience the cuckoobong extravaganza that is Mrs Davis on ITVX (1:23:51), which almost defies description. All that as we attempt to dodge Kay’s lurgy as she spreads germs liberally around the studio.Note: time stamps are approximate as the ads throw them out, so are only meant as a guide. If you want to avoid this and would like the podcast entirely ad-free (as well as 12 hours early, with a second weekly show, and spoiler specials) then sign up to Pilot+ at empire.supportingcast.fm.

It’s absolute anarchy this week as we manage to begin the podcast first with a debate about proper podcast nomenclature and then with Kay and Boyd fighting over what does and does not constitute and illegal review. But bear with us and we promise the podcast proper does start eventually. And a good thing too, because Aldis Hodge and Ben Watkins join us to talk Cross (22:16) — though not to get cross — and Rebecca Hall drops by to talk The Listeners (49:12). Elsewhere, we give BBC1’s The Listeners the full review treatment (1:06:36), plus spice things up with Dune: Prophecy on Sky Atlantic (1:15:48) and discover whether Michael Schur and Ted Danson’s new comedy, A Man On the Inside (1:31:22), can hold a candle to The Good Place. Note: time stamps are approximate as the ads throw them out, so are only meant as a guide. If you want to avoid this and would like the podcast entirely ad-free (as well as 12 hours early, with a second weekly show, and spoiler specials) then sign up to Pilot+ at empire.supportingcast.fm.

The Dude himself, Mr Jeff Bridges is one of our guests on this week’s show (27:27), talking about the return of The Old Man on Disney+. He’s joined by Steve Zahn, who drops by to talk about Silo (1:39:49) as its second season drops on Apple TV+. And speaking of which, we dig beneath the surface of that show (1:20:49) to find out whether its encore performance can live up to its sparkling debut, plus we take a trip back to the Troubles for IRA drama Say Nothing on Disney+ (1:31:23). But that’s not all, because in a rare convergence of the spheres, we actually review…. an animation (1:06:19). But not just any animation, because Netflix’s Arcane is back, back, back and even James is excited about this one.Note: time stamps are approximate as the ads throw them out, so are only meant as a guide. If you want to avoid this and would like the podcast entirely ad-free (as well as 12 hours early, with a second weekly show, and spoiler specials) then sign up to Pilot+ at empire.supportingcast.fm.

Comedy legend Billy Crystal is our guest this week, not to talk about comedy, though, but rather psychological thriller Before on Apple TV+. Plus, we have an espionage triple bill for you this week as we delve into the world of assassination with Eddie Redmaybe and Lashana Lynch — both of whom are also guests on this week’s show — in Sky’s The Day Of The Jackal, heading to Afghanistan with Jeff Bridges — a guest on next week’s show — for season 2 of The Old Man on Disney+, and getting another dose of Prime’s Citadelverse in Indian regional spinoff Citadel: Honey Bunny.

Richard E. Grant joins us on the show this week (1:00:00) to talk about The Franchise, which we reviewed last week, plus Ben Wheatley joins drops by to talk about his satirical back comedy Generation Z (00:24:58), which made its debut on Channel 4 on the weekend and which we also review (1:17:01). We head off to France to battle terrorists in Paris Has Fallen on Prime (1:25:51), and we take a harrowing look at life with a serial killer alongside Anna Maxwell Martin in Until I Kill You on ITV (1:35:29). Plus there’s talk of hanging out at Robbie Williams’ house, getting the bejesus scared out of us by Sean Harris, broken penises, interviews derailed by football and an awful lot of zomzies (sic).Note: time stamps are approximate as the ads throw them out, so are only meant as a guide. If you want to avoid this and would like the podcast entirely ad-free (as well as 12 hours early, along with a second weekly show and spoiler specials) then sign up to Pilot+ at empire.supportingcast.fm.

Captain Nemo himself, Shazad Latif, joining us this week to chat Nautilus on Prime Video, and Felicity Ward is also a guest on this week’s show, chatting about her role at the forefront of Australia’s take on The Office. Elsewhere, we head behind the scenes of a blockbuster superhero movie in Sky Comedy’s The Franchise, and recline on Jason Segel’s couch in season 2 of Shrinking on Apple TV+. But don’t ask Kay about any of that as there’s a significant chance she’s not listening.

Eighties bonkbuster Rivals arrives on Disney+ this week and our very own Kay Ribeiro gets under the covers with star Aidan Turner to talk all about it. Plus, Lennie James takes on a decades-spanning role in Mr Loverman on BBC1, as a septuagenarian finally coming out of the closet, and Boydy got to chat with Lennie all about that. We also take a look at series 2 of The Devil’s Hour on Prime, which proves a delightful surprise to James and manages to utterly destroy Kay. Listen and find out why.

We invite Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal onto this week’s show to talk about Spanish-language boxing drama a Máquina on Disney+. But that’s not all, as we pillory Kay for daring to take some time off, James is lambasted for his egregious (if entirely oblivious) queue-jumping, and there’s some seasonal spooky chat about the best TV-based horrors. As well as reviewing La Máquina, though, we also take a look at starry Apple drama Disclaimer with Cate Blanchett, and Sweetpea on Sky Atlantic, in which Ella Purnell gets in touch with her inner sociopath.

It’s a crime special this week as not only do we delve into Ryan Murphy’s latest bowl of depravity in crime drama Grotesquerie on Disney+ but we also have Crime Monthly editor Steph Seelan standing in for Kay, who’s still on her meditation retreat (if you worked with James and Boyd, you’d need one too). And while we have Steph among us, we take the opportunity to delve into the best British crime shows and get her professional take. Elsewhere, we return to Pierpoint with Industry series 3, which finally makes its way to BBC1, and catch up with the second series of Showtrial, which does likewise.

There’s an ever-so-slight mix-up this week over whether a prestige BBC drama about tennis coaches should be masquerading as a Spanish language show about pirate ambulances, but that particular wrinkle thankfully gets ironed out in time for us to tackle Apples Never Fall on BBC1, in which Sam Neill may or may not have murdered Annette Bening. Plus David Mitchell and David Mitchell star as a pair of twins in Ludwig, also on the Beeb, and Sophie Turner takes a turn as godmother of crime Joan Hannington in Joan on ITV1. Also, now that the embargo has lifted, Boyd and Kay are able to review A Very Royal Scandal and James once again gets into the reasons why he wasn’t bewitched by Agatha All Along.

Ruth Wilson is our guest on the show this week, talking about A Very Royal Scandal, which comes to Prime Video this week but is also heavily embargoed so we can’t tell you about it on this week’s show. Luckily, she can! Plus, we’re all up in The Penguin’s business this week as that spinoff from Matt Reeves’ The Batman lands on Sky Atlantic and Now. Agatha All Along… is also embargoed, so we’ll be tackling that on this week’s Pilot+, but that does mean we have the bandwidth to return to Channel 5 for The Wives and, to properly send James off the deep end, we give the Frasier reboot another chance over on Paramount+. It doesn’t go well. All that and we also find the time for an emergency Emmys drop-in, discussing this year's winners.

It’s a special quarantine version of the pod this week as James, still struck down with Covid, feebly attempts to host the podcast while Boyd and Kay stay as far away from his lurgy as humanly possible. But despite a minor case of plague and an absolute dearth of telly this week, the team manage to hit the tracks for real-time train-based thriller Nightsleeper on BBC1, shagtastic educator drama The Teachers on Channel 5, and a trés Français fashion drama La Maison on Apple TV+. All that and you also get to hear how Kay’s boozy leaving drinks went and why Boyd now wears a t-shirt with her face on.

James returns from his Taycation this week, but don’t fret because to make up for that we have Gary Oldman on the show this week discussing the joy of Jackson Lamb in Slow Horses, and Eve Hewson chatting The Perfect Couple on Netflix. And speaking of Slow Horses, the arrival of Season 4 on Apple TV+ is cause for much celebration and is one of three triumphant returns this week, alongside Colin From Accounts, which finally makes its way to BBC2, and ITV’s The Tower.

James is still absent while he devotes every waking hour to recovering from the Taylor Swift concert, so Boyd and Kay are joined by all-round legend Sophie Butcher, who recently compared Dating Naked UK and Love Island to Claire Denis’ masterpiece Beau Travail. Up for review this week are season 4 of Only Murders In The Building on Disney+ (we will not be doing a spoiler special for this season, though, due to public demand), plus French series Sambre: Anatomy Of A Crime on BBC4, and the new fourth series of ITV1 crime drama Grace, starring John Simm. And yes, Grace episodes are 90 minutes long. Apologies all round. As for the guests we have the lovely comedians Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan discussing their Rob & Romesh Vs series on Sky Max and NOW. Just to underline that James is away this week… 

We made it! 300 episodes (not counting the many episodes of Pilot+ or the spoiler specials) feels like quite the milestone, even if we weren’t able to do a live show because James has tickets to see Taylor Swift. He did manage to drag himself away from Eras Tour prep (those friendship bracelets don’t make themselves) to drop in and join Boyd and Kay for the 300th show, though, despite being on holiday. Could it be because Boyd and Kay both refused to watch yet another Walking Dead show? No comment. We do, however, get a run down of Dead City on Sky, as well as round two of Pachinko on Apple TV+, We Might Regret This on BBC2, and the return of Sherwood on BBC1, and on the subject of Sherwood, the creator and writer of the show, James Graham, is this week’s guest. Plus we have a few of you on as Well, leaving us testimonials to mark our threehundredieth birthday. Hooray!

We can’t review Paramount+’s Stags this week as it’s embargoed, but that didnt’ stop star Nico Mirallegro dropping by the pod to talk about the stag do from hell. Elsewhere, we can’t lie, this week is somewhat anarchic. Kay and James are sleep deprived to the point of delirium and even a well-rested and thoroughly perky Boyd can’t stop the good ship Pilot from taking on water and coming perilously close to capsizing completely. Still, between bickering about the olympics, exploring the etymology of Strictly Come Dancing and some minor controversy about how to pronounce a rather important name, we still manage (somehow) to review Vince Vaughn’s crime adventure Bad Monkey on Apple, Aimee Lou Wood and David Morrissey’s dysfunctional family drama Daddy issues on BBC3, and Sam Neill’s Aussie legal drama The Twelve on ITVX. Frankly, it’s a miracle we got through it all!

Like an episode of 24, we’re racing against the clock on this week’s show. But the imminent threat of being thrown from the studio by Jack Bauer didn’t stop us from dimension hopping with ITVX’s Slip, digging up a relic with Company You Keep on Alibi and heading up to Scotland for some criminal shenanigans with Irvine Welsh’s Crime, now on ITV1. Plus Boyd waxes lyrical about the Olympics, Kay asks about Summer shows and the practice of ‘raw dogging’ gets a full examination — not the kind you think!

We have vampires AND zombies this week in an undead double bill (Kay was thrilled) as well as people hurling themselves to a watery doom. More specifically, we tackle the second season of Interview With The Vampire on BBC2, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon on Sky Max, and Totally Completely Fine on ITVX. But that’s not all, because we pull out some Paramount+ recommendations for those looking to drop into that streaming service (assuming you’ve forgiven them for cancelling Halo!), reel off some comfort watches for maternity leave and crunch some stats over recent streaming figures. All that while Boyd beams in from his holiday in NYC. Now that’s dedication.

Champion of the green team Ser Gwayne Hightower aka Freddie Fox joins us on the show this week to fill us in on the latest developments in House Of The Dragon, plus we dissect this year’s Emmy nominations, which saw Shōgun and The Bear (*cough* not a comedy *cough*) leading the pack. Elsewhere, we take a look at Apple’s Gilliam-esque reimagining, Time Bandits, head into police training with ITV’s Piglets, and experiment with the latest spin-off in The Good Wife franchise with Elspeth on Sky Witness.

Stars of Apple’s Lady In The Lake Natalie Portman and Moses Ingram join us on this week’s show despite a few technical hiccups. Plus we end up unearthing a cold case in BBC1’s very pointed Jenna Coleman police drama The Jetty, welcoming Danny Dyer back into the family with Mr. Bigstuff on Sky Max and getting our sandals on for some gladiatorial action in Those About To Die on Prime Video. All this despite Kay being stuck at home and having to beam into the studio via the wonder of modern technology, braving the sweltering heat of her office to do so (there’s a whole window drama, you have no idea).

Most films and TV shows are shot entirely out of sequence, so we went full Method on this week’s podcast and decided to record the entire show out of sequence to see what it’s like (and because we had an appointment with Rapman, but that’s another story). The result? Anarchy. And possibly madness. Still, amidst the carnage, the discussion of a Pilot OnlyFans, and the cancellation of another of James’ beloved shows, we still found time to tackle Apple’s darkly comedic robot drama Sunny, and two BBC2 shows: Michelle de Swarte’s Spent and Istanbul set police drama The Turkish Detective.

We may not have been able to cover The Bear last week but fear not, because our food order arrived in time for this week’s show and our take on The Bear’s third season is finally ready to go. Plus, not only do we fall under the spell of Prime Video’s My Lady Jane, but stars Rob Brydon and Anna Chancellor stop by to share parenting tips from this anachronistic alternate history. Not enough? A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder lands on iPlayer and speaking of murder, we manage to do exactly that to this week’s listener question.

We may not be able to review Netflix’s Supacell until the next Pilot+ but that didn’t stop the show’s creator, Rapman, from dropping by to talk all about his Black superhero saga. And while we’re talking about things we couldn’t review, there’s a whole debacle about The Bear (a Bearbacle?) that plays out this week, so if you’re joining us to find out what Carmy and the gang have been up to, you may be disappointed. We do join Hugh Bonneville for Douglas Is Cancelled, however, and head off to Spain with Eva Longoria for Land Of Women. So there’s that, at least.

We’re dancing with dragons on this weeks shows as two of the stars of House Of The Dragon join us on the show: Matt Smith and Fabien Frankel. Plus, we take a look at WWII family drama We Were The Lucky Ones on Disney+, renew our gym membership with the second series of Peacock on BBC3, and head out into space with Lena Headey for the arrival of space lighthouse sci-fi series Beacon 23, which arrives on Disney+. All that and Boydy, who hosted the screening of the Inside No.9 finale (he may have mentioned it) provides his definitive list of the best nine episodes of the show.

We have a guest double bill this week as Danai Gurira drops by to talk about taking up Michonne’s sword again in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, and Sam Spruell also joins us to talk all things Fargo. Plus we put Jake Gyllenhaal in the dock in Apple TV+’s remake of 1990 Harrison Ford thriller Presumed Innocent, House Of The Dragon roars back onto Sky, and Under The Bridge takes a look a girl violence when it arrives on Disney+. All that and we share with you the details of the great Pilot TV marriage proposal that never was…

Eric star Benedict Cumberbatch and creator Abi Morgan both stop by this week to chat all things Eric, which recently debuted on Netflix. Plus, this week’s slate includes Channel 4’s adaptation of Candice Carty-Williams’ novel Queenie, BBC1’s drama about a gay couple navigating the adoption system in Lost Boys And Fairies, and another jaunt into biographical fashionista territory with Becoming Karl Lagerfeld on Disney+. And the team put their heads together to figure out who their ideal timelord companions would b

We Are Lady Parts is back, back back! And to celebrate, writer and creator Nida Manzoor is on the show talking to Helen O’Hara. Plus Vicky McClure is also with us this week, chatting Insomnia on Paramount+. Meanwhile, James gets to zombiesplain his little socks off as we tackle the latest Walking Dead spinoff, The Ones Who Live, which brings Andrew Lincoln and Danai Gurira back into the fold, and Steven Knight’s The Veil comes to Disney+, putting Elisabeth Moss on mission as an MI6 agent trying to crack a possible terrorist.

Trying returns to Apple this week and not only are we reviewing it but Rafe Spall and Esther Smith are with us on the show to talk all about it. Plus we’re up all night with Vicky McClure in Paramount+’s adaptation of Sarah Pinborough novel Insomnia, and ITV gives us a dose of witness protection Tasmania style in Bay Of Fires. Elsewhere we unpick the recent TV BAFTAs and have a little fun with Spotify’s AI chapter headings.

This episode marks the Pilot TV debut of Empire’s very own Sophie Butcher, filling in for work-shy slacker Kay who’s STILL on holiday. Sophie shares with us some of her favourite shows, plus we finally pin Boydy down on a definitive (laminated!) list of his favourite films so he can’t keep attaching that label to every one he talks about. Elsewhere, we’re delving into competitive teenage athletics in The Gathering on Channel 4, seeing Ian Rankin’s Rebus get reborn on BBC1, and seeing if there’s still some life in the clone saga in Orphan Black: Echoes, which finally lands in the UK on ITVX.

We have TWO special guest this week. The first is the star of Dark Matter and all-round screen legend Jennifer Connelly, who joins us to discuss that series. The second is Swindon native all-round Pilot legend Beth Webb, who jumps back in to the show to cover for Kay, who’s on holiday. As well as getting ourselves back into quantum superposition for Dark Matter on Apple, we also tackle the final series of Inside No. 9, the fourth series of The Young Offenders and the new RTD era of Doctor Who, plus James has a lot to say about a certain kissing scene that appears to have traumatised him since last week.

Martin Freeman and Tony Schumacher — the star and creator respectively — join us this week to chat The Responder, which returns for its second series. Plus, we investigate some Tudor crimes with Shardlake and some cold war espionage with Spy/Master. None of which can prepare you for what Boyd’s been watching this week, which not only sees a surprise sprint for the finish line with a show he’d been behind on, but a rather unexpected ‘factual’ show, that dovetails with this week’s listener question to see a podcast far more concerned about measurements than it has any right to be.

Big ‘Dris himself joins us on the show this week, talking to Kay about Sonic spin-off Knuckles, which comes to Paramount+. Elsewhere, we’re back on the Baby Reindeer beat again this week, seeing as we made such a shambolic show of reviewing it on last episode (in fairness, it wasn’t entirely our fault), and now that everyone’s talking about it, we though it only fair to give it a proper viewing. Plus we revisit The Big Door Prize on Apple, and head off to hang out with the druids in The Red King on Alibi.

Walton Goggins and Lesley Sharp join us on this week’s show. Not together, of course, because the former is with us to chat Ghoul life in Prime Video’s Fallout and the latter is here in her capacity as head of MI5 in ITV’s Red-Eye. And speaking of Red-Eye, we review that show, which sees Richard Armitage on the flight from hell, as well as Glaswegian BBC comedy Dinosaur and the return of Belfast police drama Blue Lights, also on the Beeb. Plus we record our first proper podcast in the new studio, run through our (somewhat belated) 100 Greatest TV shows list, and dispense with a listener question in record time.

Sometimes we at the Pilot TV podcast are the very embodiment of calm, dignified professionalism. This is not one of those times. An early recording prompts unfettered anarchy this week as the team go full Joanna Page, cover a postbag slot we’ve done before and only half review one of the shows (we had our reasons). But all of that’s okay, becasue Star Trek Discovery’s Sonequa Martin-Green joins us on the show to talk about her final voyage, plus we watch Kate Winslet become a dictator, Jill Halfpenny turn into the lodger from hell and (almost) see a show about a stalker. Absolute chaos.

Not only do we have a 3 Body Problem Spoiler Special with the showrunners now available over on Pilot TV+, but stars John Bradley and Benedict Wong also drop by this week to chat about the show. Elsewhere, we’re raging over the unjust and unforgivable cancellation of The Lazarus Project (for shame, Sky!), examining this year’s RTS awards, and explore our objects of televisual desire — not to mention reviewing this week’s shows, of which there are FOUR (because who needs to go outside?). Colin Farrell takes the gumshoe beat in Sugar on Apple TV+, Romesh Ranganathan’s back dodging his problems in Avoidance, Star Trek: Discovery takes its final voyage, and Steven Knight’s This Town takes us back to 80s Belfast (and Birmingham).

We’re all about the Bolsheviks this week, as Ewan McGregor returns to our screens for A Gentleman In Moscow on Paramount+ and drops by this podcast to tell us about his Muskovite adventures first hand. Plus, we explore the chaotic life of Nicola Coughlan’s character in Channel 4 comedy Big Mood and catch up with Diane Morgan’s similarly anarchic antics in series 2 of Mandy on BBC2.

Loki, Luther and We Own This City star Wunmi Mosaku joins us this week to talk all things Passenger, a supernatural mystery show coming to ITV on Sunday at 9pm. Plus we finally get to talk about 3 Body Problem in full and reveal whether Netflix’s new show from the creators of Game Of Thrones could crack Kay’s anti sci-fi armour. Opinions divide quite spectacularly on the other shows this week, specifically Kristen Wiig-starring period piece Palme Royale on Apple TV+ and Anthony Mackie-starring apocalyptic road adventure Twisted Metal on Paramount+.

Is there a Falcon in the house? Yes there is, in fact, because Anthony Mackie joins us on this week’s show to talk apocalypse survival, not listening to Taylor Swift, and of course Twisted Metal, which comes to Paramount+ next week. Elsewhere, James has a revelation about 3 Body Problem, Kay ponders the existential dilemma of slow-burn TV, and we get into this week’s slate, which includes the hunt for Lincoln’s killer in Manhunt on Apple TV+ and the return of ITVX’s The Dry. And then there’s Love Rat, a show on Channel 5 that might have been genetically engineered in a lab to give James a breakdown.

Julianne Moore pays a visit to the Pilot TV pod studio this week, chatting seducing monarchs in Sky Atlantic’s Mary & George alongside director Oliver Hermanus/ Plus we climb into the brain of Guy Ritchie for his Netflix spinoff of The Gentlemen, and get to find out what’s going on with Jen and Jizzlord in series two of Disney+’s Extraordinary. And it that weren’t enough, there’s some egregious questioning of Kay’s Whovian enthusiasm, which does not go unanswered.

There can be only one thing more exciting than James Clavell’s Shōgun getting a brand new TV adaptation on Disney+, and that’s a special Pilot TV/Empire crossover podcast recorded to mark the occasion! Join Chris Hewitt, James Dyer and Nick de Semlyen as they get together to talk all things Japanese, Nick’s epic read of Clavell’s 1300 page book, and the pros and cons of ninja-themed restaurants. What’s more, James sits down with showrunners Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks to talk about bringing Edo-period Japan to life and the art of banging subtitles, plus he chats with star Cosmo Jarvis about taking on the role of ‘The Anjin’. Enjoy!

This episode is one for nerds and normies alike as we begin with an audit of the accessibility of sci-fi films and, unexpectedly, trainers. Bit that’s not all, because Fellow Travellers star Jonathan Bailey drops by to talk about that show with Boydy, and James finally gets the chance to hold forth on Shōgun, managing to explode Kay’s brain in the process (in English, not Portuguese). Plus we uncover a mystery in Prime Video’s Dead Hot and break James upon the wheel of BBC3 comedy with Things You Should Have Done.

Jodie Foster joins us on the show this week, to talk about the grand finale of True Detective: Night Country. We get properly into all the twists and turns of that show but don’t worry if you’ve not had a chance to watch the final episode yet, because we’ve put the interview at the very end of the episode with clear spoiler markings (PSA: all six episodes of True Detective: Night Country are available to watch on Sky Atlantic and NOW, or you can download them to own on digital platforms).But she’s not the only guest on this week’s show, either, as Noomi Rapace also drops by to talk about Apple’s creepy space-set sci-fi Constellation as well — it begins with talk of whether anyone’s wearing trousers on the Zoom call and all spirals out of control from there. Elsewhere on this week’s show, we take a look at ITV’s Breathtaking, which recounts the front line struggles of NHS staff during the outbreak of Covid, and we also watch BBC1’s The Way, which sees civil unrest as steelworkers down tools in Port Talbot. Plus Kay has us lamenting those dearly departed shows that ended on cliffhangers that were sadly never resolved.

You’ll have to have listened to last weeks’ Pilot+ to hear our review of One Day but fear not if you didn’t catch that, because stars Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall join us this week to discuss Netflix’s adaptation of the hit David Nicholls book. And speaking of turbulent romances, Alice And Jack comes to Channel 4 this week and sees Domhnall Gleeson and Andrea Riseborough as a pair of star-crossed lovers. BBC1’s Kin, on the other hand, sees an entirely different kind of turmoil as the Kinsella clan go to war (again), and Channel 5’s Too Good To Be True explores the perils of unvetted employment (but does allow James to set up a terrible culinary pun). Finally, Kay’s postbag management takes a turn for the meta and we look at side-eye references in your favourite shows.

We may not be reviewing it till next week but Alice And Jack is winging its way to screens very soon and stars Domhnall Gleeson and Andrea Riseborough — both of whom join us on the show this week to chat with Boydy. No one does awkward quite like Larry David so we're delighted to welcome him back to the screen for the 12th and final season of Curb Your Enthusiasm on Sky and Now. Plus Seth MacFarlane's Ted makes the transition to the small screen, we take a trip up north to see Scouse comedy G'wed, which lands on ITVX, and James nobly takes on the mantle of watching Halo season 2 so Kay doesn't have to get sci-fi on her.

We like to think of Pilot TV as the height of professionalism — a finely-honed product in which some of TV journalism's finest minds come together to share their wisdom. We like to think that. Evidence here to the contrary, though, as this one is an absolute shambles. James and Kay arrive unprepared, Boyd decides he'd much rather work with Helen and Dan, plus there's a whole thing about musicals. Honestly, it's a miracle we got through it at all. Still, we did find time to watch Black Cake on Disney+ (well, some of us), engage in some witchery with Domino Day on BBC Three, and catch up with Here We Go (again).

Acclaimed filmmaker Lulu Wang hops to the small screen this week with Expats on Prime and she dropped by the podcast to tell us all about it. Plus we witness Sofía Vergara breaking bad as a cartel boss Griselda Blanco in Netflix's Griselda, revisit London's '90s criminal underworld in Sexy Beast on Paramount+, and rejoin Vicky McClure's bomb squad in the return of Trigger Point on ITV. But that's not all, because the gang talk about the ups and downs of this year's Emmys (#justiceforBetterCallSaul) and Boyd and Kay once again try (and fail) to get James to care about The Traitors.

True Detective makes its long-awaited return this week with Jodie Foster in the lead. Is it a return to form for the series? Listen and find out (spoiler: it is). Plus we head down under for some Dickensian fun with The Artful Dodger on Disney+ and go Detectoring with Channel 5's Finders Keepers. The team also mull over hotel scenes, completely fail to discuss the Golden Globes and hear how Boyd got blanked by Phoebe Waller Bridge.

We're back! After scandalously taking Christmas off, (Boyd is still furious about it) Pilot makes a triumphant return to your ears this week, accompanied by legendary star of The Wire Clarke Peters, here talking about his new Channel 4 show Truelove. Plus Kay, Boyd and James run through their televisual resolution,s but also catch you all up on all the shows that aired over the first week of January. Beyond that, Jack Rooke's Big Boys returns to Channel 4, Peter Capaldi and Cush Jumbo arrive on Apple TV+ with Criminal Record, and Sophie Rundle gets swept away in ITV drama After The Flood.

Happy Christmas! What better gift to wake up to on December 25 than a Pilot TV Review Of The Year Special? Yes, we assemble live on Christmas morning* to bring you festive cheer, run through all the shows that mattered over the past 12 months, and reveal for you our Pilot TV list of the best shows of 2023. But that's not all! Because we also triage a special end of year postbag and Jamie Dornan stops by to talk about The Tourist, which returns to ITV on New Year's Day. See you all in 2024!*In no way recorded live

Cider's mulling, turkey's turking, yams are yamming, and the Pilot TV podcast is getting ready for Christmas with this the LAST regular show of 2023. And, because this is essentially our yule send-off, Boydy runs through the vast array of shows coming your way between now and the new year, plus we review one of them: specifically, Mark Gatiss' latest festive frightener, Lot No. 249. We also head back to (Bernard) Cornwell country for the adaptation of his Warlord Chronicles, The Winter King on ITVX, and we find out whether Rick Riordan's Greek God saga lands safely on Disney+ with the arrival of Percy Jackson And The Olympians.

We have a right royal podcast for you this week as Her Majesty Imelda Staunton and HRH Leslie Manville join us to talk The Crown with Boydy. Plus, Luke Treadaway stops by for a quick chat about The Serial Killer's Wife on Paramount+. Elsewhere, we embark on perhaps the most shambolic review in Pilot history as we try (and fail) to determine what series of Something Undone we're reviewing on ITVX. All this before we get back inside the TARDIS for the third of RTD's Doctor Who anniversary specials.

We're all about witches on this week's show as the very VERY belated Interview With The Vampire companion show Mayfair Witches makes its tardy arrival on the Beeb. Plus, Kay finally gets to wax lyrical about Smothered on Sky Comedy and we explore the spooky goings on over at Platform 7 on ITV. Plus we thrash out some of the most iconic scenes in all of TV, Boyd tells the tale of how he lost twenty grand to his local charity shop, Kay causes a seating kerfuffle and Gen V breakout star Lizze Broadway stops by for a spoiler chat about her role in Prime Video's The Boys spinoff.

Yes, the much anticipated Keanu Reeves interview lands this week as the man himself chats F1 along with racing legend Jenson Button. Plus former Doctor Jodie Whittaker joins us, though not for Tardis talk, but rather to chat all about One Night on Paramount+.Elsewhere, Chris Hewitt drops by to mourn the cancellation of Blue Bloods, we ponder the question of whether adverts in shows add to the experience, and we review The Couple Next Door on Channel 4, The Doll Factory on Paramount+ and the triumphant return of Slow Horses on Apple TV+.

We have a veritable cornucopia of guests this week as Jason Isaacs and Laura Aikman join us to talk ITVX's Cary Grant series Archie, plus we give you a little snippet of our Doctor Who special as Russell T Davies stops by to talk the time lord's return. Elsewhere, we uncover hidden secrets with Jodie Whitaker in One Night on Paramount+, and check out Kat Sadler's sitcom Such Brave Girls on BBC3. Plus we mull over some of the most distinctive voices in all of broadcast television.

It's a BUMPER show this week so you might want to block out a good chunk of time for this one (sorry!). Because to celebrate the return of The Lazarus Project on Sky, Joe Barton dropped by the studio to join James, Boyd and Kay as a special guest host. But that's not all, because Brit Marling also pops up, talking to Boydy about her new whodunnit, Disney+'s A Murder At The End Of The World. Plus we get our kaiju on with Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters on Apple TV+ and find a shitload of cocaine on a beach with Daisy Haggard and Patterson Joseph in Boat Story on the BBC.

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off co-showrunner BenDavid Grabinsi joins us this week to chat resurrecting Canada’s favourite son for an all new anime series. Plus we tear it up in 19th Century London with The Buccaneers on Apple, join the network wars in eighties Australia for The Newsreader on BBC2, and go on the lamb in an attempt to leave a life of crime behind with Culprits on Disney+. Plus, we say our proper goodbyes to Matthew Perry, do our best to mine some news despite a ridiculously early recording, and take a look at TV stars before they were famous.

This week the team travel back to WWII for Steven Knight's latest series, an adaptation of Pulitzer-winning novel All The Light We Cannot See on Netflix, plus we find out how Shetland fares with a brand new lead on BBC1. Finally, our long-standing inability to understand adult animation is put to the test when we tackle Invincible Season 2 on Prime Video, there's much discussion of the healing power of silence, and the team wrangle over their favourite Friend (in a segment recorded before the very sad news of Matthew Perry's death over the weekend).

Grey Worm himself aka Interview With The Vampire’s Louis de Pointe du Lac joins us on the show to chat all things undead now that the show has arrived in its entirety on BBC iPlayer. Elsewhere on the pod, there’s an unusual amount to toe-sucking discussion as we review Fellow Travelers on Paramount+. Kay gets the willies from spooktacular documentary The Enfield Poltergeist on Apple, and we take a trip down Lenny Henry’s memory lane in Three Little Birds on ITV. Elsewhere, Boyd works his way through the alphabet of shows (slowly), James bangs on about Bosch (you thought you’d dodged this last week - you were wrong), and all three muse on a conundrum that would see them forsake their favourite shows for good.

James and Boyd prepare to sacrifice their friendship on the altar of Peak TV this week as the pair attempt to review the final series of Breeders on Sky without killing each other. Meanwhile, Kay gets sucked in by a stealth sci-fi via Bodies on Netflix, and we investigate murder on the reservation in Dark Winds on Alibi. Plus the team play a little postbag roulette to keep things interesting and a challenge is set to find a horror show that Kay might deign to sit through.

We reach Boiling Point this week with Philip Barantini, who joins us to talk about his chaos in the kitchen series of the same name. Plus, after a year of waiting, Interview With The Vampire finally makes its way to British screens on BBC1, letting us take our first steps into Anne Rice's Immortal Universe. Brie Larson takes a stand against institutional sexism in academia in Lessons In Chemistry on Apple TV+, and Mike Flanagan returns with his final Netflix show in Edgar Allen Poe love letter The Fall Of The House Of Usher. All that and we take The Hollywood Reporter's top 50 TV Shows Of The 21st Century list to task and Boyd finally gets the respect he deserves.

Crime is in the air this week, so who better to draft in than the queen of crime, Steph Seelan? Steph holds down the fort for Kay (on holiday, typical) as we find trouble at the gym with Mrs Sidhu Investigates on Drama, a villainous Peter Mullen after his money in Payback on ITV, and a teen drama about reintegrating into secondary school life with Everything Now on Netflix. Plus Morven Christie drops by to talk to Boydy, and we mull over the most magnetic actors on screen (who are then placed into a bucket, for reasons).

Murder is the name of the game this week, as the gang try to decide which fictional TV detectives they'd like to unpick their own sticky ends, plus there's a disproportionate amount of public transport discussion (sorry). Elsewhere we're in the kitchen for the TV sequel to 2021 movie Boiling Point on BBC1, exploring true crime murders in Yorkshire via The Long Shadow on ITV1, and returning to a life of crime with the latest series of Brassic on Sky.

We bid a fond farewell to Laurie Nunn's Sex Education on Netflix this week as Otis, Maeve, Eric and the gang depart Moordale for good. But as some things go, others arrive and Nabhaan and Mawaan Rizwan's Juice launches on the BBC, and insomniac comedy Still Up makes its debut on Apple TV+.Elsewhere Boyd and James have a screener-off, Kay fails to choose an original song and battle lines are drawn for the next Cultural Exchange.

Emma Appleton joins us on this week's show to talk all about Paramount+'s The Killing Kind, and James gets a potted football primer from Boydy as we dive into the second season of Welcome To Wrexham (though the revelation that it's fine to be offside as long as you're not actually doing anything might have broken him). We also join Jenna Coleman on a homicidal/romantic road trip in Prime Video's Wilderness, and catch up with Domina on Sky. All in an episode that proves to be rather more boob-oriented than you might expect...

Rosamund Pike joins us this week (well, several weeks ago in reality, as the interview took place before the strike - but you get the point) to talk The Wheel Of Time Season 2, and Johnny Flynn jumps aboard to discuss The Lover. Meanwhile, Love & Death sees Elizabeth Olsen and Jesse Plemons embark upon the most well-planned affair in history (with mixed results) in Love & Death, and we go full banana crackers with Apple’s The Changeling. Plus Boyd and Kay once again attempt to induct James into the ways of reality TV by ranking the best reality shows of all time (and outlining how a Pilot TV Race Across The World would play out). It didn’t work, but you have to admire their persistence.

Ruth Wilson is our guest this week, chatting to Boyd about The Woman In The Wall. Plus James gets to geek out to spectacular effect when he talks to Warrior creator Jonathan Tropper, who not only created the show Banshee but does a little 'Banshee' for us as well. The team also takes a look at the BBC's new off-beat series The Following Events Are Based On A Pack Of Lies, as well as tackling a couple of returning series in the form of ITV's The Tower and BBC3's Starstruck. Plus we mull over the best single seasons of television and ruminate on the enduring appeal of Friends.

For our 250th episode we had a big old party at Kings Place in London, joined by special guests Ricky Gervais, Big Tom Davis and Mawaan and Nabhaan Rizwan, not to mention about 400 of you, our brilliant listeners. The Great Pilot TV Bake-Off saw Boyd, Kay and James go head-to-head in a duel to the death with assorted baked goods, plus we found time to answer questions from the audience and review Invasion's return on Apple TV+, The Woman In The Wall on BBC1, and Who Is Erin Carter? On Netflix. Here's to 250 more!

Award-winning TV producer and until recently Chair of BAFTA, Krish Majumdar joins us to look back on his eventful reign at the British Academy, and working with the likes of Kate Winslet and Elliot Page. It’s also our last pod before the live 250th episode and James is off, apparently sunning himself at his Tuscan retreat, so Basic Bingers legend and editor of Crime Monthly magazine, Steph Seelan is back, joining Boyd and Kay to discuss dystopian comedy Henpocalypse, the return of ITV’s Jane Austen-ish period drama Sanditon, and, in a bold departure from the stuff we usually review, Running Wild With Bear Grylls: The Challenge on National Geographic, which does at least feature Benedict Cumberbatch being very brave.

We're celebrating the after-Afterparty this week as Tiffany Haddish joins us (in a pre-strike interview) to chat all things murder as we reach the tail end of Season 2 (don't watch it until you've seen this week's episode, if not, you can skip past it at 52:43). Plus we rejoin Steve Martin, Selena Gomez and Martin Short in the latest pod-sleuthing series of Only Murders in The Building, Nicola Walker is back to addressing us all directly in Annika Series 2, and Cruel Summer returns with an entirely new time-hopping mystery. Also, the team reveal the will-they/won't-theys that definitely should have kept it in their pants.

The great Michael Sheen joins us on this week's show (recorded prior to the actors’ strike) to discuss Jon Hamm’s bum, forming a double act with David Tennant and the new season of epic fantasy Good Omens. The other big news of the week is that James is off so no extended stories about buying tickets for Tay-Swif, sorry, and instead Boyd is in charge and wittering on about Dating Naked Germany. The third mic is given to onetime Basic Bingers legend and editor of Crime Monthly magazine, Steph Seelan. Alongside Kay, they review the new series of Netflix phenom Heartstopper, BBC1’s twisted thriller Wolf, and an unusual true-crime series from Australia called Vanishing Act.

Zoe Saldaña joins us on this week's show (fear not, the interview was recorded prior to the strike) to discuss Taylor Sheridan, assigning animals to all her characters, and Special Ops: Lioness on Paramount+. Meanwhile, you all have to sit through an extended dramatisation of James' Odyssey to secure Taylor Swift tickets (we're so sorry, please don't unsubscribe - if it all gets too much you can skip the whole of this shaggy dog story by jumping to 14:14), as well as a potted history of door sound effects in cinema (again, we can only apologise). Elsewhere, we watch Dreaming Whilst Black on BBC1, Ghosts Of Beirut on Paramount+ and The Power Of Parker, also on the Beeb.

HANDS! CORNER! BEHIND! Those three words can mean only one thing: one of our favourite shows, FX's The Bear, is back for its second season, and that's an occasion so momentous that the Empire Podcast and Pilot TV Podcast teams have once again joined forces to wax lyrical about it (in association with Disney+). Join Chris Hewitt, James Dyer, and Kay 'The Bear' Ribeiro as they talk about what they loved about the first season of Christopher Storer's Emmy-nominated comedy-drama, look ahead to season 2 (all episodes are now streaming on Disney+, fact fans), and talk about food, music, and Taylor Swift tickets. Enjoy!

On this week's show we not only see the whole of Hollywood shut down for the SAG strike but also sift through the detritus of this week's Emmy nominations and get into a fight over what constitutes a comedy. And speaking of things that are dramas and not comedies... we head back to Chicago for the return of The Bear on Disney+, investigate a little true crime with Sarah Phelps in The Sixth Commandment on BBC1 and hit centre court with Aidan Turner for tennis drama Fifteen-Love.

Kay gets a much needed Witcher hit this week as we’re joined by stars Freya Allan and Anya Chalotra (although it was quite touch and go for a while), plus we head over to Apple for the after-after party of The Afterparty season 2 (which you must watch form the very beginning, NO EXCUSES), hit the outback with Danny Dyer in Channel 5’s Heat, and head back to set right that one went wrong in the reboot of Quantum Leap on Paramount+.

We're in the company of The Bunk this week as Wendell Pierce aka Jack Ryan's James Greer, joins us on the podcast to talk that show's final season. Plus, we go on the run in Rotterdam with Then You Run on Sky, hang out with eco hacktivists in A Thin Line on Paramount+ and hit the beat with Ross Kemp in Blindspot on Channel 5. All that and the team puts to the test how well they truly know each other when forced to programme each other's desert island box sets.

On this week's show, Captain Christopher Pike himself, Anson Mount, joins us to chat all things Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, plus Candice Carey-Williams drops by to talk about her London-based rap drama, Champion, which we also review. Meanwhile, we head up to cruising altitude with Idris Elba for Hijack on Apple TV+, and end up watching Cannes Confidential on Acorn, because both The Witcher and Jack Ryan were embargoed. Elsewhere, we up the stakes for the live show bake-off, and shocking revelations emerge about the mooted Pilot TV ITVX drama.

Annie Murphy joins us on this week's show to talk all about the first episode of the new Black Mirror, 'Joan Is Awful'. Plus Patrick Gibson gets cornered by Boydy and grilled over what would have happened in Season 3 of The OA (and manages to talk about his show Before We Die as well). Elsewhere, we get our Skrull on for Secret Invasion on Disney+, face midlife with a smile in Channel 4's The Change, and try to become one with the unique mind of Boots Riley in I'm A Virgo on Prime. Plus the team break down exactly what they'd watch if they each had 19 hours to spare.

25 years after it became (for quite a spell) the biggest film of all time at the UK box office, The Full Monty is back with an eight-part limited series, streaming now on Disney+. Writer Simon Beaufoy has reassembled the original cast for a show that goes The Full Monty on the current state of the nation, with Gaz (Robert Carlyle) and chums navigating their way through a series of misadventures that shine a spotlight on everything from the education system to the NHS. In this, the latest collaboration between the Empire Film Podcast and the Pilot TV Podcast, Chris Hewitt sits down with Robert Carlyle and fellow cast members Mark Addy (Dave), Lesley Sharp (Jean), and Steve Huison (Lomper) for candid chats about their return to Sheffield, the show's return, and their relief at being able to keep their clothes on this time. Then, in the podbooth, Chris is joined by Kay Ribeiro and James Dyer to talk about their memories of the original film, the phenomenon it became, and their thoughts about the new series. Oh, and Chris has a meltdown about the existence, or lack thereof, of a certain television commercial... Enjoy.

On this week's show we force Kay to sit down in front of Sky Sci-Fi and make her watch The Ark, despite her protestations. Plus we take a look at Sharon Horgan and Michael Sheen drama Best Interests on the Beeb, and return to Sheffield to catch up with Robert Carlyle and the gang for The Full Monty, which picks up 25 years after the classic nineties movie. Plus we bust a few questions out of the Pilot postbag (the triage system has gone berserk), we announce the next Pilot LIVE show and James explains how he made a new friend.

On this week's show we’re pumping iron with Arnold Schwarzenegger in Netflix’s biographical documentary Arnold, Filling in hospital forms with Youssef Kerkour and Katherine Parkinson in Significant Other on ITVX, and determining whether Tom Holland is a serial killer along with Amanda Seyfried in The Crowded Room on Apple TV+. Plus Kay hasn't been allowed to watch the show about the well-endowed porn star but that's okay because the team share their (oft inadvertent) strip club stories to make her feel better. The moral of this podcast? If someone offers you mac and cheese, you take it.

On this week's show we’re fixing leaks in the Nixon administration with Justin Theroux and Woody Harrelson in White House Plumbers on Sky, investigating a naked corpse and an aggressive sea mammal in Australian comedy Deadloch on Prime video, and heading back to 18th Century Yorkshire with Shane Meadows for The Gallows Pole on BBC2. Plus the team discuss the (possibly inappropriate) shows they watched as children and James goes full maverick, taking the opportunity to spring all manner of surprises upon a bemused Boyd and Kay.

Kay's dream comes true this week when she gets Colin From Accounts star/creators Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall in a room (sadly, Colin couldn't make it). Plus we take a look at Apple's Seth Rogen/Rose Byrne relationship comedy Platonic, ITV's Suranne Jones/Eve Best sibling drama Maryland, and Sky's Natasha Lyonne/Assorted Criminals procedural Poker Face, which FINALLY makes its way here to the UK. All that and James confesses to having watched an episode of Naked Attraction, much to Kay's disgust.

We have poetry on this week's show (yes, really), plus Kay explains (if explanation were needed) why James is a moron and the team ponder the most memorable TV needle drops in recent years. Elsewhere we get our grim on in true crime drama Steeltown Murders on BBC1, have an eye for Patricia Arquette PI in High Desert on Apple, and see if No Escape floats our boat on Paramount+.

Rebecca Ferguson joins us this week to discuss sci-fi, AI and Apple's big-budget adaptation of Hugh Howey's book series, Silo. Plus we experience unfettered carnage with Dr Teeth And The Electric Mayhem in Muppets Mayhem on Disney+, return to Oz in Ten Pound Poms on BBC1, and dip our collective toes into another of Apple's lavish literary adaptations with City On Fire. Plus, James surprises everyone by having watched Colin From Accounts, we find out why Kay's animal form is that of an angry ferret, and in a surprise return of the Massive Privilege Section, the team discuss whether you can really appreciate an unfinished version of a show (which descends into much entitled watermark whingeing, for which all we can do at this point is apologise).

We chat Fatal Attraction with Lizzy Caplan this week, as she jumps into the Glenn Close role for the Paramount+ adaptation of the classic '80s thriller. Plus Joe Russo stops by to talk all things Citadel. Meanwhile, the BBC busts out some comedy coppers in the excellent Black Ops, and Bridgerton's monarch gets a spinoff in Queen Charlotte on Netflix. Plus one of our listeners delivers wine to the office and James reveals the true extent of his sociopathic telly-watching routine.

It's another very hot episode this week: not because of excessive sexy chat but rather because the AC in the studio is broken again. So please put any delirium or rambling (over and above the usual amount) down to that. Other than a large quantity of sweat, Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton join us to talk about the new eighth series of Inside No.9 (Inside No. 8?) and Big Tom Davis hangs out with Boyd to chat the new series of The Curse. Plus, we get ChatGPT to review the podcast and try very hard not to melt.

Not only do we have Rachel Weisz and Alice Birch on this week's show to talk all about Prime Video's resurrection of '80s Cronenberg thriller Dead Ringers, but Melanie Lynskey joins us for an update on how Yellowjackets Season 2 is going. Plus the team head off to A&E with Niamh Algar in Malpractice on ITV, and try a little oenology with Apple's manga adaptation Drops Of God. All of which leads to a slightly anarchic discussion of super-tasters, Boyd's tea-making technique, and the time Kay knocked herself out with Sambuca shots.

Jennifer Garner joins us on this week's show to talk about Apple's new mystery thriller, The Last Thing He Told Me, plus Charlie Murphy drops by to fill us in on Netflix's new BDSM-happy erotic thriller, Obsession. Elsewhere, we join The Hunt For Raoul Moat on ITV, get some surprising statistics about podcast listeners in Fiji, and James comes to a final decision on the issue of the cake.

Daisy May Cooper and Jack Farthing return to our screens this week with Rain Dogs, a BBC series that has been described as The Last Of Us, except with poverty instead of mushroom zombies. Jack himself drops by the show to tell us if that is indeed the case, and we also find out if Grease is still the word in Paramount's Rise Of The Pink Ladies and tune in to a grudge match for the ages in Netflix's Beef. Kay is on holiday this week so Beth Webb rejoins us (for her sins) and there may (or may not) be cake...

Like Snap! Toni Colette and John Leguizamo have got the power and they're both in the house this week talking all about Prime Video's adaptation of the Naomi Alderman book with James. Meanwhile, Kay and Boyd break out their Team Slime Puppy T-Shirts as Succession makes its return to our screens. We're also exploring our inner potential along with Chris O'Dowd in The Big Door Prize on Apple and running around New York with Kiefer Sutherland in Rabbit Hole on Paramount+. All this, and somehow time is found to speculate about who we'd like to see take a mini-break at The White Lotus (aside from us - obviously).

Daveed Diggs — Jefferson himself! — joins us on this week's show. Plus the whole team is practically giddy (too much sugar, most likely) as we get back to the wilderness for Yellowjackets, sample Ireland's answer to Fleabag (apparently) with ITV's The Dry, and see what Steven Knight does with Dickens in BBC1's Great Expectations. Plus there's a whole to-do about cake and Kay comes perilously close to murdering James on air (fair).

We have a veritable hootenanny of guests on this week's show with both Brett Goldstein and Nick Mohammed on to talk Ted Lasso Season 3, and Martha Plimpton joining us to chat Bermondsey gangsters in A Town Called Malice on Sky. But that's not all, because we also take a look at the near future with star-studded environmental drama Extrapolations on Apple, and head over to Dublin for ITV crime drama Redemption. Plus James apologises for Kay's egregious failure to spot the Robert Kirkman/Brian K Vaughn mix up on last week's show. For shame, Kay.

Luther is back this week (albeit in film form) and series creator Neil Cross drops by the show to talk all about the big man in the coat. Plus, in an unusually feisty instalment of the pod, we evaluate the return of The Mandalorian, explore the phenomenon that is Abbott Elementary and have a huge, three-way blow up about ITV's The Bay, which involves so many shifting alliances and sudden turns it'll give you whiplash. We also (somehow) find the time to discuss some of the properties we're nervous to see coming to the screen.

Unforgotten is back! That's reason enough for celebration but even more so is the fact that DI Sunny Khan himself — aka Sanjeev Bhaskar — is on the show to talk all about it. And that's not all as Sam Claflin and Camilla Morrone also drop in to chat Prime Video's Daisy Jones & The Six. Elsewhere, the team feast their eyes upon Catalonian murder mystery The Diplomat over on Alibi and nouveau Western Django on Sky Atlantic, plus mull over all the various TV tropes that give them the 'icks'.

Both Billy Crudup and Vincent Cassel join us on this week's show, the former to talk about Apple's retro future series Hello Tomorrow, and the latter about international espionage thriller Liaison, also on Apple TV+. But that's not all, because we also hit the dating apps with Jesse Eisenberg in Disney+'s Fleishman Is In Trouble and take on the criminal underworld with Amanda Abbington in Desperate Measures on Channel 5.

We "Make it so" one last time this week with the third and final season of Star Trek: Picard, which Trek newbie Kay takes to like a Ferenghi to money laundering. Plus we dabble in a little jury duty with The Twelve on ITVX and some policing with villaining on the side in Better on BBC1. All that and we not only find time to sort out the seating arrangements at one of our listeners' weddings but manage to sift through the Trillions of spinoffs (see what we did there) announced this week as well.

Sarah Michelle Gellar joins us on the show this week to chat Wolf Pack and, of course, Buffy The Vampire Slayer. And speaking of Buffy, the team tackles a question (prompted by episode 3 of The Last Of Us) on the greatest single episodes of TV. Plus, we talk about the issue of rape culture in schools via Channel 4's hard-hitting one-off drama, Consent, head back to 80s London for BBC's The Gold, and visit 60s Blackpool with Gemma Arterton for Sky's Nick Hornby adaptation, Funny Woman.

TV legend Russell T. Davies joins us on the show this week to talk Nolly, his new three-part drama, which stars Helena Bonham Carter as Crossroads star Noelle Gordon (and there may be a few Doctor Who nuggets in that conversation as well). Plus Joe Cornish is here to chat all things Lockwood & Co, his new supernatural series on Netflix (which we reviewed on Pilot+ last week). All that and we look at Apple's interconnected drama Dear Edward, watch the second series of Paramount's Your Honor, and Empire's Chris Hewitt crashes the studio and manages to derail the first 20 minutes of the show. Sorry.

Welcome, folks, to a most extraordinary podcast (in association with Disney+). A podcast in which Team Empire and Team Pilot TV get together to discuss the extraordinary Extraordinary, the brand-new sitcom that is now streaming on Disney+. Created and written by Emma Moran, Extraordinary is set in a world where everyone develops a superpower after they turn 18. Everyone, that is, except for Jen (Mairead Tyers), who is approaching 25 and is still fumbling for direction and meaning and purpose. Beautifully observed and very, very funny, it's already been renewed for a second season, and in this very special crossover event, Chris Hewitt, James Dyer and Kay Ribeiro (pronounced Ru-bear-oh) get together to wax lyrical about the show, discuss which superpowers they'd like to have, and much more. But that's not all! (Told you this was an extraordinary podcast...) There are also two interviews with the show's star players -- first, an uproarious, hilarious and frankly chaotic interview in which Chris sits down with the show's stars, Mairead Tyers, Sofia Oxenham, Bilal Hasna, and Luke Rollason; and then a more considered chat with Emma Moran. Do please extra-enjoy.

This week Brett Goldstein and Bill Lawrence deliver the anti-Ted Lasso in Apple's Shrinking (which stars actual Harrison Ford), plus we find ourselves pleasantly surprised by new Disney+ original series Extraordinary, and swap Lupin for lupine in Paramount+ supernatural series Wolf Pack. Plus the team tackle questions around the tragic demise of physical media and there's a surprising amount of chat about '90s Europopsters Snap

Kumail Nanjiani joins us on this week's show to explain the nature of comedy to James, plus Parminder Nagra stops by to discuss ITV's now back-to-work series, Maternity with Kay. Elsewhere, we go traipsing through the woods with Harry Treadaway in Chemistry Of Death, and are FINALLY able to talk about The Last Of Us, which James has already declared to be the show of 2023. There's also some Golden Globes chat, some musings on shows we'd like to have our memories erased to re-watch and much excitement that it all appears to be kicking off in Carnival Row season 2.

It may be January but we're stripping off alongside Kumail Nanjiani this week in Welcome To Chippendales on Disney+, watching an early contender for most utterly batshit show of the year with The Reunion on ITVX, and finding the lighter side of undeath with Reginald The Vampire on Sky Sci-Fi. Plus, we talk about some of TV's best character actors, bemoan Netflix's axe-swinging killing spree, and announce the launch of our all-new, very exciting SECOND podcast: the imaginatively named, Pilot TV+.

2022 is DONE! Well, nearly. And, in place of our regular show this week we bring you our official postmortem of the year that was, packed with our personal picks, our favourite episodes, a look at what we're excited about in 2023 and a bunch of year-related questions from you, our long-suffering listeners. But that's not all, because we also run though our final, canonical, completely unanimous and in no way divisive list of Pilot TV's best shows of 2022, and welcome a pair of very special guests from two of those shows, specifically The White Lotus' Will Sharpe and Andor's Denise Gough. Happy New Year one and all! See you in 2023.

Merry Christmas one and all! It's our last (regular) show of 2022 and, to celebrate, we have our very own Christmas elf on the show — specifically Fjall from The Witcher: Blood Origin aka Laurence O'Fuarain. And not only do we find said Witcher spinoff in our Christmas stockings this year, but we're also going full Wagatha Christie with Channel 4's Hardy v Rooney, and getting the greatest gift of all: the return of Sally Wainwright's Happy Valley, which comes back after a SEVEN year absence. But it's not all celebration on this week's show, for we are compelled to bid a fond farewell to one of our own as one member of the team heads off to pastures new (with arms full of presents, naturally).

It's been two years since His Dark Materials last graced our screens but the Philip Pullman adaptation returns this week with the third and final instalment, and we have star Amir Wilson on the show to talk Daemons, dimension-hopping and waging war on heaven. Plus, we see if National Treasure: Edge of History can live up to the movies’ legacy, and watch David Tenant re-enact a political assassination in Litvinenko on ITVX. Oh and it’s Boyd’s birthday as well. All together now: “For he’s a jolly good fellow…”

Strike is Back! Which is excellent news, but more excellent by far is that both Strike and Robin (street names Tom Burke and Holliday Grainger) are on the show this week to talk about it. Plus Guy Pearce is also around to chat A Spy Among Friends, which marks the launch of ITVX, a streaming service that also brings us Tell Me Everything, enabling us to get in touch with our inner Gen Z. Plus we delight in (or endure) a little country music (depending on taste) in George & Tammy on Paramount+, and we get back in touch with our European brethren as the Dutch take our pronunciation to task, and the Spanish take issue with us perpetuating falsehoods about their accent. It's been quite a week!

You've got to give Apple's Slow Horses one thing, it's anything but slow. The brilliant espionage drama returns for its second season in one year this week and we have stars Gary Oldman and Saskia Reeves on hand to talk all about it. Elsewhere, we're undertaking some unconventional therapy with Steve Carrel in The Patient, experiencing some even more unconventional living arrangements with Jessica Brown Findlay in The Flatshare, and solving snowy crimes in Canada with Alfred Molina in Three Pines. All that and Beth's toothbrush issue is vindicated, we take a detour on accents and there's even more Andor appreciation (sorry).

Luke Evans is with us on the show this week, talking Echo 3, Apple's new geo-political thriller set in the jungles of Colombia (there may be a little Strictly chat surreptitiously slipped in there by Kay as well). Elsewhere, we're heading back to school with the best member of the Addams Family in Netflix's Wednesday, and taking a look at what our cousins across the pond have done to beloved sitcom Ghosts. Plus, in a ludicrously extended postbag sequence, James stages a spirited defence of TV bellends and we find out all about Beth's weird vicarious toothbrushing phobia.

Who do we have on this week's show? It's only Sylvester Stallone, who finally, after all these years, makes his scripted TV debut with Tulsa King on Paramount+. But that's not all because we also take a trip on Netflix's spooky ghost ship in polyglot creep show 1899 on Netflix, and discover that the only thing more horrifying than ghouls and ghosts is college-age men in Tell Me Lies on Disney+. All that and yet more cancellations of shows (some with fairies) as the streamers start swinging the axe with wild abandon.

Emily Blunt, Chaske Spencer and The English creator Hugo Blick join us on this week's show to talk about their rip-roaring rampage of revenge through the Old West. Plus we unpick some marital strife with James Corden in Mammals on Prime and head off to Balmoral for the long-awaited (and Judi Dench-baiting) fifth season of The Crown on Netflix. Plus, James tries to come to terms with a week which not only saw drama come to his beloved Witcher, but also the demise of Fate: The Winx Saga. It's been a lot!

We're back on holiday at The White Lotus for season 2 of the Mike White's excellent comedy-drama. Plus we're revisiting a bit of saucy 19th century literature in Dangerous Liaisons on Lionsgate+, and getting meta about reboots with, well, Reboot on Disney+. Plus, no halloween episode would be complete without a little haunted house chat (aka what James did on his recent holiday — not to a White Lotus), plus there are some scintillating updates about Beth's recent eye test and the state of Boyd's boiler. Never let it be said that we don't bring you the most *essential* content.

The excellently titled witch drama The Bastard Son And The Devil Himself is on our watch list this week and star Nadia Parkes joins us to talk all things witchy, as well as turning rats into soup (sort of). Plus we catch up with See creator Steven Knight's latest show, SAS: Rogue Heroes, and discover that what goes bump in the night is actually Peter Capaldi in The Devil's Hour. All that and the usual generous helping of TV ramblings as we catch up with all the latest episodes.

Wedding Season is the new thrill-packed, mystery-stuffed rom-com that is now streaming on Disney+. The first-ever UK Original Series on Disney+, it follows the adventures of Stefan (Gavin Drea) and Kate (Rosa Salazar), a couple on the run after Katie's entire wedding party, including her husband, are killed, leaving Katie as the prime suspect, and the cops (and other interested parties) hot on their heels. And in this special crossover episode, brought to you in association with Disney+, the Empire Film Podcast and Pilot TV Podcast teams — Chris Hewitt, James Dyer, and Kay Ribeiro — come together to have a big old natter about the show, about the disastrous weddings they've attended, the nature of love, and the dangers of cake. But that's not all — there are exclusive, and enormously fun, interviews, in which Chris talks to cast members Jamie Michie, George Webster, Bhav Joshi, Omar Baroud and Callie Cooke, plus star Gavin Drea and the show's creator, Oliver Lyttelton. We now pronounce you pod and listener. Enjoy!

Gangs Of London star Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù joins us on this week's show, chatting murderisation (and, unexpectedly, Arsenal) with Boyd, plus we look at Gangs' second season and Kay is forced to put her low gore tolerance to the test. Then we head off to a virtual future with Chloe Grace Moretz in Prime Video's The Peripheral, and wonder what it would have been like to miss all of the past 15-odd years in Somewhere Boy on Channel 4. All that, plus a load of listener questions and a riveting account of the shows James has *not*, in fact, been watching.

It's the final episode of Apple's excellent Bad Sisters this week and co-creator/star Sharon Horgan stopped by the podcast to talk all about it with Boyd. Plus Celine Buckens, star of last year's Showtrial and this week's The Ex-Wife on Paramount+ also joins us for a lengthy natter. All that and we head to India with Charlie Hunnam for Apple's adaptation of Shantaram, and tell some scary stories with Mike Flanagan in Netflix's The Midnight Club. Plus we get stuck into the pros and cons of true crime stories, and the correct etiquette for leaving podcast reviews (ideally accompanied by flowers and chocolate).

Hands! Corner! Behind! No, we're not trying to activate The Winter Soldier — these phrases will make sense to you once you've watched the excellent new comedy-drama, FX's The Bear, the first season of which is now streaming on Disney+. It follows Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White), a highly-rated and extraordinarily-talented chef who swaps being a rising star on the New York fine dining scene for the relentless grind of running a sandwich shop in Chicago, bequeathed to him after the death of his older brother. And in this latest crossover episode of the Empire Film Podcast and the Pilot TV Podcast, in association with Disney+, Chris Hewitt, James Dyer, and Beth Webb get their teeth into The Bear, talking about its intensity, its humour, their own relationships with food and fine dining, and much, much more. It's a pod so good we give it three Michelin stars. And that, friends, is definitely a recommendation. Enjoy!

The Bear there was. The Bear, The Bear. All black and brown and covered in hair. Well, not quite but The Bear is here in the UK at last nonetheless, landing this week on Disney+, and it was definitely worth the wait. We also head out on a murderous cruise (with murderous ducks) in BBC3's Wreck, and go on the hunt for Neo Nazis with Stephen Graham in ITV's The Walk-In. All this and more dreadfully entitled ramblings as Boyd and James bicker about the mechanics of advance screener codenames. They're both dreadful.

Yes, you read that right, the legend himself Mr Jeff Bridges is on the show this week to discuss everything from killing a man with his bare hands to pulling off a successful barre chord. Plus Boyd talks to Industry star Harry Lawtey about Industry series 2. Meanwhile, the team check out Bridges' CIA credentials in The Old Man on Disney+, Diego Luna's rebel credentials in the latest Star Wars series, Andor, and Stanley Tucci's murder credentials when he plays a death row detective in BBC1's Inside Man.

On this week's show we're investigating a cold case with Detective Karen Pirie in ITV's show of the same name, and creator Emer Kenny stops by the show to tell us all about it. Meanwhile, we discover the year's most stressful new series when Keeley Hawes gets caught up in a holiday resort terrorist attack in BBC1's Crossfire, and we follow Diane Morgan as she steps back into the skin of Philomena Cunk in rockumentary series Cunk On Earth on BBC2. All that and we also find the time to chat all things Emmys #justiceforsaulgoodman

Ophelia Lovibond joins us on this week's show to talk Minx and playing Carrie Symonds in the upcoming This England. Meanwhile, James, Boyd and Beth head back on the Norn Iron beat with James Nesbitt in Bloodlands season 2, pull some skeletons out of the closet with Daisy May Cooper in AM I Being Unreasonable?, and engaging in a little YA undead romance with Vampire Academy. Plus we try out the new postbag feature, and the Dyer cut is released! (By which we mean the infamous karaoke video will be available on James' instagram - @jamescdyer - for the next 24 hours).

It's guestapalooza this week with no fewer than FOUR stars dropping by the show. Morfydd Clark, who plays the legendary Galadriel in Amazon's The Lord Of The Rings prequel, The Rings of Power, joins us to talk all things elf-related, and Trevante Rhodes, Russell Hornsby and Laura Harrier also pop by to talk about their respective roles in Mike Tyson bio-series Mike on Disney+. As well as those, we also see Jon Bernthal do his best Richard Gere in Paramount+'s adaptation of classic eighties movie American Gigolo and leave it up to you to decide whether a certain video of James singing karaoke ever sees the light of day. #releasethedyercut

James is away for this week's episode, taking a well-earned break after the live 200th show (which may have nearly killed him!). However, fear not because Boyd, Beth and Kay are holding down the fort and exploring the reach of Big Brother (no, not that one) in BBC1's The Capture, cracking a murder with Ted Hastings (sort of) in Ridley on ITV, and seeing if there's foul play afoot beneath Aidan Turner's (magnificent) beard in The Suspect, also on ITV.

We celebrated Two hundred episodes of the podcast with an ALL DAY live event at Kings Place in London, featuring ten hours of content that all culminated in this big 200th show. We kick off with Corin Hardy and Orli Shuka talking us through an explosive action clip from Gangs of London series 2, followed by a chat with Matt Berry, who joined us to celebrate ten years of Toast Of London. Plus we got into Game Of Thrones prequel House Of The Dragon on Sky, and bickered about She-Hulk on Disney+. And of course James couldn't let this milestone event go past without crowbarring the final season of See into the mix as well. There was chaos, there was carnage, there were audience questions, and returning Pilot legend Terri White was on hand to call James a bellend. What more could you possibly ask?

Pilot TV is officially one degree of Kevin Bacon as of this week as the City On A Hill star joins us to talk about the new season of that show which is airing now on Paramount+. Plus James, Boyd and Kay get into the viability of slow-burn shows in this era of peak TV, go round 2 over The Sandman, and catch up on the penultimate episode of Better Call Saul (no spoilers). Elsewhere, we review Sharon Horgan's new show on Apple, Bad Sisters, contemporary app-based horror series Red Rose on BBC3, and Nicola Walker and Sean Bean's incredibly affecting Marriage on BBC1. And there's still time to book tickets to our live 200th show on the 21st: https://bit.ly/3plL4hW

** BOOK TICKETS FOR OUR LIVE 200th EPISODE ON 21 AUGUST HERE: https://bit.ly/3A4lXWY** The Sandman stars Tom Sturridge and Vivienne Acheampong join us on the show this week to dream a little dream of Netflix's Neil Gaiman adaptation with Helen O'Hara. Plus we take a look at Apple's hurricane Katrina thriller, Five Days At Memorial, and nineties movie spin-off A League Of Their Own on Prime Video. Elsewhere, there's a quick, spoiler-free confab about the state of Better Call Saul and Boyd and James square off for Breedersgate part 2, only this time it's all about the Lord of Dreams.

On this week’s show we weigh in on Prime Video’s eighties teen time travel drama Paper Girls, watch Neil Patrick Harris enjoy no sex in his city as the star of Netflix’s Uncoupled, and join Alicia Vikanda in HBO’s meta-Hollywood satire Irma Vep. Plus James, who definitely hasn’t been on holiday this week, reveals his true identity as a West Country millennial with a love of workplace comedies.

This week's show sees us solving a double murder alongside Andrew Garfield in Under The Banner Of Heaven on Disney+, searching for answers with an amnesiac Gugu Mbatha-Raw in Surface on Apple TV+, and finally getting to find out what's going down in From, the creepy supernatural horror that kicks off the launch of Sky Sci-Fi, formerly Syfy, formerly The Sci-Fi channel. Confused? So are we. Plus we examine the films that really should have been able to luxuriate over a television runtime.

This week we not only dissect the nominations for this year's EMMYs, but James reveals the extent to which Covid (which, in the mother of all ironies, laid him out immediately after recording last week's show) has allowed him to put a dent in his mammoth watch-list, specifically around a certain Breaking Bad prequel. And speaking of which, in a cryptic review that plays out almost entirely in code, Beth and Boyd review Better Call Saul's home stretch while protecting James' delicate ears from any hint of spoilers. And we watch Witness No. 3 on Ch5 and cry (and laugh, but mainly cry) our way through season 3 of Trying on Apple TV+.

Michelle de Swarte is our guest on this week's show, chatting demonic offspring with Beth in honour of Sky comedy The Baby. Elsewhere, prompted by a recent episode of The Boys, the team discuss the most shocking scenes in all of tellydom, plus we announce our LIVE 200th episode (keep Sunday 21 August free!). Review-wise, we wade into The Control Room on BBC1, comedy Sneakerhead on Dave, and James and Boyd try (and fail) not to get into (another) fight about Breeders.

As promised a couple of weeks back, we welcome The Man Who Fell To Earth stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Naomie Harris and Bill Nighy to the show this week, where they were warmly greeted by Pilot TV superfan Chris Hewitt. Plus we run through our pick of the 20 best TV shows of the year so far, and even find time to do a quick rundown of the Stranger Things finale (at the very end if you want to avoid spoilers). We also look at Apple's Taron Egerton prison thriller Black Bird; Sky's parenting black comedy The Baby; Starzplay's true crime drama The Girl From Plainville, with Elle Fanning; and Prime Video's The Terminal List, which sees Chris Pratt kill everyone in sight as a vengeful Navy SEAL.

Simon Pegg joins us on the show this week, to talk about his new Channel 4 cyber security drama, The Undeclared War. Plus we head back to the future for the fourth season of Westworld on Sky, Atlantic, off to New Orleans for the US reimagining of Queer As Folk on Starzplay, and back to Atlanta for Season 3 of that show, which returns to Disney+. Plus Boyd catches up with the second season of Only Murders In The Building. All that and some Kate Bush love and musings on the pros (and cons) of book to TV adaptations.

Want to hear from The Master Chief himself? Of course you do, which is why Pablo Schreiber joins us on this week's show to talk all things Halo. Plus the team take sides on whether they're #TeamMaggie or #TeamBirdy in Everything I Know About Love, Beth and Boyd go into raptures about the Barry finale and we review ALL the shows. Why? Because Paramount+ launched this week, and with it everything from The Man Who Fell To Earth and The First Lady to The Offer, Halo and the new Star Trek show. There is a LOT going on and we do our level best to cover off the whole lot.

Paapa Essiedu and Anjli Mohindra join us on the show this week to talk all things time travel for Joe Barton's new series, The Lazarus Project on Sky. Plus Anson Mount — Christopher Pike himself — is also with us, sliding back into the captain's chair for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on Paramount+. Not only that, but we investigate a murder among the miners with David Morrissey in Sherwood on BBC1, and finally get to talk about the latest addition to the MCU, Ms Marvel on Disney+.

The legend that is Murray Bartlett is our guest on this week's show, chatting all things Physical Season 2, as well as The Last Of Us and (most importantly) Farscape. Plus we finally get David Simon's Baltimore-set follow-up to The Wire, We Own This City, into our eyes; go out on the lash with Dolly Alderton in Everything I Know About Love; and catch up with Homelander, Starlight and the inimitable Billy Butcher in season 3 of The Boys. All that and James, Beth and Boyd still find time to talk about great musical moments in television and re-litigate Stranger Things.

Only a group as seismic as The Sex Pistols could bring the Empire Podcast and the Pilot TV Podcast together once again. Yes, to mark the launch of Danny Boyle's brand-new six-part series, Pistol, on Disney+, Chris Hewitt, James Dyer, and Beth Webb put their collective noggins together and discuss the show, which debuts on Disney+ on May 31, and which charts the rapid rise and fall of the British punk band towards the tail end of the 1970s. In a fun episode, Chris, James and Beth talk about the cultural impact of Johnny Rotten, Steve Jones, Sid Vicious and the boys; their legacy; their weird link to the Spice Girls, and much, much more. Plus, Chris sits down with two of the stars of the show, Maisie Williams and Thomas Brodie-Sangster, and asks one of them about nicking Andy Serkis' arancini at the Empire Awards. It doesn't get much more punk than that. Never mind the you-know-what, here's [Empire and Pilot talking about] the Sex Pistols.

Not only do we have both Karl Urban and Jensen Ackles on this week’s show to talk about the new season of The Boys, but Empire’s Helen O’Hara makes her Pilot TV debut, finally getting the chance to lay her hands on one of the stars of Supernatural (figuratively speaking). Then, we nearly fail to get Obi-Wan Kenobi on the show but, thanks to some post-production tomfoolery, we were able to do a last minute drop-in to cover off all things Star Wars, and that was in addition to Danny Boyle’s Sex Pistols biopic, Pistol and sci-fi adaptation The Midwich Cuckoos on Sky. All that and Beth (for she has returned) Boyd and James mull over some of the best shows that have filmed in their respective home towns.

We may not have been able to see Obi-Wan Kenobi this week but that didn't stop us inviting Indira Varma onto the show to talk all about the latest addition to the Star Wars canon. Plus we return to Hawkins for Stranger Things' fourth season on Netflix, see Kaley Cuoco return in season 2 of The Flight Attendant and head off to university with that wee English fella in Big Boys on Channel 4. Beth is in Cannes this week so we're instead joined instead by none other than Boyd's Heat magazine desk-mate Kay Ribeiro.

Heartstopper star Joe Locke joins us on the show this week to talk about that show's huge impact since its release. Plus the team not only get deep into the weeds on who'd make the best companion to Ncuti Gatwa's doctor but end up going off on an extended tangent about the worth of American remakes off the back of US Ghosts. Plus we review the latest adaptation of hit novel The Time Traveler's Wife on Sky, catch up with Claire Danes and Tome Hiddleston in The Essex Serpent on Apple and join JK Simmons and Sissy Spacek for a look at Prime Video's Night Sky.

The legendary Glenn Close joins us this week along with her Tehran co-star Niv Sultan to discuss the Apple show's second season, plus Bosch himself, Mr Titus Welliver, stops by to chat Bosch: Legacy, Star Wars and assorted geekery. Plus we get into this week's TV BAFTAs, the exciting new Doctor Who casting, and which shows from this year we think will stand the test of time. All that and we review Tokyo Vice on Starzplay, Conversations With Friends on BBC3, and The Lincoln Lawyer on Netflix.

James gets to indulge his geek tendencies this week when Ella Purnell and Kate Mulgrew (Captain Janeway herself!) join the show to talk Star Trek Prodigy, and Boyd sits down with Jack Davenport and John Morton to discuss Netflix's Ten Percent. Plus the team talk immersive TV experiences and get properly stuck into Bosch: Legacy on Amazon Freevee, The Staircase on Sky, and DI Ray on ITV.

Elisabeth Moss joins us on the show this week to discuss Apple's brilliant, reality-bending serial killer thriller, Shining Girls. Plus Bill Hader drops by to talk bringing Barry back to our screens, taking the opportunity to also unleash his Matt Berry impression upon Beth. Elsewhere on the show, we take a deep dive into the current state of the streaming wars and take a peek at Prime Video's Call My Agent adaptation, Ten Percent.

We're awash with both guests and shows this week, with Sienna Miller and Rupert Friend joining us to talk all things Anatomy Of A Scandal, and Sarah Solemani sitting down for a very frank and interesting conversation about #MeToo, that Oscars slap, and her new Channel 4 Show Chivalry (all from the comfort of her 'fascist shed'). Meanwhile, we line-up a veritable marathon of new shows for review, including the aforementioned Chivalry, timeloop BBC2 drama Life After Life, the second season of Netflix's Russian doll, Starzplay's Watergate drama Gaslit (with Julia Roberts), and teen romance Heartstopper on Netflix. Better than a chocolate egg, we thing you'll agree.

Not only do we have Will Poulter on this weeks show, talking Agatha Christie and Arsenal with Boyd, but Derry Girl Saoirse-Monica Jackson drops by as well to discuss that show's final season. As well as Channel 4's Derry Girls and Britbox mystery, Why Didn't They Ask Evans?, we also take a look at Catherine Tate's Hard Cell on Netflix and Apple's feminist anthology, Roar. Plus James is forced to watch Newark, Newark and the team celebrate the rather excellent casting of Terri's memoir adaptation.

Alison Brie joins us on this week's show to talk about her upcoming show Roar, reminisce about Community with Beth and walk us through her favourite wrestling move. Plus we finally get to talk about Moon Knight (Steven Grant impressions abound — you have been warned), there's something rotten in Westminster in Netflix's Anatomy Of A Scandal, and Beth tries to work out what in the name of Sol is going on in Season 2 of Sky's bonkers sci-fi series Raised By Wolves. All that and we still find time to talk about the finale of Peaky Blinders, which does contain spoilers so if you haven't seen it yet then skip everything between 21:46 and 39:18.

We're joined on this week's show by Gary Oldman and Jack Lowden, who drop by to talk Apple's new espionage drama, Slow Horses, and debate the merits of kitchen vs shower acting. Plus we take a look at basketball through the lens of Adam McKay in Winning Time, and finally get to see what all the fuss is about with Hacks, which arrives on these shores a year after its US debut. Plus we indulge in a little Peaky Blinders state of the union, and Boyd kicks off a debate about resurrecting limited series.

James has lost his voice this week, which makes for a particularly absurd episode in which he goes full Baron Greenback and croaks his way through the entire show. And what a show it is, because not only does Netflix's raunchy Regency show, Bridgerton, return for series 2, but Apple's generation-spanning Pachinko makes its debut, and Peacemaker *finally* lands on Sky after a torturous three-month wait. All that and the team talk through shows they loved but refuse to revisit and the lost joy of internet forums.

Beth is struck down by the Cove this week, leaving James and Boyd to run amok. However, they're not alone for long because the boys enlist the help of a *very* special friend to help keep them in check — and we won't spoil that surprise here. This week's show also sees the team tackle shows they've abandoned and come back to, litigating the trailer for Obi-Wan and taking a look at Apple's WeCrashed with Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway, Netflix's resurrection of Top Boy and Irish murder mystery Holding on ITV.

The first three episodes of The Dropout, the new series charting the rise and fall of tech entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos, the company she founded, have landed on Disney+, and in the latest team-up between the Empire Podcast and Pilot TV Podcast, Chris Hewitt, James Dyer, and Beth Webb have a good old natter about it. In this very special crossover episode, in association with Disney+, they talk about the real-life events behind the show (created by Elizabeth Meriwether), the reasons why Hollywood is drawn to stories like this, the incredible cast, led by Amanda Seyfried, and much, much more. So turn on, tune in and drop out for The Dropout...

Martin Compston joins us on this week's show, fielding Boyd's questions about his new ITV thriller Our House, bemoaning the state of modern football, and giving an update as to what might be next in store for Line Of Duty. Plus we're on the hunt for Satan's concubines in BBC2 comedy The Witchfinder, and trying to solve a mystery with Samuel L. Jackson in The Last Days Of Ptolemy Grey on Apple. All that and the team talk through the things they most would (or wouldn't) want to see adapted, some of their other TV podcast picks and Boyd outlines the plot for the twelve-part miniseries of James' life.

This week's episode sees Joe Dempsie join us to talk all about his new show, Pieces Of Her on Netflix, as well as reflecting on sex scenes, intimacy and the pervading influence of Skins. Other than that, though, we have a particularly shambolic episode in which James, having come straight from an overnight flight with zero sleep and spectacularly failed to prepare, does his level best to derail the whole endeavour. But that doesn't stop us trying to reunite with Villanelle in the final series of Killing Eve on BBC1, watch Amanda Seyfried undermine the health system in The Dropout on Disney+, and chase demons with Courteney Cox in Shining Vale on Starzplay. All that and the team line-up their desert island streaming shows, Boyd and Beth have their weekly Euphoria rant, one of Boyd's famous friends calls mid-recording, and James falls asleep while Beth is talking.

We're a day late this week, by order of the Peaky Blinders (or more specifically the BBC's review embargo), but it's all good because Peaky creator Steven Knight drops by the show to talk about the show's final season and allow James to bend his ear about the joys of See. Plus we're mixing love and lycanthropy with Wolf Like Me on Prime Video and getting our Norse back on in Netflix's Vikings: Valhalla (where Boyd unveils his extraordinary Norse accent). All that and we give a loving (and belated) eulogy for Neighbours and officially rank our favourite Netflix originals.

It's a particularly anarchic show this week as chronology gets thrown entirely out of the window and sections collide, possibly as a result of too much Valentine's Day chocolate - who can really say? Still, we have a giggle looking at the most romantic shows every to grace our screens (Beth has absolutely no time for it), plus engage in an impromptu post mortem of The Book Of Boba Fett. All that and we take a look at Apple's Severance, Sky's Fresh Prince reconceptualisation, Bel-Air, and Netflix's teen detention murder mystery One Of Us Is Lying.

Adam Kay, author of bestselling medical memoir This Is Going To Hurt, joins us on the show this week as we look at the BBC adaptation of his work, starring Ben Whishaw as the man in the white coat. Plus we're investigating the kidnapping of Uma Thurman's son in Apple's Suspicion, getting stuck in a Turkish jail in No Return on ITV, and catching up with Rose Matafeo's celebrity shenanigans in the return of Starstruck on BBC2. Not only that but we take a long, hard (steady) look at the rapidly escalating penis count on our screens, list the TV characters we'd happily kill with fire, and get a much-needed update on the status of Risky the cat's drinking fountain.

If this week got off to a bumpy start for you, there can be no better medication than a prescription of Beth's raucous interview with Tiffany Haddish on this week's show, as the pair get surprisingly frank about the things they'd like to do to Jamie Demetriou (00:18:37-00:32:07). And not content with that, Beth also sat down with Mackenzie Davis to talk all things Station 11 and get tips on the finer points of knife-throwing (00:58:05-01:10:52). But that's not all, because we take a trip with man-mountain Jack Reacher in Prime Video's adaptation of the Lee Child novel series, Reacher, explore the origins of the world's most famous sex tape in Pam & Tommy on Star, and take up a sideline in cyberstalking thanks to Chloe on BBC1. Plus the team mull over their must-watch and must-skip title sequences and Beth explains why Risky, the world's most middle-class cat, has just acquired a drinking fountain.

Stanley Tucci and Carrie Coon are our guests on this week's show, talking to us about La Fortuna (23:00-32:51) and The Gilded Age (53:06-1:02:37), respectively. Plus we have a stupidly long lineup of shows to review, including Starzplay's post-apocalyptic drama, Station Eleven; Julian Fellowes' Downton-in-America drama, The Gilded Age; Apple's whodunnit comedy, The Afterparty; Martin Freeman's gritty BBC police drama, The Responder; and the long-awaited arrival of The Sinner Season 4 on Netflix. All of which was more than enough to keep James, Beth and Boyd glued to screens through most of last week. However, paying no heed to minor inconveniences like the laws of time and space, Boyd still found time to devour Archive 81 and bring us a full update, James gave The Tourist another go, and the team hoovered up the Yellowjackets finale (no spoilers) as well.

Ricky Gervais joins us on this week's show to discuss the finer points of blowing belly raspberries with Tony Way in After Life, plus Nell Tiger Free stops by to dispense childcare advice in the third season of Apple's Servant, where she and Boyd get into such varied topics as incest and the finer points of moth taming. In addition (and we apologise in advance) James finishes his rewatch of The Expanse just in time to watch the finale live, and proceeds to bang on about why it's amazing for what we can only hope is the last time (so sorry). Plus the team reviews bomb disposal thriller Trigger Point on ITV, comeback show Queens on Star, and Stanley Tucci's treasure-hunting adventure, La Fortuna, on AMC UK. NOTE: Ricky and Tony's After Life interview is, unusually, a spoiler interview and goes deep on lots of the third season's plot points, including the finale. If you've not seen it then you might want to do so first, or you can skip the interview entirely to preserve its secrets by avoiding 29:22-1:00:00.

Happy New Year! Can you hear us? We certainly hope so, because the first Pilot TV podcast of 2022 is brought to you by none other than Clem Fandango, Mr Shazad Latif himself, who joins us to talk all things Toast of Tinseltown. Plus, we take a look at all the TV we didn't cover over the Christmas break and line up Jamie Dornan's outback ordeal, The Tourist, for the full review treatment. Also in reviews are Maxine Peake-starring HR escapade Rules Of The Game, and the third (and final) season of Ricky Gervais' Afterlife (where Boyd decides that Ricky Gervais' character and James might share more DNA than is entirely healthy).

We have a BUMPER year-end special for you this week. We're joined not only by The Doctor herself, Jodie Whitaker, and her companion Mandip Gill, but — in a very special Christmas gift to James — we are also joined by the entire core cast of The Expanse! Aside from ushering in the new year with these titans of modern sci-fi, we take a look back at the year that was, run down our list of the top TV shows of 2021 and generally take a look at the highs and lows of the past 12 months over a glorious two-and-a-half hours. Happy New Year!

Sarah Phelps joins us on this week's show (39:14-1:01:37) to discuss her new BBC miniseries, A Very British Scandal, which pits Claire Foy against Paul Bettany in a break-up for the ages as the Duchess and Duke of Argyle. Plus we take a trip with David Tenant in Around The World In 80 Days, and find out what Agent Starling got up to after Buffalo Bill (and before eating Ray Liota's brains) in Clarice on Alibi. Plus, James, Beth and Boyd go through some of the shows they're most looking forward to in 2022 and you'll discover why Succession makes Phelpsie want to have a wee.

Henry Cavill, Geralt of Rivia himself, joins us on this week's show, to talk a little bit about the The Witcher's second season and a lot more about fantasy books, Warhammer 40k and general geekery (24:34-46:54). In addition to Netflix's returning fantasy, we take a look at Gugu Mbatha-Raw's living situation as she moves in to David Oyelowo's rather terrifying apartment in The Girl Before on BBC1, and we find out what Carrie Bradshaw's been up to since Sex And The City in follow-up show And Just Like That on Sky Comedy (first episode spoilers exist between 1:21:21 and 1:35:58). PLUS we record a special drop-in to talk about the Succession finale (1:09:20-1:20:16), mull over the best will-they/won't-they relationships, and James manages to trample all over Beth's Ex Machina analogy and she refuses to let him cut it out.

National treasures Olivia Colman and David Thewlis take time out of their busy schedules to drop by the podcast this week (31:27-52:09), telling us all about quirky black comedy Landscapers on Sky. Plus we take a look at Ragdoll on Alibi, and the team debate the reasons why directors in TV don't get the same credit as their big screen counterparts, while the reverse is true of writers. But all that pales into insignificance compared to the main event this week, as we dive headfirst into deep space for the televisual event of the year — nay, the decade! — when The Expanse returns for its sixth and *final* (for now) season on Prime Video. BELTALOWDA!

More Star Trek shenanigans abound this week as the team try to work out what in the name of the Prime Directive Pluto TV is. Elsewhere, we finally get to talk about Disney's Hawkeye series, take a trip to the wilderness with a girls' soccer team in Yellowjackets on Sky Atlantic, catch up with killer Charles Lee Ray in Child's Play spin-off series Chucky, on Sky Max, and get a little courtroom monologuing from Samuel Adewunmi in You Don't Know Me on BBC1. Plus, in perhaps the greatest upset in Pilot TV history, James voluntarily watches an animated series — listen now to find out what he thought of it.

I spy Aes Sedai on this week's show as we're finally able to talk about Amazon's The Wheel Of Time. Plus we explore the decaying carcass of small town Pennsylvania in American Rust on Sky, and see if we've discovered the new Squid Game in the form of South Korean supernatural thriller Hellbound on Netflix. All that and we vent our righteous fury over the sudden departure of Star Trek Discovery for Paramount+, plus take a trip down memory lanes to discuss some of the best (and worst) pilot episodes we've seen.

To herald the arrival on Disney+ of Dopesick, Danny Strong’s drama chronicling the devastating impact of the opioid crisis on America, the Empire Podcast and Pilot TV Podcast crews have, once again, set aside their differences and come together to have a good old natter. In this very special crossover episode, in association with Disney+, Chris Hewitt, James Dyer, and Beth Webb do a deep dive into Dopesick, which tackles the opioid crisis from the points of view of characters connected to the crisis in various ways. They talk about the crisis itself, about the show’s all-star cast (including Michael Keaton, Rosario Dawson, Peter Sarsgaard, Kaitlyn Dever, and Will Poulter), and much, much more. And if that weren’t enough, Beth also sits down with Danny Strong, Kaitlyn Dever and Will Poulter for an in-depth chat about the show. So sit back, relax, and enjoy Dopesick, an Empire + Pilot TV podcast special with Disney+.

Dougray Scott and Irvine Welsh drop by the show this week to talk about their new thriller, Crime, on Britbox (37:51-54:31), plus we get our Dan Brown on with The Lost Symbol on Sky and put our anime knowledge to the test (ably assisted by Anime-doctorate-holder Beth K Webb) with Netflix's live action adaptation of Cowboy Bebop. Plus we look at which cancelled shows we still recommend people watch, the prevalence of Brit crime thrillers, the veracity (or not) of Squid Game's return, and how James managed to navigate 24 hours in the North of England (spoiler: not that well).

If you're wondering why this week's runtime is so long, it's because we have a big old Q&A with Gemma Whelan, Jim Loach, Tahirah Sharif, Jimmy Akingbola, and Patrick Harbinson, all to talk about ITV's rather excellent new drama The Tower, which runs at the very end of this week's show (for reasons you'll soon discover). Elsewhere, we're getting reacquainted with our Dark Passengers for Dexter: New Blood on Sky Atlantic, seeking some rather problematic therapy from Paul Rudd in Apple's The Shrink Next Door, and exploring the opioid crisis in America with Michael Keaton in Dopesick on Star. Plus you'll get to find out which place in the galaxy Beth describes as "scallywag central", what everyone (James) thought of the new Witcher trailer, and what shows we all should have kept up with but, well, haven't.

We're immersing ourselves in slick Sunday night drama this week with BBC1’s Showtrial, solving a PD James murder mystery with Bertie Carvel in Channel 5’s Dalgliesh, and taking a peek inside the mind of BJ Novak in topical anthology series The Premise on Star. But that’s not all because there’s an absolute landslide of new shows hitting the airwaves this week from What We Do In The Shadows to Narcos: Mexico, the final season of Dickinson and more! Plus james finally finishes Squid Game and would like to inform everyone that its actually rather good, the team bump up against gimmicky VR in the new Wheel of Time trailer and, thanks to a listener question, are everyone is forced to talk about their dreams. Of course, it’s a miracle they get through any of it given that Boyd watched approximately 800 shows this week and elects to tell us all about them.

This week's show sees us disappear down the rabbit hole of the BBC’s recently published list of the 100 greatest TV shows of the 21st century, poring over both their rundown (which all three of us contributed to) and each of our individual lists, which the Beeb was good enough to publicly name and shame us with. Not only that, though, but we’re banging on about Squid Game *yet again*, in this instance taking the show’s English dub to task and asking some key questions about its rather baffling age rating. All of that is just the amuse bouche for the main course, however, which sees us experience Apple TV+’s Invasion, ITV’s Devon-set murder mystery The Long Call, and Stephen Merchant’s new comedy The Outlaws on BBC1.

After a two-year break, Succession is finally back on our screens this week and what better way to mark the occasion than with a dedicated Pilot TV Succession special? James, Boyd, Beth and Nick sit down to chew over the phenomenon that is Jesse Armstrong’s backstabbing masterpiece, discussing everything from the secrets of the show’s success, to the writing, the best episodes for newcomers and, naturally, which Roys each of them identify with the most. But that’s not all, because we are joined on the show by no less than five members of the cast — Brian Cox, Matthew Macfadyen, Sarah Snook, Alan Ruck, and J. Smith-Cameron — each of whom give their takes on the show and give us a little insight as to what we might expect from them in the future. *Contains discussion of some plot points from Seasons 1 and 2 but no spoilers for Season 3.*

Ben Aldridge, joins us on the show this week (41:52-1:00:00) to talk about having one of the most excellent IMDb credits as Fleabag's 'Arsehole Guy', as well as his new ITV series, The Long Call. We then struggle through the rest of the podcast recording with James in a rather fragile state, as we get down with the Roys in season 3 of Succession on Sky, re-litigate Bill Clinton's extra-marital rumblings along with Ryan Murphy in Impeachment: American Crime Story on BBC2, and try to work out what the hell is going on in the second series of Locke & Key on Netflix. Plus you get to find out what 'Pika-Blinders' is (sort of), hear our pitches for TV show spin-offs, get a blow-by-blow account of the random, Ryan Murphy-inspired hotel James was forced to crash in last night, and learn all about Beth's interpretative Succession dance (TikTok to follow, we very much hope).

There was no getting around it, we needed to talk about Ted this week, prompting a 15 minute discussion of the recent Ted Lasso finale and whether the Season 2 as a whole was full of buttery goodness or just a salty bitch (if you've not yet seen it, avoid 3:45-19:19). Elsewhere, we seek some marital advice from Jessica Chastain and Oscar Isaac in Scenes From A Marriage on Sky Atlantic, do the absolute opposite with Penn Badgley in Netflix's You, and follow Robert Carlisle as he tries to steer the UK away from disaster in Sky Max's Cobra: Cyberwar. Plus James attempts to lecture Beth on House Of The Dragon (she has none of it), we muse over the prospect of dish-free Sky, and Beth recounts her experience of Squid Game.

It's an ITV double bill this week as we bask in the golden glow of Sunday evening feels with The Larkins, before shifting tonal gears entirely for Joanne Froggatt's domestic abuse thriller, Angela Black. Then we head up into the big black for Disney's astronaut documentary, Among The Stars, and James gets saddled with some extra homework as Boyd and Beth decide he needs to watch something out of his comfort zone as retribution for #StarTrekForBeth. Plus we talk about the wisdom of Steve Coogan playing Jimmy Savile, Larry David's bald head, and the prospect of Babylon 5 getting rebooted.

On this week's show we have a story that slowly unfolds over a thousand years... we also talk about Foundation. While the runtime for this week's episode is undeniably immense (sorry!), we did have good reason because the delightful Sophie Petzal joins us a guest co-host, ostensibly to talk about her new show Hollington Drive but more accurately to debate the merits of Star Trek: Voyager, call out our anti-animation bias, shed light on the secrets of great screenwriting, and speculate about sex with fairies. PLUS, we have Empire himself, Mr Lee Pace, on the show to talk about Apple's new sweeping sci-fi series Foundation and we take a look at sixties fascism in Ridley Road on BBC1. All that and we even recorded an emergency drop-in section so we could dissect all things 'Tadum' and talk about Netflix's big announcements, plus Boyd had FEELINGS about Russell T Davies returning to Doctor Who. It may take you half a day to get through this episode but trust us when we tell you that it's worth listening to every minute.

Y: The Last Man showrunner Eliza Clark and star Ashley Romans join us on this week's show as we enter a world without men in that apocalyptic drama on Star. Plus we get the bejesus scared out of us by horror maestro Mike Flanagan as he returns with Midnight Mass, and finally get to talk about the second season of The Morning Show. Elsewhere in the show, we talk (and occasionally scream and shout) about the winners and losers at last night's Emmys, and reel off our lists of shame by confessing to the various shows we've been meaning to watch since time immemorial but just haven't got around to yet. All that and you also get to find out which Star Treks we plan to inflict upon Beth in #StarTrekForBeth.

The wonderful Julianna Margulies joins the cast of The Morning Show for season 2, and Pilot TV for episode 159, dropping by this week's show to chat all things TMS and how it feels to be reunited with Jennifer Aniston, with whom she exploded onto network television at exactly the same time and on the very same lot. Plus James, Beth and Boyd take to task people who still think films are better than television, try to navigate streaming subscription priorities, and still find the time to review Netflix's Sex Education, Channel 4's Help and Sky's Young Rock. All that and Beth foolishly opens the door to a galaxy of possibilities by teeing herself up for an inaugural Star Trek experience, which YOU can help organise #startrekforbeth.

The entirely fabulous Amanda Abbington joins the team for this week's show as a special guest host, discussing everything from Sherlock and her new show Wolfe to parenting tarantulas and the horrors of forgetting lines on stage. Plus we run through the annals of great televisual wordsmiths to assemble our picks for the greatest living screenwriters, pull on the latex for Ryan Murphy's American Horror Stories, and go whaling with Stephen Graham in The North Water on BBC2.

After 151 episodes, it was the end of an era for the Pilot TV podcast this week, as the third leg in our triumvirate of bellends, the legend that is Terri White, bid the show a fond farewell and signed off for the very last time. To mark the occasion we did make the somewhat dubious decision to stream the episode live online (you can find it on the Empire Magazine YouTube channel) and, miraculously, nothing went wrong! In addition to giving Terri the send off she so richly deserved, we let you, the listeners, bombard her with questions, a few of Boyd's celebrity friends sent in their own parting thoughts, and James gave her one final serenade on the guitar. All that and we still found time to review Stephen on ITV, Series 2 of Back To Life on the BBC and Only Murders In The Building On Star.

As a wise doctor once said, "we're in the endgame now." Particularly when it comes to The Walking Dead. The eleventh and final season of the iconic, groundbreaking show is set to premiere from Monday 23rd August as a STAR exclusive on Disney+, and that is an occasion so momentous that, once again, the Pilot TV and Empire Podcast teams have joined forces with STAR on Disney+ to talk about it. So, in this very special crossover episode, Chris Hewitt, James Dyer, and Beth Webb pop into the virtual podbooth for an in-depth discussion about their hopes, fears, and dreams for the final season. Who will survive, and what will be left of them? And what about the characters on the show? But that's not all. In an exclusive interview, James sits down across Zoom with Angela Kang, the show's producer and co-writer of Acheron Part I and Acheron Part II, the first two episodes of this 24-episode run, and they have a conversation about sticking the landing. So sit back, relax, and enjoy.

It's not only our one hundred and fiftieth episode this week but it's also Terri's *penultimate* show. Fitting, then, that she chose to mark the occasion by being more 'Terri' than ever before, laying into James' penchant for "fantasy shite", due to being forced to watch season 2 of the magnificent See with absolutely no context. As well as the return of of Steven Knight's post-apocalyptic magnum opus, we find out what Line Of Duty on a submarine would look like in Vigil on BBC1, explore the darker side of sitcoms in Kevin Can F*** Himself, and listen to a Jamesplanation of the final season of The Walking Dead. All that and a Terri makes a concerted effort to not offend animation lovers... and fails spectacularly.

It's quite the week for getaways as The White Lotus opens its opulent Hawaiian resort on Sky Atlantic and Nicole Kidman's wellness retreat receives visitors in Nine Perfect Strangers on Amazon. Of course, Nicola Walker pulling bodies out of a river in Annika doesn't *quite* fit the theme, but her boss has an office that puts most five star hotels to shame so we'll let it slide.

We're all about the hypotheticals this week as we explore alternate superhero realities in Disney's What If?. Plus, we enter the squared circle with StarzPlay's drama about the ups and downs of small town wrestling in Heels, and go undercover to try and catch a killer in Channel 4's Deceit. All that and Terri takes a deep dive into the latest episode of The Handmaid's Tale (19:47-26:43 if you want to avoid spoilers) and we find out why she and Pacey Witter would never have lasted.

It's a cruel (it's a cruel) Cruel Summer this week, leaving us here on our own. But don't worry if those Bananarama lyrics meant nothing to you - that just means you're young. Cruel Summer is not, however, a show about the 80s popsters, but rather a teen psychological thriller on Amazon that we get into this week, along with Joseph Gordon Levitt's Mr Corman on Apple, and the second series of Dominic Savage's I Am on Channel 4. Plus Terri and Boyd roundly ignore the ​listener question and instead bang on about who should be the new Doctor.

Terri's over the moon on this week's show, which can mean only one thing: a new Law & Order. Taking her love of Benson and Stabler to all new heights, Terri leads the charge on Law & Order: Organized Crime, hanging in there for series 2 of Jerk on BBC3, and the return of King Gary on BBC1. Plus we talk through some of the TV actors who should be far bigger stars than they are, and laughably attempt to report the TV news despite having recorded the episode last Thursday.

Assemble the Diamond Dogs because Ted Lasso is back on our screens this week, which gives James and Boyd a second chance to try and make Terri succumb to the moustachioed one’s folksy charms. Plus, we hang out on Uzo Aduba's couch for the new revival of In Treatment on Sky, and take a look at Steve McQueen's new documentary, Uprising, on BBC1. All that and the team get to thrash out the hits and misses of the recent Emmy nominations and ruminate on what manner of egregious TV tastes it would take to constitute a first date dealbreaker.

Aisling Bea joins us on this week's episode as a very special fourth host as we talk about the second series of her Channel 4 show, This Way Up, and chat everything from eating crisps on the couch to how it's possible to be simultaneously obsessed with both Line Of Duty and The Real Housewives Of New York. We also run through the shows we're most looking forward to during the second half of 2021 and even manage to review some shows, including Schmigadoon! On Apple TV+, and season 2 of War Of The Worlds on Disney+.

With the eleventh and final season of The Walking Dead just around the corner, we’re getting all kinds of excited to see how the groundbreaking, landmark AMC show brings the whole bloody affair to a close. But first, we figured it would be time to look back at the previous ten seasons, which are now available to stream on STAR on Disney+. And so the Empire Podcast and Pilot TV Podcast teams have decided to join forces with STAR on Disney+ to bring you this very special episode in which Chris Hewitt, James Dyer and Beth Webb go through the show season-by-season, talking about their favourite characters, moments and, yes, deaths. Lots of deaths. So many deaths. Well, it is The Walking Dead, after all. So, whether you’re a Rick Grimes megafan, or you’re heavily invested in Carol’s progression from meek survivor to Queen Of The Zombie Apocalypse; whether you think Negan deserves a second chance, or you can’t get enough of Michonne; and whether or not you’ll riot if Daryl dies, this is the podcast for you. So sit back, relax, and enjoy The Walking Dead, an Empire + Pilot TV podcast special with STAR on Disney+.

Due to the convergence of both football and tennis, new shows are a little thin on the ground this week but that can't stop us from bringing you another glorious instalment of the podcast. Indeed, this week's is an episode in which Boyd and Terri try to explain the concept of sport to James and then audition a series of (fictional) TV characters to fill Terri's soon to be vacant seat. On the telly front, it's an animation double bill as we look at the Resident Evil anime show on Netflix, and rejoin Mike and Sully for Pixar series Monsters At Work, plus we somehow end up watching a show about the Peru Two in High: Confessions Of An Ibiza Drug Mule on BBC3. Needless to say, James was delighted.

True crime, fake crime and organised crime are the themes this week as we take a look at Netflix documentary Sophie: A Murder In West Cork; Alibi's Facebook acquisition, Limetown; the latest Season of Sons Of Anarchy spin-off Mayans M.C.; and ill-conceived Terry Pratchett adaptation, The Watch. Plus, to celebrate the fact that we've reached the year's midpoint, the team wrangle over their personal lists for the best shows of 2021 so far.

We're all about the Bosch this week as Amazon's Michael Connelly adaptation arrives with its seventh (and final!) season and James gets a little... well, James about it. We also review the modern (if ill-fated) remake of Party Of Five and celebrate Pride Month with LGBT history documentary, Pride. Plus, the team takes a nostalgic trip back to TV shows past, digging through their memories for some of the childhood show that shaped them into the loveable bellends they are today.

We take an adventure with Marvel's god of mischief on this week's show, finally passing the embargo for Loki on Disney+. Then we find out whether Rose Byrne can find salvation through aerobics in Apple's Physical and how James McAvoy and Sharon Horgan survived lockdown in Together — a one-off-feature-length-not-a-film written by Dennis Kelly. Plus James, Terri, and Boyd look at some of the most memorable TV character departures, pick through the carcass of last week's TV Baftas, and get *incredibly* excited (well, mainly James) at the real-time arrival of the See Season 2 trailer.

James is away but somehow still manages to dominate the conversation before Terri, Boyd and guest co-host Beth Webb turn their attention to the Mare Of Easttown finale (spoilers – skip between 6:31 and 12:00 if you still haven’t caught up with one of the shows of the year). Then it’s back to James-spiration for a discussion of the biggest bell-ends in TV history, and what exactly makes a bell-end, before we review The Schwim in Sky One’s Intelligence season 2, Blindspotting on Starzplay and crime drama The Gloaming on Disney+.

Charlotte Ritchie and Mae Martin join us on this week's show to talk about the second (and final) series of Feel Good on Netflix. Plus the Pilot team dissect last week's Friends Reunion special, before embarking on a bumper reviews segment covering Stephen King adaptation Lisey's Story on Apple, Jimmy McGovern's Time on BBC1, Channel 5's adaptation of the last weeks of Anne Boleyn, and Feel Good itself.

James’ re-watch of Game Of Thrones comes to a triumphant conclusion this week, so brace yourselves for an extended monologue/re-evaluation of that show as he drives Terri to the brink of catatonia with fresh takes on all things Season 8 (it ends at 18:43 if you feel your life ebbing away and/or want to avoid any GoT spoilers). And speaking of re-evaluations, we discuss how we view other classic shows differently over time as our perspectives on life change. Plus we finally get to see Amazon’s Solos, see if Star’s Rebel is worth a watch, and hit the beat with Lesley Sharp in Channel 4’s Before We Die — which is also a phrase uttered frequently during James’ aforementioned Thronesplanation.

Katherine Kelly is our guest on the podcast this week, telling us all about her role in series 2 of ITV's Innocent. Plus The Nevers finally arrives on Sky — bringing with it a welcome dose of Victorian superpowers — and Channel 4 unveils its all-new comedy centring around an all-girl, Muslim punk band with We Are Lady Parts. All that and Terri finally gets around to watching Succession, plus we reveal the secrets of how we balance our gargantuan watch lists with having personal lives (we don't).

Rafe Spall and Esther Smith drop by the show this week to talk to us about the second series of Trying. Plus we head back to imperial Rome for Domina on Sky Atlantic, explore an alternate history of the American South in Barry Jenkins’ adaptation of The Underground Railroad on Amazon, and finally reveal what we thought of Jupiter’s Legacy on Netflix. Plus we catch up with the latest seasons of Motherland and Inside Number Nine on the Beeb, and thrash out our picks of the most rewatchable series ever.

Josh Duhamel joins us on the show this week to talk about Netflix’s new superhero series, Jupiter’s Legacy. Plus we head back to the 1940s with Emily Mortimer in the BBC’s The Pursuit Of Love, clap for a pair of hapless carers in Sky’s Bloods, and force Terri to watch the second season of Mythic Quest on Apple TV+. We also get into the Bafta TV nominations and explore which departing cast members most hurt the ratings of long-running TV shows.

*Note: This episode's interview with Noel Clarke has been removed in light of the recent accusations of sexual misconduct.* On this week's show we get into Netflix's YA fantasy Shadow And Bone, Apple's adaptation of The Mosquito Coast, and the long-awaited second series of This Time With Alan Partridge, which may or may not provide Terri with an excuse to dust off her Martin Brennan impression. You have been warned.

Battlestar Galactica creator Ron D. Moore joins us on the show this week to talk For All Mankind. Plus we celebrate Kate Winslet’s triumphant return to the small screen in Mare Of Easttown on Sky, Rose Matafeo’s comedy genius in Starstruck on the BBC, and Fox UK’s ongoing commitment to resurrecting long-cancelled shows with Rush. Plus we talk about some of the best shows to cross international boundaries and get very excited about Line Of Duty (without dropping any spoilers).

This week's show sees us joining Aidan Turner in Milan for Da Vinci drama Leonardo on Amazon, watching Emily Watson and Denise Gough go head-to-head in ITV's Too Close, and witnessing the Gleeson brothers raise merry hell in Dublin thanks to Channel 4's Frank Of Ireland. Plus we talk through the upcoming seasons of TV we're most excited about and Boyd explains why Line Of Duty is shaping up to be the Avengers Endgame of TV crime drama.

Assuming you're able to rouse yourself from a chocolate-induced coma this Easter Monday, we have a similarly sugar-fuelled episode of the podcast for you as we brace ourselves for supernatural horror/social realism thriller Them on Amazon, What We Do In The Shadows spinoff Wellington Paranormal on Sky, and burglary-gone-wrong thriller Intruder on Channel 5. There's also some serious discussion about *that* Unforgotten finale and while spoilers for the show are again quite clearly signposted, you can avoid the entire discussion by skipping everything between 11:56 and 19:38. Terri, James and Boyd's screaming row about appropriate spoiler etiquette on twitter, however, must be listened to in full.

On this week's show we take a trip back to Victorian London for Netflix's YA-themed Sherlock show The Irregulars, plus a jaunt to Wales for the final series of the BBC's Keeping Faith. And then, for reasons, we also review the *fourth* series of Lottery-winner drama The Syndicate, in which a group of dog groomers strike it rich. Plus we get very excited about the penultimate episode of Unforgotten (spoilers are clearly signposted but occur between 5:20 and 11:21), and explore some of the great shows that began their lives on the big screen.

If your week could be measurably improved by the sound of Terri quacking uncontrollably then you’re in luck, because there’s an abundance of duck sound effects to accompany this week’s reviews section as we tackle The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers on Disney+. When not replicating a mallard’s mating calls, we also share our reactions to nihilistic German horror series Hausen on Sky, and immerse ourselves in The Falcon And The Winter Soldier. Meanwhile, we take a look at instances where great shows go bad and the news section is hijacked by a lively debate about Jed Mercurio’s use of the C-bomb (actual C-bombs abound - you have been warned) and the depiction of violence on telly.

AC-12 is back in the house this week as we catch up with all the latest Ted Hastings developments in Line Of Duty series 6 on BBC1 (NOTE: contains no spoilers or plot discussion for this or previous seasons), plus we pick up the phone for Apple’s batty audio-only drama Calls, and finally get to go on a holiday (albeit a vicarious one) as we join Kaley Cuoco for jet-setting murder mystery The Flight Attendant on Sky. All that and Terri disappears down an Unforgotten rabbit hole and we take a trip down memory lane to the shows we loved back when we were knee-high to a grasshopper.

James and Terri made a Faustian pact in advance of this week’s show, which leads to a rather unexpected instalment of What We’ve Been Watching. Then we then try to work out what on Earth is going on with BBC Three, how the Golden Globes ceremony was one of the best things on telly last week, and which teen shows float each member of the team’s respective boats. Plus we find ourselves looking for love in lockdown via Star’s Love In The Time Of Corona, on the trail of a rogue AI in Star’s curiously capitalised neXt, and on the trail of a missing person in ITV’s surname-based cop thriller, Grace.

On this week's show we find ourselves in the familiar scenario of watching a law abiding Bryan Cranston abandon his regular life for one of crime in Sky’s Your Honor. Plus James makes a valiant stand against Terri and Boyd when the team review Star's new comedy, Dollface, and Terri is forced to watch the new bonus episodes of The Walking Dead, despite only ever having seen one episode in her life. Not only that but the team also reveal their favourite telly picks from the dark days before the current era of Peak TV, and James insists on inflicting his latest rewatch obsession on everyone, whether they want him to or not.

Star launches on Disney+ this week and we sift through the launch releases on that service, which involves finding out what Lagertha the shieldmaiden is up to post-Vikings in Big Sky, and discovering if Love Simon’s big screen magic can survive the transition to the small screen in Love Victor. Plus, we dig up another cold case with Nicola Walker and Sanjeev Bhaskar in series 4 of ITV’s Unforgotten, get into a big old discussion about which books need adapting for TV ASAP, and Terri simply cannot resist talking about *that* ending in Behind Her Eyes — but don't worry, the spoilers are clearly signposted and you can skip the whole discussion by avoiding everything between 09:13 and 16:56.

Finger-wagging abounds on this week's show as we manage to fall into an argument/therapy-session over why each of us are the way we are with regard to telly viewing habits, and why James has never watched a documentary series all the way through. We also find the time to watch the new Jed Mercurio-produced James Nesbitt thriller, Bloodlands, immerse ourselves in the batshit world of Netflix's Behind Her Eyes, and finally give For All Mankind a proper chance when we get mooned by that show's second season.

We've been threatening to do it for weeks and now we've finally delivered. Here, for your listening pleasure, is a Pilot TV spoiler special dedicated to the greatest TV show ever made: The West Wing. To celebrate the fact that Terri binged the entire show over the past month, and in recognition of the fact that James needs absolutely no excuse to bang on about it until people beg him to stop, we bring you a mammoth recording where the team thrash over the themes, the cast, the major plot points and much, much more. Plus, you can enjoy James' interview with the man who started the whole thing: West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin. Enjoy!

On this week's show we're looking for true love in Amazon Prime's new anthology drama, Soulmates, investigating a true crime mystery in The Vanishing At the Cecil Hotel on Netflix, and taking a look at Adam Curtis' mind-bending new iPlayer series, Can’t Get You Out Of My Head. Plus Terri goes off on a venomous diatribe agains the Golden Globe nominations and we somehow end up in a protracted musing about the state of modern telly and the evolution of viewing habits. Because why the hell not?

On the show this week we take a look Andrea Riseborough and Gabriel Byrne's drug-smuggling thriller ZeroZeroZero on Sky Atlantic, track down a missing person in The Drowning on Channel 5, and check out Channel 4's latest comedy, Ramy, which only people with StarzPlay will have already seen. Plus Terri explains why, despite all evidence to the contrary, she *never* watches rubbish telly and we bear witness to the 'triumphant' return of James' guitar.

Anna Friel joins us on this week's show to talk about the third season of Marcella, which makes its belated UK debut on ITV this week. Plus Terri goes inexplicably nuts for demented Sky comedy Resident Alien, and we discover that the devil's in the details (which in this case include having been cancelled nearly half a decade ago) for Fox UK's Damien.

On this week's show telly legend and Doctor Who pioneer Russell T. Davies joins us as guest host when we take a trip back to the 1950s for Marvel/I Love Lucy hybrid show WandaVision, and force Terri to sit through some Star Trek animation in Lower Decks. We also get a chance to delve deep into Russell's new series, It's A Sin, and talk about some of the shows we're most looking forward to in 2021.

On this week's show we’re joining Luke Evans in the hunt for a Welsh serial killer in ITV’s The Pembrokeshire Murders, finding out how baby Jericho’s holding up in Season 2 of Servant on Apple TV+, and watching Rosario Dawson unravel a mystery on Alibi as Briarpatch makes its belated debut on UK screens. Plus we tumble down the stairs with Finding Alice, and Beth Webb joins us as we explore Boyd's favourite narrative device and investigate the use of flashbacks.

Happy New Year to you all! And what better way to celebrate than to hear Terri once again concede that a show James has banged on about endlessly is actually rather good. Which one? You’ll have to wait and see. We also take a look at the new adaptation of Stephen King’s The Stand on Starzplay, head back to Elizabethan times for Season 2 of A Discovery Of Witches on Sky, and dive headfirst into Season 3 of Netflix’s Cobra Kai.

You didn't think we'd leave you all Christmas with no Pilot TV podcast did you? With the long-awaited Season 3 of Cobra Kai mere days away, we bring you this special episode dedicated to the show, featuring none other than Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence themselves: Ralph Macho and William Zabka. The stars of the show chat the way of the fist with James, discuss how this most unlikely of reunions became the biggest show on streaming, and what we can expect going forward. Strike first. Strike hard. No mercy!

Derry Girl Nicola Coughlan joins us on this the final regular Pilot podcast of 2020 to talk about sexy bodice-ripper Bridgerton. Meanwhile, the rest of the show comes to you in association with (non warrior) nuns in the Himalayas thanks to the BBC's Black Narcissus, a seventies serial killer in The Serpent, and assorted secret Santa shenanigans in the brilliantly funny Motherland Christmas special. Plus Boyd breaks out his magic listings book to talk us through all the TV highlights over the Christmas break and we talk though all our favourite festive episodes. See you in 2021!

The Expanse returns this week, much to Terri and Boyd's bemusement - but don't worry, James is on hand to Beltersplain everything as needed. We also dive into Amazon's new pseudo-Lost show, The Wilds, and embrace a little festive cheer (kind of) with the Euphoria Christmas special. All that and a rather unexpected discussion of late stage capitalism, some thoughts on additions to established ensemble casts, and Terri inadvertently trigger's the Pilot TV podcast's new security system, much to her chagrin.

2020 has been quite a year. A global pandemic, political upheaval and most of us being forced to spend large chunks of it under virtual house arrest. However, amidst the crises and carnage we've been treated to a genuinely outstanding year for television and that's what this episode is all about. James, Terri and Boyd run through their takes on 2020 and count down Pilot's definitive list of the Top 20 shows of the year. Want to know what essential shows you've missed over the past 12 months? Or what you absolutely must add to your watch list over Christmas? Well you're in luck, so strap in, get a notepad handy and feast your ears on Pilot TV's recap of the year in television.

It's the moment you've all been waiting for: we make Terri sit through HBO's near-impenetrable hard sci-fi series Raised By Wolves (not to be confused with Caitlin Moran's Wolverhampton-set comedy of the same name, which she would have enjoyed far more). Plus we attempt to find out why Tim Roth is heading back to Liverpool for season 3 of Tin Star and try to make sense out of the bafflingly-titled Power Book II: Ghost. Plus we talk about our most off-brand TV opinions and Terri and Boyd succeed in torturing James with a blow-by-blow recap of the Bake-Off finale.

We resisted for weeks but we've finally relented and agreed to give Netflix's The Queen's Gambit the full review treatment it deserves. Plus we head behind bars for Nicholas Pinnock's E4 courtroom/prison drama For Life and bamboozle Terri with SyFy's bizarro supernatural YA miniseries Trickster. In addition, James proselytises about Counterpart, Terri and Boyd rhapsodise about a Welsh Castle, The Crown gets explained for James' mum and we recommend some of our favourite non UK/US shows for your international enjoyment.

Pilot TV's bellend-in-chief has taken a rare holiday this week leaving Terri in the hot seat and welcoming Amon Warmann onto the team as they watch Ethan Hawke gives it his all in abolitionist drama The Good Lord Bird on Sky Atlantic; Steve McQueen's second instalment in Small Axe, Lovers Rock, which comes to BBC1; and a pair of teenagers come of age on a US military base in Luca Guadagnino's We Are Who We Are on BBC Three. All that and Pilot TV is graced with its first musical review, Boyd utters the phrase, "Layers of mousse," and Terri decides to Banshee a show we have previously reviewed on this very podcast, throwing all the rules completely out the window.

It's time to get down with The Crown on this week's show as we take in the uncanny glory that is Gillian Anderson's superlative Margaret Thatcher. Plus we get a look inside the cut-throat world of financial services in BBC2's Industry (it does *not* pass the bellend test), and catch a selection of films in Steve McQueen's Small Axe on BBC1, which may or may not constitute a TV series in the strictest sense but is so good that it really doesn't matter.

Baby Yoda returns this week as we're finally able to review The Mandalorian Season 2 on Disney+. We also catch up with Lyra and Pantalaimon in the second series of the BBC's His Dark Materials adaptation AND delve into the sordid inner workings of sex cult NXIVM in Sky Documentaries' The Vow. All that and you get to hear Terri's latest adventures in The West Wing to properly prepare you for tomorrow's US election.

Russell Tovey makes his triumphant return to the podcast this week, taking about Neil Cross' new show, The Sister on ITV. Plus we find out if Nick Frost is afraid of ghosts in Amazon's Truth Seekers and get an eyeful of Sky's The Undoing, which features Hugh Grant, Nicole Kidman and a surprising amount of full frontal nudity. Plus Terri updates us on her West Wing progress and the team has an alternate universe conversation about TV castings that could have been.

It's a momentous episode this week as, after 107 episodes of James banging on about it, Terri finally watched The West Wing. What's more, she reviews the show for us at the top of this week's show (well, the episodes she's seen, anyway). That alone should be more than enough to warrant a download, but there's more! Nick Frost drops by the pod to talk about his new show, Truth Seekers, plus we review Season 3 of Star Trek: Discovery, get a glimpse inside Sara Pascoe's brain in the bonkers Out Of Her Mind, and a peek inside Lena Waithe's in her semi-autobiographical comedy Twenties.

James discovers the joy of Cobra Kai this week, having finally accepted Netflix's glorious Karate Kid spinoff series into his heart, meanwhile Terri anoints herself 'the reality sponge' and Boyd maintains that he still hasn't watched the Little Mix reality show. In more serious business, though, we finally get to talk about The Right Stuff on Disney+, not to mention Hugh Laurie's political shenanigans in the BBC's Roadkill, and the glorious return of Warrior on Sky. Plus there's a minor free-for-all as we debate the merits of week-by-week vs bingeable TV shows.

Zombies! Ghosts! Porn stars! We've got a little something for everyone on this week's show as we tackle The Walking Dead: World Beyond, Netflix's The Haunting Of Bly Manor, and Channel 4's Adult Material. Plus a little more musing on Netflix's cancellation formula (less boring than it sounds!) and some disagreement as to how many syllables are in the name Conan.

It's a Brave New World this week as we immerse ourselves in the new adaptation of Aldous Huxley's dystopian sci-fi novel, plus we get a Life with the BBC's new Doctor Foster Spinoff, and strap in for three hours of Trump getting elected in the HBO adaptation of former FBI director James Comey's memoir, The Comey Rule.

Gillian Flynn's long-awaited remake of Dennis Kelly's Utopia lands with us this week, along with the second series of the Horrible History crew's spirited comedy, Ghosts. Plus Terri gets to geek out about Mike Coulter-starring supernatural procedural Evil, and Boyd and Terri's ongoing mission to make James like Doctor Who steps up a notch as finally watches Blink from series 3.

Dennis Kelly joins us on the show this week to talk about his audacious new multi-part drama (with a live event, no less) The Third Day, plus we get back into the interrogation room for Season 2 of Netflix's Criminal, strap in for the most Ryan Murphy show of all time with Ratched, and witness David Tennant at his most terrifying in ITV's Des. And that's not all, because we also take a look back at TV's most heart-warming (and teeth-gnashingly frustrating) slow-burn romances and get borderline hysterical in a discussion about time travel.

David Morrissey is our guest on this week's show, talking about his new series, The Singapore Grip, which we also review. What's more, after an eternity's wait, Hulu's High Fidelity finally arrives on British screens, much to our delight, while Netflix's The Duchess pits Katherine Ryan against modern life and Awkwafina gets her own slacker comedy in the rather confusingly titled Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens. Plus Terri finally gets a chance to share her top 5 shows - no prizes for guessing number one.

Beth is back and mercifully audible this week as we dive into Netflix's Young Wallander, take a trip to Mars with Hillary Swank in Away, and see Maisie Williams turn into (another) pint-sized assassin in Sky's hitgirl comedy, Two Weeks To Live. Plus we unearth some classic British shows that might appeal to our American listeners and there's a perhaps a brief mention of Battlestar Galactica coming to iPlayer.

Lucifer himself, Mr Tom Ellis, joins us as guest host for our 100th episode! We chat about everything from playing the lord of hell to his love for Battlestar Galactica, as well as running down each of our top five TV shows of all time. Plus we review the latest series of Strike, watch Billie Piper's life implode in I Hate Suzie and get a head start on the long-awaited second season of Amazon's The Boys. All that and Tom even breaks out his guitar. What's not to love?

James is off this week so in comes Beth Webb who delights us with her axe wielding (she plays guitar), as we review the monstrously exciting Lovecraft Country, the edgy Teen Bounty Hunters on Netflix and BBC3’s comedy sketch show Famalam. We also take the opportunity to reboot some classic sitcoms as TV dramas.

We're returning to Dirty John this week with a second series of that anthology show, which no longer features anyone named John, and returning to The First Team (kind of) in Apple's similarly-themed football comedy, Ted Lasso. Plus we take in some bite-sized comedy in Diane Morgan's Mandy and it all kicks off over this year's TV BAFTAs, in which Fleabag and Derry Girls were defeated by Stath Lets Flats.

Get those headphones on and send the kids to bed for this special illicit sex-themed episode of the Pilot TV podcast where we not only visit Samantha Morton's house of ill-repute in Harlots and delve into the adaptation of Anaïs Nin's Little Birds, but see an affair take a distinctly supernatural turn in Lisa McGee's The Deceived as well. And speaking of The Deceived, Lisa herself is a guest on this week's show, dropping by to talk us through her Donegal-set psychological thriller and what we can expect from the next series of Derry Girls.

It's umbrellas at the ready this week as we dive headfirst into Season 2 of Netflix's batty superhero series, The Umbrella Academy. And speaking of demented television concepts, serial killer procedural Prodigal son (which stars The Walking Dead's Tom 'Jesus' Payne and Michael Shane as a father-and-son sociopathic crime-solving duo) certainly fits the bill. Elsewhere, we tackle Jimmy McGovern's harrowing one-off drama, Anthony, and the rather less serious return of Kermit and the gang in Muppets Now.

We're all about the witches this week as we unearth our belated review of Netflix's Arthurian epic, Cursed, and then sign up for Wiccan boot camp and the arrival of BBC3's army witch series, Fort Salem. Plus we're heading off to post-partition India for the adaptation of Vikram Seth's mammoth tome, A Suitable Boy. All the and a lot more discussion of fingering than you'll generally find on an average episode of the Pilot podcast, but you can all blame Terri for that.

We are cursed by embargoes this week as Netflix's latest show, Cursed, demands our lips stay sealed for another week, however we are able to talk about David Simon and Ed Burns' new show, The Plot Against America, and discover Condor, a show we didn't know existed until season 2 dropped in our laps. All that plus lots of discussion around restaurant scenes and Boyd's recollections of having to talk to famouses at after parties.

It's the episode you've all been waiting for - the show in which we *finally* review Warrior Nun, AKA the greatest TV show ever made. We also delve into the world of Mississippi strip clubs in P-Valley, join Cate Blanchett in some seventies political turmoil in Mrs America, and try to hit the big time with Apple's Little Voice. All that and we run through the 20 best TV shows of the year so far and find out what James has learned on the guitar this week.

Malevolent demons, pint-sized assassins and Spandau Ballet are the topics on this week's show as we review Penny Dreadful: City Of Angels, Season 2 of Amazon's Hanna, and The Kemps: All True (yes really). Plus the team speculate on which supporting characters should get their own spinoffs, Terri and Boyd continue with I May Destroy You, and James subjects everyone to some of the worst guitar playing since Dave Lister performed 'She's Out Of My Life' in series three of Red Dwarf.

Natalie Dormer is our guest on this week's show, chatting about her new series, Penny Dreadful: City Of Angels, and reminiscing about Game Of Thrones. Meanwhile, we resurrect a courtroom legend in HBO's Perry Mason, jump into the fourth season of Issa Rae's Insecure and dabble in a little lockdown monologuing with Alan Bennett's Talking Heads. Plus we celebrate Terri's birthday while casting aspersions over the veracity of her Northernness, she drinks an endless amount of Bucks Fizz, and there's a whole to-do about whether or not James should be allowed to play the guitar (categorically not).

This week's show is brought to you in association with the definite article as we catch up with Bill Pullman in season 3 of The Sinner, head off to 18th century Russia with Elle Fanning in The Great, and to 19th century New Zealand with Eva Green and Eve Hewson in The Luminaries. All that plus a squabble over whether or not you should skip TV show credits, the indignity of unrealistic threesomes and the question of whether the 'astrolabe' is a hitherto undiscovered part of female anatomy.

On this week's show we’re breaking out the skateboards and pulling off some righteous grinds with HBO’s Betty, heading to Wiltshire and being incredibly careful what we touch for BBC1’s The Salisbury Poisonings, exploring sexual consent with Michaela Cole in I May Destroy You, and we get into a big old political scuffle while reviewing Sky Documentaries’ Hillary. Plus a complete deconstruction of last week's TV BAFTA nominations (Years And Years was robbed), plus Boyd and Terri do their best to educate James on the storied history of reality TV, and the team reminisce about Neighbours, Home & Away and... um, Eldorado.

Vicky McClure joins us this week to talk about Amazon's Alex Rider, which we also review. Plus you get a (slightly belated) review of The First Team, our introduction to Canadian noir thriller Cardinal, and BBC2's mix-matched family comedy The Other One. All that and an interminable Banshee of Babylon 5, plus we philosophise for nearly ten minutes on the origins and usage of profanity, just for the listeners who complain we swear too much. Because of course we do.

Will Arnett joins us on the podcast this week as we lace up and hit the pitch for The First Team: his new comedy from the creators of The Inbetweeners. We also get our tickets punched for the long delayed TV adaptation of Bong Joon-Ho's Snowpiercer, which arrives on Netflix this week, and head into the stratosphere with Steve Carell in Space Force. And if that wasn't enough, we go searching for a pair of killers in We Hunt Together, James takes the Gogglebox challenge, Terri endures an episode of See (masturbating prayer sequences and all!), and James undertakes an excruciatingly long Banshee that seems to encompass every Stargate show ever made.

We didn't start the fire... but we're pretty sure we know who did in Amazon's Little Fires Everywhere. Plus we try desperately to figure out what in creation is going on in Season 2 of Homecoming (it helps if you've seen Season 1, trust us), and we strap Terri down and force her to sit through SyFy's new budget outing, Pandora. It goes about as well as you'd imagine. All that and we manage to not only sum up the best series you can watch in a single day but James (reluctantly) agrees to take on the Gogglebox challenge, which is destined to end badly for everyone.

It's a double dose of Mark Ruffalo this week as he takes on twin duties in HBO’s preternaturally depressing adaptation of Wally Lamb's I Know This Much Is True. Plus we head out to Cape Cod with Monica Raymund in cop drama Hightown and rap along with Dave Burd (who seems unhealthily obsessed with his own genitals) in FX comedy Dave. Plus there's some fun with names in this week's listener question, we engage in some spoiler-free discussion of the Homeland (Woo!) and Westworld (Boo!) finales, and James makes a rather disturbing revelation about Gloria Estefan...

All three of us take the opportunity this week to gush liberally over our experiences watching the rest of Normal People (Marianne! Connell! All the feels!). After that, we finally manage to bring your our review of Ryan Murphy's Tinseltown fairytale, Hollywood; take a look at Jack Thorne and Damien Chazelle's Parisian jazz series, The Eddy; and witness the triumphant return of Joe Gilgun's Brassic. Plus we entirely fail to come up with an agreed set of rules for naming our favourite shows on each streaming service.

On this week's show, Empire's Chris Hewitt parachutes in to join Boyd in giving Better Call Saul some long overdue love. Plus we look at parenting with Rafe Spall and Esther Smith in Apple's Trying, sample a technological afterlife in Amazon’s Upload, see Danny Mays brought back to life in Sky’s Code 404, investigate a kidnapping with Cobie Smulders in Stumptown, and find out what's going on behind the curtains in series 2 of Channel 5's Blood. All that and James bangs on about season 4 of The Last Kingdom. Because of course he does.

Ricky Gervais is our guest on this week's show in a truly mammoth interview with Boyd about series 2 of After Life. As well as reviewing that show, we also tackle the heroically violent Gangs Of London from the director of The Raid, Gareth Evans, get into some courtroom drama with Chris Evans in Defending Jacob and feast our eyes on the Beeb's adaptation of Normal People. Plus a discussion (with photographic proof) of our three hosts' youth, back in the days when Boyd and James had hair and Terri was... well, still Terri.

Matthew Macfadyen & Sian Clifford stop by the pod this week to discuss ITV's Quiz. Plus it's wall-to-wall reviews as we make up for last week's leaner slate with out takes on Season 3 of Killing Eve (finally!), Alex Garland's twisted mystery Devs, HBO comedy/thriller Run, the aforementioned Quiz and the latest season of Bosch. Plus we take a dive into the world of book series we'd like to see adapted to the small screen and reel off about fifteen bits of different Tiger King news.

It's only smegging Red Dwarf on the podcast this week — a show that Terri had never seen before this *feature-length* episode, much to James and Boyd's collective enjoyment. Plus we review Alma's Not Normal (a sitcom Terri enjoyed far more, but mainly as it appears to have been based upon her life) but sadly *not* Killing Eve Season 3 as, while we've seen it, apparently the embargo doesn't lift until Tuesday. Sorry. On the plus side, there's a trio of Banshees for your enjoyment and a misty-eyed discussion of the best TV theme tunes — including The Raccoons, for some reason. Cyril Sneer would not approve.

The magnificent Lennie James returns to our screens (in a bright yellow puffer jacket, naturally) having written a follow-up to 2018's brilliant Save Me. And that's not all, because this week we're also wrangling with the very fabric of existence with Amazon's Tales From The Loop, and keeping print journalism alive with a tween reporter in Apple's Home Before Dark. Plus the team take the current lockdown to heart, prompting an in-depth discussion of TV's best bottle episodes.

It's here! The first socially distanced Pilot TV podcast is live, and not only is it business as usual for Pilot TV during the current pandemic but we also see the triumphant return of Terri White as it turns out that isolation and maternity leave are actually quite compatible. On this week's show we *finally* get to review The Mandalorian as Disney + launches here in the UK, and we *at last* get to see the return of Veronica Mars as it makes a belated appearance here as well. Plus we go murderising with Mel and Sue in Sky's Hitmen and catch up with Jason Bateman in Ozark Season 3. All that and enough banter, random police sirens and general nonsense to keep your minds off all things virus-related for an hour and a half. Enjoy!

It's a Julian Fellowes double-bill this week as we sit down to high tea with some posh socialites in Belgravia and then set about scoring goals against posh footballers in The English Game. And that's all prior to being thoroughly charmed by Mae Martin and Charlotte Ritchie in Feel Good. Don't worry, though, there's plenty of conflict to balance it all out as Boyd goes all Season 8 Daenerys on James over what they've been watching this week and we talk about the best in apocalyptic TV.

Martin Freeman and Daisy Haggard are our guests this week, stopping by to talk about their parenting comedy Breeders, which features Freeman hurling obscenities at a toddler and calling an alarm clock a c***. We also tackle Sky’s Mrs Fletcher, in which empty nest syndrome collides with hardcore pornography — an incident that unexpectedly spiced up James' commute. And last but by no means least we return to HBO’s Westworld to see whether Lisa Joy and Jonathan Nolan’s show survives its transition to the real world. If all that wasn’t enough, this week’s listener question leads to a frankly shocking confession from Pilot’s very own Beth Webb.

This week's show sees us suiting up for yet another War Of The Worlds, this time in a more contemporary London with Gabriel Byrne on the run from Martian marauders. Plus we explore racial tensions in an alternate reality England with BBC1's Noughts + Crosses, seek nuggets of truth in return of ITV's Liar, and accompany Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan on their latest holiday abroad in The Trip To Greece. Plus we get to hear about Beth's new sideline as a documentarian as she unearths the darker side of streaming services, and Boyd catches us up on what he's been watching, which is apparently everything.

The star and creator of Channel 4's Home, Rufus Jones joins us on the podcast this week, stepping in for James while he's on holiday. And speaking of body swaps, this week sees us review Season 2 of Netflix's now Joel Kinnaman-less sci-fi Altered Carbon, along with John Hughes-inspired high school superhero series I'm Not Okay With This and ITV thriller Flesh & Blood.

We’re on the lookout for Nazis with Al Pacino this week with Amazon’s Hunters, plus studying the art of incompetent spycraft with David Schwimmer in Intelligence, and taking a break from the bustle of London for a tongue-in-cheek look at Cotswolds life in BBC mockumentary This Country. All that and you can discover the assortment of shows Boyd's recently been on set of, learn why Beth loves Pontypandy, and find out why James' mum once complained to the BBC about a certain children's show.

Join us for a very special podcast this week — Terri's last before heading off on maternity leave. To celebrate the occasion Boyd and James provide some recommendations for post partum viewing, plus we dive head first into the eighth season of Homeland, the second season of Castle Rock and the beginning of Australian euthanasia drama, The End.

Sarah Phelps joins us as a special celebrity co-host on this week's show to talk everything from her latest Agatha Christie adaptation, The Pale Horse to the joys of Mrs Brown's Boys, by way of Baby Yoda sex toys and the logistics of stormtrooper wanking. Meanwhile, we get stuck into *four* other new shows this week, including Netflix's latest spooky old house series, and the delightful second series of Rufus Jones' immigrant comedy, Home.

Armando Iannucci is our guest on the podcast this week, telling us about his love of Star Trek, the fundamental flaw in Virgin Atlantic, and why he chose to break with terrestrial affairs and write a show set in a flying dildo (35:44-49:17). Also this week, Boyd explains the secret behind Larry David’s comedy genius as we review Season 10 of Curb Your Enthusiasm and we take a trip to heaven with Daniel Radcliffe and Steve Buscemi in Miracle Workers. Finally, after about 18 months of build-up, James *finally* gets to talk about Star Trek: Picard. Apologies in advance: that bit goes on for a while! 🖖

Beth Webb stands in for Terri this week as we are prevented from talking about Star Trek: Picard thanks to an inconvenient embargo that we in no way attempt to circumvent by nefarious means. Instead, we hop aboard Armando Iannucci’s new sci-fi show, Avenue 5, embrace the comedy charms of Shrill Season 2 and find out what’s been happening on Netflix’s Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina. Plus you can hear all about how Boyd turned up on Skins and Beth’s attempts to justify her aversion to science fiction.

Happy new year! Pilot TV’s first show of 2020 marks the triumphant return of Netflix’s Sex Education, the declaration of a national emergency in Sky’s Cobra, and a supernatural twist on the modern crime drama with the HBO adaptation of Stephen King’s The Outsider. Plus James, Terri and Boyd thrash out the various shows they managed to cram into the Christmas Break, not least of all the Derry Girls edition of Bake Off.

Another year, another raft of exceptional TV shows. If you were wondering what shows you should be watching over the holiday break, curious as to what you missed over the past 12 months or just looking for the single, definitive checklist of everything that should be on your playlist then look no further. James, Terri and Boyd mull over all the best shows of the past 12 months, running down the official Pilot TV Top 20 shows of the year. Plus, make some extra recommendations and take a look at some of the shows that fell through the cracks over the course of the year. Not only that but Brian Cox stops by to talk Logan Roy and all things Succession Season 2. If you only listen to one TV podcast episode this year, make it this one!

In our final regular show of the year we get bloody with Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat’s Sherlockian take on Bram Stoker’s Dracula, get caught up with Season 2 of Netflix’s stalker series You, and are finally allowed to talk about The Witcher. Plus we fill you in on the Gavin & Stacey and Doctor Who Christmas specials.

This week we’re tapping into that Big Dickens Energy with Steven Knight's take on A Christmas Carol, and continuing in the festive spirit with the Christmas special of Idris Elba’s In The Long Run. Plus, we debate the difference between a comedy and a psychological thriller in our review of ITV's Sticks And Stones. Terri's off on holiday this week but Beth Webb bravely attempts to fill her sweary shoes and keep both James and Boyd in line.

Rupert Grint makes his Pilot TV Podcast debut this week, stopping by to talk all things Servant. Plus we *finally* get the chance to review The Expanse and you won't want to miss Terri's assessment of that one. As counter programming to that, we get into a protracted and somewhat heated argument, debating the merits of the new season of Law & Order: SVU. Plus Alibi's Traces gets a look in as well.

On the podcast this week we're heavy on the Norse as Terri and Boyd try (and fail) to make sense of Vikings Season 5, Apple's latest drops in the form of Octavia Spencer's podcast-themed Truth Be Told, and we enjoy a 90-minute one-off TV drama (not a film) in BBC1's Elizabeth Is Missing. Plus James prepares everyone for next week's return of The Expanse in *excruciating* detail (01:00:14 - 01:04:42).

It's all creepy nannies with M. Night Shyamalan's Servant this week, then a Teutonic apocalypse in Sky's 8 Days and finally a road trip across Australia with Tim Minchin and a suerprisingly sweary 16 year-old in Upright. Plus Boyd shows off his newfound swearing powers, Terri teaches us some Northern slang and James finally gets to Banshee Utopia. (Note: The Servant review takes place between 36:02 and 45:54 and is clearly signposted, just in case you want to watch that without knowing what it's about).

After weeks of broken promises, Terri *finally* watches that long-awaited second episode of Farscape this week. And as if that weren't enough, we also sink our teeth into period procedural Vienna Blood, explore the perils of answering the phone in Channel 5's Cold Call, enthuse about the ongoing charms of Gold Digger, and talk all things Maclunkey. Plus you'll get to hear Terri's Nadine Coyle impression, which is not to be missed.

It's Crown time again on the podcast this week as Olivia Colman joins Monarchy: The Next Generation. Plus we see how the Martians are faring in the Beebs new adaptation of The War Of The Worlds, strap in for the final season of The Man In The High Castle, and find out if we're on board with the BBC's new 'family noir', Gold Digger.

Jason Momoa and Alfre Woodard join us this week (26:02-41:16) to talk about feeling their way through Apple's post-apocalyptic epic, See. Plus we get into a trio of sequels including Sky's Britannia and Channel 4's The End Of The F****** World. We also fall out completely over The Young Offenders and Empire's Chris Hewitt drops by for an impromptu Banshee about Blue Bloods.

Hailee Steinfeld joins us this week, bringing some Big Dickinson Energy to the podcast as she tells us all about her new show on Apple TV+. Speaking of which, we attempt to review all of the shows dropping on the new streaming service this Friday (The Morning Show, See, Dickinson, For All Mankind), while still finding time to wax lyrical about His Dark Materials and Season 2 of Jack Ryan. Brace yourselves, this may take a while.

Damon Lindelof's Watchmen is the main course on this week's menu, with Jack Thorne's The Accident serving as a tasty (if slightly bitter) starter and Ryan Murphy's Pose perfectly capping it off as the fizzy dessert. All that and Terri finally watches an episode of 'Fire Escape', which goes about as well as you'd expect.

Aisling Bea joins us on this week's podcast to talk about her new show with Paul Rudd, Living With Yourself, which we also review! Not only that but we delve into the mystery of Sarah Phelps' Dublin Murders, discover the meaning of romance in Amazon's Modern Love, and span continents with English/Japanese gangster drama Giri/Haji. All that and an utterly incoherent Banshee featuring nineties German porn game shows, plus some (blissfully short) Picard-splaining and the joy of Aisling Bea schooling James on why he doesn't understand comedy.

It's murder at the school gates this week (not literally) in BBC2's Motherland, more creepy shenanigans from anthology series The Terror, and The Walking Dead returns for its tenth season - yes, that's right, you've been watching these zombies for a full decade now. Plus Terri makes her triumphant return after a week off and James finally gets to put his oar in concerning Amazon's Carnival Row. Oh and it's worth mentioning that this podcast was recorded *before* the new Picard trailer dropped, making this at least three hours shorter than it otherwise would have been and marking a very lucky escape for all of you.

With Terri across the Atlantic, Beth Webb joins James and Boyd as the team dives into Swamp Thing, peers up at Goliath and kneels down before Catherine The Great. We also take a detour via Stars Hollow for a brief reappreciation of Gilmore Girls, jump back to the early nineties to recount the story of a little known James Earl Jones series that was subjected to a baffling makeover, and get into the weeds over last week's Emmy results.

On this week's show we hurl ourselves into the Beeb's lavish WWII series World On Fire, delve into the world of Machiavellian high school politics in Netflix's The Politician, and put on our dancing shoes for the musical finale of Amazon's Transparent. All that and the staggering revelation that James was in an early nineties sitcom starring Nigel Planer.

A very special episode this week, specifically our first ever live show! Recorded at the London Podcast Festival on Friday 13th September, the show saw Russell Tovey join James, Terri and Boyd as part of the Pilot team, waxing lyrical about Netflix's interrogation procedural Criminal, Boston-set crime drama City On A Hill and baby barrister comedy Defending The Guilty, plus much, much more besides. Come for the lowdown on the latest telly, stay for Russell's brilliantly X-rated anecdotes.

This week we take a look at Mark Strong's mob doctor drama Temple, join Toni Collette for true-crime drama Unbelievable, and get in touch with our inner East End gangsters for Netflix's Drake-starring thriller Top Boy. Also on the podcast this week we've been beset by gremlins! Not literally, of course, but rather the technical kind that meant guest presenter Amon's microphone decided to misbehave. Thanks to some postproduction tinkering, though, we've managed to make him audible but apologies for the fact that one member of our trio does sound like he's at the bottom of a fish tank.

Cara Delevingne and Orlando Bloom join us on the podcast this week for a bit of fairy chat (31:00-38:31), plus we get stuck into no less than *four* new shows. Specifically, CCTV thriller The Capture, Roger Ailes/Fox News origin story The Loudest Voice, ITV's A Confession, and bite-sized marital strife comedy State Of The Union. Plus we reveal the fate of Funny Or Dyer and Terri goes off on one about the ubiquity of Delbert Wilkins.

With James Dyer off in America (you might have read about his adventures in Newsweek, or The Daily Mail), Ben Travis slides smoothly into James' vacant seat for this week's episode, joining regular incumbents Terri White and Boyd Hilton for an episode that tackles Orlando Bloom-Cara Delevingne fantasy show, Carnival Row; the Ruth Wilson and Joshua Jackson-free fifth season of The Affair; and the return of the dread Skeksis in puppet-based prequel, The Dark Crystal: Age Of Resistance. They also talk about all the TV news that came out of Disney's D23 convention and, weakened by James' absence, fail to prevent an invasion of the podbooth by an interloper who shall remain nameless, but who wants just one thing: to talk about Blue Bloods. Will this interloper succeed? Find out in this week's episode. Enjoy.

The dream team is back together this week as Terri returns from her travels just in time to wax lyrical about Joe Gilgun's Lancashire-set comedy, Brassic. We also delve into the world of Jane Austen with Sanditon and entirely fail to watch the third season of 13 Reasons Why as Netflix didn't show it to us in time. None of that matters, though, as the BBC came through and let us catch up with Tommy Shelby's latest escapades in series 5 of Peaky Blinders.

With Terri on holiday this week, we're thrilled to welcome comedian Roisin Conaty as our guest co-host. The GameFace creator, writer and star joins James and Boyd to chew over everything from Netflix's cancellation of The OA to the twisted genius of The Boys and why This Life was one of the most important shows ever made. Roisin schools James soundly on the essence of comedy during a particularly in-depth Funny Or Dyer, Banshees Blossom and is generally delightful. In addition to upping the star power this week, we dive into the new season of Succession, ITV's Deep Water and the grammatically problematic NOS4A2.

Gemma Chan and Dominic Savage stop by the podcast this week to chat about I Am Hannah (26:56 - 49:23), which airs on Tuesday night. Meanwhile, we feast our eyes upon Aisling Bea's new comedy This Way Up, and get in the ring with the final season of GLOW. Plus, we finally come face-to-face with HBO's Euphoria and its vast collection of erect penises. Enjoy!

On the podcast this week we're playing catch-up with our American cousins as we finally get the chance to watch three shows that have already debuted across the pond. Specifically, True crime adaptation I Am The Night, plane-orientated supernatural mystery series Manifest and Emmy-nominated danceathon Fosse/Verdon. Plus we finally get a chance to dissect the Comic-Con reveals (don't panic, James mercifully keeps the Picardsplaining to a minimum) and we get into some spirited (spoiler-free) discussion about the Big Little Lies finale.

On this week's podcast we not only get bowled over by Dominic Savage's I Am series but also take a look beneath the capes of seedy superheroes in Amazon's The Boys and bid adieu to Orange Is The New Black. And yes, Terri finally watched Downton Abbey. The results may well surprise you... Note: This episode was recorded before San Diego Comic-Con, which is why you'll notice a conspicuous lack of related Picard and Marvel chat. Apologies.

On the podcast this week find out if Terri did indeed complete the Downton challenge, why James is apparently some kind of smug podcast giraffe, which famousness Boyd had tea with and, lest we forget, what the team thought of this week's trio of (spoiler: very good) shows, specifically: Deadly Class, Better Things and GameFace.

It's all floppy hair and bare chests this week as we catch up with the latest goings on in 18th century Cornwall in the new series of Poldark. Plus there's marital strife from HBO's Divorce and a look at the more sinister side of Hollywood in the BBC's Dark Money. Plus we have another Banshee face-off and Terri - against her better judgement - makes a binding commitment to watch Downton Abbey.

Stranger Things is back! And we are *so* here for it. Not only do we spend a goodly portion of this week's podcast banging on about the return of Mike, Dustin, Eleven and the gang in the summer of '85, we also take a look at the third and final season of Noah Hawley's Legion and the long-delayed UK airing of Michael Shannon/Taylor Kitsch miniseries, Waco. All that and someone gets *very* excited about Picard.... and it isn't James.

We have a very special Pilot TV podcast this week as we celebrate Terri's birthday with a Bumper Birthday Banshee Bonanza! Where James breaks out two whole carrier bags of 'classic' box sets and talks through the contents in excruciating detail. In other Banshee news, the creator of said show, Jonathan Tropper, has a new series out this week in the form of period kung fu action drama Warrior, which gets reviewed alongside the new seasons of S.W.A.T. and How To Get Away With Murder. NOTE: If you want to avoid Terri and Boyd's discussion of the Years And Years finale (you'll hear a warning first) skip everything between 04:47 and 08:56.

The star-studded new adaptation of Catch-22 leads the charge in this week's show, ably backed up by series 2 of Dark and series 4 of Gomorrah (which show newbie James could make neither head nor tail of). We also manage to dissect the comedy credentials of Modern Family, play out yet another Banshee segment for your entertainment, and hear all about Terri's past as one of the lesser-known members of the Tattaglia crime family. Plus we reveal the details of our upcoming live show - EXCITING!

What lies in wait for the future of the Banshee segment? Find out this week as the #SaveBanshee and #BollocksToBanshee campaigns go head-to-head and a winner is finally announced. More pertinently, though, we lay on some truth about Big Little Lies Season 2, get thoroughly disturbed by The Act and listen to an extended Terri rant about ITV's Wild Bill. Plus a bonus literature lesson as James tries to Shakespearsplain poetry.

Charlie Brooker and Annabel Jones stop by the podcast this week to talk about the new series of Black Mirror. Plus we get into the happy-go-lucky third seadon of The Handmaid's Tale, the long-delayed second season of Killing Eve, and the even more belated continuation of Armistead Maupin's Tales Of The City. All that and flying chcolate, James failing to grasp the genius of Rick And Morty, and a fight for the very soul of the Banshee segment.

Reviewed this week: harrowing drama from Netflix in When They See Us, absurd intellectual comedy from Amazon in Good Omens and capitalist woes on Wall Street in Sky's Black Monday. Some shout-outs for Marcella and Red Riding, as well as a show we can't remember the name of. Plus you'll hear what it means to watch a show 'on tick' and learn far more about Terri's lunch order than you ever really needed to.

We have a dragon-sized episode for you this week (hope you didn't have plans today) as we say our final farewell to Game Of Thrones with a monster discussion of the show's finale (if you haven't seen it then for the love of R'hllor avoid everything between 1:19:11 and 2:07:05). In addition to our final Thronesplaining we welcome Jared Harris to the podcast for some Chernobyl chat (30:48 to 50:43) and turn our critical gaze upon Netflix's What/If, the BBC's Summer Of Rocket's and Sky's Riviera Season 2.

It's all go this week as we marvel at Shane Meadows' The Virtues, delight in Russell T Davies' Year's And Years, delight in Sally Wainwright's Gentleman Jack and chuckle through Jemaine Clement's What We Do In The Shadows. *Plus* Russell T. Davies himself pops by with some friends for a chat (16:50 to 35:22). *And* the Thronesplaining reaches fever pitch as we bathe in the flames of the show's penultimate episode, The Bells (if you haven't seen it, then skip everything from 1:05:47 to 1:39:29).

Right you are, fella. Sunday saw the last episode of Line Of Duty's fifth series and we couldn't let such a monumental event pass uncommented. And so, with our best Hastings hats on, we dropped into the interrogation room to drag the final episodes over the coals and investigate the evidence. We even served a Reg 15 to series creator Jed Mercurio to hear about his storytelling process as well.

Everything's in meltdown this week as we immerse ourselves in Sky Atlantic's gruellingly excellent Chernobyl, delve into the Deep State for Season 2 of Fox's espionage thriller, and do away with all the adults in Netflix's The Society. Plus we get into a big old fight about the fourth episode of Game Of Thrones, which once again gets the Thronesplaining spoiler treatment at the end of the episode. Not seen it? Then skip everything between 01:12:02 and 01:47:56.

It's wall-to-wall politics this week as we tackle the Tudors in The Spanish Princess and worship at the altar of AOC in Knock Down The House. Plus we manage some spoiler-free chat about the latest Line Of Duty and some massively spoiler-heavy dissection of Game of Thrones. If you'd rather avoid our breakdown of GoT Episode 3: The Long Night because you haven't seen it - or the thought of us banging on about it for a full 30 minutes makes you want to join the Night's Watch - then feel free to skip everything between 01:07:14 and 01:40:15.

We have some post-Easter horror for you this week, thanks to Netflix's excellent new haunted heart thriller, Chambers, some pre-millennial spycraft thanks to The Looming Tower on BBC2, plus we fail to watch Jamestown entirely and have to rely on Boyd to explain it all. All that and another bumper dragoncast, getting deep into the Godswood for episode 2 of Game Of Thrones' final season. If you're still trying to avoid Westerosi spoilers for that particular episode then don't worry, it's clearly signposted and at the very end of the show between 01:19:50 and 01:49:50. Apologies for the runtime - we got a bit carried away!

Podcast is coming! That's right, the final season of Game Of Thrones landed this week and, like the Night King himself, we tore down The Wall and stormed forth to tackle it. In keeping with this theme, Terri seized control of the Seven Kingdoms, taking advantage of James' absence to install herself upon the Iron Throne as Queen Terri, Mother of podcasts, breaker of science-fiction and ruler of true crime documentaries. Despite this, We found time to dive into bleak BBC comedy Back To Life (don't call it the new Fleabag!) and Channel 4's culture-mashing four-part miniseries Chimerica. Plus a few tantalising breaking news tidbits and we make the bold choice to continue trying to make James laugh, even in his absence. NOTE: If you've not yet had a chance to watch the Game Of Thrones season opener then don't worry, you can still listen to the podcast as we've saved all the dragon chat for the end of the reviews section. Just skip everything between 41:38 and 51:37 and you'll be fine.

In this special episode of the podcast we delve deep into the plot developments of The OA's incredible second season, speaking to creators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, who throw caution the wind and open up about everything from the Tree Internet and Old Night to the house on Nob Hill and those sex-powered dancing robots. WARNING: spoilers abound throughout so only listen once you've watched all of Season 2.

This week we get definitive with the definite article for The Widow (Kate Beckinsale) and The Victim (Kelly MacDonald), then go full Brexit with Toby Jones in Don't Forget The Driver. All that and Boyd still finds time to sit down and chat UFOs (and Queer As Folk) with Aidan Gillen, plus we wax lyrical about both the Fleabag finale and Line Of Duty's unswerving commitment to impenetrable acronyms.

Hanna and The Killing stars Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman stop by the podcast for a chat this week. Meanwhile, Veep returns to our screens this week for its seventh and final season, and we delve into the world of true crime for HBO's Serial follow-up, The Case Against Adnan Syed. To help us recover, Bill Hader's hitman comedy Barry is also back, bringing with it all the NoHo Hank our hearts could desire. All that and we still find time to discuss the humorous merits of The Thick Of It, and cast our minds back to the days of Party Of Five, Aquarius and Dead Like Me.

Line Of Duty is back! And to celebrate, we invited stars Vicky McClure and Martin Compston onto the pod to tell us what's going down at AC-12 this series. As well as reviewing the show, we go full MMORPG for E4's Dead Pixels, welcome surrealist legal show The Good Fight back to our screens and check out Amazon Prime's espionage drama Hanna. All that and more on an episode that's at least 90% more anarchic than usual as Terri seemed determined to make up for her absence last week by being a complete lunatic (her Martin Brennan impression has to be heard to be believed). Oh and James goes full Farscape - you have been warned.

In a surprising twist this week, Terri has been transmogrified into a middle-aged man as we traverse dimensions to discuss The OA Season 2, Cash-in for Billions Season 4 and lay out our best china for the third series of Victoria. Not to mention finally getting our hands on Ryan Murphy's Pose and hearing all about The Cops AKA Britain's answer to The Shield.

This week we've been subjected to a torrent of animated shorts thanks to David Fincher's Love, Death And Robots, plus we got a chance to spin up the decks for Idris Elba's new DJ/nannying comedy Turn Up Charlie. Last but by no means least we witness Bryan Fuller's American Gods return for its belated second season, except without Bryan Fuller or, sadly, any of its original charm. All that plus a bunch of must-see classic show recommendations and an outraged diatribe from Terri about the latest Louis Theroux documentary (you might want to be sitting down for that one).

So many shows, so little time. We have an unprecedented *five* new shows to rundown for you this week, including the triumphant return of Derry Girls. Joining Lisa McGee's outstanding comedy is Ricky Gervais' After Life and Rufus Jones' Home, not to mention the decidedly non-comedic Leaving Neverland and MotherFatherSon. Plus all the usual nonsense, including a re-examining of Community and some retro love for Sharon Horgan's Pulling, Chris O'Dowd's Moone Boy and gone-too-soon police drama Southland.

This week we have a double bill of BBC comedy gold as Fleabag and Alan Partridge go head-to-head for our amusement. To balance the unfettered mirth, though, we also dive in to Sky Italia's The Miracle, which is not only in Italian but officially featured the most unpleasant masturbation scene we've seen in a good long while. All that and James finally hands in his badge and stops banging on about The Shield, but does find time to proselytise about Aaron Sorkin's The Newsroom instead. Meanwhile Terri goes to the mat for Father Dowling Mysteries and Boyd bigs up Phoebe Waller-Bridge's Crashing.

This week we enter the world of treason and espionage for Channel 4's WWII spy thriller Traitors, join Anna Paquin as she heads to the front lines in a very different kind of war as a celebrity publicist in Flack, plus Curfew sees Sean Bean do The Fast And The Furious in London... with zombies. All that and we come up with a new regular (involving James and comedies), lay some love upon Band Of Gold and Family Tree, plus resurrect Jack Thorne's supernatural drama The Fades.

We have a Valentine's double bill this week to get you all in the mood for love. There's much knob-lopping talk as we delve into the world of Lorena and John Wayne Bobbitt for Amazon's documentary series about the famous dismemberment. And if that hasn't done the trick, we also fire up online dating horror story Dirty John, based on the LA Times true crime podcast about a woman who ends up entangled with a dissembling sociopath. Meanwhile, Boyd and Terri fail to fall in love with The Umbrella Academy and James takes a knee in honour of Friday Night Lights.

This week we're delving into the world of dark and sordid documentaries in Surviving R Kelly, getting down with the Deutsch for the sequel to Wolfgang Peterson's 1981 film Das Boot, and going Dutch with soapy hospital drama New Amsterdam. But none of that matters because the first three seasons of The Expanse are landing on Amazon Prime, which Boyd and Terri hear about in forensic detail - much to their eternal delight.

We have a bumper crop of reviews this week, with no less than *five* shows under the magnifying glass. George R.R. Martin's Nightflyers takes us into deep space, Camping shows us the great outdoors, Pure fills our heads with sordid sexual fantasies, Mayans M.C. brings the motorbikes and Russian Doll takes us through it all over and over again. We also give a little love to The Unit and Cold Case, Boyd discovers something called Future Man, plus Terri and Boyd wax lyrical about the Fyre Festival documentary, which James still refuses to watch.

This week we have our very first guest as Stephen Dorff stops by the pod booth to talk about the new season of True Detective. We also delve deep into the violent world of Sky's Tin Star, take a trip to 15th century Florence for Medici The Magnificent and set phasers to *fun* for the new Season of Star Trek: Discovery, which we're delighted to say we've now seen. Listen now to hear how Terri's very first Star Trek experience unfolded (it didn't go the way you might expect).

This week James is sulking as we weren't able to see Star Trek Discovery in time for the podcast. On the plus side, it does give us the opportunity to bust out some Klingon swear words and we *were* able to watch a trio of excellent other shows to make up for it. Namely, the third season of True Detective (all is forgiven), the second season of The Punisher (gone too soon) and the first season of The Passage, based on the book of the same name, which gets Jamesplained in excruciating detail. Plus Terri recommends a show that doesn't involve prison and we pick through the dumpster fire that was the Golden Globes.

No fewer than *four* shows get the review treatment this week - partially making up for the appalling lack of post-Christmas news. Gorge yourselves on Netflix's Sex Education, the triumphant return of Catastrophe and the reboot of Charmed. Oh and we get all political with a look at Brexit: The Uncivil War - because that's a subject you don't hear enough about at the moment. Plus reminiscences about Christmas TV, an appraisal of Bandersnatch and a some love for Rome, Broad City and... er, Wentworth.

What kind of year has it been? We find out in the very first Pilot TV Podcast Special. Flicking through the last twelve months, we pick out the very best (and some of the worst) things to have graced our sets this year, pulling out all the memorable moments and going through Pilot's definitive top 10 shows of the year. Frankly, it's worth listening to for Terri's explanation of what a 'chufty badge' is alone.

There's a statue of Columbo in Budapest (it's true, look it up) so why isn't there one of John Luther in Hackney? Someone needs to sort that out because LOOFAH is back! On the new Pilot Pod we get into the long-awaited fifth series of Neil Cross' gritty crime show, catch up with a very different kind of detective in John Malkovich's Hercule Poirot via The ABC Murders, and track down Netflix's stalker thriller, You. Not to to mention getting a sneak preview of the Doctor Who New Year's Special. It's a Christmas miracle!

Dead rabbits are order of the day on this week's Pilot TV podcast, with the Beeb's Watership Down getting the review treatment. Also in the line-up is colonial era Jamaican drama The Long Song and Channel 5's pseudo fictional Agatha & The Truth Of Murder which contains both Agatha (Christie) and murder but little in the way of actual truth. All this and a celebration of Hell On Wheels, Oz and Terri banging on about The Apprentice, which is entirely against Pilot T&Cs.

This week we talk Christmas Specials (one of which Boyd is actually in, albeit doing unspeakable things with women's underwear), Golden Globes and Season 2 of American Gods. The team defuses some of the latest TV bombs to drop, including Stephen King chillfest Castle Rock, comedy-gold sitcom The Good Place and choc-full-of-murder doc The Innocent Man. Plus you get to hear what our Viking names would be, hear James Jamesplain The Picard Manoeuvre to Terri and discover why Jamie Dornan is now a massive fan of the podcast (Jamie mate, this one's for you). PS. Apologies for the slightly mixed audio quality on this one - we basically recorded it in a broom cupboard.

Three new shows: one unspeakably depressing, one unspeakably cold and one unspeakably funny. So all bases covered, then. We also celebrate some vintage titles from Banshee to The Good Wife via a documentary about drug addiction (thanks Terri). All that and we throw in some fun viking nomenclature to boot.

This week on the Pilot TV podcast we treat you to a wealth of pick 'n' mix metaphors, Sex And The City dissection and an inexplicable analogy involving eighties Lenny Henry incarnation Delbert Wilkins (Sponditious!). We also take on some Irish period drama with Jamie Dornan in Death & Nightingales (no nightingales were actually harmed), hear all about Ruth Wilson's nan in Mrs. Wilson (yes, really) and catch up with Eternal Sunshine's Michel Gondry and Jim Carrey for Kidding. Plus we read out some of the more colourful comments from our iTunes reviews page and discover why James has the enunciation of a Disney villain.

It's Vikings a-go-go on the podcast this week, by which we mean The Last Kingdom has returned to our screens, bringing its Norse shenanigans to Netflix for the first time. And if Netflix is getting Scandinavian, HBO is going Italian thanks to its first foreign language drama, My Brilliant Friend. Meanwhile Channel 5 has created an original drama and... it's actually really good. Who'd have thought? All this and the latest discussion of The Mandalorian, Game Of Thrones' arrival date and a brief interlude where we wax lyrical about the genius of David E. Kelley.

Acting classes, space horror and mountains of cocaine are the subjects of this week's podcast, as we not only pick up the latest shows to hit your screens but also delve into a few suitably burning topics. We get philosophical about *that* episode of The Walking Dead (there are spoiler warnings beforehand, don't panic), embrace Michael Douglas' collaboration with sitcom god Chuck Lorre and discuss our pick of the worst series finales of all time.

This week's podcast comes with a strongly worded content warning: we have finally that episode of Sally4Ever and discuss its sordid sexual content in quite forensic details. If you'd rather not have the show's debased delights spoiled then we clearly mark that section with a spoiler warning and you can skip the section between 2:30.30 and 11:37.52 for your own sanity. In equally sexy news, we spread the love around for Louis Theroux's new polyamory episode, jump into the second season of The Sinner and head on down to the Berlin clubbing scene for Amazon Prime's Beat.

This week's podcast sees a big old fight break out as Terri and Boyd get up in each other's faces with conflicting views and minor fisticuffs over both Sean Penn's Martian drama The First and Julia Roberts' Amazon Prime show Homecoming. We also get into the sixth seasons of both House Of Cards and Ray Donovan, not to mention uncovering the reasons why Terri won't date anyone under 5'10".

This week the Pilot team dive into the awkward, explicit and downright hilarious sex montage that forms the high point of Julia Davis' Sally4Ever, we tap into our inner emo for Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina and get thoroughly Carré'd away with the BBC adaptation of The Little Drummer Girl. Plus we explore Terri's psyche to find out why rape dramas are her happy place, follow Boyd on a trip to the set of Stranger Things Season 3 and discuss the future of Marvel on Netflix after last week's shock cancellations.

This week the gloves come off as Terri and Boyd start throwing punches over ITV's Butterfly, meanwhile Marvel/Netflix manage to pick themselves off the mat after a string of disappointments with the much improved Daredevil Season 3. Not to mention news that Rob Lowe is joining the Lincolnshire constabulary and James demands the immediate return of all your televisions as apparently you're just not using them properly.

This week Pilot TV's Terri White is swapped out for her Southern alter-ego Julia Raeside (the sceptical yin to Boyd's perma-sunny yang) as we dive deep into the latest announcements from Amazon (Wheel Of Time fans rejoice), dissect the possible meanings of the new Star Trek Discovery poster (Romulans, anyone?) and take a time out to recommend some long-lost shows that might have slipped your notice. All that plus reviews of Netflix's The Haunting Of Hill House, Channel 4's The Bisexual and the ninth Season of The Walking Dead (still dead, still walking).

Doctor Who is on our minds in this week's episode as the team presents our official review of the thirteenth doctor's debut as well as Netflix's Elite and the belated return of Amazon's The Man In The High Castle. We also pull back the curtain on some of the shows we're watching right now, talk about Marvel and DC's small screen war and bathe in the warm, heavenly glow of The Good Place.

On this week's Pilot TV podcast we take an exclusive peek inside the TARDIS with an early look at the new series of Doctor Who, recount some of our favourite TV shows (hear all about Terri's penchant for misery porn and why James despises all things fun), plus we get apocalyptic with the new Season of American Horror Story. There's also the usual rundown of the latest TV news, as well as an in-depth, spoilerific debate about the Bodyguard finale (all plot spoilers are restricted to between 09:00 and 18:33, so if you haven't seen it yet then you might want to skip that bit).