Kasterborous Classic TV: Exploring Doctor Who & Classic Sci-Fi – Details, episodes & analysis

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Kasterborous Classic TV: Exploring Doctor Who & Classic Sci-Fi

Christian Cawley (host, producer) | James McLean (host) | Brian Terranova (host)

Tv & Film

Frequency: 1 episode/11d. Total Eps: 500

Regular podcast featuring unique and in-depth discussions covering Doctor Who and other classic TV and movies, usually in the sci-fi and sci-fantasy fields.

Launched in 2007, we've lost count of how many episodes we've actually done. Special episodes include interviews with creatives, writers, actors, and notable commentators in the cult TV field.

Your regular hosts are Christian Cawley, James McLean, and Brian Terranova.

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Apple

Data updated on 08/09/2026

Recent rankings

Latest chart positions across Apple Podcasts and Spotify rankings.

Apple Podcasts

🇬🇧 Great Britain - afterShows
11/09/2026
#79
🇬🇧 Great Britain - afterShows
10/09/2026
#61
🇬🇧 Great Britain - afterShows
09/09/2026
#35
🇫🇷 France - afterShows
09/09/2026
#83
🇫🇷 France - afterShows
08/09/2026
#58
🇫🇷 France - afterShows
05/09/2026
#80
🇫🇷 France - afterShows
04/09/2026
#67
🇬🇧 Great Britain - afterShows
29/08/2026
#95
🇬🇧 Great Britain - afterShows
28/08/2026
#62
🇬🇧 Great Britain - afterShows
27/08/2026
#38

Spotify

No recent rankings available

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https://www.cutawaycomics.co.uk/
5 shares
https://www.cutawaycomics.co.uk
4 shares
http://Kasterborous.com
4 shares

https://www.facebook.com/thekasterborous
121 shares
https://www.facebook.com/podkasterborous
3 shares
https://www.facebook.com/podkasterborous/posts/1422743784468800
2 shares

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RSS feed quality

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Score global : 38%

Publication history

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Latest published episodes

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Who wants Doctor Who — and what happens next?

Episode 539

Monday, September 7, 2026 • Duration 44:04

What happens next to Doctor Who — and who might actually make it?

Christian Cawley and James McLean discuss the latest speculation surrounding the programme's future, including Netflix's apparent lack of interest and Amazon's much more welcoming response to the prospect of getting involved.

Could Amazon do for Doctor Who what it once did for Ripper Street? Would moving further into the streaming world give the programme greater creative freedom, or would something important be lost along the way?

Then there's the small matter of Billie Piper.

With Mark Gatiss discussing the unresolved ending to the most recent series, Christian and James consider whether a future production team really needs to explain what happened — or whether Doctor Who should simply move forward.

From Sherlock and Dallas to Blake's 7, Sapphire & Steel and the Seventh Doctor's final adventure, we look at the peculiar power of an unresolved ending — and wonder whether Doctor Who's controversial cliffhanger might actually be helping to keep the series alive in the public imagination.

With Christian Cawley and James McLean.

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The X-Files, Star Wars and the problem with director's cuts

Episode 538

Monday, August 31, 2026 • Duration 29:59

Chris Carter has returned to 2008's The X-Files: I Want to Believe and created a new director's cut — but unusually, his preferred version is shorter than the film we already had.

James McLean and Brian Terranova have watched the new cut and join Christian Cawley to discuss what's changed, including its renewed emphasis on horror, alterations to Mulder and Scully's relationship, and whether Carter has actually made I Want to Believe a better movie.

But that raises a bigger question: when should creators stop changing their own work?

From Chris Carter and The X-Files, the conversation moves to Ridley Scott's Blade Runner, George Lucas and Star Wars, fan edits and the very idea of a definitive version.

Films and television are collaborative works involving writers, directors, actors, editors, composers, and producers. So when somebody returns decades later to create their preferred cut, whose work are they actually changing?

And does being the director necessarily give them the final word?

With Christian Cawley, James McLean and Brian Terranova.

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Does Doctor Who need another fresh start?

Episode 537

Monday, August 24, 2026 • Duration 28:54

What should Doctor Who do next? We look to its uncertain future — and back to the BBC's memorable Doctor Who Night in 1999.

Christian Cawley, James McLean and Brian Terranova discuss Dean Devlin's recent comments about Doctor Who, the prospect of another David Tennant return, and whether the programme might benefit from something resembling the clean break it received in 2005.

Should a future producer embrace decades of continuity, or give new viewers an easier way in? Could Tennant's Fourteenth Doctor provide a bridge to another incarnation? And has Doctor Who become too reliant on its own past?

Then we head back to 1999, when Doctor Who faced a very different uncertain future, to revisit BBC Two's Doctor Who Night.

Featuring Tom Baker, specially made sketches, documentaries and a showing of the 1996 TV movie, the evening arrived at a fascinating point in Doctor Who history: ten years after the original series ended and several years before its eventual return.

Was Doctor Who Night simply a nostalgic celebration — or, looking back, can we see the beginnings of the rehabilitation that eventually brought the Doctor back to Saturday-night television?

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Are we watching the same films and TV shows anymore?

Episode 536

Monday, August 17, 2026 • Duration 44:43

What happens when the films and TV programmes we grew up with aren't quite the same things we remember?

This week, a mix of Doctor Who and Star Wars, with Christian Cawley, James McLean and Brian Terranova beginning with some surprising discoveries about Luke Skywalker's decidedly ordinary trousers and Han Solo's blaster, changing lightsaber props, and the surprisingly problematic dimensions of the Millennium Falcon.

That leads us into the world of film and television restoration. What can modern transfers reveal that VHS and old television broadcasts concealed? And why might the Peter Cushing Doctor Who movies never make the jump to true 4K?

Doctor Who presents another puzzle. The series has always contained changing props, models, sets, and continuity, yet fans seem remarkably willing to accept them. More recent projects such as The War Games in Colour take things further, effectively creating alternative versions of familiar stories.

Then things get personal. James reveals that he edits songs he likes into what he considers their "correct" versions, leading to a discussion about fan edits, remixing, copyright and whether audiences have always customised the media they consume.

As CGI, AI and increasingly powerful editing tools become available to everyone, could personalised versions of films and television become commonplace? And if we can all "fix" the things we don't like, are we still watching the same thing?

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When does Doctor Who fan fiction become canon?

Episode 535

Wednesday, August 12, 2026 • Duration 50:22

What actually counts as Doctor Who canon—and who gets to decide?

Christian Cawley, James McLean and Brian Terranova head down the rabbit hole of Doctor Who fan productions, unofficial spin-offs and alternative continuities, beginning with Brian's experiences developing his own Orville fan production.

That leads us to Doctor Who projects such as Downtime, and The Stranger, where familiar actors and characters could appear in productions that existed somewhere between fan fiction and the television programme they were inspired by.

An additional "aftershow" section for subscribers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/kasterborous/membership

But things become even more complicated once officially licensed Doctor Who enters the equation. Does Big Finish "count?" What happens when established continuity contradicts something that was previously accepted? And is our obsession with arranging television, audio, comics and other media into a hierarchy of "canon" itself part of the problem?

We also discuss different approaches to shared fictional universes, why people create fan films and fiction in the first place, and how working within an established universe can help develop creative skills.

Finally, there's the curious case of Richard E. Grant: announced as the official Ninth Doctor for Scream of the Shalka—only for the return of Doctor Who to television to rewrite his place in the programme's history. So perhaps the real question isn't simply what counts as Doctor Who canon, but whether canon matters as much as we think it does.

Shownotes

Downtime on Amazon Prime: https://amzn.to/4xoikps

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From Tracy Island to Wonky Donkey: remembering '90s children's TV

Episode 534

Monday, August 3, 2026 • Duration 24:17

What can Tracy Island, Wonky Donkey and a TARDIS tell us about growing up with television in the 1990s?

Well, Christian Cawley is about to find out.

He chats with author Thom Gray about 100 Objects of '90s Children's TV, his celebration of a decade of CBBC, CITV, Saturday morning shows and programmes that have since slipped from memory, which is out now from Candy Bar Books.

Thom explains how the book came together, the challenges of researching children's television from the period, and his conversations with around 35 people who helped make it, including Pat Sharp, Anne Wood and Tony Robinson.

We also delve into some of the 100 objects themselves, including Anthea Turner's famous Blue Peter Tracy Island, Wonky Donkey from SM:TV Live, the MicroSoap Rubik's Cube, and the TARDIS. Doctor Who might have been absent from television for most of the 1990s, but it wasn't entirely absent from children's TV. Thom explains how the TARDIS continued appearing elsewhere during the Wilderness Years, prompting a wider discussion about Doctor Who's curious place in the decade.

Plus: forgotten programmes, VHS tapes, YouTube archaeology, and why '90s children's television is ripe for rediscovery.

Links 100 Objects of '90s Children's TV on Amazon: https://amzn.to/4fMhmwi

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What Doctor Who should learn from Marvel and DC

Episode 533

Monday, July 27, 2026 • Duration 49:15

This week’s podcast explores what the future might hold for Doctor Who—and whether the problems facing the BBC’s flagship series are really part of a much bigger shift across television and film.

Hosted by Christian Cawley and James McLean, the show discusses Sylvester McCoy’s surprise appearance in the Commonwealth Games trailer, what it tells us about the BBC’s continuing commitment to Doctor Who, and the implications of the programme’s move to open tender.

From there, the conversation broadens into Marvel fatigue, Netflix’s audience drop-offs, Spider-Noir, Chris Chibnall’s attempts to reinvent Doctor Who, and whether modern audiences still want long-running serialised storytelling—or something completely different.

Talking points:

Sylvester McCoy and the Commonwealth Games trailer
BBC Studios and Doctor Who’s future
What happens after Bad Wolf?
Why Marvel’s current strategy may no longer work
Spider-Noir and character-first storytelling
Reassessing Chris Chibnall’s era
What Netflix’s viewing figures tell us
Why Doctor Who may need a completely different release strategy

Let us know what you think, and if you have any thoughts on how Doctor Who should end, get in touch!
Meanwhile, Patreon supporters can enjoy some exclusive “after show” chat…

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Doctor Who Series 2 isn't what you remember

Episode 532

Monday, July 20, 2026 • Duration 52:07

This week, Christian Cawley, James McLean, and a returning Brian Terranova revisit Doctor Who Series Two (2006)!

Twenty years after Doctor Who Series Two first aired, we look back at the stories that established David Tennant as the Doctor and cemented the modern series as a television phenomenon.

From New Earth and Tooth and Claw to School Reunion, The Girl in the Fireplace and the return of the Cybermen, we revisit our original reactions, discuss how our opinions have changed over the years, and ask whether this celebrated run of episodes deserves its reputation.

The conversation also broadens into a look at modern Doctor Who as a whole, from the Chibnall era to Russell T Davies' recent return, considering which stories have stood the test of time and how fandom's views continue to evolve.

In this episode

Looking back at Doctor Who Series Two (2006)
First impressions versus twenty years of hindsight
New Earth and the strengths (and weaknesses) of the opening story
Tooth and Claw and the evolving Doctor/Rose relationship
Why School Reunion remains one of the defining stories of the era
Revisiting The Girl in the Fireplace
The Cybermen's return in Rise of the Cybermen and The Age of Steel
Which episodes have improved with age—and which haven't
Flux, the Whittaker era and recent Doctor Who highlights
Why every era of Doctor Who has both classics and disappointments

What are your memories of Series Two? Has your opinion changed over the last twenty years, or does it still represent the high point of modern Doctor Who?

Let us know in the comments, or get in touch: podkasterborous@gmail.com

You can support the podcast via our , which features a full unedited discussion about this topic and others. You'll also find the Kasterborous archive, which resurfaces old interviews and other material from the old Kasterborous website.

From Transformers to the TARDIS: Lee Sullivan on drawing Doctor Who

Episode 531

Monday, July 13, 2026 • Duration 51:54

Doctor Who artist Lee Sullivan joins Christian Cawley to look back on a career that has spanned Transformers, Marvel UK, Doctor Who Magazine, and some of the most memorable comic strips of the Seventh and Eighth Doctor eras.

Beginning with his childhood love of comics and Gerry Anderson, Lee explains how an ambition to become a comic strip artist eventually led him from British Aerospace to Marvel UK, where he cut his teeth drawing Transformers before unexpectedly becoming one of Doctor Who's defining artists.

The unedited interview is available on our Patreon.

The conversation explores the creative process behind classic Doctor Who Magazine strips, the challenges of sequential storytelling, and the evolution of the comic throughout the Wilderness Years and beyond.

Along the way, Lee discusses:

How Transformers became his first professional comic strip work.
Breaking into Marvel UK and working with editors including Richard Starkings.
Becoming a Doctor Who artist during the programme's 25th anniversary.
The enduring popularity of the Seventh Doctor comic strips.
Bringing the Eighth Doctor to life in comic form.
Storytelling techniques, page layouts and visual pacing.
Working on graphic novels, illustrations and Doctor Who publications beyond the comic strip.
Why Doctor Who has remained such a constant throughout his career.

Whether you discovered Lee Sullivan's artwork through Doctor Who Magazine, Marvel UK's Transformers, or later Doctor Who books and illustrations, this interview offers a fascinating insight into one of the franchise's most recognisable artists.

Learn more about Lee Sullivan and his work: https://leesullivanart.co.uk/

From cinemas to Steam: who really owns entertainment anymore?

Episode 530

Monday, July 6, 2026 • Duration 44:05

The conversation continues beyond Doctor Who this week as Christian Cawley and James McLean turn their attention to the changing world of film, gaming, and digital entertainment.

Starting with the prospects for DC Studios’ Supergirl and the current state of superhero cinema, the discussion broadens into the future of the cinema experience, the decline of physical media, and what it really means to own the films and games we pay for.

Along the way, they consider whether streaming has changed our relationship with entertainment forever, why Blu-rays and boxed games still have a place on the shelf, and whether services like Steam have fundamentally altered consumer expectations.

Also discussed:

Is superhero fatigue really to blame for declining cinema audiences?
DC Studios, Marvel Studios and the challenge of rebuilding franchises.
Why some films still deserve to be seen on the big screen.
The continuing appeal of Blu-ray and other physical media.
Sony’s changing approach to physical PlayStation releases.
Steam, digital ownership and the risks of an all-digital future.
Evercade and the resurgence of physical retro gaming.
Windows 11, ageing hardware and planned obsolescence.

The full uncut edition of this week’s podcast discussions can be found on our Patreon, along with the Kasterborous Archive.

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Kasterborous Classic TV: Exploring Doctor Who & Classic Sci-Fi – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

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Kasterborous Classic TV: Exploring Doctor Who & Classic Sci-Fi – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Other99+

Apple Podcast4

Facebook37

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Other99+

Apple Podcast4

Facebook37