News Archive: January 2008 
StarShipSofa makes some noise
01/02/2008. The StarShipSofa podcast are moving into audio science fiction short stories by the likes of Alastair Reynolds and Bruce Sterling. 
NASA wants aliens to listen to the Beatles
01/02/2008. US space agency NASA is set to beam The Beatles' song Across the Universe into deep space early in February. The bad news is that most aliens prefer Moby.
Pan's Labyrinth wins BBC cinema award
01/02/2008. Pan's Labyrinth, that rather gothic fairy tale set against post-civil war repression in Franco's Spain, has won the BBC Four World Cinema Award 2008. Prince of SciFi, Christopher 'Dr Who & Heroes' Eccleston, was one of the judges.
Signal
01/02/2008. Trailer for the horror movie Signal. An alien TV signal sends one in two viewers insane, turning them into the same kind of nice people as last seen in 28 Days Later. US society turns to shite fairly quickly thereafter.
Doctor Who lasers UK tax payer money
01/02/2008. BBC wastes licence-payer money on cinema advertising for science fiction drama series Doctor Who. A trailer of the new series of BBC One's Doctor Who launches Friday 1st February 2008 in British cinemas. Your tax pounds at work, Time-lord style.
Sanctuary granted to the SCIFI Channel
01/02/2008. US cable outfit the SCIFI Channel has ordered a thirteen episode season of the original drama series Sanctuary, starring Amanda 'Stargate' Tapping. Sanctuary is a television series using live-action actors against mostly virtual sets and makes the leap to TV from the web where it began life as an online high-definition sci-fi web series.
The art of Robert Jordan
01/02/2008. US fantasy author Robert Jordan conducted the final judging and selected the 12 images that will appear in his 2009 Wheel of Time calendar just a few days before he passed away on September 16th, 2007 from the rare blood disease, amyloidosis. Tor Books has now announced the names of the artists that won.
Tor brings science fiction literature to the SCI-FI Channel
01/02/2008. Tor Books, the US publisher of British fantasy author Stephen Hunt, has teamed up with SCIFI Channel to bring its viewers a better glimpse of the world of genre SFF novels.
Wizard's First Rule to be TV series
31/01/2008. The good news? Evil Dead-creator Sam Raimi is set to produce a TV series for Disney and ABC based on Terry Goodkind's fantasy novel Wizard's First Rule. The bad news? It's to be made by some of the same people that did Xena and Hercules. Rubber dragon suit, anyone?
Hunting those pesky UFOs
30/01/2008. The cable science fiction outfit SCIFI Channel are expanding their Ghost Hunters TV series by adding a new hunter to their line-up, UFO Hunters. Airing on the SCIFI Channel in the USA on Wednesday January 30th 2008 at 10pm ET, the hour-long episode sets out to investigate claims of UFO sightings and alien abductions with the help of New York Strange Phenomena Investigators (aka NY-SPI).
Mercury shock
30/01/2008. The flyby of Mercury by NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft has given scientists a new look at a planet they once expected to have similar characteristics to Earth's moon. Instead, researchers were shocked by the wealth of images and data that show an odd moon with a load of geological processes and a rather different magnetosphere from the one discovered thirty years ago. Unlike the moon, the spacecraft showed that Mercury has huge cliffs with structures snaking up hundreds of miles across the planet's face. These cliffs preserve a record of patterns of fault activity from early in the planet's history. The spacecraft also revealed impact craters that appear very different from lunar craters.
The Amory Wars
29/01/2008. Forbidden Planet is to host a UK signing by the band Coheed and Cambria. They will be signing copies of their science fiction comic book The Amory Wars at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR, on Friday 8th February 2008 5-6pm.
Decay Inevitable
29/01/2008. British scifi publisher Solaris has made a new acquisition from writer Conrad A. Williams, Decay Inevitable, which they describe as a gritty modern fantasy.
Nights of Villjamur
28/01/2008. Scifi agent to the stars, John Jarrold, has concluded a two-book World rights deal for new UK fantasy author Mark Charan Newton with Peter Lavery of Macmillan/Tor UK, for a good five-figure sum.
Get Smart
25/01/2008. Time for some comedy spy-fi with the online trailer for the Get Smart movie based on the TV adventures of Agent 86. Now, in a fight between Agent 86 and 007, who do you think would win?
Quantum of Solace
25/01/2008. British actor Daniel Craig is interviewed about the 22nd James Bond movie and talks about its new title, Quantum of Solace.
Branson goes to infinity (and maybe even beyond)
24/01/2008. Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic Starship Lines has released the design of its new spaceship based on SpaceShipOne, their craft which flew into space for the third time in October 2004 and won the $10 million X-Prize for its labours. Plans for Spaceport America were also shown to SFcrowsnest.
Jericho coming back from the brink
24/01/2008. The US SCIFI Channel has acquired off-network cable rights to the science fiction drama Jericho from CBS. The deal gives SCIFI the rights to air seasons one and two of the series where residents of a small Kansas town try to survive a nuclear attack on the USA mounted by renegade CIA officers that want the break-up of the Union.
Top Rankin
24/01/2008. Robert Rankin, David Warner and Rupert Degas will be signing the audio book version of Robert’s The Brightonomicon at the UK's Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR, on Wednesday 13th February 2008 5pm-6.30pm.
Fantasy novel short-listed for Berlin International Film Festival
24/01/2008. Ten novels (written in a wide variety of languages) have been selected for presentation by the world's main publishers on February 12th 2008 at the Berlin International Film Festival - the world's largest film festival with 200,000 movie and TV professionals attending. But only one fantasy and science fiction movie made the cut. Find out which one by reading this ...
Get me Doctor Who, stat!
24/01/2008. British actors Alex 'ER' Kingston and Colin Salmon have joined the line-up of guest stars for the fourth series of BBC One's Doctor Who TV series.
Dr Who visits London
23/01/2008. Peter Davison, Louise Jameson and Nicholas Briggs will be signing their Big Finish CD Dr Who audio drama of The Bride Of Peladon at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR, on Saturday 2nd February 2008 12-1pm.
The Age of Ra
23/01/2008. Author James Lovegrove is to write a new science fiction novel, The Age of Ra, for British SFF publisher Solaris Books.
It's a SciFi slugfest
23/01/2008. The shortlist for the 2007 British Science Fiction Association awards has been announced, with the likes of SFF titans such as Ken MacLeod, Richard Morgan and Alastair Reynolds slugging it out for best novel.
Interior shot of the starship Enterprise
23/01/2008. We've come across an interior shot of the new Enterprise vessel from the Star Trek movie (Star Trek XI) via an Easter egg on the official web site.
Cloverfield (Mark's take)
22/01/2008. There have been dozens of Japanese films depicting giant monsters attacking large cities, says Mark. Cloverfield tries to show what such an event would be like more realistically. The results are violent and frankly unpleasant to watch, but deliver on what they promise: a realistic depiction of what it would be like if a giant monster really did attack Manhattan. The photography is jarring, but not as jarring as the realism.
Star Trek XI
20/01/2008. Star Trek trailer now online showing the first starship Enterprise being constructed.
No blasters allowed
20/01/2008. This is the weapon of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy or as random as a blaster, but an elegant weapon for a more civilized age. Yes, the Star Wars lightsaber's lethal combination of a plasma blade and crystal-based construction, together with its deadly coloured blade has led the infamous deadly weapon to be crowned as the UK's favourite movie weapon of all time. The poll of 2,000 film fans was commissioned by Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Indiana Jones' whip proved popular too, as well as various of James Bond's weapons.
The Lord of Silence
18/01/2008. UK scifi publisher Solaris has just acquired the novel Lord of Silence from British fantasy novelist Mark Chadbourn.
Downloading Doctor Who
18/01/2008. On February 1st 2008, Big Finish - the audio drama producer for the likes of Doctor Who, Sapphire and Steel, Judge Dredd - are launching a new, online download service from which customers can purchase and download science fiction and fantasy audio dramas as MP3 files.
New Enterprise
18/01/2008. The Starship Enterprise from J.J. Abrams' new Star Trek movie stands revealed - even if she still is sitting in the builder's yard.
Martin Shaw gets scary
17/01/2008. Lime Pictures has been commissioned by BBC One to produce Apparitions, a new supernatural drama series which has been likened to Buffy the Vampire Slayer as done by RADA. Now fantasy horror TV series don't get any more scary than that! Doctor Who's Joe Ahearne is writing and directing.
Ancient Blood
16/01/2008. Fantasy authors Robert Earl and Richard Williams be signing their new books Ancient Blood (Earl) and Relentless (Williams) at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR, on Saturday 29th March 2008 at 1-2pm.
The Ten Thousand and Necropath
16/01/2008. Here at SFcrowsnest.com we're just been sent the list of forthcoming novels for 2008 from British science fiction publisher Solaris. There's some goodies in the list, including Eric Brown's Necropath, and a SF novel called Kethani - as well as The Ten Thousand by Paul Kearney.
Doomsday
16/01/2008. Trailer for the fantasy horror flick Doomsday. The film is set in Scotland in 2033 after it has been walled up to contain a plague, Escape-From-New-York style. But the plague is on the loose again and Bob Hoskins has to send a crack team in to do a deal with the Jock-style barbarian survivors up north.
One heck of a car advert
15/01/2008. A trailer for the new Knight Rider TV series in the style of an advert for Knight Rider's car. Nice.
Tepsech Drakul
14/01/2008. New UK genre novelist Tim Wood, recently taken on by the John Jarrold Literary Agency, has now completed his horror trilogy. The first novel, Tepsech Drakul, is set in the present day and, in the author’s words: ‘reveals the true history and ecology of the vampire. Where they originated, their grand design, how they work and who they really are.’
Archon 32
12/01/2008. The science fiction convention Archon 32 will be held October 3rd-5th 2008 at the Collinsville Gateway Center in the USA in Collinsville, Illinois. Their main guest of honour is writer Laurell K. Hamilton.
It came from beyond the sea
11/01/2008. An oil rig is attacked by something they found at the bottom of the ocean. What can it be? A monster, or an alien space craft? View the movie for yourself.
Spiderwick Chronicles moves forward in time
11/01/2008. Paramount has told SFcrowsnest.com that their children's fantasy movie based on The Spiderwick Chronicles novels has moved its release forward to February 14th 2008. Presumably to avoid some of the heat from other scifi and fantasy movies coming out at the same time (check out the Nest's events calendar for the full list).
Fantasy book picks for 2008
11/01/2008. Various top fantasy authors are interviewed by the fab Fantasy Book Critic about their picks of forthcoming fantasy novels for the year ahead. Among the selection, the 2004 winner of the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, Jay Lake, has Stephen Hunt's Court of the Air (the US edition from Tor) in the gun-sights.
Lensman, the movie?
11/01/2008. Bloglet: SciFi.com reports that film companies Imagine Entertainment and Universal are negotiating with EE Doc Smith's estate and Smith's grandson for movie rights to the Lensman series of science fiction novels. It would be nice if Smith got a movie for his early cops-in-space series. Heck, Lensman practically invented the space opera genre (as well as big dumb objects).
Galactica finds Earth
11/01/2008. The fourth season of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica TV series will be the last. An insider says the Galactica's crew do find Earth, but it will be the Earth of the 22nd century, rather than that of the present.
Dark Haven and the Dragon Age
11/01/2008. British science fiction publisher Solaris has just bought two new fantasy novels.
Robert Redick and Robert V S Redick go online
11/01/2008. Two JJLA debut sci-fi novelists now have their own websites, Philip Palmer and Robert V S Redick.
Time Of Legends
11/01/2008. Dan Abnett and Graham McNeill will be signing their new books Legion (Abnett) and Time Of Legends: Heldenhammer (McNeill) at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR, at 1-2pm Saturday 15th March 2008.
Conan is coming
11/01/2008. Millennium and Lionsgate have done a deal for Lionsgate to acquire US rights to a new series of Conan movies, based on Robert E Howard's mythical conquering hero. The companies most recently partnered on the new Rambo, which Lionsgate is co-releasing with The Weinstein Company on January 25th 2008. Arnold Schwarzenegger, sadly, won't be leaving high political office to be back for this little beast.
Virgin does Ramsey
10/01/2008. One of the first horror authors being published by Virgin/Random House is that old hand of British supernatural fiction, Ramsey Campbell.
Iain Banks wears Lincoln green
10/01/2008. Science fiction literary agent to the stars John Jarrold will be interviewing bestselling scifi author Iain Banks at the annual Lincoln Book Festival at 8 pm on Monday May 12th 2008 in the Lincoln Drill Hall. This interview will be followed by a Q&A session.
Resident Evil: Extinction
10/01/2008. The third installment in the Resident Evil franchise, Resident Evil: Extinction, is released on DVD and Blu-ray from 18th February 2008, via our chums at Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
Hello Michael
08/01/2008. Another teaser trailer for the new Knight Rider TV series. This one features KITT. Hey, it's just a car, guys.
Marvel gets Manga-erized
08/01/2008. Marvel Entertainment and Del Rey Manga are buddying up to produce two new manga series based on Marvel's X-Men series. Go strange teenage mutants, go.
Diana Gabaldon gets illustrated
08/01/2008. American SciFi author Diana Gabaldon gets a graphic novel version of her Outlander novels.
See the Moon
08/01/2008. Elizabeth Moon, the science fiction author behind the Vatta's War books, is to go on tour in the USA signing her latest novel in said series, Victory Conditions.
US science fiction novels Q1 2008
08/01/2008. The American science fiction publisher Del Rey has just sent in their forward publication list for the first quarter of 2008 (up to April). New releases include David Gemmell's last Troy work, and lots of wide-eyed manga. Yatta!
Aury Wallington interviewed
08/01/2008. Aury Wallington, the author of the new Heroes novel, Saving Charlie, talks about how the set-up of the story stays true to the Heroes TV show, why Aury adores Hiro, and keeping all the time-travel paradoxes straight in her head.
In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale
08/01/2008. Online trailer for the new fantasy movie In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale. It stars the Brit from the Transporter movies, Jason Statham. Think Tolkien with lots more gore.
United Artists protect their sci-fi output
08/01/2008. United Artists Films have done a deal with the Writers Guild of America to get their scifi movie and TV slate back into action again. This is a one-to-one deal and all the other movie and TV companies are still at war with the union.
North Wind
07/01/2008. Nice little indie scifi comic title from Boom Studios with its first issue free online (as well as in print for dosh). It features a Mad Max-like existence of survival in a USA frozen by an ice age caused - ironically - by global warming.
Bond 22 goes into production
07/01/2008. Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have begun principal photography on the 22nd James Bond movie. Daniel Craig reprises his role as the 007 Bondster in the film which is directed by Marc Forster and follows the Casino Royale re-boot/remake film. Starring alongside Craig is a cast led by the French actor Mathieu Amalric as the sinister villain, and the Ukranian actress Olga Kurylenko who plays 007's leading squeeze.
I Am Legend II?
06/01/2008. Bloglet: The author of I Am Legend, Richard Matheson, sells the film rights to his second book in the series to Warner. Is Will Smith's plague vampire movie about to get another go?
The return of the airship
06/01/2008. Bloglet: Lovers of the steampunk genre will be happy to know that a great many firms are now working on plans for the airship mark II as a way of combating air travel's contribution to global warming.
Ian Watson to judge new Aeon Award
04/01/2008. Albedo One - Ireland’s main magazine for science fiction - have just launched their International Aeon Award 2008 short fiction contest. The contest is open to submissions of up to 8000 words, with no minimum word limit, in any speculative fiction genre, from Fantasy and Science Fiction to Horror or anything in-between or unclassifiable. SFF author Ian Watson will be the judge.
I went to Baen Books and all my mom got me was this T-shirt
04/01/2008. US military scifi publisher Baen Books is launching a line of merchandise through Café Press to include apparel, housewares, hats, bags and other such gear, sporting one of three logo styles - the classic Baen Logo, the I read Baen'd Books Logo, and the Baen Barfly Logo.
Eden Log
04/01/2008. Trailer for a scifi horror flick about a man who wakes up in an underground world with no memory and a pack of whoop-ass monsters on his trail. But he has been offered citizenship in a city called Eden Log ... if he can only reach it alive.
New Amsterdam
03/01/2008. Online clip of the fantasy TV series New Amsterdam coming your way in the USA this March 4th of 2008.
Teens & Kids Fantasy & Science Fiction Convention
03/01/2008. Scifi author Tamora Pierce proposes a teens & kids fantasy & science fiction convention for the YA crowd. Sounds like a good idea to us.
SciFi books for 2008
03/01/2008. John Jarrold, agent to the fantasy and science fiction stars of the literary world, has sent over his clients' publishing schedule for 2008. Looks good ... Philip Palmer and Stephen Hunt lead the way with hot genre novels for this year. Hunt has his first big US entry too.
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