Archive-name: tv/red_dwarf-faq Last-modified: 1995/06/03 Version: 5.06
Version 5.06, 3 June 1995
Maintained by Patrick M. Berry [email protected]
This version converted to hypertext by Friday - [email protected]
Series 6 is now available on videocassette.
The RADIO TIMES confirms that Series 7 and a Christmas special are
planned for 1996.
New entry: "What was in canister 1121?"
The address of the mailing list has changed.
CMA - [email protected]
Daniel Farrell - [email protected]
Chuck Foster - [email protected]
Neil Hughes - [email protected]
Chris Wood - [email protected]
http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/tv/red_dwarf-faq/faq.html
Gopher: Connect to the server at the University of New Brunswick:
gopher://sol.csd.unb.ca/00/FAQ/rec/tv/news.answers.00477aThe RED DWARF FAQ List is under R for RED DWARF.
Anonymous FTP: The latest version is always available as:
ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/news.answers/tv/red_dwarf-faqFor more info on how to FTP, ask your friendly local systems staff or see the periodic posting in news.announce.newusers entitled "Anonymous FTP: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) List."
Netnews: The FAQ is posted every fourteen days to the following newsgroups:
news:alt.tv.red-dwarf news:alt.answers news:news.answers
Electronic mail: If you can't FTP, you can use MIT's mail server to access their FAQ archives.
mailto:[email protected]To request the Red Dwarf FAQ, type the following as the body of your message:
send /pub/usenet/news.answers/tv/red_dwarf-faqFor complete information on using this service, type the following (and nothing else) as the body of your message:
help indexIf All Else Fails: If you can't get a copy by any of the methods described above, send me mail and I'll send you a copy.
[email protected]
"This is an S.O.S. distress call from the mining ship Red Dwarf. The crew are dead, killed by a radiation leak. The only survivors are Dave Lister, who was in suspended animation during the disaster, and his pregnant cat, who was safely sealed in the hold. Revived three million years later, Lister's only companions are a life-form who evolved from his cat, and Arnold Rimmer, a hologram simulation of one of the dead crew." --- Holly, the ship's computerThe regular cast of the series is:
Dave Lister............................ Craig Charles
Arnold Rimmer.......................... Chris Barrie
Holly.................................. Norman Lovett (series 1-2)
Hattie Hayridge (series 3-5)
The Cat................................ Danny John-Jules
Kryten................................. Robert Llewellyn
RED DWARF is also a series of novels based on the TV show. The novels
greatly expand on, and are greatly different from, the show. Many of
the same ideas appear in the novels, but these ideas are put together
in new and interesting ways. Three novels have been published so far:
RED DWARF: INFINITY WELCOMES CAREFUL DRIVERS by Grant Naylor ISBN 0-14-012437-3 Penguin, 1989 RED DWARF: BETTER THAN LIFE by Grant Naylor ISBN 0-14-012438-1 Penguin, 1990 RED DWARF: THE LAST HUMAN by Doug Naylor ISBN 0-67-085255-4 Viking, 1995To everyone's surprise, THE LAST HUMAN was written by Doug Naylor only. The paperback edition will be published in October 1995. Rob Grant has expressed interest in writing a book based on RED DWARF, but it's not known whether he will do so.
The first two novels have also been published in one volume:
RED DWARF OMNIBUS by Grant Naylor ISBN 0-14-017466-4 Penguin, 1991This combined rerelease also contains the script for "Dave Hollins, Space Cadet" (one of the SON OF CLICHE sketches that started it all -- see Did RED DWARF start on radio?), a reproduction of the beer mat on which the idea for Red Dwarf was allegedly first written, and the original script for "The End" (the first episode of the series).
If you don't know when (or if) your local PBS station shows RED DWARF, check your local listings or call the station and ask. Please don't post the question to alt.tv.red-dwarf; that will send it all over the planet, annoying people who don't know or care about your local station's programming. Besides, the other methods are faster.
In Australia, all episodes are available from ABC stores (along with books, T-shirts, and other RD merchandise).
In the Netherlands, you can get them from W.H. Smith stores.
[Let me know about availability in other countries and I'll add the information here. -- PMB]
The alt.comedy.british FAQ List includes an excellent list of mail-order dealers who will ship British comedy videotapes to overseas customers.
"Red Dwarf Smeg-Ups", a collection of outtakes from the series, was released on video in the fall of 1994. At this writing, it is apparently available only in the U.K. and Australia.
JOHN MCELROY 2401 Fox Plaza 1390 Market Street San Francisco, CA 94102 USAT-shirts, greeting cards, and other items can be ordered by mail from:
Distribution Network 12 Deerpark Road London SW19 3TU UK Telephone: 0181-543-1231Most of the RED DWARF-related books can be ordered from:
Star Tech Box 456 Dunlap, TN 37327 USAMerchandise is also available from some of the fan clubs (see Are there RED DWARF fan clubs?). The Official RED DWARF Fan Club (U.K.) has its own line of merchandise. The New Zealand-based fan club Zed Shift operates a mail-order service for members living in New Zealand.
Other sources of RED DWARF memorabilia are listed in the book THE MAKING OF RED DWARF (see Are there books about RED DWARF?).
ftp://toaster.ee.ubc.ca/pub/red-dwarf/red-dwarf-guideTo get you started, here's a quick list created by Dale Clayton ([email protected]):
Series 1 - 1988 Series 2 - 1988
1 The End....................15 Feb 7 Kryten.................... 6 Sep 2 Future Echoes..............22 Feb 8 Better Than Life..........13 Sep 3 Balance of Power...........29 Feb 9 Thanks for the Memory.....20 Sep 4 Waiting For God............ 7 Mar 10 Stasis Leak...............27 Sep 5 Confidence & Paranoia......14 Mar 11 Queeg..................... 4 Oct 6 Me^^2......................21 Mar 12 Parallel Universe.........11 Oct
Series 3 - 1989 Series 4 - 1991
13 Backwards.................14 Nov 19 Camille...................14 Feb 14 Marooned..................21 Nov 20 D.N.A.....................21 Feb 15 Polymorph.................28 Nov 21 Justice...................28 Feb 16 Bodyswap.................. 5 Dec 22 White Hole.................7 Mar 17 Timeslides................12 Dec 23 Dimension Jump............14 Mar 18 The Last Day..............19 Dec 24 Meltdown..................21 Feb
Series 5 - 1992 Series 6 - 1993
25 Holoship..................20 Feb 31 Psirens................... 7 Oct 26 The Inquisitor............27 Feb 32 Legion....................14 Oct 27 Terrorform................ 5 Mar 33 Gunmen of the Apocalypse..21 Oct 28 Quarantine................12 Mar 34 Emohawk: Polymorph II.....28 Oct 29 Demons and Angels.........19 Mar 35 Rimmerworld............... 4 Nov 30 Back To Reality...........26 Mar 36 Out of Time...............11 Nov
The script for one of the "Dave Hollins, Space Cadet" sketches is included in the RED DWARF OMNIBUS (see What is RED DWARF?).
Dave Lister........................... Craig Bierko Arnold Rimmer......................... Chris Eigelman Holly................................. Jane Leeves Kryten................................ Robert Llewellyn The Cat............................... Hinton Battle Christine Kochanski................... Elizabeth Morehead First Officer Munson.................. Michael Heintzman Captain Tau........................... Lorraine ToussaintGrant Naylor served as technical consultants. Robert Llewellyn (from the BBC cast) reprised his role as Kryten. (Some fans may also recognize Jane Leeves from the American comedies MURPHY BROWN and FRAZIER.) The plot was a retelling of "The End", with some elements of "Future Echoes" thrown in for good measure. Some surprising and odd changes were made: for example, Lister was transformed into a clean-cut and well-dressed Caucasian, and the H on Rimmer's forehead was replaced with a silver marble.
After rejecting this version, NBC commissioned a second pilot with the following cast:
Lister................................ Craig Bierko Rimmer................................ Anthony Fuscle Holly................................. Jane Leeves Kryten................................ Robert Llewellyn Cat................................... Terry FarrellThe second pilot was not a complete episode, but rather a promo that combined scenes from the first pilot and newly filmed segments spotlighting the new cast members. This pilot fixed some problems (such as restoring Rimmer's H), but had more odd changes, such as casting a woman as the Cat. (Terry Farrell went on to play Jadzia Dax on STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE.) The second pilot was also rejected, and the proposed series was shelved indefinitely.
[Does anyone know who wrote the second pilot, or when and where it was filmed? -- PMB]
Neither pilot has ever been aired or released on videocassette, but bootleg copies of the first pilot can be found at science fiction conventions. (The second pilot does not seem to have fallen into the hands of bootleggers.)
A redesigned Kryten suit (of somewhat better quality than the old BBC version) was made for the U.S. pilots by a California-based special effects house. When the pilots were rejected, Robert Llewellyn got to keep the new suit and wore it in Series Six.
A persistent rumor (printed in the British tabloid SUNDAY MIRROR in June 1994) claims that an American movie studio is planning to make a RED DWARF film starring Eddie Murphy and Ted Danson. There appears to be no factual basis for the rumour.
"Grant Naylor is a gestalt entity occupying two bodies, one of which lives in north London, the other in south London. The product of a horribly botched genetic-engineering experiment, which took place in Manchester in the late fifties, they try to eke out two existences with only one mind. They attended the same school and the same university, but, for tax reasons, have completely different wives.
The first body is called Rob Grant, the second Doug Naylor. Among other things, they spent three years in the mid-eighties as head writers of SPITTING IMAGE; wrote Radio Four's award-winning series SON OF CLICHE; penned the lyrics to a number one single; and created and wrote RED DWARF for BBC television.
They have made a living variously by being ice-cream salesmen, shoe-shop assistants and by attempting to sell dodgy life-assurance policies to close friends. They also spent almost two years on the night shift loading paper into computer printers at a mail-order factory in Ardwick. They can still taste the cheese 'n' onion toasties.
Their favourite colour is orange."Grant Naylor's number one single was "The Chicken Song," a SPITTING IMAGE spinoff. Philip Pope composed the music and produced the record, which was released in 1986 by Virgin Records.
It's cold outside, there's no kind of atmosphere I'm all alone, more or less Let me fly far away from here Fun, fun, fun in the sun, sun, sun
I want to lie shipwrecked and comatose Drinking fresh mango juice Goldfish shoals nibbling at my toes Fun, fun, fun in the sun, sun, sun Fun, fun, fun in the sun, sun, sunThere has been much debate over the "goldfish" line -- it is not sung very clearly, and some fans think it is simply "Goldfish *are* nibbling." However, in the "Smeg-Ups" tape (see Where can I get videotapes of RED DWARF?), Robert Llewellyn recites the theme song lyrics, and they are as listed above. (A "shoal" is a school of fish.)
Esperanto is a real language, developed in the the 1880s by Polish ophthalmologist L.L. Zamenhof. The episode "Kryten" establishes that Lister, Holly, and Kryten all speak at least some Esperanto. Rimmer is shown trying -- and failing -- to learn Esperanto from a videotape.
The name "Esperanto" means "one who hopes", a fact that is alluded to in "Back to Reality".
Poppadoms, another Indian food item, are thin lentil-flour wafers resembling tortillas, deep-fried until crisp.
A shami kebab is an appetizer served in Indian restaraunts. It consists of finely ground meat and lots of spices, grilled over a flame. The meat is a mixture of pork and either goat (in more authentic restaurants) or beef (in less authentic ones). You typically get two shami kebabs with a salad side dish. Shami kebabs are sometimes prepared and served in an egg coating, similar to an omelette.
Chutney is a fruit piccalilli (pickled relish), often eaten with cold meat.
Gazpacho soup really does exist and really is meant to be served cold. Several different recipes exist.
A pot noodle is an instant noodle product marketed in the U.K. by Golden Wonder, a snack food company. It's a plastic container with pre-cooked dried noodles and flavorings inside. To prepare it, you open the container, pour in boiling water, wait a few moments, and eat it.
A kipper is a herring, cured by splitting, salting, and smoking. Kippers are eaten as a breakfast food in some parts of the U.K.
A Topic is a candy bar sold in the U.K., consisting of fondant and hazelnuts covered with chocolate. (This is what Lister means in "Marooned" when he says "Don't mention Topics, they're food.") One ad campaign for the Topic used the slogan "A hazelnut in every bite." Thus, in "Stasis Leak" Rimmer complains, "Everything always goes wrong for me. I'm probably the only person in the world to buy a Topic Bar without a single hazelnut in it."
Taramasalata is a Greek appetizer consisting of a light paste of fish roe, olive oil, lemon juice, and moistened bread crumbs or mashed potatoes.
Kryten's original actor, David Ross, wasn't available to commit to a series when Grant Naylor decided to make Kryten a continuing character, so he was replaced by Robert Llewellyn. (Ross later returned in "White Hole" as the new voice of Talkie Toaster.)
The reclassification of RED DWARF from a Paul Jackson Production to a Grant Naylor Production (making it now officially a production outside the BBC, although it is still filmed at Noel Gay Television) brought with it several changes in the show's look between Series Two and Three, including changes in costumes, sets, and miniatures, particularly the addition of the Starbug and its hangar bay.
Most of these changes are more or less explained by the following words that scroll rapidly up the screen at the beginning of "Backwards"
"Three million years in the future, Dave Lister, the last human being alive, discovers he is pregnant after a liaison with his female self in a parallel universe. His pregnancy concludes with the successful delivery of twin boys, Jim and Bexley. However, because the boys were conceived in another universe, with different physical laws, they suffer from highly accelerated growth rates and are both eighteen years old within three days of being born. In order to save their lives, Lister returns them to the universe of their origin, where they are reunited with their father (a woman), and are able to lead comparatively normal lives. Well, as normal as you can be if you've been born in a parallel universe and your father's a woman and your mother's a man and you're eighteen years old three days after your birth. Shortly afterward, Kryten, the service mechanoid, who had left the ship after being rescued from his own crashed vessel, the Nova 5, is found in pieces after his space bike crashed into an asteroid. Lister rebuilds the 'noid, but is unable to recapture his former personality. Meanwhile, Holly, the increasingly erratic computer, performs a head sex change operation on himself. He bases his new face on Hilly, a female computer with whom he'd once fallen madly in love."It *is* possible to read all this, using a VCR with good freeze-frame capabilities. Try it.
Briefly, what happened is this: Lister parked the Red Dwarf in orbit around a planetoid, and then forgot which planetoid it was. "They're all the same, those little blue-green planetoids. Blue-green and planetoidy." Subsequently, Red Dwarf was stolen "by persons or lifeforms unknown." Starbug followed the ship's vapour trail for over 200 years, with Lister and the Cat in deep sleep and Rimmer switched off to conserve power. At the first opportunity to actually catch up with Red Dwarf, Kryten revived the others, and the saga continued . . .
The real reason for the change was to eliminate Holly from the show. According to Hattie Hayridge, the parts for Holly and the Cat had both been getting smaller and smaller. Grant Naylor decided to drop one of the characters and expand the other. It was easier to drop Holly because many of her lines could be given to Kryten instead.
"Rimmer blows up the time drive. Seconds later, a laser cannon blast blows up one of the Starbugs, while a second one is seen flying in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. In the next scene, Kryten is carrying a pitcher of yellow liquid into Starbug's hold while Rimmer, Lister and Cat are seated around the table with wine glasses in front of them. Kryten explains that they were never killed because Rimmer's actions in blowing up the time drive caused their future selves to cease to exist and notes that Rimmer had in fact saved the day. Rimmer grins broadly and tells Kryten that it was nothing and not to mention it while Lister claps him on the shoulder. Kryten then pours the 'homemade magaritas' into all four glasses and passes on better news: they are now a mere six hours behind Red Dwarf and that there is no doubt in his mind that they'll be able to catch up. Kryten proposes a toast 'to the present' and all four click glasses and take a drink. Lister, wearing a foam mustache, makes a horrible face and exclaims that they aren't drinking magaritas, they're drinking 'urine recyc' and glares at Kryten. Rimmer and Cat, with their matching foam mustaches, also making nasty faces, give Kryten a dirty look. Kryten, with his foaming mustache, slouches with embarrassment in his chair."
On 8 July 1994, Esther Harman (a former stripper and Charles's ex-girlfriend) filed a charge of rape against him. Charles was arrested, imprisoned, and denied bail. On 25 October, after being attacked (but not wounded) by a fellow inmate wielding a homemade knife, Charles was released on bail.
The trial began on 20 February 1995 and lasted for two weeks. No forensic evidence was shown to exist proving that a rape had occurred. In his instructions to the jury, the judge stated that just because a woman claims to have been raped doesn't mean she actually was. The jury took less than ninety minutes to find Charles not guilty. Afterwards, Charles made an emotional appeal to the press for the anonymity of those accused of rape.
The Cat: Chorus -- Lister and Rimmer:
When I saw you for the first time (first time) My knees began to quiver (quiver) And I got a funny feeling (feeling) In my kidneys and my liver (digestive system baby)
My hands they started shakin' (shakin') My heart began a-thumpin' (boom boom boom) My breakfast left my body (huey huey huey) It all really tells me something
Girl you make me tongue tied (tongue tied) Tongue tied, whenever you are near me (near me) Tied tongue (tied tongue) Tied tongue (tied tongue) Whenever you're in town
I saw you 'cross the dance floor (dancin') I thought of birds and bees (reproductive system baby) And when I tried to speak to ya (talk talk) My tongue unraveled to my knees (flippety-flippety-flop)
I tried to say I love you (love you) But it came out kind of wrong, girl (wrong girl) It sounded like "Nunubididoo" (tongue tied) Nuh mur nuh murh ni nong nurl
'Cause you make me tongue tied (tongue tied) Tongue tied, whenever you are near me (near me) Be-dobby-durgle (dobby-durgle) Tongue tied (tongue tied) Whenever you're around
Oh I'm beggin' on my knees Sweet, sweet darling, listen please Understand me when I say Bedurble-diggle-doggle-dooby-doggle-durgle-day
I'm trying to say nungy-nangy (nangy-nungy) Ningy-nongy, why can't I tell you clearly (clearly) Be-dobby-durgle (dobby-durgle) Durgle-dobby (durgle-dobby) Whenever you're around (around) Whenever you're around (around)In the fall of 1993, "Tongue Tied" was released as a single in England and rose to #17 in the Gallup UK Top 40. The artist was listed simply as "The Cat". A music video of "Tongue Tied" was reportedly shown on the TOP OF THE POPS show in England and on MTV in the States. Copies of the video (and a half-hour program on the making of the video) are available from John McElroy (see Where can I get other RED DWARF merchandise?).
When Lister and the Cat steal a bicycle, its owner yells after them, "You scoundrels! Return my bike immediately!" -- at least, according to the subtitles. What he actually says, however, is, "Oi! Hey! Oi, you robbing bastards, that's our tandem!"
Later, when the stage manager comes in to yell at Rimmer and Kryten, he appears to be blaming them for starting the "fight". Here's what he's actually saying:
"Frankly, your act's crap. Anyway, anybody could have done it. I hate the lot of you. Bollocks to you! . . . You are a stupid, square-headed, bald git, aren't you? I ain't pointing at you, I'm pointing at you. But I'm not actually addressing you, I'm addressing the one prat in the country who's bothered to get hold of this recording, turn it round, and actually work out the rubbish that I'm saying. What a poor, sad life he's got!"
RED DWARF abounds with minor inconsistencies like this one. When Grant Naylor come up with a good idea (such as the "light bee" -- see How can Rimmer leave the ship?), they don't worry overmuch about whether it contradicts something in a previous episode. In this case, they evidently decided that a larger crew was more appropriate for a ship five miles long and three miles in diameter.
One possible explanation is that the Justice Computer got its information from Rimmer's mind, and Rimmer has an inflated notion of his own importance. In addition to overstating his own responsibility for the deaths of the crew, he may have exaggerated the number of people involved.
This limitation proved to be inconvenient, so Grant Naylor came up with another explanation, the "light bee". This device is a tapered cylinder about one inch in diameter and three inches long that "buzzes around inside him and projects his image" (as described by Holly in "Meltdown"). The light bee can go anywhere, allowing Rimmer to leave the ship without needing a projection cage.
Some fans have speculated that the light bee was invented sometime during Series 2 (by Holly) or Series 3 (by either Holly or Kryten). However, this doesn't explain how Rimmer was able to leave the Blue Midget and enter the wreck of the Nova 5 in "Kryten", two episodes *before* he was shown in a projection cage.
Some fans have asked how the Polymorph could possibly attach its sucker to Rimmer (who is, after all, a hologram). Two possible explanations have been suggested: either the sucker actually made contact with Rimmer's light bee (see How can Rimmer leave the ship?), or the Polymorph can change into a hologram. Holograms can touch each other, as demonstrated in "Parallel Universe".
"Backwards" "Terrorform" "Marooned" "Psirens" "Bodyswap" "Gunmen of the Apocalypse" "Dimension Jump" "Emohawk"The crashed Starbug was abandoned on more than one occasion, indicating either that more than two of them exist, or that facilities exist on board Red Dwarf to manufacture replacement Starbugs.
Some fans have theorized that Lister's appendix was regenerated in "DNA", along with the rest of his body. In reality, this was a continuity error. The error is briefly referred to and (sort of) cleared up in the latest novel RED DWARF: THE LAST HUMAN (see What is RED DWARF?).It is also mentioned in the questions section on the "Smeg-Ups" video (see Where can I get videotapes of RED DWARF?).
The original script for "The End" included a scene (cut from the final version) in which Lister placed the powdered remains of each crewmember in a separate canister and ejected them all into space (and we saw this done with George McIntyre's remains in the aired version). It's reasonable to conclude that Lister did this, although it's not mentioned in either the episode or the novel. The number of canisters floating in space ("something in the region of ten thousand") is consistent with the size of the crew given in INFINITY WELCOMES CAREFUL DRIVERS (eleven thousand, one hundred and sixty-nine).
THE OFFICIAL RED DWARF COMPANION by Bruce Dessau ISBN 1-85286-456-7 Titan, 1992This thin little book (95 pages) has a lot of wasted space, but some interesting quotes and information and some wonderful color photos throughout. If you're looking for in-depth, solid information about the show, this isn't where you'll find it; but if you want a nice, light read, a collector's item, and an attractive coffee-table book, this is it. Available in England and at conventions in the U.S.
RED DWARF PROGRAMME GUIDE by Chris Howarth and Steve Lyons ISBN 0-86-369682-1 Virgin, 1995"Everything you never wanted to know about the smash smega-series." An in-depth collection (about 230 pages) of information about series 1-5. It includes sections on History, The Characters, The Programmes, The Index, The Creators (cast and production crew), and The Spin-offs. The Index is by far the largest section of the book and is an alphabetical list of almost everything mentioned to during the series, from "A to Z of Red Dwarf, The" to "Zoom function". Note: This book contains an incorrect address for the Official RED DWARF Fan Club (U.K.). For the correct address, see Are there RED DWARF fan clubs?.
RED DWARF -- PRIMORDIAL SOUP: THE LEAST WORST SCRIPTS by Grant Naylor ISBN 0-14-017886-4 Penguin, 1993This book contains the complete scripts for "Polymorph", "Marooned", "Dimension Jump", "Justice", "Back to Reality", and "Psirens". Not published in the U.S., but available from John McElroy (see Where can I get other RED DWARF merchandise?) and other distributors of imported books.
THE MAN IN THE RUBBER MASK by Robert Llewellyn ISBN 0-14-023575-2 Penguin, 1994A very nice little book, detailing Llewellyn's involvement in RED DWARF from the beginning of Series 3 through the filming of the American pilots (see Is there an American version of RED DWARF?). Predictably, there is some complaining about the Rubber Mask, but only a little. There are plenty of anecdotes and stories, and lots of trivia. The section on the American pilots is especially revealing, and gives some plausible reasons why the whole project fell through. Not an essential purchase for RED DWARF fans, but a very good one indeed.
THE MAKING OF RED DWARF by Joe Nazzaro ISBN 0-14-023206-0 Penguin, 1994A rather slender book with lots of nice colour photographs. Focuses on the making of "Gunmen Of The Apocalypse". The book goes into a fair amount of detail, but nothing that couldn't have been gleaned from a half-dozen back issues of the now-defunct SMEGAZINE (see Are there RED DWARF magazines?). The book's main strength is the added material: some great photos, fragments of the original "Gunmen" script (mostly stage directions, but also one unfilmed scene) and storyboards used in the filming. The back of the book contains information on how you can purchase RED DWARF paraphernalia such as t-shirts, baseball caps, and models of Starbug and Kryten.
RED DWARF QUIZ BOOK by Nicky Hooks and Sharon Burnett ISBN 0-14-023662-7 Penguin, 1994RED DWARF trivia and mind-bending teasers. Contains questions such as "What was referred to as a small off-duty Czechoslovakian traffic warden?", crosswords, word searches, "who said . . .", information about the cast, and photos. After a while, though, you have to wonder about the mind of someone who can put together questions such as "What follows the leaflet campaign?" or "What was in canister 1121?"
THE OFFICIAL RED DWARF FAN CLUB (U.K.)
This club is based in England, but has addresses in several other countries. Membership includes three issues of their magazine BETTER THAN LIFE, a badge, and a membership card. Membership rates (per year) are as follows:
UK/BFPO - 8.50 Sterling Europe - 9.50 Sterling equivalent Eire - IR#10 (8.50 Sterling) USA - US$20.00 (??.?? Sterling) Australia - A$27.00 (13.00 Sterling) New Zealand - NZ$32.00 (11.00 Sterling)Cash or cheques in your local currency are accepted, but take weeks rather than days to clear. If you prefer to send an International Money Order, the equivalent rates are shown above. Write to:
U.K.: 40 Pitford Road Eire: Caroline Griffin
Woodley 67 Rafters Road
Reading Drimnagh
RG5 4QF Dublin 12
U.S.: Jupiter Mining Company Australia: Tom Marwede
P.O. Box 13097 PO Box 1044
Coyote, CA 95013 Bundoora 3083
Victoria
Note: The address listed in the RED DWARF PROGRAMME GUIDE (see Are there books about RED DWARF?)
is incorrect.
THE OFFICIAL RED DWARF FAN CLUB (U.S.) P. O. Box 400 Columbiaville, MI 48421The U.S. fan club appears to be defunct. Mail sent to the above address is being returned, and fans who joined at conventions have not received the newsletter or the other materials that should have been mailed to them.
Mike Gardiner ([email protected]) has served as an unofficial Internet contact for this club in the past. If you sent money to the club and did not receive what you were promised, contact Mike and he'll try to get your money refunded.
ZED SHIFT (New Zealand) PO Box 10104 Wellington New ZealandZed Shift publishes a quarterly magazine (GARBAGE POD), operates a mail-order service for New Zealand members, and holds the occasional meeting. Members receive four issues of GARBAGE POD, a guide to RED DWARF, a membership card, and a hologram H.
The cost of one year's membership in NZ dollars is: - New Zealand $15 - Australia $20 - Rest of world $25 For a registration form, send an SAE or IRC.
BETTER THAN LIFE (Germany) Sylvia Pranga Isolde-Kurz-Str. 145 (36) W-4400 Munster-Nienberge GERMANYThis club publishes a newsletter (mostly in German) called TALKIE TOASTER (TM).
http://136.170.129.54:8080/red_dwarf http://www.tufts.edu/~jfeuerst/reddwarf.html http://www.ftech.net/~cobweb/alt.tv.red-dwarf/ http://sdio.issi.com/RedDwarf/rd-home_page.html[This last one doesn't seem to work anymore. Does anyone know whether it's gone, or just having temporary problems? -- PMB]
http://www.hal.com/~markg/docs/RedDwarf/rd-home_page.html http://turnpike.net/chrisk/rd.htmlFTP SITES: Dave Gagne
ftp://toaster.ee.ubc.ca/pub/red-dwarfThe following sites have some RED DWARF files, but nothing you can't find at toaster:
ftp://ftp.funet.fi/pub/pics/tv+film/RedDwarf ftp://ftp.sunet.se/pub/pictures/tv.film/Red_Dwarf ftp://cathouse.org/pub/cathouse/british.humourINTERNET RELAY CHAT: There are a few IRC channels (#Red_Dwarf, #dwarfers, and #starbug), but reportedly not much activity.**
[Convertor's note: There is IRC activity - definitely on #starbug. Regular meets occur at roughly 9p.m. (current British time) on Sunday nights).]
NEWSGROUP: There is a Usenet newsgroup devoted to news and discussion about RED DWARF:
alt.tv.red-dwarf
MAILING LIST: If you have email capability, you can subscribe to a RED DWARF mailing list. Note the new address (as of June 1995):
mailto:[email protected]Type the following text as the body of the message:
subscribe reddwarf Your NameDo *not* send to the old uel.ac.uk address. Your message will go nowhere and will only make life difficult for the staff at the University of East London.
ONLINE SERVICES
CompuServe: RED DWARF discussions can be found in the British Media SF section of the SF & Fantasy Forum.
America Online: There is an active folder called "Red Dwarf" in the Star Trek/Comix/TV/Star Wars Boards in the Science Fiction & Fantasy Forum (keyword: sci fi).
GEnie: RED DWARF discussions can be found in the British TV topic of the SHOWBIZ RT.
Prodigy: The SCIENCE FICTION BB has an active topic called "Red Dwarf".
[Anyone know about BIX or other online services? -- PMB]
There are good reasons for this request. First of all, uuencoded binaries take up a lot of space. Many sites simply do not have disk space for them. If you start posting binaries, those sites will be forced to drop the newsgroup, depriving everyone at that site of news and information about RED DWARF.
Also, many people have to pay for their net access by the second. Huge binaries cost those people a lot of money. Those people may be forced to stop receiving newsgroups and mailing lists to which binaries are posted. Thus we are deprived of their wit and wisdom.
Summary: If you post binaries, other posters and the group itself will suffer.
Several RED DWARF newsletters or fanzines are published by RED DWARF fan clubs (see Are there RED DWARF fan clubs?). In addition, two independent fanzines are known to exist:
STASIS LEAK Space Rat Press P.O. Box 422 Park Ridge, NJ 07656 USA U.S./Canada/and Mexico: $12 U.S. per issue Elsewhere: $15 U.S. per issueSTASIS LEAK is written by Joe Nazarro, who also wrote THE MAKING OF RED DWARF (see Are there books about RED DWARF?) and formerly wrote for the SMEGAZINE. Three issues have been published so far:
#1 Interviews with Grant Naylor, Chris Barrie, Hattie Hayridge,
Andria Pannell (makeup designer). RED DWARF fiction, article on
U.S. pilot, Series 5 preview and production notes, trivia quiz,
an old vs. new" debate, and an episode guide for seasons 1 and 2.
Black and white photos inside throughout and back cover. Color
photo cover of Rimmer from "Holoship." 50 pages.
#2 Interviews with Craig Charles and Danny John-Jules, plus Craig's
press conference from Visions '92. More RED DWARF fiction, book
reviews, a preview and production notes for Series 6, reader
survey results, and episode guide for Series 3 and 4. Black and
white photos inside, color photo cover of Duane Dibbley. 54
pages.
#3 In diary form, this issue chronicles Nazzaro's experiences on the
set of the series and provides a glimpse into the editing of THE
MAKING OF RED DWARF. It contains all of the material that didn't
make it into that book, including behind-the-scenes photos and
script outtakes. [Does anyone have a page count? -- PMB]
THE SMALL ROUGE ONE Peg Kennedy and Bill Hupe Footrot Flats 916 Lamb Road Mason, WI 48854 USA U.S./Canada/Mexico: $7 U.S. Elsewhere: inquireDevoted entirely to original RED DWARF fiction. One issue so far, containing four stories: "Special Delivery", "Companionship", "Virus", and "A RED DWARF Christmas Carol". The last three form a sort of trilogy. Center artwork and color artwork cover. 5 1/2 x 8 1/2, 56 pages.
[email protected] reports the following: "In 1991 I was working for Imagitec Design, a computer games company based in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, England. We had a full game design / plot written up and partially storyboarded, ready to be submitted for approval from Grant & Naylor. They were very excited about the prospect of a game since the 'Better Than Life' theme would link nicely to the series. We approached Gremlin Graphics, in Sheffield, to handle the licensing. The deal came to a standstill when Noel Gay TV wanted way too much money for the license and so the game never saw the light of day."
There are two DOS computer viruses ("Pathogen" and "Queeg") written by an anonymous person who is apparently a RED DWARF fan. When activated, the "Pathogen" virus displays the following message:
Your hard-disk is being corrupted, courtesy of PATHOGEN!
Programmed in the U.K. (Yes, NOT Bulgaria!) [C] The Black Baron 1993-4.
Featuring SMEG v0.1: Simulated Metamorphic Encryption Generator!
'Smoke me a kipper, I`ll be back for breakfast.....'
Unfortunately some of your data won't!!!!!
These viruses were first detected in February of 1994. Reuters
reported on 22 July 1994 that a man in Plymouth, England, had been
arrested and charged with creating the viruses.
At the 1994 British Comedy Awards, RED DWARF won Best BBC Situation Comedy.
At Eastercon 1989 and 1992, RED DWARF received the Best Dramatic Dresentation award. At the Cult TV 1994 convention, awards were presented to Grant Naylor (Best Writers) and RED DWARF (Best Show).
Article 5 Gross negligence leading to the endangerment of
personnel. ("Queeg")
Article 169 [Exact text not given, but similar to 195.]
("Quarantine")
Article 195 In an emergency power situation, a hologrammatic
crewmember must lay down his life in order that the
living crewmembers might survive. ("White Hole")
Article 312 [Quarantine berths must] provide minimum leisure
facilities. ("Quarantine")
Article 497 You have to work to earn credits for food. ("Queeg")
Article 597 One [quarantine] berth per crew member.
("Quarantine")
Article 699 [A crew member may] demand a re-screening after five
days in quarantine. ("Quarantine")
Article 1742 No member in the Corps should ever report for active
duty in a ginger toupee. ("Psirens")
Article 1743 No registered vessel should attempt to traverse an
asteroid belt without deflectors. ("Psirens")
Article 5796 No officer above the rank of mess sergeant is
permitted to go into combat with pierced nipples.
("Psirens")
Article 5797 [Exact text not given, but has to do with Lister
being unable to enter the ship for the safety of the
crew.] ("Psirens")
Article 34124 No officer with false teeth should attempt oral sex
in zero gravity. ("Legion")
Article 68250 [Exact text not given, but involves at least one
live chicken and a rabbi.] ("Emohawk: Polymorph II")
Article 196156 Any officer caught sniffing the saddle of the
exercise bicycle in the women's gym will be
discharged without trial. ("Rimmerworld")
(No # given) It is our primary overriding duty to contact other
life forms, exchange information, and, whenever
possible, bring them home. ("Polymorph")
Two All Nations agreements are also mentioned, both in "Gunmen of the
Apocalypse":
75880932/C The right of POW's to non-violent constraint.
39436175880932/B All nations attending the conference are only
allowed one car-parking space.
Finally, Rimmer cites the following two "Rimmer Directives":
Article 271 No chance, you metal bastard! ("White Hole")
(No # given) Never tangle with anything that's got more teeth
than the entire Osmond family. ("Polymorph")