Stones To Stories: The History of Science Fiction with professor and author Adam Roberts

Stones To Stories: The History of Science Fiction with professor and author Adam Roberts

Send me a voice message! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/fan_mail/new] Dinosaurs are real, which is exactly why they are so hard to write. Humans never lived alongside them, so any prehistoric fiction that wants characters, conflict, and drama has to cheat time, bend geography, or invent new science. I’m joined by Adam Roberts, professor of nineteenth-century literature at Royal Holloway and a leading critic of science fiction, to unpack how writers solve that problem and what those solutions reveal about our fears and fantasies. The Book List: Jules Verne – Journey to the Centre of the Earth Arthur Conan Doyle – The Lost World Edgar Rice Burroughs – The Land That Time Forgot Trilogy Ray Bradbury – A Sound of Thunder Anne McCaffrey – Dinosaur Planet Harry Adam Knight – Carnosaur Michael Crichton – Jurassic Park / The Lost World James Gurney – Dinotopia Greg Bear – Dinosaur Summer Robert T. Bakker – Raptor Red Stephen Baxter – Evolution Ethan Pettus – Primitive War Lee Murray – Into the Mist Guests Adam Roberts @adamroberts.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/adamroberts.bsky.social] https://profadamroberts.substack.com/ [https://profadamroberts.substack.com/] (Affiliate links below) The History of Science Fiction - https://amzn.eu/d/0g4lGWhJ [https://amzn.eu/d/0g4lGWhJ] Pre Order ‘Frankenstein Rex’ - https://amzn.eu/d/09joNsmM [https://amzn.eu/d/09joNsmM] Pre Order ‘An A-Z of J.R.R Tolkien’ - https://amzn.eu/d/0bjirGu0 [https://amzn.eu/d/0bjirGu0] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/support] If you enjoy the show then it would mean a lot to me if you could rate & review on Apple Podcasts. It really helps this show find more Jurassic fans like you! Presented and produced by Roland Squire Theme music: Caleb Burnett (@calebcomposed) Cover artwork: @thejurassicartist Find us: @JurassicPiratesPod on Instagram

Stones To Stories: The London Natural History Museum with Alastair Hendry and Tom Luker

Send me a voice message! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/fan_mail/new] In today’s episode we walk through the Natural History Museum as both a beloved London landmark and a working scientific institution, from its cathedral-like main hall to the hidden stories baked into the terracotta. Along the way, we unpack how Victorian ambition, dinosaurs, and modern conservation collide inside the UK’s most visited attraction.  Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/support] If you enjoy the show then it would mean a lot to me if you could rate & review on Apple Podcasts. It really helps this show find more Jurassic fans like you! Presented and produced by Roland Squire Theme music: Caleb Burnett (@calebcomposed) Cover artwork: @thejurassicartist Find us: @JurassicPiratesPod on Instagram

Stones To Stories: The Crystal Palace Dinosaurs with Mark Witton

Send me a voice message! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/fan_mail/new] Plymouth, summer of 1841. Richard Owen stepped before the British Association for the Advancement of Science and coined a word that would reshape our understanding of the deep past: Dinosauria. This episode follows that word from Owen’s meeting hall to South London, where sculptor Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins turned fragmentary bones into life-size stone giants. I am joined by palaeoartist and author Mark Witton for a conversation about the history of the site and then Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs trustee Andrew Brady, and Jurassic Outpost’s Caleb Burnett and I go for a walk through the world’s oldest surviving prehistoric animal park. For the extended interview with Mark Witton, you can hear it by subscribing to the Plus version of the podcast in Apple Podcasts or clicking the ‘support the show’ link below. Guests Mark Witton Palaeoartist, palaeontologist and author Markwitton.co.uk [http://www.markwitton.co.uk] @mark_witton [https://www.instagram.com/mark_witton/] Andrew Brady Trustee of the Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs, the charity formed in 2013 to conserve and celebrate the geological court at Crystal Palace Park. Follow the ongoing restoration and find out how to support the project. Cpdinosaurs.org [https://cpdinosaurs.org/] @CPDinosaurs [https://www.instagram.com/cpdinosaurs] Facebook [https://en-gb.facebook.com/cpdinosaurs/] Links Report of the 11th Meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, Plymouth 1841 https://archive.org/details/reportofeleventh42lond [https://archive.org/details/reportofeleventh42lond] The Art and Science of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs by Eleanor Michel and Mark Witton All author proceeds go to the Friends of Crystal Palace Dinosaurs. https://cpdinosaurs.org/projects/the-art-and-science-crystal-palace-dinosaurs [https://cpdinosaurs.org/projects/the-art-and-science-crystal-palace-dinosaurs] The Dragon of St Paul’s by Reginald Bacchus and Cyril Ranger Gull The 1899 story referenced in the episode, in which a prehistoric creature thaws from a block of ice and runs amok across London. It can be found in Richard Fallon’a brilliant prehistoric story collection here: https://amzn.eu/d/0ceDiAs4 (this is an affiliate link so might earn commission when using) Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/support] If you enjoy the show then it would mean a lot to me if you could rate & review on Apple Podcasts. It really helps this show find more Jurassic fans like you! Presented and produced by Roland Squire Theme music: Caleb Burnett (@calebcomposed) Cover artwork: @thejurassicartist Find us: @JurassicPiratesPod on Instagram

Stones To Stories: Before the Word “Dinosaur” with Natalie Lawrence (author of Enchanted Creatures)

Send me a voice message! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/fan_mail/new] Charles Dickens opened Bleak House with a megalosaurus waddling up Holborn Hill. This episode traces the stories we told about the bones in the rock before we knew what they were. I’m joined by Bexhill Museum curator Julian Porter and author Natalie Lawrence. For the extended interview with Natalie Lawrence, you can hear it by subscribing to the Plus version of the podcast in Apple Podcasts or clicking the ‘support the show’ link below. A huge thank you to Guy Adams for the opening narration! Guests Julian Porter Curator at Bexhill Museum and author of Bexhill on Sea: A History https://amzn.to/4wL8eQ6 [https://amzn.to/4wL8eQ6] (affiliated link so I might earn commission on items bought) https://www.instagram.com/bexhill_museum?igsh=ZXh5Mm12c2R6Z2pu [https://www.instagram.com/bexhill_museum?igsh=ZXh5Mm12c2R6Z2pu] Natalie Lawrence Author of Enchanted Creatures, a history of the monsters we have made from the natural world https://amzn.to/4dQqtuK [https://amzn.to/4dQqtuK] (affiliated link so I might earn commission on items bought) https://www.nataliejlawrence.com/ [https://www.nataliejlawrence.com/] https://www.instagram.com/natalie.j.lawrence [https://www.instagram.com/natalie.j.lawrence] Links Mark Witton: Unicorns, dragons, monsters and giants Natalie references Mark’s work in this episode, picking apart the arguments for mythological creatures being derived from fossil discoveries. https://markwitton-com.blogspot.com/2018/04/unicorns-dragons-monsters-and-giants.html?m=1 [https://markwitton-com.blogspot.com/2018/04/unicorns-dragons-monsters-and-giants.html?m=1] Bexhill Museum: Dinosaurs and Geology https://www.bexhillmuseum.org.uk/access-centre/museum-exhibitions-displays/dinosaurs-geology/ [https://www.bexhillmuseum.org.uk/access-centre/museum-exhibitions-displays/dinosaurs-geology/] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/support] If you enjoy the show then it would mean a lot to me if you could rate & review on Apple Podcasts. It really helps this show find more Jurassic fans like you! Presented and produced by Roland Squire Theme music: Caleb Burnett (@calebcomposed) Cover artwork: @thejurassicartist Find us: @JurassicPiratesPod on Instagram

Road To Rebirth: The Film Episodes

Send me a voice message! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/fan_mail/new] Before Season 2 begins, here’s every film episode from Season 1 in one place! Season 1 of The Pirates Don’t Eat The Tourists was called Road to Rebirth. Over the course of the season, we worked our way through all seven Jurassic films, from Spielberg’s original in 1993 to Jurassic World Rebirth in 2025.  This compilation brings together all seven film episodes as a single listen. Perfect for catching up before Stones to Stories begins on 3rd June, or for new listeners wanting to understand where the show came from. Episodes included: Jurassic Park (1993) with Derrick Davis · The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) with Caleb Burnett · Jurassic Park III (2001) with Daniel Stephen · Jurassic World (2015) with Brad Jost · Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) with Samantha Endres · Jurassic World: Dominion (2022) with Sam Phillips and Jack Ewins · Jurassic World Rebirth (2025) with James Mottram and Derrick Davis Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2488343/support] If you enjoy the show then it would mean a lot to me if you could rate & review on Apple Podcasts. It really helps this show find more Jurassic fans like you! Presented and produced by Roland Squire Theme music: Caleb Burnett (@calebcomposed) Cover artwork: @thejurassicartist Find us: @JurassicPiratesPod on Instagram