Nice BBc2 have been showing it all over the stress-free Xmas break. Season 6 was better than I remembered "If I stuck his head in a fridge every time he did something annoying, he'd have to go on a fridge-free diet"
and my all-time favourite quote, which I'd been using for years and forgotten the origin:
"If this doesn't work I'll stake my reputation on it"
"Kryten, you don't have a reputation"
"No, but I'm hoping to acquire one from this escapade"

They were especially kind in showing both "Holoship" and "Terrorform" over the most stressfull parts of the festive break, so I had some joy. I actually spent the late evening on Boxing Day hunched over a teeny Tv watching the famous 'oiled' scene with the sound down.

I want to thank whoever posted this. Something about that whole Rimmer Munchkin ride came so out of left field that I laughed all out of proportion to its actual humor content. So much so, in fact, that I couldn't get past, "Without him, life would be much grimmer." Which means I have to ask: Just what is a Zimmer? I really want to know!

From Hyperdictionary:

Zimmer Frame: [n] a light framework (trade name Zimmer) with four rubber feet and handles; helps cripples to walk.

Well, that's disappointing. I had hoped it was a purely Red Dwarf word, like "smeg," and would have an interesting definition. That, or something obscene like a penile inflater.

Sorry to burst your bubble D.C. but 'Smeg' is not purely a Red Dwarf word, as in it was not just made up for RD. I don't know if you already know this but if you add 'ma' to the end of it and then look it up in the English Dictionary you'll see what I mean. They just shortened it. Until I knew what it meant I used this word in place of others. Have to admit I still do occasionally (just for fun).

Yep, that's right. And in some parts of the world it's actually a brand of electrical appliance, which, being an RD fan, makes me giggle childishly. Hee!

Just thought I'd share: I am apparently incapable of eating Cup o' Ramen for lunch without giggling and thinking of Lister saying, "Pot noodle."

It's a brand of applainces in the same part of the world as RD airs, if that makes it any funnier, katisha66.

What's really funny is the furniture company's website URL: http://www.smeg.it

Yep, sure does, senor coconut. :)

Imagine my delight when we drove past their showroom in Milan. "Look! Smeg!" And all this time I thought Jamie Oliver (the naked chef) was a huge RD fan.

This news fairly hot off the presses, it seems. If you go to the official website http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/, then click on Movie Deck, then News Archive, the article at the top is an open letter to fans from Doug Naylor saying that, among other things, he's about to have discussions with American funders which began at the Cannes film festival about funding the RD movie. Apparently within weeks the movie will FINALLY be green lit and will shortly after that be in pre-production in Australia. Whoo-hoo! I had no idea it still hadn't been made yet. As far as I can recall, this movie has been mooted since about 2001!

It really saddens me to say this, as I absolutely adore with all my heart Red Dwarf series' 1-6, but if Kochanski's in this movie then I won't be going to see it - they should NEVER have brought her in in the first place. I'll also have major reservations if they continue to have Kryten act like a buffoon, what the fuck is up with that?

I think we know who the real talent in Grant Naylor is - and it ain't the one who stayed!

On last Monday night, ABC-TV counter-programmed for the Olympics with TV Shows You've Never Seen (i.e., failed TV pilots). And, in the segment on Science-Fiction, what did they have? The American version of Red Dwarf! Jane Leeves as Holly seemed palatable, but the guy playing Lister was horrible -- he seemed to be waiting, with every line, for each laugh-track laugh! No footage of the American Rimmer. And no Cat!

I thought there were two American pilots for Red Dwarf. And in one (if not both), Cat was played by Terry Farrell. Fortunately for DS9, that role fell through.

I saw this show as well. The actor was Craig Bierko.

The first USA pilot filmed was a full on 30 minute adaptation of The End, but with Kryten in it. In fact, he gets just about the only funny new gag - when Lister finds his blown off head rolled into a corner of the drive room, he asks if Krytie hasn't been bored for the last 30 million years. Kryten assures him "Heavens to betsy, no Mr Lister, I've been reading this very interesting fire extinguisher and the time has just flown." The rest of the cast were fairly bland though, and didn't seem to get behind the idea, like the cool kids at school who don't want to try to hard at anything, because they're above that sort of thing. One thing you can say about the UK cast is that they ran at the characters and dialogue full speed.

Anyway, the pilot didn't get picked up, so whoever it was that was trying to hock the idea to the US networks did some partial reshoots, re-casting Rimmer and the Cat (as Terry Farrells warrior woman) and dropping their footage into what had already been filmed. This apparently stunk even worse then the first attempt, and all concerned gave up on it.



The only reason Kochanski was brought back full time was because the production company that were funding the movie at the time wanted a female main cast member. Apparently they didn't want to invest millions in a movie where the main cast were four men marooned alone in space, especially as one was a fey robot and one of the others was played by a dancer.

Which is a real shame. I much prefer Seasons 1 and 2 when the cast was entirely male before Holly turned into Hattie Hayridge. I realise that Holly isn't ahem biologically male or female but losing Norman Lovett totally changed the dynamic of the show for me. The fact that there wasn't a woman in the mix added to the clautrophobic/isolated feel the show had back then. Before they started gradually become more and more heroic and zipping around in the starbug all over the place, you'd get the feeling that a lot of the time in between the episodes would have been spent doing jigsaws, getting really bored and snarking at one another.

Bringing Kochanski back was just a terrible idea. I'd lost a lot of interest in the show by that time but I think I still saw most of the episodes. The fact that it wasn't CP Grogan still rankles and the character seemed quite bitchy. I hated the first episode with her in which it turns out that Lister is his own father (stupid, stupid nonsensical Sci-Fi cliche) largely because for that story to have happened, Lister and Kochanski would have had to spend nine months getting to know one another better during the pregnancy, he would have helped her through the birth and then they would have grieved together over the loss of their son. Instead the incident was never referred to and the next episode it was as though Kochanski had only just come aboard.

I read this whole thread this morning and then tonight when I was watching an old tape to see what was on it I found the last episode of Red Dwarf. Oh, how I loved this show. Especially Rimmer. Lister and Rimmer are the first hoyay couple I ever seriously rooted for. Does anyone know what the movie is supposed to be about? Does it pick where the show left off?

Our own neverbeen2spain wrote a really hilarious Red Dwarf fanfic for a Yuletide challenge:

Indulging Rimmer

Rated PG or so. Check it out! It's really funny!

No. Like the books and the radio tapes, Red Dwarf The Movie takes place in an alternate reality. According to the website:



however, the website self corrects with:

I hadn't thought of it before (introspection and pondering coming in a distant second to yelling "everybody is dead, dave!" back and forth with my dad), but Hestia really had a great point.

The first couple seasons, with these male figures (if not "men") stuck aboard this ship...that really added a lot to the feel. Even when they found Kryten and his ladies, the feeling of desperation/solitude was intensified. It's an interesting psychological dimension to it all that I hadn't even thought about.

er...i mean, smeg!

I didn't mind female Holly but I could have done without the new Kochanski. The character dynamic seemed very "typical sitcom" after that. Prissy, high maintenance woman and slobby (ex)boyfriend. The other characters seemed like afterthoughts.

I don't remember really disliking the new Kochanski, though the running plotline during that period of them on Starbug chasing Red Dwarf was a little tedious.

To me, "Ouroboros" is the end of the series. Not because Kochanski Mark II comes in, but because Dave finally figures out his place in the universe, and he's (mostly) at peace with it. Dave's size-of-the-freakin'-universe existential crisis is over, and it seems fitting that humanity (in the form of the reconstituted Red Dwarf crew) comes back almost immediately after. Dave is no longer alienated from humanity (or himself), so naturally, humanity returns to his universe. (Simple!)

Season Eight is a funny spaceship-based sitcom, featuring a bunch of loveable losers in permanent lockdown. It features Lister, Rimmer, Kryten, Cat, even Original Recipe Holly, but the central dilemma of Red Dwarf ("what is my place in the universe?") is no longer there.

There's actually a roleplaying game out based on the program.

BTW, I'm actually running a game in the gaming club at the univerity of Wisconsin Stevens Point, and we're having such great fun with it.

I'm so glad to have found this thread. Silly me, searching all 25 pages of the sitcom forum. I'm not questioning the decision of the TWoP PTB (or whoever created this thread) to place it here, but it brought an interesting question to my mind: is RD more sitcom with sci-fi elements or sci-fi with comedic elements? My choice is the former. I think the setting was incidental, while the comedy was the reason the show existed at all. In fact, I think the show was at its lowest points when it ventured too far into sci-fi territory. Anyone else have thoughts on that?

Anyway, I guess they decided to put it here because there were no sofas or French windows. (Check out the extras on the DVDs if you don't know the reference.)

There are some episodes in series 8 that I really like, but then there are ones like "Krytie TV" that make me want to break things. I got really tired of the Kryten who did nothing but whine about Kochanski, so an entire episode that featured him was not high on my list by that point in the show. However, once they got to "Only the Good..." I was back on board. Whoever mentioned that series 1 & 2 were the best, however, were spot on (although I'd include series 3 in a "best of" list). I liked the Lister that didn't really have it all together--plus the younger Craig Charles was just yummy.

Has anyone heard anything new regarding the RD movie? The official site is vague, at best.

Last I heard, they were having difficulty getting a backer. Believe me, if I had the money, I would back it in a heartbeat!!!

I love Red Dwarf - at least up to the end of series 7. But I think that sometimes comedy shows go on for too long, and then people just won't/can't let it die. See 'Ab Fab' and 'Only Fools and Horses' for prime examples of this. Sometimes things have a natural life span. I have an awful feeling that this movie might be as disappointing as Hitchhiker's was.
Which would make me cry.

But in 20 years they can revive RD as a serious, tough, post-apocalyptic, existential drama. With all the characters as women...

My favourite Red Dwarf episode is "Tikka to Ride" where they go back in time and accidentally stop Lee Harvey Oswald from shooting JFK. Because JFK doesn't get shot, the US space program doesn't happen, and Red Dwarf disappears, and they are stuck on earth in 1963. They try a couple of times to fix it, but everything keeps failing. They eventually go forward in time and kidnap JFK and take him back and he shoots himself from the grassy knoll. One of them then makes the comment that that will keep the conspiracy theorists busy for years.

Every time I see something about the Kennedy shooting, I am always reminded of the RD episodes. It makes as much sense as any other explanation for any theoretical second shooter on the grassy knoll.

I much preferred the original Holly. His deadpan comments on everything was just perfect.

While I'm not much a fan of seasons 7 and 8 (Kochanski, go away. Rimmer, I liked you better as a hologram) season 7 did give us the Arnold Rimmer song. "He's Arnold, Arnold, Arnold Rimmer..."

"Are you ... are you seriously telling me you were playing the prat version of Rimmer for all that time? For four years?! Wow, that's a classic that is! That's a classic! "

I hate to admit it, but Mr. Flibble is my favorite supoprting character on this show.
(Follwed closely by Talkie Toaster.)

''More reliable than a garden Strimmer
He's never been mistaken for Yul Brynner
He's not bald and his head doesn't glimmer''

For me, in comedy nothing beats the Rimmer Munchkin Ride. Not even the dead parrot sketch. It makes me laugh until I can't breathe. Every time. And it makes It's A Small World at Disneyland much more enjoyable.

LOVE Red Dwarf. I do love the first and second season, but I would have to say I enjoyed it most when the REAL (not the first) Kryten came on board in season three.He has got the gift of comedy, that one! Spin my nipple nuts and send me to Alaska!
With the addition of Robert, they just had a cohessive unit.True, it did become alittle more slapstick, but I enjoyed that.Not that I would trade the episodes of seasons one and two or change them in anyway.What they built in those two seasons, lead to the season three working.Having already established the Lister/Rimmer relationship.

I do love both Holly's.They both were great in thier own way.Norman was brillant. Evertime I see "Queeg"...LOL Hattie had her moments as well.Computer senility, with her banging her head on the screen...lol It is like trying to pick your favorite child, you love thme both, but they are differrent.I do have to admit being really happy to see Norman as Holly again once they finally tracked down RD.

Now, Kochanski. CP Grogan was ok(mediocre actress, yes I know she is a singer), in the few brief apperances she had,but they seemed on the same page as far as personality.When she shows up again in season seven, she is a totally different person.Someone I can not see Lister dating, or her being attracted to him.Not much chemistry, it did get better next year IMO.And the way they had her come to being on Red Dwarf was just stupid, I thought.The whole Kryten dynamic change dramatically in season seven, when Kochanski showed up.All he did was whine.I hated that.And the group chemistry was fouled up and it took awhile to figure out how they wanted Kochanski to be.She really did not have a groove as to how to play her until season eight.They writers had her all over the place.But the BIG thing missing was Rimmer.BIG, BIG, BIG

Thank God he came back and the scutters!

I'm currently watching Red Dwarf on DVD (thanks Netflix!) and have just finished season VI. Was there a behind-the-scenes reason that there was no Holly in it?

The commentary on the last ep (Out of Time I think it is) was very funny - it was apparently being rewritten as they were filming so a lot of the scenes they were reading off prompters!!

For Farscape fans: do you think the scutters were the inspiration behind DRDs?

Budget and storyline constraints. Apparently, the roles of the Cat and Holly were getting progressively smaller so they chose to get rid of one character so they could focus on the others.

But yeah, Kochanski sucks big time. She is NO Rimmer.

Hee!! I agree.

And also, ShadowDenizen, that is awesome.

I love this show. Its theme is brilliant, too. Hey, it's on iTunes! Gotta buy it.

Just found this thread!.As a long-time RD fan, I was shocked the other day to see Craig Charles suddenly show up on my long-time favourite British soap, Coronation Street, as a taxi driver. It just makes me sad to see him, though, because I keep waiting for him to do or say something funny, and he never does!!

Unlike many fans, I'm not one of those people blessed with perfect recall for the various catchphrases and slogans that shows like this engender, and yet I know that after watching RD on PBS for a few years, our family had several RD sayings that had us giggling like idiots. Unfortunately, the only one I can now remember is "Dead. They're all dead, Dave."

After running through the Monty Python site, I began to chuckle over all the phrases we used to use daily, like "Burma!" or "NO ONE expects the Spanish Inquisition." If there are any true, dyed-in-the-wool RD fans reading this, could they please do me a great favour, and list just a few of the Red Dwarfisms that used to make my family laugh so much? (I don't have Alzheimers or anything, just a bad memory.) I do remember that the Backwards episode was a great favourite in my family, although probably not my personal favourite.

By the way, from these posts it appears they may be making a Red Dwarf movie. I don't know how I feel about that. Even the HHGTTG movie, although way better than I feared, just wasn't quite the same as the TV show. As for RD - How could anyone else play Lister, or Rimmer, or the Cat? Sacrilege.

Smoke me a kipper, I'll be back for breakfast!

No need to worry on that account - when and if the movie ever gets made (and that's looking increasingly unlikely since it's been stuck in development hell for years on end now), it will be with the original cast; Chris, Craig, Danny et. al. Anything else would, I think, cause a fan riot. Plus, have you seen either of the unaired RD USA pilots? Now there's some sacrilege. *shudder*.



ITA, Malkavian. The show was simply never going to be anywhere near as good without Rimmer, and the loss of Rob Grant in the same breath really hurt the show in 7. I never really had a problem with Chloe Annett - in fact I think she did her absolute best with the material she was given, but you're right, they just wrote her all over the place in series 7. In some moments she was a love interest, others the fish out of water, other times it seemed like they were trying to use her as a kind of Rimmer replacement, with the bossiness and slightly anal attitude. Trouble is, the character just wasn't appealing or funny, and CA is no Chris Barrie. Thank God, indeed, that he came back.

On the bright side, of course, series 7 did bring us the infamous Rimmer/Lister snog, which as a mild-to-moderate slasher is a personal plus for me.

"I have a medium-sized fire axe embedded in my spinal column, which can really put a crimp on your day." Followed by:
"Uh, no, Wally, come here! Two-and-one-half badgers please!" and "Ah, that's better. Now I can win self-determination for these South Maldivian people!" (Forgive me if I've gotten any of those wrong.)

"Mr. Flibble's very cross. You shouldn't have run away from him. What are we going to do with them now, Mr. Flibble?" (brings puppet to ear) "We can't possibly do that! Who'd clean up all the mess?" (accompanied of course by an insane grin)

Those are all I can think of at the moment.

" No silicon heaven? Preposterous! Where would all the calculators go? "
- Kryten

I love all of the above, and submit the following as some of my favourites:


Holly: Well, the thing about a black hole - it's main distinguishing feature - is it's black. And the thing about space, your basic space colour is black. So how are you supposed to see them?

Cat: All in all, 100% succesful trip.
Kryten: But sir, we lost Mr Rimmer!
Cat: All in all, 100% succesful trip.

Kryten: They've taken Mr Rimmer! Sir, they've taken Mr Rimmer!
Cat: Quick! Let's get out of here before they bring him back!

Rimmer: Step up to red alert.
Kryten: Sir, are you absolutely sure? It does mean changing the bulb.

Cat: A big orange swirly thing in space!
Lister: We're going in.
Cat: Are you kidding? We can't go in there!
Lister: Why not?
Cat: Orange with this suit?

And pretty much all of Kryten and Rimmer's space corp directives exchanges!

Thanks, guys. I didn't remember a single one of those. Now I'm sad and nostalgic. Yet chuckling.

One of my favorite episodes (first one I saw, really) was Waxworld. I mean who in their right mind could come up with the idea to execute Winnie the Pooh?

I also liked Rimmer's dying word: GAZPACHO!

I also remember OriginalRimmer's mangling of it to "Stoke me a clipper, I'll be back for Christmas!"

A few more favourites:

Kryten: Spin my nipple-nuts and send me to Alaska!

Lister: Now I understand why dogs lick their testicles...It's to get rid of the taste of the food.
(Oh how I love Marooned, one of my favourites)

(The beginning of this one is paraphrased)
Rimmer: This is our first glimpse of the Quagaar warrior. It must have looked something like...a roast chicken. [Moment of realisation]
End credits begin...
Rimmer: It's a garbage pod!
End credits continue
Rimmer: It's a smegging garbage pod!

I also enjoy Waxworld/Meltdown, swingkidpt. It was just another one of their fun premises which I thought was executed quite well.

I do have a question for those who have the dvds: I have the R1 dvds for Season 3, and they have the ending for Polymorph where once its revealed that there's another polymorph they have a second Lister among the group who smiles wickedly at the camera. However, I've always seen a different version in Australia, where they have text over a still that reveals that the second polymorph hid in Lister's clean sock/underwear drawer where it died of lonliness may years later. I was just wondering if they have this ending on the R2/R4 dvds, since it's the ending I prefer. Thanks!

Kryten: SMEEEG HEEEAAD

Small off-duty Czechoslovakian traffic warden!

I love Red Dwarf so much. It's one of the most quotable shows... typical of British comedy (I'm sorry, but our comedy is superior to American comedy). My friend has all the episodes, some on video, some on DVD.

I preferred the old Holly, the man. I don't like the woman Holly too much.