Pilot TV
Empire Magazine
From the creators of The Empire Film Podcast, Pilot TV is your essential guide to every TV show that matters, providing a weekly rundown of all the new must-see TV shows dropping across streaming, terrestrial, satellite, cable, and beyond. Join Empire's James Dyer, Heat's Boyd Hilton, Steph Seelan, and Kay Ribeiro as they bring you breaking TV news, reviews of the week's major shows, and interviews with some of the biggest names in TV.Pilot TV is here to make sure every minute you spend in front of the box is a minute worth spending. Served with a heavy helping of insider knowledge, irreverence and humour, Pilot TV won't just keep you informed, amused and entertained, but is guaranteed to save countless hours of your life. Because you can’t watch *everything*.Enjoying the podcast? Sign up to Pilot+ for a bonus episode every Thursday, in-depth spoiler specials, and early, ad-free access to the regular show! Find out more at www.empireonline.com/pilottv
Episodes
Mentioned books
Feb 10, 2021 • 2h 35min
The West Wing Spoiler Special, featuring Aaron Sorkin
We've been threatening to do it for weeks and now we've finally delivered. Here, for your listening pleasure, is a Pilot TV spoiler special dedicated to the greatest TV show ever made: The West Wing. To celebrate the fact that Terri binged the entire show over the past month, and in recognition of the fact that James needs absolutely no excuse to bang on about it until people beg him to stop, we bring you a mammoth recording where the team thrash over the themes, the cast, the major plot points and much, much more. Plus, you can enjoy James' interview with the man who started the whole thing: West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin. Enjoy!
Feb 8, 2021 • 1h 56min
#122 - Soulmates, Can't Get You Out Of My Head, and The Vanishing At the Cecil Hotel
On this week's show we're looking for true love in Amazon Prime's new anthology drama, Soulmates, investigating a true crime mystery in The Vanishing At the Cecil Hotel on Netflix, and taking a look at Adam Curtis' mind-bending new iPlayer series, Can’t Get You Out Of My Head. Plus Terri goes off on a venomous diatribe agains the Golden Globe nominations and we somehow end up in a protracted musing about the state of modern telly and the evolution of viewing habits. Because why the hell not?
Feb 1, 2021 • 1h 38min
#121 - ZeroZeroZero, Ramy, and The Drowning
On the show this week we take a look Andrea Riseborough and Gabriel Byrne's drug-smuggling thriller ZeroZeroZero on Sky Atlantic, track down a missing person in The Drowning on Channel 5, and check out Channel 4's latest comedy, Ramy, which only people with StarzPlay will have already seen. Plus Terri explains why, despite all evidence to the contrary, she *never* watches rubbish telly and we bear witness to the 'triumphant' return of James' guitar.
Jan 25, 2021 • 1h 47min
#120 - Marcella, Resident Alien, and Damien. Featuring Anna Friel
Anna Friel joins us on this week's show to talk about the third season of Marcella, which makes its belated UK debut on ITV this week. Plus Terri goes inexplicably nuts for demented Sky comedy Resident Alien, and we discover that the devil's in the details (which in this case include having been cancelled nearly half a decade ago) for Fox UK's Damien.
Jan 19, 2021 • 2h 19min
#119 - WandaVision, It's A Sin, and Star Trek: Lower Decks. With guest host Russell T. Davies
On this week's show telly legend and Doctor Who pioneer Russell T. Davies joins us as guest host when we take a trip back to the 1950s for Marvel/I Love Lucy hybrid show WandaVision, and force Terri to sit through some Star Trek animation in Lower Decks. We also get a chance to delve deep into Russell's new series, It's A Sin, and talk about some of the shows we're most looking forward to in 2021.
Jan 11, 2021 • 1h 9min
# 118 - Servant, The Pembrokeshire Murders, Briarpatch, and Finding Alice
On this week's show we’re joining Luke Evans in the hunt for a Welsh serial killer in ITV’s The Pembrokeshire Murders, finding out how baby Jericho’s holding up in Season 2 of Servant on Apple TV+, and watching Rosario Dawson unravel a mystery on Alibi as Briarpatch makes its belated debut on UK screens. Plus we tumble down the stairs with Finding Alice, and Beth Webb joins us as we explore Boyd's favourite narrative device and investigate the use of flashbacks.
Jan 5, 2021 • 1h 33min
#117 - The Stand, Cobra Kai, and A Discovery Of Witches
Happy New Year to you all! And what better way to celebrate than to hear Terri once again concede that a show James has banged on about endlessly is actually rather good. Which one? You’ll have to wait and see. We also take a look at the new adaptation of Stephen King’s The Stand on Starzplay, head back to Elizabethan times for Season 2 of A Discovery Of Witches on Sky, and dive headfirst into Season 3 of Netflix’s Cobra Kai.
Dec 28, 2020 • 22min
Cobra Kai Special, Featuring Ralph Macchio & William Zabka
You didn't think we'd leave you all Christmas with no Pilot TV podcast did you? With the long-awaited Season 3 of Cobra Kai mere days away, we bring you this special episode dedicated to the show, featuring none other than Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence themselves: Ralph Macho and William Zabka. The stars of the show chat the way of the fist with James, discuss how this most unlikely of reunions became the biggest show on streaming, and what we can expect going forward.
Strike first. Strike hard. No mercy!
Dec 21, 2020 • 1h 24min
#116 - Black Narcissus, The Serpent, and Motherland Christmas Special. Featuring Nicola Coughlan
Derry Girl Nicola Coughlan joins us on this the final regular Pilot podcast of 2020 to talk about sexy bodice-ripper Bridgerton. Meanwhile, the rest of the show comes to you in association with (non warrior) nuns in the Himalayas thanks to the BBC's Black Narcissus, a seventies serial killer in The Serpent, and assorted secret Santa shenanigans in the brilliantly funny Motherland Christmas special. Plus Boyd breaks out his magic listings book to talk us through all the TV highlights over the Christmas break and we talk though all our favourite festive episodes. See you in 2021!
Dec 14, 2020 • 1h 31min
#115 - The Wilds, Euphoria, and The Expanse
The Expanse returns this week, much to Terri and Boyd's bemusement - but don't worry, James is on hand to Beltersplain everything as needed. We also dive into Amazon's new pseudo-Lost show, The Wilds, and embrace a little festive cheer (kind of) with the Euphoria Christmas special. All that and a rather unexpected discussion of late stage capitalism, some thoughts on additions to established ensemble casts, and Terri inadvertently trigger's the Pilot TV podcast's new security system, much to her chagrin.
