"Actor: David Franklin"

• Decline and Fall | DVD | (17/04/2017) from £9.98   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  Paul Pennyfeather, a dedicated divinity student set upon a quiet life of contemplation as a priest, is unceremoniously expelled from Oxford University through no fault of his own. This kickstarts a series of disastrous events that no-one, least of all Paul, could have anticipated. Without a private fortune to fall back on, Paul is forced to take a position as a teacher at a substandard boarding school in rural Wales. All too quickly it becomes apparent that Paul is not a natural disciplinarian. He finds scant comfort in drinking to excess with the other teachers. Things start to look up, however, when Paul meets Margot Beste-Chetwynde, a wealthy widow and a mother to one of the boys at the school. Could it be that the attraction Paul feels for Margot is returned? Could his fortunes be changing?

• Doctor Who - The Collection - Season 8 | Blu Ray | (08/03/2021) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  With all episodes newly remastered from the best available sources available, this Blu-ray box set also contains extensive and exclusive special features including: Extended Episode 1 of Claws of Axos: 90 minute omnibus edition of The Daemons (specially edited for the repeat screening at Christmas 1971 and not seen since) Behind the Sofa: New episodes with Katy Manning and Stewart Bevan, plus companions Janet Fielding and Sarah Sutton and from the Jodie-Whittaker-era Sacha Dhawan and Anjli Mohindra. In Conversation: Matthew Sweet chats to companion Katy Manning. A Devils Weekend: Actors Katy Manning and John Levene take a very personal trip back to the picturesque village of Aldbourne, 50 years after they recorded the Doctor Who story The Daemons there. The Direct Route: Doctor Who directors Michael Briant, Graeme Harper and Tim Combe take an epic road trip to all the filming locations from Season 8 as they discuss directing the show in the early 1970s. Terrance and Me: Lifelong Doctor Who fan, Frank Skinner sets out to meet the family, friends and colleagues of the late, much-loved writer, Terrance Dicks. Special Features Immersive 5.1 surround sound on Terror of the Autons and The Daemons Optional updated special effects and CSO clean-up on Terror of the Autons Blu-Ray trailer A specially shot mini-episode Unseen studio footage Rare archive treats Convention footage HD photo galleries Scripts, costume designs, rare BBC production files and other gems from our PDF archive

• Quatermass - Chapters 1 To 4 / The Conclusion | DVD | (07/04/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £34.99

  John Mills stars as the eponymous Professor in 1979s Quatermass, the fourth, final and best of the celebrated television science fiction serials. The Professors early adventures were 1950s TV productions, all made into cult Hammer films, including the excellent Quatermass and the Pit (1967). Here Quatermass, now an elderly scientist searching for his missing grand-daughter, finds himself facing a new alien nightmare in a convincingly bleak near-future Britain of urban decay, social collapse and unchecked violence. Written by Nigel Kneale, as were all the Quatermass stories, this was an intelligent extrapolation of 1970s industrial-strife-ridden Britain, a continuation of the apocalyptic British SF tradition of John Wyndham (The Day of the Triffids was serialised by the BBC two years later). Thanks to a generous budget sufficient to allow for an international theatrical version, the production values are impressively large-scale, and the naturalistic performances from a cast including Simon MacCorkindale, Barbara Kellerman and Brenda Fricker add greatly to the sense of reality. Best of all, John Mills brings tremendous class to an adventure which remains a rare example of serious, ideas-based adult TV SF. Director Piers Haggard (Pennies from Heaven) packs considerable tension and not a few scares into Kneales epic canvas. On the DVD: Quatermass is presented on three DVDs with two 50-minute episodes and perfunctory production notes on each of the first two discs. The 4:3 picture is good for a 1970s TV series, though there is some minor print damage. Sound is adequate two-channel mono. Disc 3 offers the 101-minute international theatrical version, called The Quatermass Conclusion. This version contains some slightly stronger, 15-rated material, and different credits. The disc also features an oddly presented but interesting 18-minute interview with Nigel Kneale which is centred on the original three Quatermass BBC serials. A 16-page booklet is informative and the packaging is among the most attractive to grace a DVD set thus far. --Gary S Dalkin

• Farscape 3.1 | DVD | (18/03/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  It's clear from the opening episodes of its third season that Farscape has developed into a grown-up show. There's a new self-confidence and maturity here that's entirely welcome after the often wildly erratic tone of the second season. The production design and high-quality effects remain true to the show's original quirky style, although both the look and the more adult-themed scripts have become progressively darker. It's also clear that anyone who has not followed Farscape extremely closely from the very first episode of Season One will be utterly baffled by the convoluted plotting and complex character interactions. This is not the best place to begin your interstellar journey. All the principal actors know their characters inside and out by now, and delight in showing off their many weaknesses and flaws. Refreshingly, the crew of Moya are a squabbling, bickering, selfish bunch most of the time, who somehow and against expectations manage to pull together (just) at the crucial moment. The writing has matured, too, remaining as witty as ever but equally unafraid to push both genre and censorship boundaries as villains bloodily torture their victims (usually Crichton) and the main characters become more and more obsessed with their sex lives (or lack thereof). Farscape is a whole galaxy away from the clean, cosy world of Star Trek. On the DVD: with a number of key personnel changes on the horizon, these first five episodes are evidence that Farscape knows where it's going even as it delights in keeping the audience guessing. Will Aeryn survive? If so, at what cost to her crewmates? What will D'Argo do when he discovers that Chiana and his son are having an affair? Can Zhaan really be dying? Just who is Neeyala? And can Crichton keep one step ahead of S&M fetishist Scorpius, various Skarrans and sundry other bloodthirsty aliens all intent upon getting into his mind, sometimes literally? Aware that no one is going to be able to start Season Three without knowing a lot of background, sensibly the main extra is a 45-minute "Farscape Undressed" documentary, hosted by Ben Browder and Claudia Black, which introduces all the key characters and themes of the show and sets up the backstory for the new season. There are "Info Pods" on Aeryn (with interview) and Zhaan, an interview with new series composer Guy Gross, some text trivia pieces, plus a gallery. There's also a bonus sampler disc of the pilot episode, though if you really want to keep up you'd better start but not stop there. --Mark Walker

• Farscape - The Complete Season 3 (Blu Ray) | Blu Ray | (08/10/2012) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £39.99

  It's clear right from the opening episodes of its third series that Farscape has finally developed into a grown-up show. There's a new self-confidence and a new maturity here that's entirely welcome after the often wildly erratic tone of the second series. The production design and high-quality effects work remain true to the show's original quirky style, although both the look and the more adult-themed scripts have become progressively darker. Season 3 is the year when the Wormhole story arc takes precedence, as the interactions between John Crichton and his nemesis Scorpius become ever more complicated (involving various different clones, real or "neural", of both antagonists). It's also the year that some major characters die, new ones are introduced and Crichton (well, one version of him anyway) and Aeryn finally consummate their relationship. Moya's crew endure a vertiginous emotional roller-coaster ride when powerful issues of love, loyalty and sacrifice loom large. They must also face their sternest challenge yet as the series' biggest story arc reaches an explosive climax aboard Scorpius' Command Carrier. Anyone who has not followed Farscape extremely closely from the very beginning of Series 1 will be utterly baffled by the convoluted plotting and complex character interactions. But for fans, this is the show's most rewarding year. --Mark Walker

• Better Off Dead | DVD | (02/02/2004) from £23.59   |  Saving you £-7.60 (N/A%)   |  RRP £15.99

  In Better off Dead, Lane Myer (John Cusack) is stuck in a personal hell. A compulsive adolescent everyman growing up in Suburbia, USA; not only does he fail to make the prestigious high-school ski team (again), but his beloved sweetheart, Beth, also leaves him for Roy, the team's popular arrogant captain. If this isn't bad enough, he's stuck with a mother who frighteningly experiments--rather than cooks--with food, a brother who builds rockets out of models, and a best friend so desperate for drugs that he settles for snorting powdered snow. Faced with these prospects, Lane opts to end it all... until he comes up with a ridiculous plan to gain acceptance and win Beth back. Director Savage Steve Holland warps this simple, clichéd premise, letting his wacky imagination twist it into a fairly original, slightly dark, and completely hilarious 80s teen comedy. Not as serious a "suicide-attempt" movie as, say, Harold and Maude but just as funny, the film is more a collection of screwball sketches than a narrative. Holland enlivens the high jinks with surrealistic fantasy touches, including Jell-O that crawls, a hamburger that sings Van Halen, drawings that mock its creator, and a psychotic paperboy seeking blood over a missing two dollars. Cusack puts the whole thing on his shoulders and carries the insanity with another one of his touching, obsessively romantic performances, which along with Say Anything, The Sure Thing and One Crazy Summer, made him the quintessential (and appealing) personification of lovestruck adolescence and suffering. --Dave McCoy

• The Sweeney - The Complete Series 3 | DVD | (12/09/2005) from £39.90   |  Saving you £-9.91 (N/A%)   |  RRP £29.99

  The complete 3rd series of the crime action series starring John Thaw Dennis Waterman and Garfield Morgan. Featuring all 13 episodes from the 1976 season the episodes have been digitally restored from the original materials and presented with a new Dolby 5.1 track. Episode Titles: 1. Selected Target 2. In From The Cold 3. Visiting Fireman 4. Tomorrow Man 5. Taste of Fear 6. Bad Apple 7. May 8. Sweet Smell of Succession 9. Down to You Brother 10. Pay Off 11. Loving Arms 12. Lady Luck 13. On the Run

• Better Off Dead (New to Blu-Ray) | Blu Ray | (11/06/2018) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £N/A

  After Beth (Amanda Wyss), the girl of his dreams, dumps him for the school's arrogant ski-team captain, Lane's (John Cusack) prolific and dark imagination runs overtime. He wavers between bungling attempts to kill himself and inept efforts to win his ex-girlfriend back. All the while, Lane's also dealing with his quirky family, dodging a relentless paperboy who's out to collect, and meeting the charming French-exchange-student-nextdoor who just might be the unexpected key to his happiness.

• Farscape 1.1 | DVD | (28/02/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  An international co-production of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape is genre television at its most ambitious, inspired both by the cult appeal of Babylon 5 and the continuing success of the Star Trek franchise. Making extensive use of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry, Farscape takes a visual leap beyond previous shows. Admittedly, the basic premise may be borrowed from Buck Rogers (American astronaut catapulted to far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas like the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it look and feel completely original. The production design is all bio-mechanical curves and the script never takes itself too seriously (fart jokes and double-entendres pop up when you least expect them). It must have been expensive to make, but it certainly looks (and sounds--in Dolby Digital 5.1) like every penny made it to the screen. In this handsome box set, two discs contain the first four episodes of the first season, completely uncut. In "Premiere", astronaut John Crichton is inadvertently catapulted into a parallel universe where he is taken on board the bio-mechanical ship Moya and meets the inhabitants: D'Argo, a seven-foot-tall Luxan warrior, Zhaan, a blue-skinned Delvian priestess, and the diminutive slug-like Rygel, the Henson Creature Shop's proudest creation. Another humanoid (and potential love interest), formidable-yet-sexy Peacekeeper Aeryn Sun, joins soon after. In true Buck Rogers style, Ben Browder plays Crichton as an all-American astronaut, although with a more believable sense of bewilderment; the supporting cast is a mixture of Australian and British actors, mostly disguised under heavy make-up. In episode 2, "Throne for a Loss", Rygel's devious side is developed further as he gets the crew into trouble when he "borrows" a crystal crucial to the operation of the ship and is kidnapped by some unpleasant characters. Disc Two opens with the wittily titled "Back and Back and Back to the Future", the obligatory time-travel episode, followed by "I, E.T.", in which Crichton feels the force of his earlier comment: "Boy did Spielberg get it wrong. Close Encounters, my ass." On the DVD: Disc One includes a "making of" documentary, with comments from the cast, Brian Henson and producer Rockne S. O'Bannon (the man also responsible for Alien Nation and SeaQuest), plus a profile of principal character John Crichton. Disc Two profiles Aeryn Sun and has the original trailer and DVD-ROM extras (screensaver and weblinks). --Mark Walker

• Black Dawn | DVD | (06/03/2006) from £5.24   |  Saving you £14.75 (281.49%)   |  RRP £19.99

  Stephen Seagal returns as Jonathan Cold a former CIA agent who goes undercover in a dangerous group of terrorists planning to bomb Los Angeles for revenge. When they kidnap Cold's protge Amanda (Tamara Davies) however his cover threatens to be blown and it's a race against time before the city is likewise blown to bits.

• Farscape: Complete Season 1 (Box Set) | DVD | (28/10/2002) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £99.99

  The first series of Farscape was a revitalising tonic for TV SF. An ambitious coproduction of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape launched itself with a refreshing mix of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry to take a visual leap beyond other genre shows. The witty scripts, too, peppered with double-entendres and pop-culture references, are light years away from the staid style of Star Trek. Admittedly, the first season's basic premise is simply Buck Rogers updated (American astronaut John Crichton, played by Ben Browder, is catapulted to a far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew initially have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas like the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it all look and feel completely original. --Mark Walker

• Farscape - The Complete Season 3 | DVD | (25/10/2004) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £99.99

  It's clear right from the opening episodes of its third series that Farscape has finally developed into a grown-up show. There's a new self-confidence and a new maturity here that's entirely welcome after the often wildly erratic tone of the second series. The production design and high-quality effects work remain true to the show's original quirky style, although both the look and the more adult-themed scripts have become progressively darker. Season 3 is the year when the Wormhole story arc takes precedence, as the interactions between John Crichton and his nemesis Scorpius become ever more complicated (involving various different clones, real or "neural", of both antagonists). It's also the year that some major characters die, new ones are introduced and Crichton (well, one version of him anyway) and Aeryn finally consummate their relationship. Moya's crew endure a vertiginous emotional roller-coaster ride when powerful issues of love, loyalty and sacrifice loom large. They must also face their sternest challenge yet as the series' biggest story arc reaches an explosive climax aboard Scorpius' Command Carrier. Anyone who has not followed Farscape extremely closely from the very beginning of Series 1 will be utterly baffled by the convoluted plotting and complex character interactions. But for fans, this is the show's most rewarding year. --Mark Walker

• Farscape 1.2 | DVD | (17/04/2000) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  An international co-production of Jim Henson's Creature Shop, Australia's Channel 9 and Hallmark Entertainment, Farscape is genre television at its most ambitious, inspired both by the cult appeal of Babylon 5 and the continuing success of the Star Trek franchise. Making extensive use of CGI, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry, Farscape takes a visual leap beyond previous shows. Admittedly, the basic premise may be borrowed from Buck Rogers (American astronaut catapulted to far-flung galaxy populated by strange aliens), while the crew have something of Blake's 7 about them (a motley bunch of escaped convicts pursued by a relentless foe), and ideas like the living ship are borrowed from Babylon 5, but the Farscape concept has a freshness that makes it look and feel completely original. The production design is all bio-mechanical curves and the script never takes itself too seriously (fart jokes and double-entendres pop up when you least expect them). It must have been expensive to make, but it certainly looks (and sounds in Dolby Digital 5.1) like every penny made it to the screen. In true Buck Rogers style, Ben Browder plays leading man John Crichton as an all-American astronaut, although with a more believable sense of bewilderment; the supporting cast is a mixture of Australian and British actors, mostly disguised under heavy make-up.In this second box set there are five episodes spread across two discs. Although the generic Star Trek-style storylines seem a little over-familiar, the witty and fast-paced scripts help to keep things fresh. In "Exodus from Genesis" the crew of Moya are invaded by space cockroaches, who, in a suprising twist then help them fend off the Peacekeepers. "Thank God it's Friday Again" shows D'Argo finding happiness in a hippy commune where all is not what it seems; Crichton has a Matrix-style worm inserted in his navel before Rygel's bodily functions prove to be instrumental in rescuing the crew. Crichton finds love with the "PK Tech Girl", much to the consternation of Aeryn Sun, who goes into full Lt. Ripley mode and spends the episode running around with a pulse rifle under flickering strobe lighting. In "That Old Black Magic", a malevolent magician forces a confrontation between Crichton and his nemesis, Crais; Zhaan must revive her bad old ways in order to save the day. "DNA Mad Scientist" is the most original episode, with a neat twist on the Frankenstein scenario thanks to the splendid villain, Namtar; a distinctly unpleasant side to some of the characters is revealed as they bargain body parts in exchange for a map home. On the DVD: Because the first disc contains three episodes instead of the usual two, special features are limited to a trailer and some conceptual art. The second disc also has a profile of Zhaan. --Mark Walker

• Farscape Season 3 | DVD | (11/04/2011) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  It's clear right from the opening episodes of its third series that Farscape has finally developed into a grown-up show. There's a new self-confidence and a new maturity here that's entirely welcome after the often wildly erratic tone of the second series. The production design and high-quality effects work remain true to the show's original quirky style, although both the look and the more adult-themed scripts have become progressively darker. Season 3 is the year when the Wormhole story arc takes precedence, as the interactions between John Crichton and his nemesis Scorpius become ever more complicated (involving various different clones, real or "neural", of both antagonists). It's also the year that some major characters die, new ones are introduced and Crichton (well, one version of him anyway) and Aeryn finally consummate their relationship. Moya's crew endure a vertiginous emotional roller-coaster ride when powerful issues of love, loyalty and sacrifice loom large. They must also face their sternest challenge yet as the series' biggest story arc reaches an explosive climax aboard Scorpius' Command Carrier. Anyone who has not followed Farscape extremely closely from the very beginning of Series 1 will be utterly baffled by the convoluted plotting and complex character interactions. But for fans, this is the show's most rewarding year. --Mark Walker

• My Brilliant Career | DVD | (01/09/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £5.99

  An award-winning film centering on the life of a teenage girl who is divided between stirrings of passion and her need for self-fulfilment... Sybylla is a girl living in the Australian outback early in the 20th Century Sybylla is a well of boundless energy wanting desperately to escape the backwardness of her young life. A chance meeting with a charming young man presents her with a tempting offer allowing her to escape the frontier life forever.

• Farscape: Complete Season 2 (Box Set) | DVD | (03/11/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £99.99

  The second series of Farscape expands upon and develops the characters introduced in the ambitious first series. John Crichton's new nemesis is the deadly Scorpius, replacing Crais, who has taken the living ship Moya's offspring on a voyage into the unknown. Moya's regular crew--Aeryn, Zhaan, Chiana, D'Argo and Rygel--remain as divided and suspicious of each other as ever, yet somehow manage to pull together at times of crisis. The writers continue to exploit the show's gift for surprising as well as emotionally convincing character development, while the CGI effects, prosthetics and state-of-the-art puppetry--courtesy of Jim Henson's Creature Shop--continue to make Farscape the most original-looking SF show on TV. The witty scripts, peppered with postmodern pop-culture references and movie in-jokes, are also a breath of fresh air. Despite some wildly erratic shifts in tone, this is exceptional TV science fiction that continually pushes the accepted boundaries of the genre. --Mark Walker

• Farscape : The Ultimate Complete Collection | DVD | (23/10/2006) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £249.99

  The fantastic Farscape universe is available as a complete four season box set for the very first time on DVD! Five years ago astronaut John Crichton (Ben Browder) attempted to use the Earth's atmosphere to propel his ship Farscape 1 at great speeds across the solar system. He went much further though and was sucked down a wormhole to a distant part of the galaxy and into the middle of a battle. He was rescued by a group of escaping prisoners and taken aboard their ship a living ship known as Moya... Imaginative daring and fun the award-winning Farscape blows other Sci-Fi shows out of the water! Season 1: 1. Premiere 2. I E.T. 3. Exodus From Genesis 4. Throne For A Loss 5. Back And Back And Back To The Future 6. Thank God It's Friday. Again. 7. PK Tech Girl 8. That Old Black Magic 9. DNA Mad Scientist 10. They've Got A Secret 11. Till All The Blood Runs Clear 12. Rhapsody In Blue 13. The Flax 14. Jeremiah Crichton 15. Durka Returns 16. A Human Reaction 17. Through The Looking Glass 18. A Bug's life 19. Nerve 20. The Hidden Memory 21. Bone To Be Wild 22. Family Ties Season 2: 1. Mind The Baby 2. Vitas Mortis 3. Taking The Stone 4. Crackers Don't Matter 5. The Way We Weren't 6. Picture If You Will 7. Home On The Remains 8. Dream A Little Dream 9. Out Of Their Minds 10. A Kiss Is But A Kiss 11. I Do I Think 12. The Maltese Crichton 13. My Three Crichtons 14. Beware of Dog 15. Won't Get Fooled Again 16. The Locket 17. The Ugly Truth 18. A Clockwork Nebari 19. A Not So Simple Plan 20. With Friends Like These... 21. Plan B 22. Die Me Dichotomy Season 3: 1. Season of Death 2. Suns and Lovers 3. Self-Inflicted Wounds (Part 1): Could'a Would'a Should'a 4. Self-Inflicted Wounds (Part 2): Wait for the Wheel 5. Different Destinations 6. Eat Me 7. Thanks for Sharing 8. Green Eyed Monster 9. Losing Time 10. Relativity 11. Incubator 12. Meltdown 13. Scratch n' Sniff 14. Infinite Possibilities (Part 1): Daedalus Demands 15. Infinite Possibilities (Part 2): Icarus Abides 16. Revenging Angel 17. The Choice 18. Fractures 19. I-Yensch You-Yensch 20. Into the Lion's Den (Part 1): Lambs to the Slaughter 21. Into the Lion's Den (Part 2): Wolf in Sheep's Clothing 22. Dog with Two Bones Season 4: 1. Crichton Kicks 2. What Was Lost (Part 1) 3. What Was Lost (Part 2) 4. Lava's A Many Splendored Thing 5. Promises 6. Natural Election 7. John Quixote 8. I Shrink Therefore I Am 9. A Prefect Murder 10. Coup By Clam 11. Unrealised Reality 12. Kansas 13. Terra Firma 14. Twice Shy 15. Mental As Anything 16. Bringing Home The Beacon 17. A Constellation Of Doubt 18. Prayer 19. We're So Screwed (Part 1) 20. We're So Screwed (Part 2) 21. We're So Screwed (Part 3) 22. Bad Timing Peackeeper Wars: The Farscape saga continues with this brand new multi-million dollar mini series. When a full-scale war is engaged by the evil Scarran Empire the Peacekeeper Alliance has but one hope: reassemble human astronaut John Crichton once sucked onto the Peacekeeper galaxy through a wormhole. Crichton's task: get the entire Peacekeeper race to safety before the last war of an era brings an end to the universe....

• Voices In Time | DVD | (13/04/2009) from £6.99   |  Saving you £18.00 (257.51%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Originally produced and broadcast on Canadian television this collection of 26 mini biographies features some of the most compelling characters of the 20th century. From dictators to statesmen Presidents to Prime Ministers Voices In Time represents history brought to life. Speeches Comprise: Disc 1: 1. David Lloyd George 2. Emily Pankhurst 3. Franklin D Roosevelt 4. Ho Chi Mingh Disc 2: 1. Adolf Hitler 2. Jawaharlal Nehru 3. John F Kennedy 4. Margaret Thatcher Disc 3: 1. Richard Nixon 2. Nelson Mandela 3. Ronald Reagan 4. Winston Churchill Disc 4: 1. Eleanor Roosevelt 2. Fidel Castro 3. Gloria Steinem 4. Harry S Truman Disc 5: 1. Lech Walesa 2. Jimmy Carter 3. Ayatollah Khomeini 4. Albert Einstein 5. Woodrow Wilson Disc 6: 1. Theodore Roosevelt 2. Robert Kennedy 3. Mikhail Gorbachev 4. Malcolm X 5. Mahatma Gandhi

• Barney's Night Before Christmas | DVD | (12/11/2001) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £17.99

  This truly magical time is given some Barney magic, when he takes BJ, Baby Bop and his friends to visit Santa Claus at the North Pole. Enjoy the excitement of looking around Santa's home with its beautiful decorations and wonderful toys. Meet Mrs Santa Claus and listen to her stories, climb aboard Santa's train for a fantastic ride, and then move on to his toy factory. With time running short the elves need help in finishing the packing, so join them in a song or two, and see how much fun working together can be. Christmas traditions are explained, and the lessons of working together and the spirit of giving are enjoyed, along with the excitement and magic that surrounds Christmas. --Mandy Wood

• Farscape 4.2 | DVD | (07/04/2003) from £N/A   |  Saving you £N/A (N/A%)   |  RRP £24.99

  Episodes 6-10 of Farscape's fourth series continue the themes set at the start of the year while concentrating on one-off adventures. John Crichton is still upset that Aeryn Sun has not confided in him about her pregnancy; Aeryn is still trying to cope with the loss of his dead copy; Chiana is trying in her lascivious way to get them back together; Scorpius and Sikozu are gradually becoming integrated into the life of the crew, and John and the others are trying to learn to trust their former arch-enemy. In "'Natural Election"', the process of choosing which of the crew shall be captain becomes more urgent when the living ship Moya is attacked by a space-dwelling plant that hangs around wormholes; "John Quixote" has Crichton and Chiana trapped in a surreal gameworld full of old friends and enemies; in "I Shrink, Therefore I Am", Crichton has to rescue his friends from bounty-hunters who have shrunk them and hidden them in their heavily-armoured bodies. Aeryn finds herself compelled to homicidal violence in "'A Prefect Murder"' and time goes wonky on her; Crichton has to get into drag and Scorpius has to vomit a lot to save their crewmates from getting caught in the cross-fire of "Coup by Clam". These are enjoyable albeit routine episodes of the most imaginative space opera ever to hit the TV screen, though they only hint at the wonders that were to come later in this final series. On the DVD: Farscape 4.2 has a wealth of special features that include two deleted scenes--one of them a touching discussion of their love lives between Aeryn and Chiana--and a text guide to swearing in the Farscape universe. There is a documentary about the special effects and a prolonged interview with Claudia Black in which she talks about how the show stretched her as an actress. It is presented in widescreen with a visual aspect ratio of 4:3 and has Dolby Digital sound. --Roz Kaveney