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, 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
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.
Dec 7, 2020 • 2h 15min
Review Of The Year 2020
2020 has been quite a year. A global pandemic, political upheaval and most of us being forced to spend large chunks of it under virtual house arrest. However, amidst the crises and carnage we've been treated to a genuinely outstanding year for television and that's what this episode is all about. James, Terri and Boyd run through their takes on 2020 and count down Pilot's definitive list of the Top 20 shows of the year. Want to know what essential shows you've missed over the past 12 months? Or what you absolutely must add to your watch list over Christmas? Well you're in luck, so strap in, get a notepad handy and feast your ears on Pilot TV's recap of the year in television.
Nov 30, 2020 • 1h 29min
#114 - Raised By Wolves, Tin Star, and Power Book II: Ghosts
It's the moment you've all been waiting for: we make Terri sit through HBO's near-impenetrable hard sci-fi series Raised By Wolves (not to be confused with Caitlin Moran's Wolverhampton-set comedy of the same name, which she would have enjoyed far more). Plus we attempt to find out why Tim Roth is heading back to Liverpool for season 3 of Tin Star and try to make sense out of the bafflingly-titled Power Book II: Ghost. Plus we talk about our most off-brand TV opinions and Terri and Boyd succeed in torturing James with a blow-by-blow recap of the Bake-Off finale.
Nov 23, 2020 • 1h 25min
#113 - For Life, Trickster, and The Queen's Gambit
We resisted for weeks but we've finally relented and agreed to give Netflix's The Queen's Gambit the full review treatment it deserves. Plus we head behind bars for Nicholas Pinnock's E4 courtroom/prison drama For Life and bamboozle Terri with SyFy's bizarro supernatural YA miniseries Trickster. In addition, James proselytises about Counterpart, Terri and Boyd rhapsodise about a Welsh Castle, The Crown gets explained for James' mum and we recommend some of our favourite non UK/US shows for your international enjoyment.
Nov 16, 2020 • 1h 30min
#112 - The Good Lord Bird, Lovers Rock, and We Are Who We Are
Pilot TV's bellend-in-chief has taken a rare holiday this week leaving Terri in the hot seat and welcoming Amon Warmann onto the team as they watch Ethan Hawke gives it his all in abolitionist drama The Good Lord Bird on Sky Atlantic; Steve McQueen's second instalment in Small Axe, Lovers Rock, which comes to BBC1; and a pair of teenagers come of age on a US military base in Luca Guadagnino's We Are Who We Are on BBC Three. All that and Pilot TV is graced with its first musical review, Boyd utters the phrase, "Layers of mousse," and Terri decides to Banshee a show we have previously reviewed on this very podcast, throwing all the rules completely out the window.
Nov 9, 2020 • 1h 25min
#111 - The Crown, Industry, and Small Axe
It's time to get down with The Crown on this week's show as we take in the uncanny glory that is Gillian Anderson's superlative Margaret Thatcher. Plus we get a look inside the cut-throat world of financial services in BBC2's Industry (it does *not* pass the bellend test), and catch a selection of films in Steve McQueen's Small Axe on BBC1, which may or may not constitute a TV series in the strictest sense but is so good that it really doesn't matter.
Nov 2, 2020 • 1h 30min
#110 - The Mandalorian, The Vow, and His Dark Materials
Baby Yoda returns this week as we're finally able to review The Mandalorian Season 2 on Disney+. We also catch up with Lyra and Pantalaimon in the second series of the BBC's His Dark Materials adaptation AND delve into the sordid inner workings of sex cult NXIVM in Sky Documentaries' The Vow. All that and you get to hear Terri's latest adventures in The West Wing to properly prepare you for tomorrow's US election.
Oct 26, 2020 • 1h 58min
#109 - The Undoing, Truth Seekers, and The Sister. Featuring Russell Tovey.
Russell Tovey makes his triumphant return to the podcast this week, taking about Neil Cross' new show, The Sister on ITV. Plus we find out if Nick Frost is afraid of ghosts in Amazon's Truth Seekers and get an eyeful of Sky's The Undoing, which features Hugh Grant, Nicole Kidman and a surprising amount of full frontal nudity. Plus Terri updates us on her West Wing progress and the team has an alternate universe conversation about TV castings that could have been.
