British SF authors reveal their nation's history [audio 30min]

Author and broadcaster Francis Spufford, charting the history of Britain through its Science Fiction, asks why the utopian visions of British writers succumbed so often to invasion, disaster and collapse. Francis won't quite be arguing that every starship in British SF is a milkfloat in disguise, but the diversity of ideas in British SF means that these novels do give startling alternative snapshots of Britain down the years. Science Fiction has always been a genre of ideas and, so, contrary to its escapist image, can provide a hugely evocative record of the time in which it was written. In the work of HG Wells, therefore, we find Fabian dreams of a future without poverty; nightmares about overpopulation and dark eugenic designs. In Huxley, a fascination with intelligence, and how it can be achieved. In Iain M Banks, curious echoes of the benign Wilson-era Britain in which the author grew up. This series features some of the biggest names in British Science Fiction, past and present, including Arthur C Clarke and Iain M Banks.