Current Programme

"Our lives are woven together in a fabric, but the connections that make society strong also make it vulnerable."—Threads (1984)

For the 18th TMR Movie Roundtable we welcome back our good friends Antony Rotunno, Frank Johnson and Mark Campbell for another of our four-way discussions, this time on the disturbing (because uncomfortably realistic) nuclear-apocalyptic BBC/Nine Network (Australia) film Threads from 1984.

Written by Barry Hines ("A Kestral for a Knave", 1968 / "Kes", 1969) and directed by Mick Jackson ("The Bodyguard", 1992), Threads is a merciless exploration—supported by considerable scientific and government policy research—of the devastating physical, psychological and societal effects of thermonuclear war. Set in the UK city of Sheffield during a period of spiralling tensions between the United States of America and the former Soviet Union, Threads takes the viewer on a uniquely challenging journey: from kitchen sink drama to pseudo-documentary, as we witness the lives of everyday people (just like ourselves) being destroyed, or changed forever, by the blast, heat and radiation of a thermonuclear event.

(Please be warned: Threads is a disturbing film—it's supposed to be—but it's also a very important film, which I think as many people (adults) as possible should see. But, again, please do be prepared to watch something that might affect you deeply.)

Join us as we discuss the production and consider its message during this period of rising international tensions in the world today.

Previous Programme (Two Parts)

Parts One and Two of our latest conversation with UK evangelist Vince McCann—host of the Chenzo1969 YouTube channel—on his long-time ministry of speaking with Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons (and others) on the streets of UK towns and cities in the prayerful hope of reaching people for Christ.

Drawing upon his extensive experience of such street ministry, Vince shares with us some practical advice that might help us in our own conversations with people caught up in New Religious Movements that claim the Bible as a foundational text.

(If you've not heard Part One, please do listen to that first.)

Upcoming Programme

We shall be joined once again by Rev Phill Sacre for a conversation on the theme: "How the church was sabotaged".

Details to follow...

(Phill is a Christian minister. Ordained in the Church of England, he formerly served in a parish on the Essex coast, but now leads an independent housechurch. He also runs various online ministries, including "Understand the Bible" and "Sacred Musings : Building on Christian Foundations".)

Possible Future Programmes

I am working on, or considering, the following projects (in no particular order):

• A follow-up interview with Jacob Hornberger on the Zapruder Film Mystery

• An interview in the area of "A Christian approach to health and medicine" with a recently qualified Cambridge University PhD graduate

• A possible follow-up interview with Dr Gary Sidley on his research into the effectiveness (or otherwise) of masks with respect to the spread of respiratory viruses

• An interview in the area of The Philosophy of Miracle

• TMR's annual New Year's Eve show with a roundtable of TMR superguests, to which I might invite UK "Prime Minister" Sir—(let me stress that again, Sir)—Keir Starmer, KCB (Knight Commander of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath), leader of the "Labour" Party.

• TMR Roundtables on the following films: (a) One by One (2014) starring Rik Mayall; (b) Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984) starring Richard Burton and John Hurt; (c) Journey to the Far Side of the Sun or Doppelgänger (1969) by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, starring Roy Thinnes and Patrick Wymark; (d) Minority Report (2001) starring Tom Cruise; (e) Fahrenheit 451 (1966) directed by François Truffaut; (f) The Sound of Music (1965) starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer; (g) The Parallax View (1974) starring Warren Beatty.
  

• A (possible) series of interviews with Dr Martin Erdmann on his book The Spiritualisation of Technology.

Results from TMR survey

Format: Everyone who responded said that they particularly appreciate the interviews (and other types of one-to-one conversation) and asked that these remain at the core of TMR's programming. They also generally prefer in-depth conversations.

Subjects: The majority of respondents are happy with the types of subjects covered on the podcast. (Some aren't keen on subjects that are specifically Christian, while others aren't keen on subjects that are not specifically Christian. Given that this mix is central to TMR's philosophy, such difference of opinion is only to be expected.)

Frequency: Very few asked for the podcasts to be posted at any regular interval (such as weekly or fortnightly), but instead stressed the importance of quality over quantity.

Conclusion: I shall therefore continue in much the same way, but prioritise the in-depth conversations, even though that may impact the frequency with which I post podcasts.

Many thanks to those who contributed.

Julian.