Further confirmation that we're living in a ruddy golden age of SF telly comes with the official confirmation that BBC Wales has commissioned yet another a new SF show from Kudos - the independent production company behind Life on Mars and Spooks.
It's called Outcasts, it's set in a future where Earth's future is looking precarious, and it concerns humanity's colonisation of outer space. The outcasts of the title are social misfits and criminals (ranging from "the brilliant deviant to the petty thief") who are given their liberty... in return for being plonked on a nearby planet as pioneer colonists. Sounds a bit like the early days of Australia - but in space!
The Beeb's press release says that "Outcasts is a tense and fast-paced series about co-operation and conflict, idealism and power, sexual competition and love. Most of all it is about life's big imperatives – cheating death, seeking suitable mates and surviving as a species."
Spooks writer Ben Richards looks to be the showrunner. Kudos's joint MD Jane Featherstone says: "The colonisation of space by humans is only a matter of time, and we think that Ben Richards's brilliant vision of what life will be like when that happens will offer audiences a dramatic, original and entertaining new drama arena."
Sounds brilliant, doesn't it?
Look out for the usual in-depth, access-all-areas coverage in future issues of SFX.