Hubby and I only really talked because we both knew of the show. I had it on my Tinder profile and he matched when he saw it. Since then it's the show we watched when we couldn't agree on what to watch at dinner. We quoted it to each other.

In May 2026 he had a heart attack and passed. Everything in my life changed. I moved. I downsized. I cried (still do). I thought I lost everything that really could bring me to smile.

One day I was going through his phone, for some important info for car insurance, I noticed he had downloaded the entire series. All 12. Everything was there in the "to watch" folder.

So for each night I would put on an episode or two. Smile, quote the show, then fall asleep before the credits. It makes me feel less lonely.

Last night I finished the season. Which means tonight I start all over again.

Today I had the immense privilege of sitting around a table with Chris Barrie, alongside just two other people, for an hour-long conversation. Difficult for me to not be just a tad star-struck…!

We spent most of the time talking about Red Dwarf and The Brittas Empire, with Chris sharing some fantastic stories and insights from his career.
He was an absolute delight, incredibly down to earth, engaging, and a brilliant storyteller.
He also mentioned a few interesting things about Red Dwarf, including a previously scrapped prequel idea which would have seen a younger actor playing Arnold Rimmer, with Chris himself taking on the role of Rimmer’s father!

From what he was saying, it sounds as though the current thinking is to move forward with more feature-length specials rather than traditional episodic series (the nature of TV funding being what it is..) There was also mention of a potential Red Dwarf theatre production being worked on, but there were no real details mentioned.

Obviously, take all of this with a pinch of salt! These were things mentioned during an informal conversation, not official announcements. Plans can and very likely will change, so please don’t take any of it as confirmation of what’s coming.

All in all, a genuinely memorable experience, and one I feel incredibly fortunate to have had.
A huge thank you to X-Con for making this opportunity possible!

I'm on red dwarf series xi now then the making