The EscapeGoat Podcast David Faggiani

This week, my brother Matt returns to the show! We have a terrifically fun chat about the deeply flawed, maniacally disturbing and nasty but still kind of wonderful movie Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983, Terry Jones). In the first half, we discuss our general thoughts and reactions to the movie, from childhood exposure to it, til now. In the second half, we do a discursive trawl in rough order through the film's disparate sketches, songs and nightmare fuel. We hope it's a good listen - we enjoyed it!
0.00 Intro/preamble
0.16 The Meaning Of Life (pt 1) - general discussion of the movie and Python
0.55 The Meaning Of Life (pt 2) - rough in-order discussion of the movie's sketches, songs and other sequences
You can find the show on Twitter/X at @EGoat_pod (or tweet/post at me on @D_Faggiani - I'm also now on Bluesky) and email us with any feedback on escapegoatpod@gmail.com. All our episodes so far are on Spotify,  our YouTube channel, and Apple Podcasts. Do spread the word! We also have a Patreon - any amount of money will get you early access to episodes, and help support the show!
Matt and Mike can be found on Spotify (and other streaming platforms) with their regular co-hosted movie analysis show 'Matt and Mike Pull Focus' - Matt has previously appeared on several episodes of this show - including, as we mention in the show, our 2022 episodes on The Batman and Count Duckula, and our 2021 episode on Time Bandits, which functions as a natural companion piece to this installment. Check them out!
All original intro, outro and other incidental music recorded and made available by kind permission of Richard Gilbert.
NOTES
There's quite a lot of Python-related material (apart from the core shows/films) on Netflix at the moment - including an interview they did around 2013, where they talk about production elements of The Meaning of Life, amongst other things. Very illuminating. Also... if anyone else hadn't seen 'The Adventures of Martin Luther' scene cut from the film... here it is, via YouTube. Extraordinary.
The interviews Matt conducted quite recently which he references in the show, respectively with actors Vin Hawke and Toddy Walters, are both really, really worth checking out - would recommend!
Also, if you wish to hear my nephew performing his punk epic '8 million/10 million Babies' - and who wouldn't - here it is. Bracing stuff.

For this episode, I am pleased to be able to welcome back Christine Kelley to the podcast! After a bit of intro chat, we get on to the main topic - the Irish tragic black-comedy Calvary (2014, John Michael McDonagh), pretty much exactly on its 10th anniversary. We discuss the priesthood, guilt, politics, sardonic humour and animal murder - it's a good time!
0.00 Intro/preamble
0.13 Calvary (pt 1)
0.57 Calvary (pt 2)
You can find the show on Twitter at @EGoat_pod (or tweet at me on @D_Faggiani) and email us with any feedback on escapegoatpod@gmail.com. All our episodes so far are on Spotify,  our YouTube channel, and Apple Podcasts. Do spread the word! We also have a Patreon - any amount of money will get you early access to episodes, and help support the show!
Christine Kelley (@ballardiangorse on various platforms) writes about speculative fiction and radical politics from a queer revolutionary perspective. Her writing projects include Nowhere and Back Again, a psychogeography of J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth and Dreams of Orgonon, a song-by-song study of Kate Bush. Christine featured on the podcast in 2023, talking about the David Lynch movie The Straight Story. Support Christine on Patreon.
All original intro, outro and other incidental music recorded and made available by kind permission of Richard Gilbert.
NOTES
As I mention in the show, I was fortunate enough to get to chat to Kit Power and George Daniel Lea on their show in early 2023, talking about the then recent movie The Banshees of Inisherin, directed by McDonagh's writer/director brother, Martin. Think that makes a nice companion piece to this episode! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iifk3JM0u-Q&list=PL_3YQW0lAL2OwUpmigRz4mLXrkNtHSLNp&index=31&t=4831s
Funnily enough, talking of brothers... my brother Matt has also recorded a podcast about Calvary, with his co-host Mike! You can hear what they thought of the movie here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6XuOIuxaR5ktskvLDnXK5p?si=cn_H7F0hQsS-R2NYRHl1cQ

This is Series 5! Come on in. We kick off this run with a brilliant combination of returning guests Kit Power and James Murphy, joining me to pick apart (well, gush over) the seminal, thrilling yet melancholic and haunting British Gangster movie The Long Good Friday (1980, John Mackenzie).
We discuss Bob Hoskins, Helen Mirren and the snapshot of dawn-of-Thatcher London presented here. Also politics, money, racism, queerness, violence... and Razors. Oh, and THAT ending. Spoilers.
0.00 Intro/preamble
0.14 The Long Good Friday pt 1
1.03 The Long Good Friday pt 2
You can find the show on X at @EGoat_pod (or post at me on @D_Faggiani - I'm on Bluesky too) and email us with any feedback on escapegoatpod@gmail.com. All our episodes so far are on Spotify,  our YouTube channel, and Apple Podcasts. Do spread the word! We also have a Patreon - any amount of money will get you early access to episodes, and help support the show!
Kit Power lives in Milton Keynes and writes horror and dark crime fiction, with occasional forays into dystopian science fiction. His fiction work includes a novel, ‘GodBomb!’, and a novella collection ‘Breaking Point’, two short story collections (‘A Warning About Your Future Enslavement That You Will Dismiss As A Collection Of Short Fiction And Essays By Kit Power’ and ‘Voices’) and novellas ‘The Finite’ and ‘A Song For The End’. He also writes non-fiction (https://www.gingernutsofhorror.com/my-life-in-horror.html with Volume 1 and 2 also available in book format) and has a limited hardback available on the subject of Ken Russell’s movie Tommy. In his increasingly inaccurately labelled spare time, he podcasts - on his own show, Watching Robocop With Kit Power and on What The Hell Is Wrong With Us? with George Lea. For weekly early access to his fiction, non-fiction, and podcasting work, visit www.patreon.com/kitpower. He has also been on five previous episodes of The EscapeGoat Podcast, discussing each part of the original UK House of Cards Trilogy in turn, the Stephen King short story collection Skeleton Crew, and then his essay collection My Life In Horror Volume II. Check them out! Also get him on Twitter and Bluesky.
James podcasts at Pex Lives, about Doctor Who, Bob Dylan and whatever else he pleases. He also co-hosts the marvellous Pop Could Never Save Us (check it out!) and his Springsteen project (with Kit) We Learned More From a Three Minute Record. He can be got primarily via jamesmurphy.bsky.social on Bluesky these days. This is his third appearance on this show - last year he featured talking about Douglas Adams' Mostly Harmless.
NOTES
Here is the full extended clip featuring Bob Hoskins and film critic Barry Norman in walkabout conversation around London from a few years after the movie, which we play an excerpt from in the episode. Watch it, they make a ridiculously charming unlikely pair. I'd watch a series of just them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTgqHsJ4410
Here's a retrospective piece from 2021, including some thoughts from Helen Mirren on the movie: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/apr/01/beheading-scene-helen-mirren-co-stars-long-good-friday-british-classic
Here is a BBC cast and crew documentary about TLGF from 2005: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlCA7eKyKbc
And here's a BFI panel discussion (including Paul Barber) from 2015: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCT5HCRCmkE
Finally... I've had this podcast planned for a while... but in autumn 2023, over at my brother Matt's podcast... they were lucky enough to have guest star Simon Osborne ('Pitt the Younger' in Blackadder III) on for a chat (which is a fascinating listen in its own right)... but guess what movie Simon picked as his favourite to talk about?? Listen here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0ktV6CZqxuqon76fYDIQHz?si=ilM6R_GvR9aAOQ6w8i7xjg

Part 2 of our 60th Anniversary Doctor Who coverage, including hot takes on The Church on Ruby Road - featuring previous guest Olivia returning to the show, and also for the first time the brilliant Patrick!
0.00 pt 1 - General chat about the recent Specials/Tennant/RTD
0.50 pt 2 - Thoughts about The Church on Ruby Road, and the future of the show
Enjoy! And see you in 2024.
You can find the show on X at @EGoat_pod (or post at me on @D_Faggiani) and email us with any feedback on escapegoatpod@gmail.com. All our episodes so far are on Spotify,  our YouTube channel, and Apple Podcasts. Do spread the word! We also have a Patreon - any amount of money will get you early access to episodes, and help support the show!
Olivia appeared on the show quite a while ago, on episode 4 of the show, where we discussed South Park and episode 13, where we chatted about Pokemon and Monster in my Pocket. Check them out. Olivia can be reached on X on @olivia_broome or on Instagram via @oliviaxbroome.
Patrick is the co-host of the Poditive Spin: The Friendly Fan Club podcast. Follow them on Instagram and Twitter via @poditivespinffc. I had the great experience of being on one of their episodes before, discussing fandom culture in general, and it was a good time! Listen to that one here.
Thanks to Colleen and Andrew for appearing on pt 1 (which you can listen to here) Both Colleen and Andrew featured on a previous episode of this podcast, in which we discussed the Flux series of Who - here it is. And here's an episode where Colleen and I chatted about the Matt Smith-led Season 6 of the show.
All original intro, outro and other incidental music recorded and made available by kind permission of Richard Gilbert.
NOTES
You can watch the mini-episode of Who from back in late 2005 that Patrick references in the episode here. Is the Fourteenth Doctor at least in part referring to his own moles?? You be the judge.

We're back for a pair of specials, ahead of the end of the year! In this first part, Colleen and Andrew discuss the three November/December 2023 Doctor Who Specials, featuring David Tennant as the Fourteenth Doctor - particularly The Giggle, which had just aired about 24 hours before we had the chat. It's first draft of history time, folks! Join us as we discuss strange quasi-retirements, fresh starts, disquiet, and, of course, comfort and joy.
0.00 pt 1 - General chat about the Specials/Tennant/RTD
0.37 pt 2 - Thoughts about The Giggle, and where the show goes next
We'll be back with a part 2 just after Christmas! x
You can find the show on X at @EGoat_pod (or post at me on @D_Faggiani) and email us with any feedback on escapegoatpod@gmail.com. All our episodes so far are on Spotify,  our YouTube channel, and Apple Podcasts. Do spread the word! We also have a Patreon - any amount of money will get you early access to episodes, and help support the show!
Colleen Cheetham-Gerrard, despite the name, is not a Daily Telegraph columnist. Instead, she's a stand-up comedian and public speaker who can mostly be found on the London circuit. Colleen was also a co-host for Strong Female Leads, a now-completed podcast focusing on nerd culture from a feminist perspective. You can find Colleen via @thecolleencg on X, and she's also on Instagram and Bluesky.
Andrew Blair is a writer, poet and software developer based in Edinburgh, and a frequent contributor to Den of Geek and other sites. You can visit his website via this link. He can be found on X (and Bluesky) via @freelance_liar.
Both Colleen and Andrew featured on a previous episode of this podcast, in which we discussed the Flux series of Who - here it is. And here's an episode where Colleen and I chatted about the Matt Smith-led Season 6 of the show.
All original intro, outro and other incidental music recorded and made available by kind permission of Richard Gilbert.
NOTES
Here's Elizabeth Sandifer's review of The Giggle, and the Pex Lives boys chatting about The Star Beast is here. I haven't even read Darren Mooney's review of The Giggle yet, but I know it'll be great - here it is. Oh, and here's Andrew's latest (post-Giggle) on Den of Geek.
 

We cap off this current series with a great finale episode, in which I am joined by the brilliant Christine Kelley for the first time. After a general chat about a few things, we turn to talking about our mutual backgrounds with the films of David Lynch, and then in the second part we focus in on Christine's favourite Lynch film - the elegiac, melancholy and tenderly unconventional road movie The Straight Story (1999). Such a lovely chat. Hope you enjoy it.
This episode is respectfully dedicated to the memory of Dr David Baume (1943-2023).
0.00 pt 1 - Intro/David Lynch chat in general
0.48 pt 2 - The Straight Story
That's it for Series 4! Thank you for listening everyone! And many many thanks to all the contributors. You're the best bunch in the world.
The EscapeGoat Podcast will return...
You can find the show on Twitter at @EGoat_pod (or tweet at me on @D_Faggiani) and email us with any feedback on escapegoatpod@gmail.com. All our episodes so far are on Spotify,  our YouTube channel, and Apple Podcasts. Do spread the word! We also have a Patreon - any amount of money will get you early access to episodes, and help support the show!
Christine Kelley (@ballardiangorse on various platforms) writes about speculative fiction and radical politics from a queer revolutionary perspective. Currently her main project is Nowhere and Back Again, a psychogeography of J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. Her first project was the now semi-retired blog Dreams of Orgonon, a song-by-song study of Kate Bush. Support Christine on Patreon.
All original intro, outro and other incidental music recorded and made available by kind permission of Richard Gilbert.
NOTES
This Cinephilia Beyond retrospective article on The Straight Story is well worth checking out (as is the B-roll footage it includes). Also, have a look at this wonderful piece by friend-of-the-show Kit Power on Wild at Heart, one of his long-running My Life in Horror series (now available in two-volume book form).
Oh, we mention American Beauty as (bizarrely) outshining The Straight Story at the Oscars? Here's my brother Matt and his podcast partner Mike having a chat about that film: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6tb8d05ek7XE8wRcLrmg1X?si=859df45c5d0849c7
Finally, here is Christine's post which will make you want to watch the classic surreal Czech film Daisies. WATCH DAISIES.