David Barr Kirtley

Science fiction author and podcaster

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Geeks Guide to the Galaxy

Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy is a podcast hosted by author David Barr Kirtley and produced by Lightspeed Magazine editor John Joseph Adams. The show features conversations about fantasy & science fiction in books, movies, games, and comics, as well as related subjects such as science, history, and critical thinking. The show gets about 18,000 downloads per episode and has racked up over 6 million total downloads.

Guests have included:

Novelists, such as: James Patterson (The President is Missing), George R. R. Martin (A Game of Thrones), Neil Gaiman (American Gods), Dean Koontz (Innocence), Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid’s Tale), Joyce Carol Oates (The Doll Master), Kazuo Ishiguro (Never Let Me Go), David Mitchell (Cloud Atlas), Junot Diaz (The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao), Philip Pullman (The Golden Compass), Chuck Palahniuk (Fight Club), Diana Gabaldon (Outlander), Neal Stephenson (Anathem), and Ursula K. Le Guin (The Left Hand of Darkness).

Directors, such as: Alex Garland (Ex Machina), David Cronenberg (A History of Violence), and Richard Kelly (Donnie Darko);

Showrunners, such as: J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5), David X. Cohen (Futurama), and Naren Shankar (The Expanse);

Film and TV personalities, such as: John Cleese (Monty Python), Adam Savage (MythBusters), Bill Nye (Bill Nye Saves the World), Hank Green (The Vlogbrothers), and Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead);

Graphic novelists, such as: Robert Kirkman (The Walking Dead), Mike Mignola (Hellboy), and Allie Brosh (Hyperbole and a Half);


Video game designers, such as: Richard Garriott (Ultima), Warren Spector (Deus Ex), and Ron Gilbert (The Secret of Monkey Island);

Scientists, such as: Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion), Neil deGrasse Tyson (Death by Black Hole), Lawrence Krauss (A Universe from Nothing), Michio Kaku (Physics of the Future), and Brian Greene (Fabric of the Cosmos);

Nonfiction writers, such as: Malcolm Gladwell (Outliers), Steven Pinker (Enlightenment Now), Naomi Klein (The Shock Doctrine), and Walter Isaacson (Steve Jobs);

Policy experts, such as: Richard A. Clarke (Against All Enemies), Garry Kasparov (Winter is Coming), and Daniel Ellsberg (The Doomsday Machine);

Political commentators, such as: Paul Krugman (New York Times columnist), David Ignatius (Washington Post columnist), Bill McKibben (enviromental activist), and Ana Marie Cox (Wonkette).

Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy has appeared on recommended podcast lists from NPR, The Guardian, The A.V. Club, BBC America, CBC Radio, io9, Omni, The Strand, Library Journal, and Popular Mechanics. CBC Radio writes, “You may not think a podcast about science fiction and fantasy would be the place to go for political insight, but — it is. Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy manages to be more insightful about politics than many pundits.”

The show launched in January 2010. Season One (2010) was produced for Tor.com, the website of a major science fiction book publisher. Season Two (2011) was produced for io9.com, a science fiction and futurism blog owned by Gawker Media. Seasons Three through Nine (2012-2018) have been produced for Wired.com, the website of the popular tech magazine Wired. John Joseph Adams served as full-time co-host for the first 100 episodes. To learn more, check out The History of Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy.

Our logo was designed by artist Blake Reynolds. Disclosure: Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy receives free review copies of many of the books we discuss, and occasionally free movie tickets or screeners.

Find us on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. And if you enjoy the show and want it to continue, please support us on Patreon!


David Barr Kirtley and John Joseph Adams (with Diane Turnshek)

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Geeks Guide to the Galaxy

Geeks Guide to the Galaxy

Geek's Guide to the Galaxy is a podcast hosted by author David Barr Kirtley and produced by Lightspeed Magazine editor John Joseph Adams. The show features conversations about fantasy & science … Read more

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Roger Barr

My grandfather Roger Barr passed away early this morning at the age of 98. He was my mom’s father, and was my last surviving grandparent. He was being cared for by my uncle Steve (his son) and aunt Denice — both medical professionals — and was still sharp and good-humored in his final days. Yesterday […]

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David Barr Kirtley

David Barr Kirtley is an author and the host of the Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy podcast on Wired.com, for which he’s interviewed well over a hundred guests, including George R. R. Martin, Richard Dawkins, Paul Krugman, Simon Pegg, Margaret Atwood, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and Ursula K. Le Guin.
Content © 2022 David Barr Kirtley unless noted. Site by Sunray Computer.