Beyond the Center
New Episode available April 12, 2026! Episode #31 is entitled "Sequel", by Ben Smith. Join me, as we will explore beyond our perceived reality, into the short stories of some of the best authors of classic science fiction and dark fantasy. Website: https://beyondthecenter.buzzsprout.com/ Email: beyondthecenterpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61551316624099 Beyond the Center receives absolutely no revenue from advertisements you may hear on various podcast platforms. If you enjoy listening to Beyond the Center, you can help to offset some of the costs involved by offering a one-time contribution at: https://buymeacoffee.com/beyondthecenter
Episodes
A stalled trip in "The Tube", an underground transportation system, reveals to those aboard the lengths that their government is willing to go to silence even the most celebrated of State heroes.
"Underground Movement", by Allen K. Lang, was first published in the December 1956 issue of Infinity Science Fiction.
Thank you to Beyond the Center's Stellar Supporters:
Jim Pollock, Chris Ferguson
One's perception of seemingly ordinary observations leads to an alternate reality of extraordinary implications.
"The Eyes Have It", by Philip K. Dick, was first published in 1953 in issue #1 of Science Fiction Stories.
Thank you to Beyond the Center's Stellar Supporters:
Jim Pollock, Chris Ferguson
Email: beyondthecenterpodcast@gmail.com
Earth is visited by a race of beings known as the Kanamit.
"To Serve Man", by Damon Knight, was first published in the November 1950 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction and was later adapted by Rod Serling for the 24th episode of season three of The Twilight Zone, which originally aired on March 2, 1962.
Thank you to Beyond the Center's Stellar Supporters:
Jim Pollock
Email: beyondthecent...
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year!
"The Festival", by H.P. Lovecraft, was written in October 1923 and first published in the January 1925 issue of Weird Tales.
Thank you to Beyond the Center's Stellar Supporters:
Jim Pollock
Email: beyondthecenterpodcast@gmail.com
A fugitive who has run from justice finds himself confronted by a sole law enforcement officer on an uncharted planet. The fugitive has no intentions of being taken in by the officer, while the officer has another plan in mind.
"Star Chamber', by H.B Fyfe, was first published in the March 1963 issue of Amazing Stories.
Thank you to Beyond the Center's Stellar Supporters:
Jim Pollock
E...
Are we all just cogs in the wheel of life?
The first short story of Season 2 of Beyond the Center comes to us from author, Fritz Leiber, and is entitled "The Big Engine". It was first published in the February 1962 issue of Galaxy Magazine.
Thank you to Beyond the Center's Stellar Supporters:
Jim Pollock
Email: beyondthecenterpodcast@gmail.com
Earth hatches a plan, with the aid of a new miracle drug, to colonize Mars. A new generation of humans are born from parents who were carefully selected for the experiment and then inoculated with the miracle drug.
This short story comes to us from author, Fredric Brown, and is entitled "Keep Out". It was first published in the March 1954 issue of Amazing Stories.
Thank you to Beyond the Center's ...
A prophetic short story involving mankind's subordination to, reliance upon, and worship of, modern technology.
This longer short story is being split up into three parts, with today's part three titled "The Homeless", from "The Machine Stops", written by E. M. Forster. It was first published in The Oxford and Cambridge Review in November of 1909.
Thank you to Beyond the Center&ap...
A prophetic short story involving mankind's subordination to, reliance upon, and worship of, modern technology.
This longer short story is being split up into three parts, with today's part two titled "The Mending Apparatus", from "The Machine Stops", written by E. M. Forster. It was first published in The Oxford and Cambridge Review in November of 1909.
Thank you to Beyond the Ce...
A prophetic short story involving mankind's subordination to, reliance upon, and worship of, modern technology.
This longer short story will be split up into three parts over today and the following two Sundays. Today's part one of this three part story is titled "The Air-Ship", from "The Machine Stops", written by E. M. Forster. It was first published in The Oxford and Cambridge Review in N...
A ship with an experimental faster-than-light drive, the first ever to voyage outside of our solar system, arrives some distance from their destination of Alpha Centauri A. Upon arriving, the crew witnesses an unexpected event which has an astronomically low probability of occurrence.
For this episode, the short story is titled "Time Fuze" by Randall Garrett, which was first published in the March 1954 publica...
Saknarth, the Master Astrologer, yearned for the day when mankind would no longer be enslaved; when they would conquer their fears and miseries through learning and enlightenment.
The short story for this episode is titled "Saknarth" by Millard Verne Gordon (AKA Donald A. Wolheim), which was first published in the Spring 1942 edition of Science Fiction Quarterly.
Thank you to Beyond the Center's ...
Mr. Thomas, a surveyor's clerk from Croydon, travels to the Sussex Weald to meet with a client about having a copse removed. Upon arriving near his destination, he spots the line of Downs with Chanctonbury Ring at its crest. As he comes upon the crest, he realises that this must be the wood his client wants cut down, and decides to walk through to have a look.
The short story for this episode is titled "Ancient L...
Bromley Cranston, a scientist, devotes himself to achieving a scientific discovery after his beloved has been swept away by another man. Cranston finds himself involved with the other man and his beloved as he makes progress on his invention which is capable of transmitting live beings.
The short story for this episode is "Radio Mates", by Benjamin Witwer, first published in the July 1927 issue of Amazing Stor...
Mark, a space faring prospector, decides to settle himself on a slab of rock in the asteroid belt after making a decent enough strike. He and his companion, Charles, become close friends, taking care of one another whilst enjoying each other's company and conversation. A touching story, with an inevitable conclusion.
The short story for this episode is by Robert Sheckley, and is entitled "Beside Still Waters&qu...
Kiley, a thief who now finds himself locked up in a jail cell for the fourth time, is visited telepathically by a powerful alien being from another world. Kiley agrees to a deal with the alien being, who offers to bestow upon Kiley an ability which will make him the perfect thief.
This episode's short story is "Never Trust A Thief!" by Robert Silverberg, and was first published in the February 1958 issue of...
An Archeologist and Space Explorer in the far distant future discuss a discovery which has shed some light on the past history of intelligent life on Earth. Is this archeological find of past Earthlings what the scholars expected to discover?
The short story for this episode will be "Later Than You Think" by Fritz Leiber, first published in the October 1950 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction.
Thank you to...
Thom Ra is assigned the task of traveling back in time to the War of Annihilation, where he is supposed to make a "real and complete contribution to human knowledge". Under no circumstances is he allowed to interfere in the course of events.
The short story for this episode will be "A Hitch In Time" by Frederik Pohl, first published in the June 1947 issue of Thrilling Wonder Stories, under the pseudonym...
Join six men in the club car of a train as they discuss an idea for a television program based on altering aspects of known historic events; a conversation which leads the men to discussing the possibility of alternate realities.
The short story presented in this episode will be "Crossroads of Destiny" by H. Beam Piper, first published in the July 1959 issue of Fantastic Universe Science Fiction.
Thank...
Set in a futuristic world, there exists an agency called the Federal Bureau of Termination. An agency with the purpose of balancing the scales of a society which has conquered most societal issues, including old age.
The short story for this episode will be "2 B R 0 2 B", by Kurt Vonnegut, originally published in the January 1962 issue of If: Worlds of Science Fiction.
Thank you to Beyond the Cente...
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