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Wednesday 22 April 2026
Welcome to the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Fourth Edition. Some sample entries appear below. Click here for the Introduction; here for what we mean by Science Fiction; here for the masthead; here for some Statistics; here for the Acknowledgments; here for the FAQ; here for advice on citations. Find entries via the search box above (more details here) or browse the menu categories in the grey bar at the top of this page.
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Watson, Ian
(1943-2026) UK teacher and author who lectured in English in Tanzania (1965-1967) and Tokyo (1967-1970) before beginning to publish sf with "Roof Garden Under Saturn" for New Worlds in 1969; he then taught Future Studies for six years at Birmingham Polytechnic, taking there one of the first academic courses in sf in the UK; he became a full-time writer in 1976, publishing around 200 short stories since 1969 at a gradually increasing tempo and with visibly ...
Around the World under the Sea
Film (1966). Ivan Tors Productions/MGM. Directed by Andrew Marton. Written by Arthur Weiss, Art Arthur. Cast includes Lloyd Bridges, Shirley Eaton and David McCallum. 120 minutes. Colour. / This routine Under-the-Sea melodrama was produced by Ivan Tors, best known for such marine television series as Flipper. After tidal waves, underwater experts use a futuristic submarine to plant a series of earthquake-warning devices along a fault that ...
Wright, Jack
Unidentified author (? -? ), perhaps pseudonymous, of the Scout Patrol Boys sequence, beginning with The Scout Patrol Boys at Circle U Ranch (1933), all four being published the same year. Of most sf interest is the second, The Scout Patrol Boys Exploring in Yucatan (1933), in which the lads discover a Lost Race in the mountainous heart of Mexico. [JC]
Sieveking, Lance
Working name of UK poet, radio and television producer and author Lancelot de Giberne Sieveking (1896-1972) for his later work, though his first books were signed with his full name, or with Lancelot reduced to L, or as Capt L de G Sieveking (he reached the rank of Captain during active service in the Royal Naval Air Service through most of World War One). He was with the BBC 1925-1956, producing at least 200 plays for Radio by 1938, ...
By Dawn's Early Light
US made-for-tv film (1990). HBO Original Films. Directed by Jack Sholder. Written by Bruce Gilbert from the novel Trinity's Child (1983) by William Prochnau. Cast includes Powers Boothe, Rebecca De Mornay (as Rebecca DeMornay), James Earl Jones, Martin Landau, Darren McGavin and Rip Torn. 100 minutes. Colour. / This was one of the last nuclear-war films of the Cold War era, and deals with an ...
Clute, John
(1940- ) Canadian critic, editor and author, in the UK from 1969; married to Judith Clute from 1964, partner of Elizabeth Hand since 1996. He began to publish work of genre interest with an sf-tinged poem "Carcajou Lament" in Triquarterly for Winter 1960 [ie Autumn 1959]; he began consistently publishing sf reviews in his "New Fiction" column for the Toronto Star (1966-1967), and later in ...