Charlie Brooker - Inside Black Mirror

Fallout 4(video game, 2015)

A role-playing video game set 210 years in the future, after a devastating war.

Fantastic Voyage(film, 1966)

A scientist invents shrinking technology, which is then used to help a team enter his body to fix a blood clot.

Fargo(film, 1996)

Coen Brothers’ Oscar-winning, darkly funny crime drama.

Fawlty Towers(TV, 1975–1979)

John Cleese and Connie Booth’s post-Python sitcom about an ill-tempered hotel manager.

Festen(film, 1998)

A Dogme 95 look at intrafamily venom.

Fishtank(film, 2009)

A mother and her teenage daughter fight for the affection of Michael Fassbender.

Games of Thrones(TV, 2011–present)

Little-known fantasy show.

Grand Theft Auto(video games, 1997–present)

Controversial and morally questionable video-games.

Harold and Maude(film, 1971)

Hal Ashby’s cinematic romance between a weird young man and vivacious older woman.

Hammer House of Horror(TV, 1980)

British anthology series with a distinctly nasty edge.

Heaven is A Place on Earth(music, 1987)

Belinda Carlisle’s chart-topping power ballad.

Alfred Hitchcock(director, 1899–1980)

The man behind Rear Window (1954) and Psycho (1960).

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy(radio/book, 1978)

Douglas Adams’ eternal sci-comedy and novel.

John Hughes(films, 1950–2009)

Writer and director responsible for classic 80’s teen movies Pretty in Pink (1986) and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986).

Armando Iannucci(TV, 1953–present) and Chris Morris(TV, 1962–present)

The duo behind such twisted, surreal satires as The Day Today (1994) and Jam (2000)

I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!(TV, 2002–present)

British survival reality show, hosted by Ant and Dec.

Inception(film, 2010)

Christopher Nolan’s dreams-in-dreams head-scratcher.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers(film, 1978)

Starring Donald Sutherland, this terrifying remake surpassed the 1956 original.

It Follows(film, 2014)

A horror movie in which a persistent evil spirit is passed along via sexual intercourse.

Jaws(film, 1975)

Steven Spielberg’s classic blockbuster.

Duncan Jones(director, 1971–present)

Jones brought us the futuristic thrillers Moon (2009) and Source Code (2011).

The Killing(TV, 2007–2012)

Danish police procedural set in Copenhagen, birthing the ‘Scandi-noir’ genre.

Stephen King(author, 1947–present)

The undisputed guvnor of horror fiction.

The Kingdom(TV, 1994)

Lars Von Trier’s hospital-set mini-series.

Nigel Kneale(TV, 1922–2006)

Writer and creator of Professor Bernard Quatermass.

La cabina(film, 1972)

Claustrophobic Spanish TV movie about a man trapped inside a phone booth.

Little Computer People(video game, 1985)

Predating The Sims, this video game was among the first with no set goals for players.

Live & Kicking(TV, 1993-2001)

Saturday morning kids’ show, featuring a digital cat.

Mad Men(TV, 2007–2015)

Period drama set in a New York advertising agency.

Manhunt(video game, 2003)

An 18-certificate survival horror with graphic violence.

The Matrix(film, 1999)

Keanu Reeves takes the red pill.

Men Against Fire: The Problem of Battle Command(book, 1947)

S.L.A. Marshall’s exploration of the low percentage of soldiers who fired weapons during the two world wars.

Minority Report(film, 2002)

Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise’s Philip K. Dick adaptation, about predictive policing.

Miracle Mile(film, 1988)

A young couple try to escape Los Angeles, in real time, before the onset of nuclear war.

Monty Python’s Flying Circus(TV, 1969–1974)

The British series that shaped the future of comedy.

Mulholland Drive(film, 2001)

David Lynch’s oblique meditation on identity confusion.

N++ soundtrack(music, 2015)

Synth-heavy sonic backdrop to the popular video game.

Network(film, 1976)

Sidney Lumet’s prescient media satire.

The National Anthem(music, 2000)

A jazz-infused track from Radiohead’s Kid A album.

On Filmmaking(book, 2005)

British director Alexander Mackendrick’s filmmaking guide.

On Killing(book, 1996)

Israeli David Grossman explores the psychological effect of killing in law enforcement and the military.

Outrun(video game, 1987)

Arcade game that popularised the moving console cabinet.

Pacific Rim(film, 2013)

Guillermo del Toro’s seamonster take on Japanese anime.

Peeping Tom(film, 1960)

Michael Powell’s tale of a serial killer who films his victims.

Penn Jillette(magician, 1948–present) and Raymond Teller(magicians, 1955–present)

Popular magician-entertainers Penn & Teller are the longest-running headline act in Las Vegas history.

Planes, Trains and Automobiles(film, 1987)

John Hughes’ comedy starring Steve Martin.

Planet of the Apes(film, 1968)

Seminal simian sci-fi.

Portal(video game, 2007)

Addictive puzzle-based video game.

QED: A Guide to Armageddon(TV, 1982)

Pop-science BBC documentary series.

Quatermass and the Pit(film, 1967)

Sci-fi horror. An ancient alien spacecraft is unearthed in London’s Underground.

Resident Evil(video game, 1996–present)

Classic survival horror-fest, later adapted into a film series.

Ring(film, 1998)

Japanese psycho-horror about a cursed video tape.

The Road(book, 2006)

Cormac McCarthy’s post-apocalyptic vision, adapted for film by John Hillcoat in 2009.

Rod Serling’s Night Gallery(TV, 1969–1973)

Serling’s anthology gave preference to the supernatural.

Sapphire & Steel(TV, 1979–1982)

Creepy British sci-fi show, starring David McCallum and Joanna Lumley.

Saving Private Ryan(film, 1998)

By far Steven Spielberg’s most harrowing film.

Scenes From a Marriage(TV, 1973)

Ingmar Bergman’s mini-series. A bad advert for wedlock.

The Sentinel(video game, 1986)

Puzzle-based video game set in a bleak, immersive world.

Se7en(film, 1995)

David Fincher’s serial-killer thriller, with that ending.

Silent Running(film, 1972)

After all botanical life on Earth has died, an ecologist fights the green fight on his space station.

The Singing Detective(TV, 1986)

Dennis Potter’s gem, starring Michael Gambon as a mystery writer recovering from chronic disease.

The Sixth Sense(film, 1999)

M. Night Shyamalan’s thriller, with wham-bam twist.

Sleeper(film, 1973)