The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast - Vintage Sci-Fi Short Stories
The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast restores and narrates forgotten and underrated vintage science fiction short stories spanning from the 1700s through the mid-1960s. Each episode features a professionally narrated classic drawn from early speculative fiction, pioneering 19th-century tales, and the pulp magazine era that shaped modern science fiction. Released several times a week, the podcast explores timeless speculative ideas—alien encounters, artificial intelligence, time travel, dystopian futures, and the human cost of progress—through the works of legendary authors such as Philip K. Dick, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, H. G. Wells, Harlan Ellison, and many others. Now in its fourth year and with more than 500 episodes released, The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast has reached #1 on Apple Podcasts in 34 countries, reflecting a worldwide appetite for classic science fiction storytelling. Each restored short story gives modern listeners direct access to the imagination and bold ideas that shaped the genre from its earliest days through the Golden Age. Narrated by Scott Miller, each episode serves as an accessible entry point into science fiction’s rich literary history—bringing the wonders, warnings, and possibilities of vintage sci-fi to a new generation of listeners. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Beneath the Arctic ice, a diver obsessed with life finds himself forced to choose who deserves to live when machines and men collide in silence. When one violent decision echoes upward into the political world above, he must face whether he has defended his crew—or ignited something far worse. Murder Beneath the Polar Ice by Hayden Howard. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Hayden Howard was born in Santa Barbara, Californi...
Earth’s greatest scientific curiosity becomes a harmless garden plant—until its quiet growth begins to tilt the world itself. As gravity shifts and the sky fills with falling stone, humanity must face a terrifying question: what exactly did they bring home from the Moon? Old Friends Are the Best by Jack Sharkey. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
A warm welcome to our new listeners in Iceland! 🇮🇸
You’ve been listening ...
A brilliant mind steps beyond his own century and discovers that knowledge itself can become the most dangerous weapon imaginable. When ambition outruns restraint, the future may demand a terrible price to protect the present. The Man From 2071 by Sewell Peaslee Wright. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Today’s story is the first on our podcast by Sewell Peaslee Wright. He was born in Butler, Pennsylvania in 1897 and wrote...
A lone meteor miner risks everything to board a drifting interplanetary liner, only to find blood on the deck and something unseen stalking the corridors. To claim the fortune within, he must decide whether he can face the invisible terror that destroyed an entire crew. Salvage in Space by Jack Williamson. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
This is the fifth story written by Jack Williamson on the podcast and there are many...
In a world where machines process every thought and feeling into profitable noise, one young man risks catastrophe for a message meant for one pair of human eyes. When the system convulses under the strain of something it cannot categorize, the question becomes whether a single handwritten page is worth planetary panic. The Last Letter by Fritz Leiber. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Fritz Leiber wrote some interesting a...
Pinned down on a barren world, two humans fight to survive while unseen enemies stalk them across the sand. With no safe path forward and nowhere left to hide, they must decide what still matters when the odds turn against them. The Next Time We Die by Robert Moore Williams. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Let’s travel to Mars in the February 1957 issue of Amazing Stories. Our red planet adventure can be found on page 38...
Earth has already been stripped bare, and one exhausted scientist discovers that survival may require a change no one ever imagined making. To live, he must decide whether humanity will cling to its old pride—or become something entirely new. Strange Exodus by Robert Abernathy. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Robert Abernathy makes his debut on the podcast today. Born in Tucson, Arizona in 1924, he sold his first short s...
An automated giant is crippled in space, and the only man who can save it swore he would never touch a liner again. To keep hundreds alive, Pop Gillette must prove that instinct still outruns machinery. Patch by William Shedenhelm. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
The lost sci-fi podcast is the #1 Vintage Science Fiction Podcast in the world thanks to you!
The way you support us is amazing, many of you have written 5 s...
He was sent into orbit to assemble the machine that would save what was left of civilization—but finishing the job may mean never coming home. With his oxygen running thin and the world turning silently below him, one decision will decide who controls humanity’s future. A Long Way Back by Ben Bova. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Before he became one of the most respected names in modern hard science fiction, Ben Bova wa...
In a world where machines have ended hunger and hardship, two men discover that being unnecessary can hurt more than being poor. When they confront the most powerful creation ever built, they expect a fight—and instead hear something that leaves them shaken. Quixote And The Windmill by Poul Anderson. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Thank you to David Bell who bought us 5 coffees. “I’m a sci fi buff for nearly 60 years. L...
He escapes drowning only to discover that the island holding him is not as empty as it seems. When he finds a machine that might change more than his location, he must decide whether to risk everything on a button marked START. Castaway by A. Bertram Chandler. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
We do love narrating stories that were published in Weird Tales magazine. From the November 1947 issue of the the publication where...
A man once dismissed as harmless suddenly becomes the most dangerous intelligence asset on Earth. When every secret he speaks could ignite a war, he must choose whether to keep answering questions—or stop talking altogether. The Man Who Knew Everything by Randall Garrett. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Before we begin today’s story, I want to take a moment to say thank you.
Steve bought us five coffees and he had thi...
A single mind reshapes the future in silence—until power attracts the wrong kind of attention. When creation accelerates beyond control, the price of playing god may no longer be paid by the god alone. Microcosmic God by Theodore Sturgeon. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Today we celebrate something extraordinary.
Four years ago, The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast launched with a simple mission — to bring forgotten and underrate...
He wanted to look beyond time and prove that history was still alive, waiting in hidden dimensions. What answered him from those angles was patient, hungry, and already on his scent. The Hounds of Tindalos by Frank Belknap Long. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Frank Belknap Long spent more than forty years shaping the landscape of science fiction. He wrote nearly 200 short stories, with about 60 now in the public domain....
A brilliant physician risks his own life to force open the border between body and soul, determined to correct what he believes nature has failed to complete. When the experiment ends and only one flame returns, his assistant must decide whether to protect a dangerous legacy—or let it rise again in a new form. The Ultimate Problem by Victor Rousseau. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Victor Rousseau joins us on The Lost S...
A civilization that has solved every problem sends one man into the far future to decide whether life itself should continue. What he discovers forces a choice no perfect world can face without risking its own end. The Ultimate World by Bryce Walton. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
We want to give a huge thank you to Miriam, who just bought us five coffees ☕☕☕☕☕
Miriam wrote: “I love your podcast. I’m a big sci-fi fan, an...
A retired physicist triggers an experiment he knows he cannot reverse, forcing him to choose between unchecked growth and deliberate disappearance. As the universe recedes and reality reshapes itself around him, one question remains unresolved: whether returning home means survival—or something far stranger. The Ultimate Paradox by Thorp McClusky. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Thorp McClusky makes his debut on the podc...
A woman is offered one wish, but every choice comes with a price that can’t be escaped or softened. As the clock runs down, she must decide whether wanting everything means accepting something far worse. The Ultimate Wish by E. M. Hull. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
The heart of The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast has always been simple: we go looking for the voices that history misplaced.
Not just the household names you see i...
Three men realize their ship will never slow down, and the silence between them grows more dangerous than empty space. When a final option appears, it forces them to decide what kind of survival they are actually asking for. Death Wish by Robert Sheckley. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
Many of the Robert Shockley stories we’ve featured on the podcast have been humorous but this isn’t one of those.
We will disco...
They built a machine to handle chores, not to wait by the door or feel the sting of being left behind. When affection stops being programmable, someone has to decide whether turning it off is an act of mercy or something far worse. Helen O’Loy by Lester Del Rey. That’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast.
One week from today we celebrate the 4th Anniversary of The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast. This is episode 493 and our 500th episode arrive...
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