It’s one of the highest-rated TV shows on IMDb, yet I’ve tried numerous times to start watching it with absolutely no success. Until now, I’d never made it past the first episode.

The show completely passed me by back in 2002, along with several other classics from that era like Spooks, The West Wing and Stargate SG-1. I was younger then and spent most of my time out with friends before getting married, rather than sitting in front of the TV.

If The Wire had come out a few years earlier or a few years later, I’m convinced I would have watched every episode as it aired.

Watching it now, 24 years on, it definitely feels like a product of its time. CRT monitors, flip phones and... was that an actual typewriter in the first episode?

Madness.

One of the biggest surprises has been the cast. Dominic West, Idris Elba, Lance Reddick, Wendell Pierce, Domenick Lombardozzi and even a very young Michael B. Jordan.

The list just keeps going.

What’s strange is that I know most of them from things they did later. Dominic West from The Affair, Idris Elba... well, everything. Wendell Pierce from Suits. Domenick Lombardozzi from pretty much every mob drama ever made, especially as Chickie in his brilliant role in Tulsa King.

So, I’m now two episodes in.

That’s already further than I’ve ever made it before, which has to be a good sign.

Now I just need to find out whether it really deserves that incredible 9.3 IMDb rating.

When I heard that Joe Jameson and Carl Prekopp were returning to narrate the audiobook of Four Worlds of Bertie Cavendish, I almost exploded with excitement.

I first read this when it was released back in 2021 and absolutely loved it. I've always wanted more books set in the Extracted universe, and this was exactly that. It felt like catching up with old friends, with Ben Ryder, Safa Patel and Mad Harry Madden all making a welcome return.

Like any self-respecting fan, I had the audiobook pre-ordered and was genuinely excited to wake up on 25 June and find it sitting in my Audible library, patiently waiting for me.

Because it's been a few years since I first read it, I'd forgotten most of the story.

And that's never a bad thing.

I've always said the best way to enjoy a book or a film is to know as little about it as possible. You only get one chance to experience those twists for the first time.

Fight Club was ruined for me by a friend, who I'll never forgive. Thankfully, years later I got to experience it again through my son's eyes, who had absolutely no idea what was coming. Watching someone discover a great twist for the first time is almost as good as seeing it yourself.

As Colin Morgan narrated the Worldship Humility books, hearing Yassy and Sam voiced by Carl Prekopp came as a surprise. Thankfully, he absolutely smashed it. In fact, every narrator brings something different to the characters, and it works brilliantly.

RR Haywood has mentioned on his Facebook page that WF Howes don't normally produce audiobooks with multiple narrators, so this was something new for them.

They absolutely smashed it.

This is one of those rare occasions where I'd actually recommend the audiobook over the printed book. Not because the novel isn't fantastic, but because the performances add another layer to the story that you simply don't get on the page.

Joe Jameson and Carl Prekopp don't just read the story.

They perform it.

By the end, it felt less like listening to an audiobook and more like watching a film with my ears.

Is it too soon for a re-listen?

Absolutely not.

Click. Click. Motherf***er.