Forty years after Alien was released, Suzanne Harrington pays tribute to Lieutenant Ellen Ripley — one of the greatest female protagonists in cinema history.

Ridley Scott and his team had to decide whether to bring the Alien back or invent something else for this latest instalment, writes Susan Griffin

Our regular arts writers select their highlights of the year. Today, it’s Ed Power’s turn.

More than 30 years after Ridley Scott proved that in space, everyone can hear you scream – loudly – the Oscar-nominated director returns to the science-fiction genre and the ultimate deep space killing machine: 'Alien'.