c.1980 -
Operation Shockwave
Feature film -
scripted by Gerry Anderson
A spy
thriller which was never completed due to withdrawal of financial
backing as shooting started
Index Links
c.1980 - Five Star Five
Feature film
scripted by Gerry Anderson and Tony Barwick
Producers: Gerry
Anderson / Sidney Rose
Director: John
Guillermin
A
science fiction film which went into pre-production but was never
shot due to lack of finance
Index Links
1981 - Super Space Theatre
3 x 93 minute edited
combinations
ITC
produced three Thunderbird features under this general heading made
up from different TV episodes with similar storylines. They were
transmitted by U.S. syndicated stations and cable TV companies,
eventually being released on video in the mid-eighties by Channel 5
Video.
Thunderbirds To The Rescue ( Trapped In The Sky /
Operation Crash Dive )
Thunderbirds In Outer Space ( Sun Probe / Ricochet )
Countdown To Disaster ( Terror In New York City / Atlantic Inferno
)
Index Links
1983 - Terrahawks
39 x 25 min episodes
in 2 series of 26 and 13First
transmission Sunday 9th October 1983
Created and produced
by Gerry Anderson
Scripted by Gerry
Anderson and Tony BarwickExecutive
Producer: Christopher Burr
Produced by Anderson
Burr pictures in association with London Weekend
Television
The
year is 2024 and the NASA Martian Expedition base has been destroyed
by alien craft which then head towards Earth. Earth protectors - The
Terrahawks - led by Dr. Tiger Ninestein and Sergeant Major Zero
assisted by his zeroid robots pit their wits against Zelda, Imperial
Queen of the planet Guk, a witch-like android who can control the
nature of matter.
Produced by the newly-formed Anderson Burr pictures
at Bray studios, this was a return to puppetry, but now it was
Supermacromation - puppetry without strings. The series also featured
another futuristic Rolls-Royce. Called H.U.D.S.O.N., it was chameleon
in character.
Index Links Episode
Guide Terrahawks
at SFXB
c.1984T-Force
A
larger, re-vamped version of Thunderbirds which was being planned by
Gerry Anderson in association with Steven Begg. It included a change
of base with larger, more versatile rescue vehicles and Lady Penelope
was to be given a pink Porsche instead of the Rolls Royce. Finance
for the project proved to be unobtainable.
Index Links
1986 - Space Police (Star
Laws)
1 x 52 min pilot
episode scripted by Tony Barwick
Produced by Gerry
AndersonAssociate Producer: Bob
Bell
Anderson Burr
Pictures
After
15 years as a New York policeman, Lieutenant Chuck Brogan is
appointed to command Space Police precinct 44 East, based aboard a
space station orbiting the planet ZarXL5. The crew comprised himself,
policewoman Cathy Costello (Catherine Chevalier) and a trio of
cat-like aliens known as Tom, Dick and Harry, working for an
intergalactic police corps fighting organised crime.
Part
live action, part puppetry, this was clearly a forerunner of Space
Precinct. In order to be able to travel to the surface of the planet,
Cathy had to transform her face into 'Siliconide' - which made her
easier to 'puppetise'. The series was never made due to the untimely
death of Jim Henson, who had shown an interest in it, and the
subsequent lack of backing as the company changed ownership.
Index Links
1987 - Dick Spanner
22 x 6 min
episodesFirst transmission 3rd May
1987
Directed by Steven
Begg and Terry AdlamCreative
Supervision by Gerry Anderson
An Anderson Burr
production in association with Channel 4
A
robot-like wisecracking private detective conducts his investigations
in a surreal parallel universe where anything - literally - can and
does frequently happen in the most bizarre ways.
Gerry
Anderson's first stop-motion animation production which was later
re-edited into four 25 minute shows. The Anderson-Burr partnership
had, in fact, been dissolved before the production of this show. It
was screened on Sunday lunchtimes as part of a programme called
Network 7, aimed at teenage viewers and was eventually sold to
BSkyB.
Index Links
1987 - Royal Bank of
Scotland
Producing for The Moving Picture Company on behalf of
the Royal Bank of Scotland, Gerry Anderson made this strange advert
featuring matchstick-like people. This won the advertising industry's
Silver Arrow award.
Index Links
1989 -
Space Police (Star Laws)
An
edited, 25 minute version of the 1986 52 minute pilot episode.
Index Links
1990 - Parker's Day Off
Produced and Directed by
Gerry Anderson
This
was made as an advert for Swinton Insurance. It starred the original
puppet model ( pictured ) of Parker ( piloting Thunderbird 2! ) and
featured some innovative driving by Lady Penelope in Fab1, both of
which were rebuilt for the story.
Index Links
1991 -
Calling Elvis
Directed by Steve
Barron / Gerry Anderson
A four
minute music video starring Dire Straits both live and in puppet form
a la Thunderbirds, promoting their single 'Calling Elvis'. Gerry
Anderson directed the 'Thunderbirds' segment which took twelve weeks
to make.
Original Thunderbirds sequences were accompanied by the new footage
and live action shots of the band, and featured the M.C. Parker
single 'Thunderbirds Are Go' on MTV in a remix of the original series
theme tune
Index Links
1993 - G.F.I. (Warming
Warning)
1 pilot episode x 25
minsExecutive Producers: Gerry Anderson
and Adam J.Shaw
Produced by Bob
McKieDirected by Phil Littler
Gosh! /
Inimitable
Another look at the T-Force idea resulted in its
redevelopment as a cell-animated series originally called G-Force but
ending up as G.F.I. ( Gee Force Intergalactic ). As a rapid response
unit for the United Planets, G Force Intergalactic combats major
crime and large scale disasters, operating from Star City, a secret
base hidden beneath the surface of an asteroid orbiting the Myson
system.
13
episodes were drafted, some into full scripts, but only one episode
was made ( Warming Warning ), partly in Moscow. The series was
cancelled due to the Russian animation being of comparatively poor
quality and reshoot costs proved to be prohibitive.
Index Links
1994 - Space Precinct
24 x 45 min
episodesFirst transmission 27th May
1995
Produced by Gerry
AndersonExecutive Producer: Tom
GutteridgeLine Producer:
Tom Sachs
Digital effects by
The Magic Camera Company
Gerry Anderson
productions / Mentorn Films / Grove Television (GTV)
The
year is 2024. Human, Creon and Tarn police officers form the staff of
precinct 88, keeping law and order in Demeter City on the planet
Altor. Lt.Patrick Brogan (Ted Shackleford) and Officer Jackson
Haldane (Rob Youngblood) always seem to find the most trouble.
This
was the most expensive sci-fi series ever produced in the U.K.
Although an obvious evolution of Space Police, the name had to be
changed due to a copyright conflict with a Lego toy. Now an all-live
action show, all the scenes had to be re-shot, the live scenes being
done at Pinewood and digital effects at Shepperton using special
machines called Lightworks which allowed much wider editing/cutting
possibilities. The financer, Grove Television, only just managed to
fulfil its commitment before going into liquidation. Originally aimed
at adults, it was eventually screened on BBC2 at 6 p.m.
Index Links Episode
Guide
1994 - Thunderbirds U.S.A.
13 x 23 minute edited
episodes
ITC
announced a live action Thunderbirds movie to be in development,
planned for release around Christmas 1995. To pave the way for this,
13 of the original TV episodes were cut down to 23 minutes running
time ( 30 minutes including adverts ) and broadcast on the American
Fox Kids network as 'Thunderbirds U.S.A.' with new voice-overs and
'up to date' dialogue. The movie failed to materialise as ITC were
sold to Polygram in 1995.
Index Links
1996 - Lavender Castle
26 x 10 min
episodesFirst transmission 7th January
1999
Produced by Gerry
AndersonExecutive producers: Craig hemmings
and Brian Cosgrove
Line Producer: Chris
Bowden
CPI / Gerry Anderson
Productions / Cosgrove Hall
The
adventures of Captain Thrice and the crew of the starship Paradox
while on their quest to find the legendary Lavender Castle - a
floating city deep in space supposed to be the greatest source of
power in the universe. They must find it before the evil Doctor Agon
who intends to destroy it!
Made
at Cosgrove Hall using computer digital animation. Stories written by
Pauline Fisk and music by rock legend Rick Wakeman.
Index Links Series
Guide
Now . . . and
The Future?
Possible live action versions of the supermarionation
shows, starting with Thunderbirds. Liz Hurley as Lady Penelope??
hmmm.......... and, eventually, possibly, the long overdue 'Operation
Shockwave'.
Thunderbirds returned to BBC2 for the first time in eight years
starting 5th September 2024. It occupies an early evening weekend
slot and features the whole 32 episode series which have been
digitally re-mastered by Carlton International with full stereo sound
and a lot less visible strings. It is, of course, accompanied by a
huge new range of merchandise, available for Christmas, consisting of
over 100 different items including an upgraded version of the highly
successful 'Tracy Island' toy with new sound technology features. In
1997 Working Title films announced another revitalisation of the live
action Thunderbird film project with a planned startdate of August
1998. No budget was made available, although it is, apparently, still
under consideration. A game release is planned for Playstation 2 in
2001 in which Gerry Anderson and other 'real' people will feature as
part of the International Rescue team alongside the regular
characters.
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