UFO (TV series)

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UFO

Titlescreen of UFO.

Also known as

Gerry Anderson's UFO (Australia)

Adventure Alien invasion Genre Drama Science fiction Thriller

Format

Serial drama

Gerry Anderson Created by Sylvia Anderson Reg Hill

Gerry Anderson Sylvia Anderson Tony Barwick Written by Bob Bell Terence Feely Alan Fennell Donald James Alan Pattillo

Ruric Powell Dennis Spooner Ian Scott Stewart David Tomblin

Gerry Anderson Ron Appleton Cyril Frankel Directed by David Lane Alan Perry Jeremy Summers David Tomblin Ken Turner

Keith Alexander Harry Baird Steven Berkoff Michael Billington Ed Bishop Ayshea Brough Gabrielle Drake Antonia Ellis Peter Gordeno Anouska Hempel John Kelley Starring Dolores Mantez Georgina Moon Basil Moss Gary Myers Mel Oxley Norma Ronald George Sewell Maxwell Shaw Vladek Sheybal Grant Taylor Wanda Ventham David Warbeck

Jeremy Wilkin

Composer(s)

Barry Gray

Country of origin

United Kingdom

Language(s)

English

No. of series

No. of episodes

26

Production

Producer(s)

Gerry Anderson Reg Hill

Mike Campbell Editor(s) Lee Doig Harry MacDonald

Cinematography

Brendan J. Stafford

Camera setup

Single

Running time

50 mins approx. per episode (excluding advertisements)

Production company(s)

Century 21 Television

Distributor

ITC Entertainment

Broadcast

Original channel

ATV

Picture format

Film (35 mm)

Audio format

Mono

Original run

16 September 1970 24 July 1971

UFO is a 1970 British television science fiction series about an alien invasion of Earth, created by Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson with Reg Hill, and produced by the Andersons and Lew Grade's Century 21 Productions for Grade's ITC Entertainment company. UFO first aired in the UK and Canada in 1970 and in US syndication over the next two years (the shows were copyrighted in 1969). In all, 26 episodes, including the pilot, were filmed over the course of more than a year, with a five-month production break caused by the ultimate closure of the MGM-British Studios in Borehamwood, where the show was initially made. The Andersons had previously made a number of very successful marionette-based children's science fiction series including Supercar, Fireball XL5, Stingray, Thunderbirds, and Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. They had also made one liveaction science fiction movie, Doppelgnger, also known as Journey To The Far Side Of The Sun, and now felt ready to move into live-action television and aim at a more adult market. UFO was the Andersons' first totally live-action TV series. Despite the assumption of many TV station executives, the series was not aimed at children but deliberately sought an older audience; many episodes featured adult themes such as adultery, divorce, and drug use. Most of the cast were newcomers to Century 21 although star Ed Bishop had previously worked with the Andersons as a voice actor on Captain Scarlet and The Mysterons.

Contents

1 Plot overview o 1.1 The UFOs o 1.2 The aliens o 1.3 SHADO o 1.4 SHADO equipment o 1.5 The stories 2 Special effects 3 Second series and Space: 1999 4 Merchandise 5 DVD release 6 Characters o 6.1 Commander Edward Straker o 6.2 Colonel Paul Foster o 6.3 Lt. Gay Ellis (Gabrielle Drake) o 6.4 Col. Alec E. Freeman (George Sewell) o 6.5 Gen. James Henderson (Grant Taylor) o 6.6 Col. Virginia Lake (Wanda Ventham) o 6.7 Capt. Peter Carlin (Peter Gordeno) o 6.8 Lt. Nina Barry (Dolores Mantez) o 6.9 Capt. Lew Waterman (Gary Myers) o 6.10 Lt. Keith Ford (Keith Alexander) o 6.11 Lt. Ayshea Johnson (Ayshea Brough) o 6.12 Dr. Douglas Jackson (Vladek Sheybal) o 6.13 Lt. Joan Harrington (Antonia Ellis) o 6.14 Miss Ealand (Norma Ronald) o 6.15 Lt. Mark Bradley (Harry Baird) o 6.16 Minor characters 7 Look of the show 8 Predictions 9 Episodes 10 UFO stories in other media 11 Revivals o 11.1 Film 12 Translations 13 See also 14 References 15 External links

Plot overview
The show's basic premise is that in the near future a fictional version of 1980 (a date indicated in the opening credits) Earth is being visited and attacked by aliens from a dying planet and humans are being covertly harvested for their organs by the aliens. The show's main cast of characters are members of a secret, high technology-equipped high-technology international agency called SHADO (an acronym for Supreme Headquarters, Alien eadquarters, Defence Organisation) established to defend Earth and humanity against the mysterious rganisation) aliens and learn more about them.

The UFOs
The extraterrestrial spacecraft can readily cross the vast distances between their planet and Earth at many times the speed of light, but they are only large enough for one or two crewmembers. Their time on station is limited: UFOs can only survive for a c couple of days in the Earth's atmosphere before they heat up, deteriorate and finally explode. The alien craft can survive for far longer underwater; one episode, "Refle "Reflections In The Water," deals with the discovery of a secret undersea alien base, which shows one UFO flying straight out of an extinct volcano, which Straker describes as "a back door to the Atlantic." A special underwater version of the standard UFO design is seen in "Sub Smash." In flight they are surrounded by horizontally spinning vanes and emit a distinctive pulsing electronic whine that sounds like a Shoooe-Wheeeh![1] (This was actually produced by series composer Barry Gray, on an Ondes Martenot The craft is Martenot.) armed with a laser-type weapon, but can be destroyed by conventional explosive type warheads. The personal arms of the aliens resemble shiny assault rifles; these have a lower rate of fire than that used by SHADO. Later episodes such as "The Cat With Ten . Lives" show the aliens using other weapons, such as a small device which seemingly paralyses victims. This is presumably for organ and body harvesting purposes, since harvesting pilot Jim Regan's wife Jean is taken for her organs in that episode.

The aliens

A fan-made CGI illustration of two aliens from the series

citation needed] Notably for science fiction, and uniquely for a television series,[citation needed the alien race is never given a proper name, either by themselves or by human beings; they are

simply referred to as "the aliens." Humanoid in appearance, the autopsy of the first alien captured reveals that they are harvesting organs from the bodies of abducted humans. abducted Their faces are stained by the hue of a green oxygenated liquid, which is believed to , cushion their lungs against the extreme acceleration of interstellar flight; this liquid is contained in their helmets. To protect their eyes the aliens wear opaque sclera contact lenses with small pinholes for vision. The show's opening sequence begins by showing the image, remarkable for its time, of one of these contact lenses being removed from an obviously real eye with a pair of forceps ith forcepsalthough the scleral lens is never shown in contact with the eye. No more than two of the aliens are seen at any one time. In the episode Ordeal, when Paul Foster, wearing an alien spacesuit, is carried by two aliens, one of those two aliens is always off-screen if Foster is on screen on-screen. The prop alien spacesuits were made of red spandex. At the start of production the alien . spacesuits were ornamented with silvery chainlinking. Later this was replaced by silvery areas as in the image. In reality the dark vertical bands on the sides of the helmets are slits to allow the actors to breathe.

SHADO

Region 1 DVD release cover, displaying (left to right) actors Gabrielle Drake, Michael Billington and Ed Bishop To defend against the aliens, a secret organisation called SHADO (Supreme preme Headquarters Alien Defence Organisation) is established. Operating behind the cover of the Harlington-Straker Studios movie studio in England, SHADO is headed by Straker Commander Edward Straker (played by Ed Bishop), a former United States Air Force rd Colonel and astronaut who poses as the studio's chief executive. In reality, this was a clever cost cost-saving move by the producers the studio was the actual studio where the series was being filmed, ori originally the MGM-British Studios British Studios, later Pinewood Studios, although the Harlington , Harlington-Straker studio office block seen er throughout the series was actually Neptune House a building at the former British

National Studios, in Borehamwood that were owned by ATV. Pinewood's studio Borehamwood, . buildings and streetscapes were used extensively in later episodes, particularly episodes, "Timelash" and "Mindbender," the latter featuring scenes that actually showed the behind-the-scenes workings of the UFO sets when Straker briefly finds himself scenes hallucinating that he is an actor on a TV series and all his SHADO colleagues are likewise actors. Typical of Anderson productions, the studio cover idea was both practical and cost studio-as-cover costeffective for the production and provided a ready made vehicle for the viewer's ready-made suspension of disbelief. It removed the need to build an expensive exterior set for the . SHADO base and combined the all important "secret" cover (concealment and secrecy all-important are always central themes in Anderson dramas) with the trademark ring of at least trademark nominal plausibility. A studio was a business where unusual events and routines would not be remarkable or even noticed. Comings and goings at odd times, the movement of vehicles, equipment, people and material would not excite undue interest and could undue easily be explained away as "sets," "props," or "extras." Another Anderson leitmotif was the concept of the mechanical conveyor, e.g. the automatic boarding tubes of the Stingray and the Thunderbird craft. In UFO, this appeared in the guise of Straker's "secret" office, which doubled as a lift (elevator) that takes him down to the SHADO control centre located beneath the studio. The pilots of control the space interceptors and the submersible "Sky One" jet interceptor slide down boarding chutes into their craft. The interceptors then rise from their hangar via elevating platforms to a launch pad disguised as a lunar crater. This was a carry disguised carry-over from the earlier marionette series where it was used due to the difficulty in getting puppets to walk and get them into cockpits.

SHADO equipment
SHADO has a variety of high high-tech hardware and vehicles at its disposal to implement a s layered defence of Earth. Early warnings of alien attack would come from SID, the Space Intruder Detector, a computerised tracking satellite that constantly scans for UFO incursions. The forward line of defence is Moonbase from which the three Lunar Interceptor spacecraft, carrying nuclear missiles, are launched. The second line of , defence includes SkyDiver, a submarine mated with the submersible, undersea , undersealaunched Sky One interceptor aircraft which attack UFOs in Earth's atmosphere. The aircraft, last line of defence is ground units including the armed, IFV-like SHADO Mobiles, like fitted with caterpillar tracks. Special effects, as in all Anderson's marionette shows, tracks. were supervised by Derek Meddings, while the vehicles were designed by Meddings Meddings, and his assistant, Michael Trim Trim.

The stories
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removed. (April 2009) The show's concept was unusually dark for its time: the basic premise was that alien invaders were abducting humans to use as involuntary organ transplant donors. A later episode, "The Cat With Ten Lives," contains a sinister plot point which suggests that the UFO pilots are not humanoid aliens at all, but are in fact human abductees under the control of the alien intelligences, suggesting that, as in Captain Scarlet, the aliens, in the dialog of Dr. Jackson, "may have no physical being at all and therefore need a container, a vehicle, our bodies." The show also featured realistic, believable relationships between the human characters to a far greater extent than usual in a typical science fiction series, showing the clear influence of American programmes like The Twilight Zone and Star Trek and British action series such as Danger Man. One early episode, "Computer Affair," suggested an interracial romance between two continuing characters something that was uncommon on British TV in those days - while others showed the heroes making mistakes with sometimes fatal consequences. Furthermore, relatively few episodes of the series actually had happy or (for the characters) satisfying endings. The episode "Confetti Check A-OK" is almost entirely devoted to the breakdown of Straker's marriage under the strain of maintaining the secrecy of the classified nature of his duties. "A Question Of Priorities" takes this exploration further, and hinges on Straker having to make the life-or-death choice of whether to divert a SHADO aircraft to deliver life-saving medical supplies to his critically injured son, or allow the aircraft to continue on its mission to attempt a last-chance intercept against an incoming UFO. Two key images from "A Question Of Priorities" Straker's son being struck down and his ex-wife declaring she never wants to see him again are repeated in flashback in two subsequent episodes, "Sub Smash" and "Mindbender," suggesting that Straker remains haunted by these unresolved emotional issues. Another episode, "The Square Triangle," centres on a woman and her lover who plan to murder her husband. When they accidentally kill an alien from a downed UFO instead, SHADO intervenes and doses the guilty pair with amnesia drugs (decades ahead of a similar story device in Men in Black, and one deployed for similar reasons). Straker realises, however, that the drugs will not affect their basic motivation and, worse, he cannot reveal the truth to local legal authorities. The end credits of this episode run over a scene set in the near future, showing the woman visiting her husband's grave and then walking away to meet her lover. Some critics complained that the emphasis on down-to-earth relationships weakened the show's science fiction premise and were also a means of saving money on special effects. The money-saving argument might have been true to a limited extent, but the Andersons made a virtue of necessity. They had always hoped to direct live action TV drama, and although the marionette shows helped them develop impressive skills in effects and scripting, they had always considered them as essentially being a way of keeping in work and earning money while they tried to break into "real" TV drama. Others countered that the characters were more well rounded than in other science fiction shows and that science fiction concepts and special effects in themselves did not preclude realistic action and interaction and believable, emotionally engaging plots. Ultimately, the mix of dark human drama with traditional science fiction adventure is

probably the reason for UFO's enduring cult popularity and what sets it apart from the rest of TV SF series. For example, the time-freeze plot of the episode "Timelash" is similar to The Outer Limits episode "The Premonition." But UFO adds a drama twist: Straker repeatedly injects a drug (X 50 stimulant) to remain awake during the time freeze, which results in Straker being hospitalised in SHADO's medical centre. The ending not only shows him lying in bed recovering from the harmful effects of drug use, but has a subtext that the plot of the episode may, in fact, have been a drug-induced delusion. UFO confused broadcasters in both Britain and the United States, who could not decide if it was a programme for adults or for children the series was shown on Saturday mornings by London Weekend. (The fact Anderson was primarily associated with children's programming did not help matters.) This confusion coupled with erratic broadcast schedules are considered contributing factors in its cancellation, although UFO is credited with opening the door to moderately successful runs of later liveaction, adult-oriented programming by Anderson such as The Protectors and Space: 1999.

Special effects
The special effects, supervised by Derek Meddings, were of the highest quality and outstanding for their day, given the relatively limited resources at the production's disposal. In a refinement of the underwater effect developed for Stingray, Meddings' team devised a disconcerting effect a double-walled visor for the alien space helmets, which could be gradually filled from the bottom up with green-dyed water. When filmed from the appropriate angle it produced a very convincing illusion of the helmet filling up and submerging the wearer's head.

Second series and Space: 1999

Two years after the 26 episodes were completed, the series was syndicated on American television and the ratings were initially promising enough to prompt ITC to commission a second season of UFO. As the Moon-based episodes appeared to have proven more popular than the Earth-based stories, ITC insisted that in the new season, the action would take place entirely on the Moon. Gerry Anderson proposed a format in which SHADO Moonbase had been greatly enlarged to become the organisation's main headquarters, and pre-production on UFO 2 began with extensive research and design for the new Moonbase. These developments were not without precedent in the earlier episodes: a subplot of "Kill Straker!" sees Straker negotiating with SHADO's financial supporters for funding to build more moonbases within 10 years. However, when ratings for the syndicated broadcasts in America dropped towards the end of the run, ITC got cold feet and cancelled the second season plans. Unwilling to let the UFO 2 pre-production work go to waste, Anderson instead offered ITC a new series idea, unrelated to UFO, in which the Moon would be blown out of Earth orbit taking the Moonbase survivors with it. This proposal developed into Space: 1999.

Merchandise
As with many Anderson productions, the series generated a range of merchandising toys based on the SHADO vehicles. The classic Dinky die-cast range of vehicles featured robust yet finely finished products and included Straker's futuristic gull-winged gas turbine car, the SHADO mobile and the missile-bearing Lunar Interceptor (though the Interceptor was released in a lurid metallic green finish unlike the original's white). Like the Thunderbirds- and Captain Scarlet-related models, the original Dinky toys are now prized collectors items. All the major vehicles, characters, and more have been produced in model form many times over by a large number of licensee companies; the Anderson shows and their merchandise have always had widespread popularity, but they are especially popular in Japan.

DVD release
The complete series was released on DVD in the UK and in North America in 2002 and in Australia in 2007. Bonus features include a commentary by Gerry Anderson on the pilot episode "Identified," and an actor's commentary by Ed Bishop on the episode "Sub Smash." There are also some deleted scenes and lots of stills and publicity artwork.

Characters
UFO had a large ensemble cast, and many of its members would come and go during the course of the series, with a number of actorsmost notably George Sewell and Gabrielle Drakeleaving the series during the production break that occurred when the series had to change studios midway through production. It is established early on that SHADO personnel rotate between positions, so the occasional disappearance of characterssome of whom would later return in other positionsfits in with the concept of the series. Also, due to the scheduling of the series, which did not reflect the production order, some episodes featuring departed cast members were not actually aired until late in the series, giving the impression that no major cast changes occurred. Among the major actors, only Ed Bishop appeared in all episodes. These are the major recurring characters in the series:

Commander Edward Straker

Commander Edward Straker (portrayed by Ed Bishop) is a former American Air Force pilot and astronaut originally from Boston, Massachusetts who organized SHADO following a series of UFO attacks in 1970. Straker masquerades as the head of Harlington-Straker Film Studios, SHADO Headquarters being located directly below the studio. He was married to Mary Nightingale in 1970, but they soon divorced after the birth of John, their son. Timeframes are never given for events before the series, but it would be reasonable to presume that their marriage had ended by the end of the flashback presented in "Confetti Check A-OK." As if perhaps to show her opinion of Straker and his cold attitude, Mary registered their son as John Rutland, after his new stepfather, played by Philip Madoc. In "A Question Of Priorities," John was later seriously injured when he was hit by a car

and Straker, against his own rules, used a SHADO aircraft in order to fly in antibiotic drugs from America. But when his second-in-command, Col. Alec E. Freeman, was forced to divert the plane in order to investigate some curious UFO-related events in Ireland, Straker's sense of duty prevented him from informing and overruling him as to the plane's original mission. The drugs arrived too late at the hospital, and John died. In other sci-fi series, a character must face a challenge and overcome it, though the problem is invariably solved by hour's end after which all is well. In contrast, the UFO series makes it clear that Ed Straker has had to completely sacrifice his personal life for the organisation, and that although he has learned to live with the fact, he has never forgotten the suffering it has caused to him and people he loved most. Moreover, it is repeatedly demonstrated that there is no realistic prospect of Straker's circumstances ever improving, though if circumstances were different he would undoubtedly embrace change. Straker's underlying tension and unhappiness is the foundation of his wounded character, exemplified most powerfully in the "Confetti Check A-OK" episode. The overall effect of Straker's regularly referenced back story is to transform what could have been a stereotypical sci-fi character into one who is three-dimensional, complex and sympathetic. One relatively consistent element of Straker's character is that he refuses to drink alcohol even though he has a fully stocked bar in his SHADO office. An early episode refers to him possessing the willpower to avoid alcohol, yet he drinks champagne at his wedding, and later to commemorate his wife's pregnancy. Some fans have suggested he might be a recovering alcoholic, but nothing within the series supports this idea. On the contrary, Alec Freeman's comments, as his best friend, would be entirely out of character if that were the case. However, Straker is fond of cigars, and he can be seen smoking in some episodes. Straker suffers from claustrophobia, a fact known only to the SHADO doctors and Alec Freeman. This was a major sub-plot in the episode "Sub Smash." His voice in the television episodes sounds somewhat higher-pitched than Ed Bishop's real voice because the episodes were recorded at 24 frames per second but on television were played at 25 frames per second.

Colonel Paul Foster

Colonel Paul Foster (portrayed by Michael Billington) is a former test pilot whose plane was critically damaged when SHADO's Sky One intercepted and destroyed a UFO in close proximity to Foster's jet. His subsequent persistent investigation of the incident threatened to expose SHADO's existence and Straker considered having him killed, but instead was impressed enough with Foster to offer him a position with SHADO. Foster appears to be somewhat of a protg of Straker's, as he is shown in a number of major positions. He is Moonbase Commander for a time (substituting for Lt. Ellis), is assigned to SkyDiver for several months, and also receives a position of authority at SHADO HQ. He masquerades as one of Straker's film producers in the studio and enjoyed a brief relationship with Col. Virginia Lake. Foster has the unique distinction of having once befriended one of the aliens, though he could not prevent him from being killed by SHADO personnel; his overall demeanour became noticeably more cynical after this event (chronicled in the episode "Survival").

Lt. Gay Ellis (Gabrielle Drake)

Most often seen as Moonbase Commander during the first half of the series, Lt. Ellis is occasionally portrayed as lacking self-confidence, and at other times as a take-charge officer. She is briefly reassigned to SHADO HQ when it is suggested that she may be romantically involved with Interceptor pilot Mark Bradley ("Computer Affair"). She also appears to be attracted to Ed Straker, though nothing comes of this.

Col. Alec E. Freeman (George Sewell)

SHADO's first officer until about the three-quarter point in the series (when Sewell left following the change of studios). Freeman is Canadian - Straker sometimes calls him amicably "The Canadian" (in the French-dubbed version). A lady's man in his early 40s, Freeman is Straker's right hand man and, occasionally, his muscle. Everybody's pal at SHADO, Freeman takes a sardonic attitude towards some of the things Straker and SHADO must do to survive, and once submitted his resignation in protest over a decision ("Computer Affair"). Straker's closest friend and best man at his wedding, Freeman was the very first operative recruited into SHADO by Straker (as seen in "Confetti Check A-OK").

Gen. James Henderson (Grant Taylor)

Straker's superior officer, Henderson heads the International Astrophysical Commission, which is a front for SHADO and is responsible for obtaining funds and equipment from government in order to keep SHADO operational. Straker and Henderson butt heads frequently over the needs of SHADO and economic realities. The possibility exists that Straker and Henderson, once close friends, became estranged after Henderson effectively rammed the post of SHADO Commander down Straker's throat in "Confetti Check A-OK," which led to Straker's marriage falling apart.

Col. Virginia Lake (Wanda Ventham)

Virginia Lake first appears in the opening episode of the series ("Identified"), as a SHADO scientist and prospective romantic conquest for Alec Freeman. During the last quarter of the series, Lake returns to, ironically, take over the post of SHADO first officer, replacing Freeman. A computer specialist, she also served as Moonbase Commander. She was romantically involved with Paul Foster for a time. She initially has a somewhat tense working relationship with Straker, though by the end of the series they appear to have grown close and she is seen comforting him in the final scene of the final episode ("The Long Sleep").

Capt. Peter Carlin (Peter Gordeno)

During the first third of the series, Carlin is the commander of the submarine SkyDiver and pilot of its interceptor aircraft, Sky One. In 1970, Carlin and his sister found a UFO and were attacked; he was shot and wounded and his sister vanished. He joined SHADO in hopes of finding out what happened to his sister, and eventually learned that her organs had been harvested ("Identified").

Lt. Nina Barry (Dolores Mantez)

One of Straker's first recruits into SHADO (and in the unenviable position of being mistaken for the "other woman" whom Mary Nightingale blamed for Straker's estrangement from her), Barry works as a Space Tracker at Moonbase and later replaces Lt. Ellis as its commanding officer. She also serves aboard SkyDiver at one point ("Sub Smash"). One of several women attracted to Straker, she is the second most frequently appearing character in the series, appearing in 23 of 26 episodes.

Capt. Lew Waterman (Gary Myers)

Initially an Interceptor pilot on the Moon, Waterman is later promoted to captain and replaces Peter Carlin as commanding officer of SkyDiver and pilot of Sky One. He becomes a very close friend of Paul Foster's (as suggested in "Ordeal"). Given Gerry Anderson's business dealings in the 1960s with MCA-owned Universal, his name could well be a parody of veteran agent and studio head Lew Wasserman.

Lt. Keith Ford (Keith Alexander)

Former television interviewer who became a founding member of SHADO and its main communications officer. Actor Keith Alexander left the series after the production break, so the character disappears at the 2/3 mark of the series.

Lt. Ayshea Johnson (Ayshea Brough)

A SHADO headquarters officer in most episodes. Initially seen doing miscellaneous tasks stationed at a computer console, she's the woman seen turning in her seat to smile and wave at an (offscreen) Col. Alec Freeman in the opening credits she later becomes SHADO's communications officer following the departure of Lt. Ford. In her final appearance, she is stationed at Moonbase ("Mindbender"). Highly observant, she provides crucial information in the episode "The Cat with Ten Lives." NB: this character's full name is given in episode scripts but only referred to once on screen (in "The Sound of Silence"). In the credits she is identified only as Ayshea (as is the actress).

Dr. Douglas Jackson (Vladek Sheybal)

SHADO psychiatrist and science officer. A somewhat sinister-looking figure who sometimes appears to have his own agenda, Jackson serves a number of capacities within SHADO, including acting as prosecution officer during the court martial of Paul Foster. When Foster escapes custody after being found (falsely) guilty, Jackson successfully convinces General Henderson to have his guards use tranquilizer darts in their pursuit, rather than shooting to kill. It is implied that "Douglas Jackson" is not the character's birth name, as he speaks with a strong Eastern European accent. His origins, however, are never explored.

Lt. Joan Harrington (Antonia Ellis Antonia Ellis)

Another Moonbase Space Tracker, Harrington was one of the organisation's earliest ase recruits (as seen in "Confetti Check A A-OK").

Miss Ealand (Norma Ronald Norma Ronald)

SHADO operative masquerading as Straker's movie studio secretary. She is the first line of defence against anyone entering SHADO HQ via Straker's office/elevator. The character is not seen in most of the post studio change episodes, being replaced in two post-studio episodes by a Miss Holland (played by Lois Maxwell).

Lt. Mark Bradley (Harry Baird Harry Baird)

Caribbean-born Interceptor pilot based on the Moon. He becomes romantically involved born with Lt. Ellis for a time, leading to a temporary assignment at SHADO HQ on Earth, and later briefly assumes the position of Moonbase Commander. Baird left the series after filming four episodes, but appeared in stock footage in several later episodes. footage

Minor characters
One of the unnamed female Moonbase operatives was played by Shakira Baksh who Baksh, later married actor Michael Caine Producer Gerry Anderson later said that he had lost Caine. his temper with her so badly on the s of UFO, that he always feared the idea of set running into Michael Caine at some actors' function, and being punched in the nose by him.[2] , Steve Minto, one of the interceptor pilots, was played by the noted British actor Steven Berkoff.

Look of the show

Original Theme 30 Seconds of opening theme
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

It is never explained why female Moonbase personnel uniformly wore mauve or purple wigs, silver catsuits and extensive eye make-up (although it has been catsuits, up [by whom?] suggested it was to combat static electricity) and their unusual livery is never discussed in the series. Gerry Anderson has commented that it made them look more futuristic and that it filmed better under the bright lights, while Sylvia Anderson said she believed wigs would become accepted components of military uniforms by the 1980s. Whenever female Moonbase personnel visited

Earth (as Ellis and Barry did from time to time), their lunar uniforms and wigs were never worn. Ed Bishop, who had dark hair in real life, initially bleached his hair for Straker's unique white-haired look. He later began wearing a white wig when the bleaching began damaging his hair. Straker's unusual look may have been[citation needed] an attempt to make Bishop look like Captain Blue, the character he voiced in Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. Bishop, until not long before his death, possessed one of the wigs he wore on the show and took great delight in displaying it at science fiction conventions and on TV programmes. He also kept a Certina watch that was specially made for his character. Straker's look was one of the inspirations behind The Fast Show character 'Jazz Club's' Louis Balfour.[3] Many other male characters in the series also wore wigs, again because the Andersons felt that they would become fashionable for both sexes by the 1980s. Early episodes in which Michael Billington does not wear a wig can be identified by his receding hairline and long sideburns. On both SkyDiver and Moonbase, SHADO pilots enter their interceptor craft by sliding down tubes. This is an allusion to the Andersons' earlier series, Thunderbirds, which had the characters reaching their craft in similar fashion. This was due to the difficulty in getting a puppet into a cockpit easily and in a natural way. Ed Straker's dramatic gas turbine car, resembling somewhat the 1970 Citron SM, was, in fact, based on the chassis of a humble Ford Zephyr with a specially built aluminium body shell. There appear to have been only two cars made for the series, a prominently featured brown/gold car and a pink car with a larger hood opening. It appears that at some point in production the brown car was damaged because in some shots you can see one of the headlight openings has been covered in tape, one of the wheels has been replaced by a mismatched wheel, and the lead characters start using the pink car more frequently. The SHADO HQ and Moonbase control consoles, computer units, lighting panels and spacesuits make numerous appearances in later TV shows of the 1970s such as Doctor Who, Timeslip, Doomwatch, The Tomorrow People, The Goodies, The New Avengers, Star Maidens, and Blake's 7, as well as feature films such as Diamonds Are Forever, Carry On Loving, and Confessions of a Pop Performer. An alien spacesuit can also be seen in the Children's Film Foundation film Kadoyng. Sylvia Anderson, having had made a pair of very sheer trousers for actor Patrick Allen to wear in the episode "Timelash," later regretted not having had the nerve to ask him to wear a jock strap underneath, and commented on the DVD release of the series that "you should not be able to tell which side anybody's 'packet' is on." The futuristic, gull-winged cars driven by the Ed Straker and Paul Foster characters were originally built for the Anderson movie Doppelgnger (US title: Journey to the Far Side of the Sun). During the shooting of the UFO series, David Lowe and Sydney Carlton raised funds to form a company called "The Explorer Motor Company," dedicated to the mass production of these cars for sale to the public. A plastic mold was made of the Straker car, in preparation for mass production, but the company never got off the ground.[4] Both Ed Bishop and Michael Billington commented that the futuristic cars were "impossible to drive" (partly because the steering wheel was designed for looks, rather than functionality). Also, the gull-wing doors did not open automatically.

Every shot in which the car door was seen to open automatically had to be arranged so that a prop man could run up to the car, just outside of the frame, rop open the door, and hold it open while Ed Bishop stepped out. In certain episodes (most notably "Court Martial") the prop man can be seen. The episode "Survival" shows that the Moon base is in the Mare Imbrium, or in the northeast part of it, according to a map that Foster and an alien studied while they were stranded on the surface. The map is a real one.[5] On the Carlton DVD commentary for the first episode, Gerry Anderson noted that perhaps the programme's most dated aspect was its tobacco and alcohol consumption. (Though to be fair, in the 1980 of real life England and America, there was still plenty of smoking indoors, as well as executives with bars in their offices.) Straker has a futuristic home bar in his office, which dispenses whisky, bourbon, vodka, etc., from which Col. Freeman partakes fairly regularly. While , he himself does not drink, Straker is regularly seen smoking in SHADO headquarters, his tobacco of choice being either a cigarette or what appears to be a slim panatela cigar complete with holder. And despite the high-tech milieu and enclosed environments, smoking is seen throughout the show, as was par for course in 1970s British television drama. As a consequence, some of the sequences in the bunker of SHADO HQ are seen through a slight smoky fog. Similarly many of the medical staff smoke whilst on duty, and smoking is even permitted on board the closed environment of the SkyDiver, where C Capt. Carlin is shown idly flicking through magazines with a cigarette in hand. Most striking of all, Moonbase personnel also light up frequently. The Trimphone, a British model of telephone designed in the 1960s, was , telephone featured prominently in the series. The machine typing out information in the intro is, or is based on, an IBM Selectric electric Typewriter (likely a Mag Card or Mag Tape model) in action, using an Orator element. The first Selectric was released in 1961, eight years before the series was produced.

Predictions
This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability verifiability. UFO, which was filmed in 1969 and 1970, made a number of predictions about what 1969 life in the 1980s would be like, some of which have come true. Among the innovations predicted by the series:

Car telephones, a.k.a. cell phones. , Gull-wing doors on automobiles (Actually, these had been pioneered over a decade earlier in rea life, in the Mercedes-Benz 300SL, but were not widespread real , in 1969.) Spacecraft launched from an aircraft; as in the episode "Computer Affair" Extensive use of computers in day-to-day life, even to the extent of predicting day and analyzing human behaviour. Electronic fingerprint scanning and identification against a database database. Voice print identification systems also, vocal analysis used to identify systems; individuals in the same way as fingerprints.

Metadata and a space observatory (called an "electron telescope") ; as in the episode "Close Up". The episode "Survival" indicates that racial prejudice will have "burned itself out" on Earth in the mid-1970s, a prediction which did not come true. That cars would drive on the right-hand side of the road in the UK and be converted to left-hand drive, another prediction which did not come true. UFO also featured episodes dealing with issues that would become topical in later years, such as space junk and the disposal of toxic waste. Cordless telephones. (The three telephones on Straker's office desk had no cords between the handsets and the base.) MP3 players - In "Court Martial," Straker's secretary has one playing on her desk.

Episodes
Due to the then highly localised nature of the ITV "network" in the United Kingdom, the 26 episodes of UFO were shown out of production order, and every broadcaster showed the episodes in different order. As the list below (loosely based on information from the book The Complete Gerry Anderson) shows, on several occasions during the first run various broadcasters aired different episodes of the series on the same day. Some UK broadcasters did not air some episodes until 1973; as a result, some episode guides may list these episodes in different order. The North American DVD release of the series usually follows the production order, with a few diversions. The website ufoseries.com offers seven viewing order possibilities. According to The Complete Gerry Anderson, the episode "Exposed" was intended to be aired second, but it was produced fifth and appears as the fifth episode in the American DVD release. Episod Original Productio e air date Episode title Guest cast n order # (UK) Episode summary Episode notes

16 1-01 Septembe Identified r 1970

23 1-02 Septembe Exposed r 1970

After 10 years of planning, SHADO officially goes into operation Shane and encounters Rimmer, its first UFO. none Michael An alien pilot Mundell is captured and discovered to have transplanted human organs. Jean When civilian Marsh, test pilot Paul Robin Foster none Bailey, inadvertently Basil Moss, witnesses a Arthur SHADO

Cox, Matt Zimmerma n, Vladek Sheybal 30 1-03 Septembe Kill Straker! 16 r 1970

30 The Cat Septembe With Ten 1-04 r 1970 Lives

19

7 1-05 October Conflict 1970

7 1-06 October E.S.P. 1970

15

7 The Sound 1-07 October Of Silence 1970

18

operation, he is given a choice: join SHADO or die. Foster and his lunar module David co-pilot are Sumner, none brainwashed by Louise Pajo aliens to kill Straker. Alexis Kanner, Geraldine A SHADO Moffatt, pilot is placed Steven under a Berkoff, hypnotic spell none Windsor by an alienDavies, influenced Colin Siamese cat. Gordon, Lois Maxwell After Lunar Module 32 is mysteriously destroyed, Drewe Straker none Henley campaigns to have space junk removed from Earth's orbit. John Stratton, A man with Douglas ESP Wilmer, knowledge of none Deborah SHADO is coStanford, opted by the Stanley aliens. McGeagh Michael Jayston, Susan Jameson, A showjumper Richard is abducted by none Vernon, the aliens. Gito Santana, Basil Moss,

Burnell Tucker, Tom Oliver, Malcolm Reynolds Straker faces a terrible decision: attend to an alien defector or none deliver lifesaving medicine to his critically injured son. SHADO as well as an alien find themselves in the middle none of a murderous romantic triangle.

14 A Question 8 1-08 October Of Priorities 1970

Suzanne Neve, Philip Madoc, Mary Merrall

11 The Square 11 1-09 Novembe Triangle r 1970

Adrienne Corri, Patrick Mower, Allan Cuthbertso n, Anthony Chinn, Godfrey James

11 1-10 Novembe Sub Smash r 1970

17

2 1-11 Decembe Destruction 20 r 1970

1-12 9

Computer

This is the only episode where Sky 1 Anthony Straker must is launched Chinn, Paul face his 10 degrees Maxwell, claustrophobia down. Also, Alan when SkyDiver the UFO's Haywood, is damaged and shape differs Burnell is unable to from those Tucker surface. shown in all other episodes. Stephanie Beacham, Philip The aliens The UFOs Madoc, attempt to have direct Edwin destroy a naval military Richfield, ship dumping battles with Steven toxic nerve gas the British Berkoff, into the ocean. Royal Navy. Jimmy Winston Michael A SHADO none

Decembe Affair r 1970

Mundell

investigation reveals that romance may be complicating Moonbase operations. SHADO obtains what may be the first none photos of the alien homeworld. This is the only episode that shows one (1) The aliens SkyDiver transform three with Sky 3 humans into attached, with walking mention of a bombs. Sky 4 jet indicating a fleet of submarines.

16 1-13 Decembe Close Up r 1970

13

30 The 1-14 Decembe Psychobomb 22 r 1970 s

Neil Hallett, Peter Burton, John Levene, Alan Tucker David Collings, Deborah Grant, Mike Pratt, Tom Adams, Alexander Davion, Christopher Timothy, Hans De Vries

1-15

6 January Survival 1971

In this episode, Straker says that racial prejudice burned itself out "five Suzan years ago;" Farmer, Foster is this said on Gito stranded on the 13 April Santana, Moon, where 1981. In the David he befriends a other Weston, similarly Anderson Ray stranded alien. series, Space: Armstrong 1999, Cmdr. Koenig hints that prejudice was finally ended in a great conflict about 1012

13 1-16 January 1971

Mindbender 25

20 1-17 January 1971

Flight Path

20 1-18 January 1971

Ordeal

years prior to 1999. Ed Straker hallucinates that he is an actor in a television series about UFOs and aliens. He then steps out Stuart of the set and Damon, onto the realCharles world sound Tingwell, stage where Anouska UFO is Hempel, filmed, and Philip An alien we can see all Madoc, crystal causes the sets that Steven Lieutenant were used to Berkoff, Andy Conroy, film the Peter Straker and series. Also, Halliday, other SHADO in Straker's Basil operatives to hallucination, Dignam, hallucinate. all the actors Stephan (except Ed Chase, Bishop) are James called by their Marcus, real names: Stanley Paul Foster is McGeagh called "Mike" (as in Mike Billington), General Henderson is called "Grant" (as in Grant Taylor), and so on. A blackmailed SHADO George operative opens Cole, Sonia the door for a none Fox, David possible alien Daker attack on Moonbase. David Includes "Get The aliens Healy, Back" by The abduct Foster. Quinn Beatles at the

O'Hara

3 The Man 1-19 February Who Came 1971 Back

21

Derren Nesbitt, Lois Maxwell, Roland Culver, David Savile

A SHADO pilot believed dead suddenly turns up alivemuch to a SHADO operative's suspicion.

10 The Dalotek 7 1-20 February Affair 1971

Tracy Reed, Philip Latham, Basil Moss, John Breslin, Clinton Greyn, Dr. Frank E. Stranges, David Weston, Alan Tucker

Communicatio ns problems at Moonbase are traced to a nonSHADO mining operation.

party in this episode, released in 1969about the same time this episode was filmed originally. Straker and his close friend fly to "The Cape" and travel to orbit in a rocket rather than the usual spaceplane. SHADO seems to have ties to NASA. The president of the Dalotek corporation speaks to Commander Straker who is in his office under the film studio. The president of Dalotek does not seem surprised that Straker the film producer and Straker the commander appear to be the same person. This episode features another base on the moon and communicatio n between it and the

SHADO base. Time stands still at the film Patrick studio for Allen, Ron everyone but Pember, Straker, Col. John J. Lake and a Carney mysterious enemy. Straker is attracted to a Jane reporter who Merrow, poses a none Patrick possible Jordan security leak to SHADO. It is often reported that the references Tessa A woman to drug use in Wyatt, awakening this episode Christian from a decade- led to several Roberts, long coma regional John sparks a hunt networks Garrie, for an alien dropping it Christopher bomb. from the Robbie original UK run, but this is a fallacy. Jack Hedley, Pippa Steel, Louise Foster is tried Pajo, and sentenced Georgina to death after a none Cookson, security leak is Tutte traced to him. Lemkow, Paul Greenhalgh Suzanne A flashback This episode Neve, episode continues the Shane focusing on creation of Rimmer, SHADO's SHADO Jeffrey formation and CONTROL Segal, Tom how it caused (in the Oliver, the failure of episode's Donald Straker's past). Pelmear, marriage.

17 1-21 February Timelash 1971

24

1-22

The 3 March Responsibilit 10 1971 y Seat

1-23

1 April 1971

The Long Sleep

26

1-24

1 May 1971

Court Martial

12

1-25

10 July 1971

Confetti Check AO.K.

14

Geoffrey Hinsliff, Jack May, Alan Tilvern, Gordon Sterne The massive UFO attack battle scene at the end was almost entirely a compilation of special effects shots from previous episodes. Four Straker and interceptor Foster missiles are investigate an seen to be undersea alien launched, base. implying that a spare craft was launched for the emergency. The terrestrial portion of the battle seemed to suggest that Sky 1 took out 25 UFOs unassisted.

24 July 1-26 1971

Reflections In The Water

23

Steven Berkoff, James Cosmo, Richard Caldicot, David Warbeck, Anouska Hempel, Gordon Sterne, Conrad Phillips, Gerald Cross

A number of episodes were edited together in the late 1970s to form the feature-length Invasion: UFO, which was syndicated to American and European broadcasters. It primarily consists of approximately 30 minutes each from Identified, Computer Affair, and Reflections in the Water, with the ending taken from The Man Who Came Back. Shorter segments from ESP and Confetti Check A-OK are used to bridge continuity gaps.

UFO stories in other media

Stories set in the Gerry Anderson UFO series have appeared in various media:

Two novelizations based upon the series were published in the UK and America.[6] In the comics "Countdown" and "TV Action";[7] In 1991 to 1999 Entropy Express in Brighton, South Australia published 7 issues of a periodical called Flightpath, containing 39 text stories set in the UFO scenario. These include a crossover with Bergerac, and a crossover with Predator. There was a hardback annual for the series featuring text stories. There were also hardback annuals for the Countdown and TV Action comics featuring comic strips. Much fan-fiction has been written in this series's scenario. An Italian-language board game of the race game type was published, called Distruggete Base Luna (= "Destroy Moonbase"), with up to 4 players, each representing an alien trying to penetrate Moonbase, and one player representing Straker in charge of Moonbase. In video games the retro science fiction "UFO: Enemy Unknown" is heavily inspired by this series.[8] Aliens have attacked planet earth aiming to bio-harvest our organs. You play as the top secret Extraterrestrial Combat Unit, shooting down UFOs fter sightings using Interceptors and transporting your men using the Skyranger (Skydiver reference) to investigate crash sites. The main poster race of the series, the Mutons, are bio-engineered humanoids controlled telepathically from the Alien homeworld by an unseen race. Later in the game it becomes clear that the Aliens can use telepathy to control your soldiers, also as in The Cat With Ten Lives. In the sequel "X-COM: Terror from the Deep" Aliens have built liveable environments in the sea forcing you to go on "scubadiving" missions to find and destroy their main control centre as seen in the finale of Reflections In The Water. Interestingly, much like the series portrays Edward Straker's point of view you must play the role of making cold and analytic decisions to deal with the growing Alien threat, often resulting in permanently losing some of your team mates found in X-COM. Also, Aliens not killed during a crash landing or battle but captured go under autopsy to further your understanding on the Aliens' motives, the best example being Computer Affair.

Revivals
Several attempts have been made to either revive or remake the series. The first attempt, as mentioned above, evolved into Space: 1999. In the 1990s and early 2000s there were scattered reports of production companies around the world investigating the possibility of producing a new TV series or film, most recently in 2003 when Carlton International Media (current rights holders for the series) announced that an American company was planning to produce a new series.[citation needed] But as of 2007, nothing had yet come of this. Australian company Bump Map run by Albert Hastings pitched a revival of UFO to one of Australia's major TV production companies in 1995/6. Also in 1996, Ed Bishop briefly corresponded with independent Australian film maker/UFO fan Adrian

Sherlock about an unofficial revival called Damon Dark: Shadofall. The project funding fell through but the script has been made into a fan-made audio production and uploaded to YouTube and continues as an independent series.

Film
In May 2009 it was announced that producer Robert Evans and ITV Global would be teaming up to produce a big screen adaptation of the series. Ryan Gaudet and Joseph Kanarek were writing the script, which would be set in the year 2020.[9] On 23 July 2009, it was revealed that the UFO movie would see visual effects supervisor Matthew Gratzner make his directorial debut.[10] On 23 November 2009, it was confirmed that Joshua Jackson would be playing the role of Paul Foster,[11] and that the spring start of the movie would be in summer 2010.[12] Ali Larter was also linked to the role of Col. Virginia Lake in the movie. A note from the Producer's of UFO, Avi Haas and Matthew Gratzner, posted on the main page of the official UFO Movie website[13] stating that the film is under development and currently planned for a Summer 2013 release. UK website, Fanderson,[14] has a post dated 10 July 2011 reporting the note, indicating that as of the summer of 2011, the production is still in the planning stages.[15] Contrary to initial reports that SHADO HQ would be located underneath a Hollywood studio, director Gratzner confirmed in an interview that the base would be situated in Britain. The degree to which other elements of the TV show (the design of the UFOs, for example) would be replicated in the film was unknown as of early March 2011, though Gratzner did state that the aliens would be humanoid in form.

Translations

French: Alerte dans lespace German: Ufo - Weltraumkommando S.H.A.D.O. Japanese: Nazo no Enban Y-Efu- ( UFO, UFO: Mysterious Soser) Spanish: OVNI (Although the Spanish 2007 DVD release title remains "UFO")

See also

Threshold, an American series broadcast in 2005 with noted similarities to UFO. The Indestructible Man, a Doctor Who novel with a scenario derived from various Gerry Anderson story scenarios, including UFO. X-Com, a computer game series whose plot and basis were heavily influenced by UFO.

References
1. ^ Distinctive UFO sound can be heard here: "UFO Sound Effects". Ufoseries.com. http://www.ufoseries.com/soundEffects/index.html. Retrieved 21 May 2009. 2. ^ UFO DVD commentary track, disc 1, episode 1 - A&E/Carlton 2003 3. ^ "The Fast Show". Comedy Connections. 2006. 4. ^ http://www.cloudster.com/Sets&Vehicles/UFO_Car/StrakerCar.htm

5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

10. 11. 12.

13. 14. 15.

^ http://www.lpi.usra.edu/resources/mapcatalog/usgs/I463/ ^ http://ufoseries.com/books/index.html ^ http://ufoseries.com/magazines/comics.html ^ http://www.next-gen.biz/features/making-x-com-enemy-unknown ^ By (20 July 2008). "Robert Evans, ITV team for 'UFO' film - Entertainment News, Cannes News, Media". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118004006.html?categoryid=3628&cs=1&nid=256 2. Retrieved 21 May 2009. ^ Fleming, Michael (22 July 2009). "Vfx guru set to captain 'UFO' film". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118006352.html?categoryid=13&cs=1. ^ Variety ^ However, as of early 2011, no filming dates had been confirmed, and no further productions updates had been issued, which suggested that the project either had stalled or was "on ice." British TV Invasion Series 'UFO' Being Adapted for Big Screen ^ http://www.ufo-themovie.com/ ^ http://fanderson.org.uk ^ http://www.fanderson.org.uk/news/UFO_film_announcement.html

External links

UFO at the Internet Movie Database UFO at TV.com UFO at the BFI's Screenonline UFO Movie Official Site UFO Episode Guide, web site of the official Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society UFO series home page Episode guide of the Countdown and TV Action comic-strip stories Italian Section of SHADO home page

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