Author: 1266 Nick Williams

45 FAB Years of charity fundraising

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Have you won in our 45 FAB Years charity fundraising event?

As part of our 45th birthday celebrations, throughout August we’ve been auctioning and raffling a selection of items, many from the club’s rich history, to raise money for Prostate Cancer UK.

Congratulations to everyone listed below. Your items will be posted shortly!

Thanks to Najmie Allette, Candace Brereton, Stephen Brown, Dave Clarke, Maggy Harris, Matt Jones, Anthony Proctor, Lynn Simpson and Nick Williams for their generous donations. If you have something that you’d like to donate for our future fundraising efforts, please get in touch at fanderson.org.uk@outlook.com with details.

In the meantime, you can add to the total raised so far by buying one of our charity donation items.

Finally, as Fanderson members choose our charity of the year, if you’d like to suggest a charity for us to support next year, write to us at fanderson.org.uk@outlook.com. Tell us about them and why you think we should support them.

20th August – AUCTION: Harlington-Straker hi-vis vest Paolo Malaguti

19th August – RAFFLE: Tracy Island News FAB2 special Keith Campbell

18th August – AUCTION: HD21 convention pack Brian Heywood

17th August – AUCTION: Space:1999 stationery Cathy Bone

16th August – AUCTION: SiG 11 Lyndsay Jones

15th August – RAFFLE: Supercelebration tote bag Lyndsay Jones

14th August – AUCTION: Edinburgh Exhibition brochure David Gardner

13th August – AUCTION: SiG 12 Lyndsay Jones

12th August – RAFFLE: Terrahawks soundtrack CD William Squires

11th August – AUCTION: Century 21 Script Book Mark Wrighton

10th August – AUCTION: SiG 13 Lyndsay Jones

9th August – AUCTION: Stingray stationery Lynda Pinfold

8th August – AUCTION: Thunderbirds and International Rescue book Keith Campbell

7th August – AUCTION: SiG 14 unsold

6th August – RAFFLE: Captain Scarlet art prints (un-numbered) Lynda Pinfold

5th August – AUCTION: UFO stationery unsold

4th August – AUCTION: SiG 15 Nigel Williams

3rd August – RAFFLE: Ghost Stands Budgie Supercar Brian Heywood

2nd August – AUCTION: Parker Mug William Dean

1st August – RAFFLE: Imprint Supercar BD boxset Brian Heywood

 

The Eagle Obsession to be screened at Manchester: 1999

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

The Eagle Obsession (and Beyond…) to be screened at Manchester: 1999

Fans of Space: 1999 will have a special opportunity this September as filmmaker Jeffrey Morris travels to the United Kingdom for Manchester: 1999 – A 50th Anniversary Celebration, taking place 11th-13th September, 2026, at the Holiday Inn Manchester-Oldham.

On Saturday, 12th September, Morris will screen The Eagle Obsession, a visually stunning feature-length documentary that investigates the origins of the iconic Eagle Transporter and ongoing global impact of a unique moment in human history. He will return on Sunday, 13th September, for a screening of Beyond the Eagle Obsession, which continues the story by highlighting the passion and dedication of Space:1999 and Eagle fans around the world. Beyond the Eagle Obsession features tributes to Brian Johnson and Gerry Anderson.

Manchester: 1999 celebrates the 50th anniversary of the premiere of Space:1999 and will bring together fans from across the globe for a weekend of special guests, presentations, exhibits, and memorabilia. Attendees will also have the opportunity to view original props, models, costumes, and set pieces from the classic series.

Click here for tickets and event information and here for special rates for Fanderson members.

[UPDATED] FAB Book Of Activity Books volume 1

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

UPDATE 29/8/26: A small number of the first books to be dispatched were mailed without the free specification guide, in error. The guide has been posted separately.

Our latest FAB Book Of…, available to pre-order on our 45th birthday!

45 years ago today Fanderson was formed by Gerry Anderson, ITC and representatives of various fans groups. As well as our 45 FAB Years special offers and charity fundraising (which are both running the entire month of August), today we’re launching the latest in our FAB Book Of… series.

This first volume of Fanderson’s guide book to Anderson activity books details the different ways we were encouraged to paint, colour in, dot-to-dot, dress up, complete puzzles, affix stickers and more to get our off-screen fix of Twizzle, Four Feather Falls, Supercar, Fireball XL5, Stingray, Thunderbirds, UFO, Space:1999, Terrahawks and Space Precinct. As there was just too much to fit into a single book, work is already underway on a follow-up volume to complete the story!

You can pre-order your copy now, and every order including the new book before 1st October will also be sent a free reproduction specification guide.

Space City 2027 convention

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Contact us if you have any queries.

DangerZone Productions in conjunction with Fanderson Presents…

…at Weetwood Hall, Leeds 19th – 21st March 2027

Join fellow Anderson fans to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Andersons’ first legendary public exhibition in Blackpool – Space City – from 1977 which featured original models, sets, puppets and props from Supercar to Space:1999 and beyond. Plus the 45th anniversary of Fanderson 81, the very first convention dedicated to the Anderson’s work which was at the Dragonara hotel in Leeds in 1981.

This full weekend event will pay tribute not only to the Andersons but also to the people behind the scenes that brought the magic to life! The first confirmed guests are:

      • a lady who has worked on all the puppet shows from 1959, chief puppet supervisor/director Mary Turner.
      • we are also honoured to have camera operator and director Alan Perry who has worked on Anderson shows from Fireball XL5 to UFO.
      • Keith Alexander (from Thunderbirds to UFO) will also be joining us live from Australia on the big screen
      • and Paul Weston from Space:1999 and The Protectors has also confirmed his attendance.

We are also hoping to have Martin Bower, who was at the first Fanderson convention, and Steve Begg who worked with Gerry Anderson on his later work in attendance. Former Fanderson committee member Keith Jones, who was also at the first Fanderson convention, will be giving a talk on the history and importance of TV21. Plus there will be more guests still to be confirmed.

There will be high quality screenings of space themed episodes on the big screen with guest interviews based on these episodes. On the Saturday evening there will be a delicious buffet followed by the ‘See You Down There’ fancy dress party. There will be a prize for the best outfit, the DJ will be none other than Sam Loover himself and the music from across the decades will be space themed.

The event will showcase original and replica models and puppets. There will be a fun quiz and two raffles with fantastic prizes plus lots more still to be confirmed!

And, of course, there will be plenty of time to socialise with your fellow Anderson fans too!

All delegates will receive a collectable event programme plus a supplement, a souvenir badge and a goody bag! Registration starts at just £120 until 1st November when the price will increase to £140.

Register your place now at fanderson.org.uk.

We have arranged bed and breakfast accommodation at Weetwood Hall Hotel, Leeds at just £79 for single occupancy or £99 for double occupancy per night, including breakfast. Delegates must book their own accommodation once their event registration is confirmed. To book accommodation at the hotel at our special room rate you can either:

  1. Book online https://weetwood.co.uk/book/ and use the promo code EVENTBB
  2. Call and speak to a member of the Reservations Team 0113 230 6000 mentioning that you are attending this event which staff may know as ‘The Gerry Anderson Exhibition’ and request our discount rate
  3. Email our Reservations Team reservations@weetwood.co.uk who will call you back to complete your booking.

All profits go to children’s cancer research UK and Barnardo’s children’s charity.

Your summer mailing is underway!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

The postman’s on his way with your summer mailing!

FAB Express 113 was posted today to all Fanderson members. As well as all the Anderson news and your views, this issue reports on both 54321FAB! The Future Was Fantastic! in Worcester and Project Johnson: UFOria3 in Cookham, takes a FlashBack to UFO Identified and includes tributes to both special effects supremo Brian Johnson and honorary Fanderson member Doug Pelton. Plus, you could win a Stingray Blu-ray boxset, courtesy of ViaVision!

Being the summer mailing, it’s also that time when we invite you all to renew your club membership. Mailed with FAB Express 113 is a short letter that explains how to renew your membership – ensure you do it by 1st October and you can save money with your Loyalty Discount (explained in the letter). Once you’ve got your Loyalty Discount code, you can renew your membership from this page. As long as we’ve got your renewal by 1st October you’ll be included in the winter mailing, comprising FAB Express 114 and FAB Annual 2027.

With this mailing we’ve completed the 2025/6 membership year, so FAB Annual 2026 is now available in the shop, if anyone has missed an issue or wants an extra copy.

Finally, don’t forget that as this is the club’s 45th anniversary month we’re offering a blistering 45% off a huge range of members-only exclusive merchandise, and you can help us raise money for Prostate Cancer UK.

Thank you all so much – are you a winner?

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Thank you to everyone who took part in our 2024 advent calendar – raising funds for our charity of the year, chosen by Fanderson members – Demelza.

Throughout December we offered a variety of lucky dips, charity raffles and charity auctions. Together, we’ve made a great start in our fundraising for the year. We’re still in the process of totting up all the takings, but will confirm the figure in FAB Express.

Thanks also, once again for the generosity of donations from Najmie Allette, Stephen Brown, Dan Buckley, Matt Buckley, Catherine Ford, David Leach, Christina Lima, Andrew Staton and Nick Williams. If you have something that you’d like to donate for next year’s fundraising efforts, please get in touch at fanderson.org.uk@outlook.com with details.

Below we’ve listed the lucky winners of each item. We’ll be in touch with auction winners in the next few days to arrange payment, and will then post the items. We’ll start posting raffle and lucky dip prizes next week.

CHARITY AUCTIONS

Highest bid from Lyndsay Jones

Highest bid from Stephen Carson

Highest bid from Martin Ackroyd

Highest bid from Robert Hill

Highest bid from Lyndsay Jones

Highest bid from Nigel Williams

Highest bid from Stephen Bushell

Highest bid from George O’Hara

CHARITY RAFFLES

Winning ticket bought by Ian Haworth

Winning ticket bought by Gary Davis

Winning ticket bought by Andrew Biggs

Winning ticket bought by Christian Tarpey

Winning ticket bought by William Squires

Winning ticket bought by Lyndsay Jones

Winning ticket bought by Chris Drake

Winning ticket bought by Elizabeth Stanway

Winning ticket bought by William Squires

Winning ticket bought by Mark Wrighton

Winning ticket bought by Keith Jones

Winning ticket bought by William Squires

FREE LUCKY DIPS

Won by Keith Jones and Mark Wrighton

Won by Andrew Scott

Won by Andrew Scott

Won by Dean Bommer

See our ongoing Charity Fundraising items, sales of which are also helping Demelza.

Advent Calendar terms and conditions apply, in addition to Fanderson’s standing Terms and Conditions.

Cor blimey, mi’lady, what a whopper!

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Over the last 12 months Fanderson members have helped to raise an amazing £6978.81 for Actors’ Benevolent Fund, from activities including 2023 advent calendar, Summer Solstice Spectacular and special items available for a donation to the charity.

Parker’s on his way now to ABF with a whopper of a cheque!

Alison Wyman, CEO of Actors’ Benevolent Fund, says:

“A huge THANK YOU from the Actors’ Benevolent Fund (ABF) to all Fanderson members who have kindly donated to support the work of the ABF. The trustees of the ABF are very grateful for your support which will enable us to help more actors and stage managers in need.

We know these are challenging times for the performing arts profession, with fewer opportunities for actors and stage managers. This has created significant financial pressures as well as challenges with mental health and wellbeing.

In 2024 we launched a new strategy for the future ‘Acting for Impact, which has the aim of helping more people in more ways to achieve meaningful and sustainable change. So far we have developed new types of grant support and also launched wellbeing workshops and webinars. This year we are on track to directly help more people than last year, and we aim to help even more people next year!

The support from Fanderson members will help us to achieve that, and so from us to you a great big THANK YOU!”

Fanderson has a great reputation for supporting worthwhile causes, and over the club’s 43 years members have raised in excess of £60,000 for the likes of Alzheimers Society, Baby Lifeline, Children In Need, Diabetes UK, The Film And TV Charity, Hearing Dogs For Deaf People, Macmillan Cancer Support, Orchid, Silverline, Terrence Higgins Trust, Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Appeal and many more.

Our 2023/4 fundraising is in aid of Demelza. Our first fundraising even for them is our 2024 Advent Calendar with offers right up to Christmas Eve, and many then running until 31st December.

Special thanks to Chris King for the cheque presentation.

Thank you so much!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Throughout December we ran another online advent calendar of offers, raffles, lucky dips and ‘blind’ auctions – many to raise vital funds for our 2024 charity, Actors’ Benevolent Fund. We’re still finalising the figures, but it looks like you’ve already exceeded last year’s charity fundraising total – well into four figures! We’ll publish the final figure in FAB Express 106 in the spring.

Thanks so much to our generous donors and everyone who bought raffle tickets, charity items or bid in the auctions!

We’ll start mailing the various prizes and auction lots next week.

Remember that we still have a range of items available in return for a donation to our charity. As a reminder, here’s a reminder of what was in our Advent Calendar:

24th – Charity Add-on International Concerto soundtrack

23rd – Charity Auction – Duchess of Royston figurine (highest bidder Robert Hill)

22nd – Charity Raffle – Space Precinct shirts (won by Stephen Carson, Larry Peterson and Christian Tarpey)

21st – Charity Auction – Fanderson 82 convention brochure (highest bidder Keith Campbell)

20th – Charity Add-on – Great Themes From Thunderbirds mini album

19th – Charity Raffle – Robert Harrop Zero X (won by Robert Hill)

18th – Charity Auction – Takara Tomy Pod Builder (highest bidder Ian Haworth)

17th – Free Lucky Dip – Thunderbirds movie book (won by Jentsje Veenstra)

16th – Charity Auction – Four Feather Falls soundtrack (highest bidder Alex Bulgo)

15th – Free Lucky Dip – Robert Harrop Sidewinder (won by Martin Ashworth

14th – Charity Raffle – Thunderbirds Are Go notebook (won by Stephen Bushell)

13th – Charity Auction – Bond & Beyond brochure (highest bidder Keith Campbell)

12th – Charity Item – Supercar and Fireball XL5 soundtrack (still available)

11th – Free Lucky Dip – Thunderbirds DVDs (won by Christopher Coombs)

10th – Charity Auction – Robert Harrop UFO (highest bidder Robert Hill)

9th – Charity Add-on – Sleeping Astronauts soundtrack sampler

8th – Charity Auction – Thunderbirds movies soundtrack (highest bidder Keith Jones)

7th – Free Lucky Dip – 100 Thunderbirds postcards (won by Patricia Caminada)

6th – Charity Item – Space City window sticker (still available)

5th – Charity Auctions – five Space Precinct uniform shirts (highest bidders Stephen Bushell, David Sisson and Christian Tarpey)

4th – Charity Add-on – Journey To The Moon mini album

3rd – Charity Raffle – Thunderbirds Monopoly (won by Stephen Bushell)

2nd – Charity Auction – Robert Harrop Parker (highest bidder Robert Hill)

1st – Charity Raffle – Scalextric FAB 1 (won by LM Jones)

An heroic deed indeed!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Over the last 12 months Fanderson members have helped to raise £750 for Hearing Dogs For Deaf People, from activities including 2022 advent calendar, Easter Egg Hunt and special items available for a donation to the charity.

Fire control expert Jason Smith, just back from his latest assignment, graciously accepted a cheque from Fanderson on behalf of the charity before he was called away to an incident at an oil rig in the Middle East. Before leaving he thanked the club and its members and wished everyone a very Merry Christmas.

Sarah Squirrell, of Hearing Dogs, said:

“Thanks to everyone at Fanderson for the kind gift of £750.

Your special gift will help train life-changing hearing dogs and allow us to provide long-term support for our hearing dog partnerships.

At Hearing Dogs, the training and support we provide does not end when the dog is placed with their partner. We provide ongoing help and further training to deal with life changes whether they are planned or unexpected.

Starting university is a huge change for anyone but as a deaf student with a hearing dog, there were some extra things Ana had to think about, including some additional training for her hearing dog, Valley. Together with a Hearing Dogs trainer, Valley was gradually introduced to lecture theatres and labs and learnt how to settle under Ana’s chair during lectures. Ana has now been invited to train with the England Deaf Women’s football team and, as for Valley, she is loving all the extra attention from Ana’s teammates!

Once again, we would like to thank you very much for your support.”

Fanderson has a great reputation for supporting worthwhile causes, and over the club’s 42 years members have raised in excess of £50,000 for the likes of Alzheimers Society, Baby Lifeline, Children In Need, Diabetes UK, The Film And TV Charity, Macmillan Cancer Support, Orchid, Silverline, Terrence Higgins Trust, Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Appeal and many more. To the left of Jason in the photo is our statue of SHADO, from our funding of a guide dog for the blind in 1996.

Our 2023/4 fundraising is in aid of Actors’ Benevolent Fund. Remember that the 2023 Advent Calendar is still running with most offers valid until 31st December.

Special thanks to Lynn Simpson and Stephen Brown for the cheque presentation.