Author: 1266 Nick Williams

Support Lego Ideas Thunderbird 2!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

In 2019, thousands of club members and fans supported Andrew Clark’s Lego Ideas project. Sadly, though it reached the 10,000 supporters to be included in the official review by Lego, it wasn’t selected to become a set that we could all buy.

Now, Andrew has re-worked his project to ditch the interchangeable Thunderbirds/Thunderbirds Are Go elements to be solely the classic Thunderbird 2 from the Thunderbirds TV series. Read more and pledge your support now by clicking here.

Lego Ideas was set up so that budding Lego set designers could see their design made into sets that we could all buy. Fans can click to support the designs they like and, if a project gets over 10,000 supporters, it goes on to be assessed by the Lego team as a potential set.

Since Lego Ideas was set up in 2010 (as Lego Cuusoo), 35 sets have been produced on a wide range of topics. Andrew Clark has been luckier than most budding designers, as his Doctor Who and The Flintstones sets were both chosen to become reality.

You can see more Anderson designs on the Lego Ideas site.

The Bray Studios Productions auction – 30th November

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

A huge cache of over 200 models, puppets, photos, toys, document, films, pre-production drawings and much more is to go up for auction on 30th November 2020.

The collection was the property of Anderson Burr employee Julian Bell, who died recently, and includes items from Terrahawks, Dick Spanner and Space Police, plus work for abandoned projects including Strike Force and T-Force.

Whilst a collection of this size and variety comes up very rarely, for many the jewel in the collection with be the original studio Captain Ochre head, from Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons.

You can view the full catalogue in advance of the auction on 30th November, where you can also register for live online bidding.

 

Replica Captain Blue coming soon

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Big Chief Studios was founded by Mark Andrews and Tony Leetham in 2011 to manufacture high-end figures and collectables, and have worked with Fanderson club members to ensure their Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet characters are as accurate as possible.

Figures currently available for pre-order include:

And coming soon, to accompany their previous Captain Scarlet figure will be Adam Svenson himself – Captain Blue!

Big Chief’s full range includes characters from Star Wars, Doctor Who, Lord Of The Rings and more. Check out the whole range here.

New UFO and Space:1999 models on pre-order

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Sixteen 12, which has long specialised in high quality reproductions of models from Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s Thunderbirds, UFO and Space:1999 is now taking pre-orders for new models, including:

UFO Alien saucer

Space:1999 War Games

Space:1999 action figure collection

Space:1999 electronic stun gun and commlock

You can see all the pre-order items here. Check out their retro range too, to bring back memories of those odd-coloured Dinky toys of the 70s!

Happy 39th Birthday, Fanderson!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

39 years ago today, representatives from clubs Anderpup and the Century 21 Appreciation Society, the Fanderson 81 convention and ATV Licensing met with legendary TV and film producer Gerry Anderson at Pinewood Studios.

Together, they pooled their ideas and talents to form the world’s only official appreciation society for the work of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson.

On behalf of all Fanderson members, a big THANK YOU to Gerry Anderson, Pam Barnes, Mark Jones, Barbara Kitson, Chris Leach, David Nightingale, Phil Rae, Keith Shackleton, Brendan Sheehan and John Williams for giving our club such a great start.

39 years on and the club’s going stronger than ever, so thanks to all Fanderson members – especially the committee members over the years and those who have made a significant contribution (recognised as a Friend Of Fanderson or Life Member).

Join us in celebrating today with something bubbly, and you can read more about Fanderson’s beginnings here.

 

Celebrate 50 years of UFO!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

What better way to celebrate 50 years of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s groundbreaking series UFO than with a great read – the long-awaited UFO Annual 1972!

Like most Anderson series there was a UFO Annual produced to accompany the broadcasts, but just the one volume for 1971. Exclusive to Fanderson is this follow-up book, full of features about the series and SHADO, two brand new stories starring your favourite UFO characters and three new exclusive cutaways.

Whilst reading the Annual, why not relax with Barry Gray’s cool soundtrack, courtesy of our 4-CD boxset. And we’ve got lots of other UFO items in the Shop too!

We’re expecting stock of the UFO Annual 1972 in time for the series’ 50th anniversary on 16th September 2020, and you can sure to be among the first to get your copy by pre-ordering from 1st September.

Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, UFO and Space:1999 on Britbox from 20th August

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

After dipping their toe in the water with a selection of episodes this spring, Britbox (the digital video subscription service created by the BBC and ITV) will launch a raft of cult favourites on 20th August 2020 (coincidentally, Fanderson’s 39th anniversary).

The Out Of This World Collection will be available exclusively on BritBox (in the UK), and includes:

Thunderbirds (1965)

The initial ten episode collection is being expanded and will now feature all 32 episodes of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s cult Supermarionation series.

Also included are the three mini-episodes, based on 1960s mini albums and crowd-funded by fans for Thunderbirds’ 50th anniversary in 2015.

Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons (1967)

All 32 episodes of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s cult Supermarionation series chronicling Captain Scarlet’s battle to save Earth from a Mysteron invasion.

UFO (1970)

All 26 episodes of the British sci-fi series set in 1980 as Earth is being invaded by aliens fleeing their dying planet and seeking human organs to extend their lifespan. Specialist task force SHADO (Supreme Headquarters Alien Defence Organisation), headed by Commander Ed Straker (Ed Bishop), must defend Earth against these mysterious hostile creatures while containing knowledge of them to avoid widespread panic.

Space:1999 (1975)

Every episode of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s popular science fiction series. Commander Koenig (Martin Landau) and the crew of Moonbase Alpha face various alien threats as they drift, powerless, throughout space.

The Prisoner (1967)

All 17 episodes of the television drama created by and starring Patrick McGoohan. A former British secret agent is abducted and held captive in a strange coastal village while those who captured him try to discover the truth of why he suddenly resigned from his position.

Sapphire And Steel (1979)

The complete collection featuring all six seasons and 34 episodes from the 1980s sci-fi series starring Joanna Lumley and David McCallum as Sapphire and Steel, the mysterious agents charged with protecting the universe from the malevolent forces of time with their uncanny powers. Created by P.J. Hammond.

Randall And Hopkirk (Deceased) (1969)

The complete episodes of Randall And Hopkirk (Deceased) starring Mike Pratt as Jeff Randall, Kenneth Cope as his ghostly partner Marty Hopkirk and Annette Andre as Marty’s widow Jean.