Yesterday the CD had its world premiere at the UFO convention, SHADO Con 2, and now it’s the turn of all other Fanderson members to get their hands on this stunning release.
The 77-minute CD album contains Barry Gray’s complete stereo score for Doppelgänger (AKA Journey To The Far Side Of The Sun), performed by a 55-piece orchestra with Sylvette Allart on the Ondes Martenot. Composed and recorded for an initial edit of the film, including scenes that were ultimately trimmed from the final cut, it includes cues composed for those scenes that have never been heard before outside the studio.
This is accompanied by a corresponding assembly of mono cues, arranged exactly as heard on screen.
A bonus track included is Threnody For The Victims Of Hiroshima by Krzysztof Penderecki, a short section of which replaced part of Gray’s composition in the final edit of the film – the only piece of library music used.
This latest addition to the critically-acclaimed Fanderson soundtrack library is completed by a 20-page full colour booklet.
Fanderson members had their first chance be able to buy their Doppelgänger soundtrack at SHADO Con 2, which took place on Saturday 30th June 2018 at Quad, Derby. You can find out more details of the event here.
It now goes on sale from the club website today – 1st July 2018 – the 50th anniversary of the start of principal photography on the feature film.
The Doppelgänger soundtrack is a limited edition release and, like all of Fanderson’s merchandise, is available exclusively to Fanderson club members.
The 89th issue of FAB magazine is now on its way to all Fanderson club members. The FAB editorial team have pulled out all the stops to bring you this issue and we hope you love it as much as we do!
Here’s all the lovely stuff we have lined lined up for you this time…
IN PRAISE OF SPACE PATROL
Ian Fryer lifts the lid on another popular 1960s space-aged adventure, Roberta Leigh’s Space Patrol.
A LEGACY OF MAKING MAGIC
We continue our exclusive series of interviews with key people involved in ITV’s news Thunderbirds Are Go series, as Nick Williams interviews Production Designer Ben Milsom and Concept Artist Christian Pearce.
TIMELASH THE SECRET SERVICE – A QUESTION OF MIRACLES
In our cover feature, FAB readers look back at the second episode of The Secret Service, which sees The Secret Service re-introduce a former Spectrum captain to its cast. Plus an exclusive cutaway by Graham Bleathman!
WELCOME TO YOUR FUTURE: THIS IS 2068
Jonathan Baxter reports back on a very special future history.
APPRECIATION STATION
Mike Jones disappears to a remote icy Supermarionation climb… No not that one!
END CREDITS
Ian Wheeler goes to the movies with International Rescue.
THUNDERBIRD 6 PART ONE
Jonathan Baxter picks up where TV21 left off, with an exclusive photostory re-telling of the second Thunderbirds feature film, the delightful Thunderbird 6.
How to get FAB magazine? Join Fanderson!
FAB magazine is available exclusively to Fanderson club members – we deliver three times a year, and we do our very best to make each issue a joy to read for every fan – regardless of your favourite series!
Fanderson members have been given first access to an amazing new live interactive Thunderbirds theatrical event taking place in London later this year. Thunderbirds: Beyond the Horizon will be hosted at The Buzz at Mercato Metropolitano, from Wednesday 7 November 2018. Tickets go on general sale from Thursday 26 April, but Fanderson members can book from today, Wednesday 25 April, at https://www.beyondthunderbirds.com/presale-access
Richard Lewis from Limelight Productions said today, “Three years ago, I began a journey with ITV which will culminate this autumn in the opportunity to experience the world of International Rescue. My ambition has always been to have our audience experience the visceral feeling of being rescued by a Thunderbird. It’s not an easy task, so much so that we have had to build our own venue in London to do so!”
Emma Brunjes and Ralph Brunjes from ebp said today, “All our immersive productions have been technically and creatively complicated and encourage you to escape, but this one offers us the chance to push the boundaries even further.”
The Buzz at Mercato Metropolitano in Borough, London is the first venue of its kind, and has been specifically built with immersive and event theatre in mind.
The format of the show sees Lady Penelope inviting audience members to the launch of The Horizon Project at a top-secret location. But all is not as it seems, and the audience will need to help International Rescue to save the Horizon Project from the evil clutches of the Hood.
We can’t wait for the show to start! Thunderbirds are go!
To mark the launch of their latest Supermarionation figurine (pictured above), Robert Harrop Designs Ltd are offering Fanderson members an exclusive discount code for use on their website www.robertharrop.com.
Until March 31st, Fanderson members will receive an exclusive 15% Discount, plus FREE UK postage, on selected figurines for orders over £100.
The discount code will be emailed to members shortly, so watch your inboxes closely!
Alternatively, please email Robert Harrop directly for details of the offer.
Also, if you register as a Friend of Harrop you will also receive an automatic 10% discount on all new figurines, including the new figurine of Turata, for the first 4 weeks of their release!
Launching on Friday 23rd February, the limited edition figurine of Turata from Centrallius is the latest addition to Robert Harrop’s Supermarionation Collection.
From the Stingray episode ‘Deep Heat’, Turata is a character of unmistakeable style yet one with questionable motives as he attempts to lure Troy and Phones to a fiery demise.
Traditionally hand sculpted by Mike Rogers and made in the UK by Robert Harrop Designs Ltd, each figurine has been individually hand finished and hand painted.
A strict limited edition of 150 figurines worldwide, each Turata figurine will be individually numbered and will include a Certificate of Authenticity to support its provenance.
Packaged in a presentation box and information card, Turata is available for £60 at www.robertharrop.com or by calling 01952 884804.
Anderson fans rejoice: FAB 88 is on its way to the printers and will be mailed shortly to all club members! We hope you’ll agree with us that it’s been worth the wait.
In this issue we pay tribute to the wonderful Jeremy Wilkin who died in December 2017. On a lighter note, FAB 88 is also packed with all of this lovely stuff…
THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO EPISODE GUIDE
Andrew Clements takes a look at episodes 14-26 of Thunderbirds Are Go, which premiered in late 2017.
TUNES OF DANGER: ANDERSON GOES POP!
Ian Fryer takes an in-depth musical look at how songs had such an important influence on the Anderson productions.
TIMELASH UFO: A QUESTION OF PRIORITIES
FAB readers explore one of the more thought-provoking episodes of UFO, featuring an exclusive SHADAIR Transporter cutaway by Graham Bleathman!
CLASSIC COMIC STRIP
We bring you the third part of Countdown’s first Captain Scarlet comic strip.
CONVENTION FLASHBACK
Champagne at the ready as we celebrate our Special Assignment convention.
APPRECIATION STATION
Zoe Miller takes an offbeat look at Nuclear power within the Anderson Universe.
END CREDITS
Ian Wheeler asks: Why didn’t our favourite series have more series?
DOPPELGÄNGER PART SIX
Jonathan Baxter concludes his visual re-telling of the Andersons’ first live action science-fiction adventure, the feature film Doppelgänger.
How to get FAB magazine? Join Fanderson!
FAB magazine is available exclusively to Fanderson club members – we deliver three times a year, and we do our very best to make each issue a joy to read for every fan – regardless of your favourite series!
We are saddened to hear that Jeremy Wilkin, the voice of Virgil Tracy and many other Anderson productions, has died.
Jeremy replaced David Holliday as the pilot of Thunderbird 2 for the second series, voicing Virgil in all six episodes as well as both feature films. Following this, he voiced a host of voices in Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, Joe:90 and The Secret service. He also had an uncredited appearance in Doppelgänger before being cast in UFO as the SkyDiver crew member Lieutenant Gordon Maxwell. Besides Anderson productions, Jeremy is fondly remembered for contributions to other iconic series and films, including Doctor Who (Revenge of the Cybermen), Blake’s 7 and the James Bond film, The Spy Who Loved Me.
Jeremy became a regular attendee at Fanderson conventions alongside his fellow Tracy brother voice artists.
Our thoughts are with his family and friends. An obituary will be appearing in FAB 88.
Apologies to all club members. FAB 88 has been unavoidably delayed due to circumstances beyond our control, and we’re now pulling out all the stops to get the magazine ready for you as soon as possible. Rest assured, we’ll let you know when FAB 88 has been mailed via the website and social media.
We’ll also be working hard to catch up with FABs 89, 90 and 91 later this year, although the normal delivery dates in March, July and November are now likely to change. We’ll keep you posted on this through the normal channels.
Thank you for your patience and we look forward to bringing you a great magazine very shortly!
Issue 23 of the hit fanzine Andersonic is now available, and it’s packed with a wide range of amazing features that will appeal to Anderson fans of all interests.
Ayshea Brough interview – Ayshea talks about her time working on UFO.
Archive – In 1993 Chris Drake interviewed Gerry Anderson for his book ‘UFO & Space: 1999’. In the third part of this interview Gerry talked candidly about the making of Captain Scarlet.
Alan Shubrook – Alan writes about the recent demolition of the Century 21 studios in Slough and also shares his thoughts on working on Captain Scarlet.
Captain Scarlet Comics of the 90s – Graeme Bassett writes about his work on Alan Fennell’s comic revival of the early 1990s .
The A-Z of Stingray – Essential marine facts for the aquanaut of tomorrow – today!
Space: 1999 – a critique of End of Eternity with the emphasis on Ray Austin’s direction.
The Protectors – Mike Coldwell casts an eye over Shadbolt
Watching the Watchers – A look at Granada’s Supermarionation transmission history of the 60s and 70s.
Captain Scarlet – ‘Point 783’ – two writers slug it out over this popular episode.
Merchandise Reviews – we review recent CDs and books. Plus ‘Things You Do (when you’re a fan)’, news of an upcoming UFO convention and some other stuff.
Take it from us – it’s 44 pages of Anderson heaven!
Merry Christmas and a happy new year to all Fanderson members.
2017 was a great year for the club, culminating in a very successful convention that saw fans of all ages come together to celebrate the work of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. We hope that all of you received the sales brochure in early December and have been able to treat yourself or a friend or family member to one of our new sales items, whether it’s our beautiful Fab Grooves double LP, our lovely 2018 calendar or our stunning Joe 90 soundtrack CD.
Fanderson staged its first convention in two years at the Holiday Inn Maidenhead over the weekend of 29th September – 1st October. Special Assignment was designed to mark the 50th anniversary of the Andersons’ iconic Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, but as an event it turned out to be so much more than a homage to a single show.
A Golden Shot at a golden anniversary
Special Assignment started with a bang on Friday night, as guests assembled for a bucks fizz reception at 8pm, with bottles featuring specially designed Captain Scarlet commemorative labels. After a toast to the series, fans settled down to a screening of the first episode, The Mysterons, first shown on ATV 50 years ago to the day, in the ‘Cloudbase Theatre’ (a.k.a the main features room).
Fans were then treated to a surprise re-creation of the Captain Scarlet-themed episode of The Golden Shot game show that aired back in 1968, complete with faithful replicas of the original targets. The competition was enthusiastically compered by Fanderson co-editor/designer Mike Jones, and prizes were on offer to anyone who wanted to prove they were a deadeye marksman with a nerf gun.
Costumes and quizzes
The evening entertainment continued on Saturday night, with the main features room reset for the traditional Fanderson hot fork buffet. Some creative souls really dressed for the occasion, and Captain Scarlet, Colonel White, Lieutenant Ellis, Tin-Tin, Lady Penelope and an Alien could be seen sitting down to dinner among the other delegates.
After the meal, Nick Williams ran a cult TV quiz that featured a round on regional TV network logos and tested powers of observation as well as trivia knowledge. Perhaps most importantly, the quiz was less fiendishly difficult than the one held at The Future Is Fantastic! in 2015. Yet another sign that the club listens to feedback! After the quiz, some fans retired to the bar into the small hours while others sloped off to bed.
The guests – old and new faces
The convention was blessed with a wide range of guests who generously have up their free time to talk about their work for the Andersons.
Liz Morgan, who voiced several of the Angels, provided a fitting link to the original Captain Scarlet series. She was joined on Saturday by the unmissable Thunderbirds duo of David Graham and Shane Rimmer to discuss the challenges of emoting with puppets. Later, in a meeting of ‘old’ and ‘new’ Captain Scarlet voice artists, she was teamed up with Wayne Forrester and the hugely popular Thunderbirds voice artist Matt Zimmerman.
The Captain Scarlet link continued in another three-way interview with Dominic Lavery, Mark Woollard and once again Wayne Forrester, who was an 11th hour guest, discussing the troubled production of New Captain Scarlet.
Special Assignment featured a number of first-ever appearances at a Fanderson convention. SHADO women Penny Spencer and Georgina Moon were interviewed about their time on UFO, while Richard Culley provided a fascinating insight into the merchandising arm of Century 21. Perhaps the most entertaining guest appearance was stunt double and co-ordinator Paul Weston, who worked not only on Space:1999 and The Protectors, but a long list of films including the Bond franchise.
Taking a brief break from book illustrations and signings in the foyer, Mike Noble and Graham Bleathman teamed up to talk about their work illustrating TV21 and the 1990s Fleetway Thunderbirds Comic, while Mary Turner and Judy Preece talked about their experiences with puppets on the Supermarionation series and Terrahawks.
The focus returned to Terrahawks later in the weekend when Terry Adlam, John Lee and Steve Begg were reunited to discuss their work on the series and beyond.
Model maker Martin Bower gave two fascinating slide presentations over the weekend, revealing some of the secrets of his work on Space:1999, the Fleetway comics and other projects.
Meanwhile, Peter Hitchcock had traveled all the way from Canada to attend and gave the fans great value with two sessions. On Saturday he delivered a special effects presentation that focused on specialist Supermarionation techniques such as electronic lip-syncing, then on Sunday he teamed up with Brian Johnson to talk more widely about their work at AP Films. After that, Alan Shubrook and Mike Trim then picked up the thread with a double-header interview that covered their work on the later Century 21 era.
The return of vinyl
Beyond the guest interviews and evening entertainment, Special Assignment will be remembered as the premiere for a wealth of fabulous Anderson merchandise celebrating Scarlet’s golden anniversary. Author and ex-club chairman Chris Bentley and publisher Marcus Hearn were present in ‘Harman’s Department Store’ traders’ room to greet fans and sign copies of a limited edition black version of Captain Scarlet: The Vault. Robert Harrop also chose an alternative colour to mark the anniversary, releasing a Captain Ochre figurine, along with a Martian Pete from the Thunderbirds episode Martian Invasion. Big Finish were selling their comprehensive boxed set of Century 21 Captain Scarlet mini albums, as well as a new audio adaptation of the John Theydon novel, Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons. Big Chief were promoting their lavish new Captain Scarlet figurine, while Graham Bleathman was signing copies of his long-awaited Captain Scarlet Haynes Manual, written by Sam Denham.
Meanwhile the club surprised fans with no less than 7 new items on sale, but there was one that stood out among all the others – FAB Grooves, a sumptuous double gate-fold LP of Barry Gray ‘easy listening’ tunes, complete with a CD version and full colour booklet. Another closely guarded secret was the release of a 4-disc Joe 90 soundtrack CD, extending the club’s catalogue of Barry Gray music. The club also released a 2018 calendar, Captain Scarlet anniversary and Joe 90 stickers, and complimentary convention books and Spectrum Shade badge.
Music, films, artwork and workshops
Upstairs on the first floor, fans could sample the LP on a turntable in ‘Ma Doughty’s Listening Lounge’, or request their own choice of music from Fanderson’s soundtracks. Fans could also watch an episode of their favourite series in the Goggleheimer Productions Viewing Theatre, where all-day screenings with a definite Scarlet-theme were the order of the day.
Fanderson events are renowned for their model displays, and Special Assignment was no exception, with a wide variety of puppets and models on show, including original Captain Black and Sam Loover puppets. A big thank you to Chris King and all the other model makers for making the ‘Expo 2068’ room such a visual feast for delegates and the local press!
The club also decided to provide a designated room for professional Anderson artwork, after taking on feedback from previous events. Artists including Graham Bleathman, Lynn Simpson, Chris Thompson, Mike Trim, Jonathan Baxter and Mike Noble exhibited and gave talks about their amazing work in the ‘Braquasso Gallery’.
For those with a slightly more niche interest, a number of workshops were held throughout the weekend in ‘Brains’ Workshop’. Sculptor Matt Buckley from Robert Harrop took a break from the traders’ room to talk about the process of creating figurines, while members of the Puppet Guild including Mary Turner held a session on how to make puppets walk realistically.
A beautifully restored Mini Moke as used in the promotion of the original Captain Scarlet in the 1960s was on display throughout the weekend outside the hotel main entrance, courtesy of Sam Denham. A camera crew also visited the event on Sunday afternoon to interview fans and capture the atmosphere.
So there you have it. Thank you to all the guests, traders, artists, model makers, hotel staff, suppliers, and everyone else who helped make this such a special assignment. Most importantly, thank you to all the club members – both near and far – for your magnificent support for this event.
By the time it came to Nick Williams’ closing address there was a real sense that Special Assignment would be remembered as one of the best Fanderson conventions in many years.
UPDATE: Fanderson’s long-awaited album of Barry Gray’s stunning soundtrack to Gerry Anderson’s Doppelgänger is now available to buy online! Go to:
We are saddened to hear that Jeremy Wilkin, the voice of Virgil Tracy and many other Anderson productions, has died.
Special Assignment started with a bang on Friday night, as guests assembled for a bucks fizz reception at 8pm, with bottles featuring specially designed Captain Scarlet commemorative labels. After a toast to the series, fans settled down to a screening of the first episode, The Mysterons, first shown on ATV 50 years ago to the day, in the ‘Cloudbase Theatre’ (a.k.a the main features room).
Beyond the guest interviews and evening entertainment, Special Assignment will be remembered as the premiere for a wealth of fabulous Anderson merchandise celebrating Scarlet’s golden anniversary. Author and ex-club chairman Chris Bentley and publisher Marcus Hearn were present in ‘Harman’s Department Store’ traders’ room to greet fans and sign copies of a limited edition black version of Captain Scarlet: The Vault. 
On top of all that, delegates raised nearly £2,000 for the convention charities –