Author: 1266 Nick Williams

40 FAB Years: Are you a survey winner?

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Throughout August we ran a membership survey, both to celebrate some of the great things we’ve achieved over our first 40 FAB years, but also to get members’ input to the future of their club.

Thanks to everyone who participated, and we’re starting to go through the results now. As an incentive to take part, all valid entries went into a draw to win one of these fantastic prizes, and we can now confirm the lucky winners:

  • Japanese Thunderbirds Visual Archives book – hard to get outside of Japan – won by Sean Fox
  • UFO Screenplays book – a long out-of-print Fanderson book from 2001 – won by Darren Allen
  • Earthfall – our 2002 reprint of EC Tubb’s 1977 Space:1999 novel – won by Kenneth Stuart
  • Century 21 Diary – our membership gift from 2008 – won by David Green

Prizes will be mailed over the next few days, so keep an eye out for the postman!

   

Australia: The Protectors on DVD

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

ViaVision’s recent announcement about their (rather excellent) Space:1999 Blu-ray boxset has rather overshadowed the fact that they also have an (albeit, cut-down) DVD boxset of the series too.

They’ve also released The Protectors in a 7-disc DVD set which, as well as Network’s special features of over 1,500 stills (including PR and behind-the-scenes) and promotional material (PDF DVD-ROM content), ViaVision’s release adds an audio commentary with guest star Derren Nesbitt and French and Spanish title sequences.

EXTENDED: four special offers for our 40th year

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

OFFERS EXTENDED: As members are still receiving FAB 98 (due to postal delays) we’ve extended this offer until the end of September.

As a special celebratory offer to club members for the whole of August* – our 40th anniversary month – we’re offering a whopping 40% off four popular items of our fantastic, exclusive, merchandise:

All these offers and lots more great exclusive merchandise, always just for Fanderson members, is now in the Shop.

*Obviously, as stocks last, as all our merchandise is limited edition.

UK: Thunderbirds voted #19 TV theme!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Classic FM are asking listeners to vote for their favourite TV theme so that they can present the UK’s Top 50 favourite TV themes of all time!

Forget the sweeping strings of the Downton Abbey Suite, the cinematic splendour of the Blue Planet soundtrack, or even the foreboding opening music for The Crown. For Fanderson members there is only one contender – Barry Gray’s stirring theme to Thunderbirds!

VOTE NOW! By voting, you will be entered into a prize draw for the chance to win £500, an iPad or a Sony soundbar.

Voting closes at midnight on 23rd August, and Classic FM will reveal the Top 50 themes written for the small screen in Classic FM’s TV Music Countdown on Monday 30th August.

UPDATE 30th August: Thunderbirds came in at a respectable #19. See the full countdown here.

NEW! FAB Book of Gerry Anderson… Jigsaw Puzzles

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Now available in the shop to pre-order…

Our brand new, 60-page, full colour FAB Book Of Gerry Anderson… Jigsaw Puzzles covers UK products based on The Adventures Of Twizzle, Torchy The Battery Boy, Four Feather Falls, Supercar, Fireball XL5, Stingray, Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons, Joe 90, UFO, Space:1999, Terrahawks and Space Precinct, plus a brief tour of puzzles for other territories and the 90s and 00s revivals.

Fanderson Podcast 10: It’s the end of the road!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Click here for Podcast 10.

THIS EPISODE: In a format twist, for our 40th anniversary podcast we’re trying an episode discussion panel. For this first panel, regular host Ros Connors discusses all things Thunderbirds End Of The Road with fans Kirsty Brown and Ian Fryer.

If you’d like to take part in a future Podcast panel, email fanderson.org.uk@outlook.com, noting the Anderson series that you’re most interested in.

There’s a link to all the podcasts in the menu bar above, or click here.

You can also subscribe to Fanderson podcasts at the iTunes and Google podcast stores, and now on Amazon podcasts and Audible too!

Thunderbirds End Of The Road clips ©1964 ITC, licensed by ITV Studios Global Entertainment

All other content ©2021 Fanderson

40 FAB Years: Since 20th August 1981. By fans, for fans.

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Fanderson is 40 years old today!

On 20th August 1981, Gerry Anderson invited representatives from the Fanderson 81 convention, plus clubs Anderpup and the Century 21 Appreciation Society, to meet with him at his office at Pinewood Studios, along with his merchandising right-hand-man Keith Shackleton.

Together, they pooled their ideas and talents to form the world’s only official appreciation society for the work of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. You can read the minutes of that inaugural meeting here.

On behalf of all Fanderson members:

  • The biggest THANK YOU to Gerry Anderson, for having the foresight to unite fans around the world
  • Another big THANK YOU to Pam Barnes, Mark Jones, Barbara Kitson, Chris Leach, David Nightingale, Phil Rae, Keith Shackleton, Brendan Sheehan and John Williams for getting together with Gerry that day to give our club such a great start.
  • THANK YOU also to Sylvia Anderson, who was so kind, understanding and gracious (if, at times, a little naughty!)
  • A very special THANK YOU to all the committee members who have given up countless hours of their free time to run the club over the years, as well as those who have made a significant contribution (recognised as a Friend Of Fanderson or Life Member).

Finally, THANK YOU to all Fanderson members, past and present. Thanks to your support, after 40 years the club’s stronger than ever.

Join us in celebrating today with something bubbly, whilst you read more about Fanderson’s beginnings here. Or, if you haven’t done so already, take a few minutes to have your say about the future of your club, by completing our 2021 Membership Survey – you could win a FAB prize!

FAB 98: Winging its way to you!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

We’re delighted to report that FAB 98 is now winging its way to hundreds of Fanderson members around the world. Hopefully, for many it should arrive just in time for the club’s 40th anniversary – 20th August 2021.

In this issue:

  • Ian Fryer looks at the birth of ITV, and how Noddy led to The Adventures Of Twizzle (via The Woodentops)
  • club members give their views on UFO Kill Straker! in our regular Timelash column
  • Chris Drake looks back at Stingray The Cool Caveman
  • we return for a fourth visit to the UFO comic strips in Countdown and TV Action
  • Alistair McGown explains how FOMO (fear of missing out) isn’t a new phenomenon – he experienced it with Space:1999
  • Andrew Clements’ account of adapting the 60s Thunderbirds novel for a new audience
  • we celebrate 60 years of the first Supermarionation series – Supercar – including an exclusive cutaway of Black Rock Base by Graham Bleathman
  • the fourth part of our exclusive Thunderbirds Are Go photo-strip by Jonathan Baxter
  • enter our competition to win a UFO Visual Archives book
  • plus FAB news, FAB Mail and more

With this FAB we’ve mailed a second set of our 40 FAB Years picture cards. Stick with us and by the end of the year you should have a full set (and an album to put them all in)!

FAB 98 also sees the first deliveries of our 2021 membership gift. For this special year we wanted to revisit two of our most popular and oft-requested gifts – the 7″ Barry Gray EPs given to members in 1986 and 1988. We’ve given them a bit of a brush-up and they’re both on our exclusive new CD! We can only give this CD away as part of our membership package, so if you get a renewal notice with FAB 98 or 99, make sure you renew so that you don’t miss out!

If you missed out on last year’s membership gift (or just want a second copy), the fantastic Century 21 Complete Puppet Catalogue is now available in the Shop.

Note that we made a mistake with the competition closing date and ‘renew by’ date – they should both read 30th September 2021. Sorry!

Annoyingly, as we completed the mailing we also noticed the box of this year’s anniversary enamel club badges – one of each should have gone in the packages! We’ll keep them safe and mail them with FAB 99.

If you were late renewing your membership, and so haven’t been included in the FAB 98 mailing, we haven’t forgotten you! Your membership will re-start with FAB 99.

UPDATE 26th August 2021

Although FAB 98 was mailed last week, it seems that quite a few members still haven’t received their packages. There is a distribution problem in the UK caused by a shortage of HGV drivers, coupled with people in the logistics industry isolating due to covid. In some areas post only being delivered every third day. 

Overseas packages seem to be relatively unaffected. 

Thank you for your patience, and we hope all UK packages will be delivered by the end of the week.

If you’re ever worried something we’ve sent might have gone missing in the post, please check our Shipping And Returns page before contacting us.

Anyone who missed FAB 97 can now buy it as a back issue, and last year’s membership item – Century 21 Complete Puppet Catalogue – is also now available to buy in the Shop.

How to get FAB magazine? Join Fanderson!

FAB magazine is available exclusively to Fanderson club members – we publish 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!

UK: Moonbase Alpha model at NFSM

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Fans will soon be able to see this incredible model of Moonbase Alpha from Space:1999, which has been kept safe in private hands for over 40 years. It’s been restored to its full glory on a model of the Moon’s surface and will be one of the star exhibits at the UK’s brand new National Film And Sci-fi Museum.

The National Film And Sci-Fi Museum is dedicated to the preservation, restoration and exhibition of the art, skills and dedication that goes into delivering some of the world’s most successful films and TV shows. It has a series of dedicated displays of genuine and replica props and memorabilia from across all genres of film and science fiction. The museum was set up by a trust to become the place to share the knowledge and passion for film and science fiction and preserve the history of some of the nation’s best loved set pieces. The people who make up the trust have years of experience as collectors, convention organisers and professionals within the film and TV industry.

Opening in time for this bank holiday weekend, Friday 27th August 2021, the National Film and Sci-fi Museum is at 34 Secklow Gate West, Milton Keynes, MK9 3AT. Read more and book your tickets here.

 

UK: Fireball XL5 in high definition!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Hot on the heels of their Supercar Blu-ray Disc announcement (and before that’s even arrived) Network have confirmed that Fireball XL5 will be their next Anderson production on the high definition disc format.

Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s 1962 Supermarionation series Fireball XL5 has been remastered in high definition from original 35mm film elements for this Blu-ray edition.

The year is 2062, and World Space Patrol ship Fireball XL5 is assigned to Sector 25, where intrepid pilot Steve Zodiac, ably assisted by Doctor Venus and Professor Matthew Matic, faces such dangers as planetomic missiles, explosive gas clouds, space spies, and alien races both warlike and benign!

As well as all 39 episodes, this exclusive limited-edition set includes a brand-new Fireball XL5 comic by Martin Cater, brand-new Fireball XL5 scrapbook, Fireball XL5 WSP astronaut license and badge, Robots In Distress: brand-new Robert the robot animation, Cloud Of A Billion Lights: brand-new Fireball XL5 CD audio adventure, Walton 8mm home movie show, A Wonderland Of Stardust documentary, Drawn In Supermarionation documentary, colourised episode A Day In The Life Of A Space General, Zoom Ice Lolly Adverts and image gallery… all in deluxe packaging!

The set is due for release on 18th October 2021, amd you can pre-order your copy now for just £60!