Fanderson

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.

54321FAB! The Future Was Fantastic!

Posted on by Parker

UPDATE 4/7/26: Now open!

Thunderbirds and friends are coming to Worcester this summer

  • 54321FAB! arrives at Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum on 4th July and runs until until 6th September 2026
  • Exhibition includes original puppets, studio models, art and memorabilia
  • Includes family Action Station for hands-on fun
  • Free entry

54321 FAB! is an incredible display of original puppets, studio models, art and memorabilia from the much-loved 1960s TV shows of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson.  The exhibition arrives at Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum on 4th July and runs until 6 September 2026.

Visitors will revisit their childhood favourites including Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons, Joe 90, Stingrayand more, and will have an unprecedented opportunity to see screen-used original puppets from the shows.

Original puppets including Lady Penelope and Joe McClaine will be on display, having been painstakingly restored to their original condition as filmed in the 1960s. Other characters which no longer exist in their original form, such as the heroic International Rescue pilots, have been rebuilt from original moulds and materials to create new working replica puppets. The exhibition also features models of iconic vehicles such as Fireball XL5, Stingray and the Thunderbird craft.

Original comic and production design art will also be in the exhibition, whilst a huge collection of 1960s toys and memorabilia will be on show to take visitors on a FAB trip down memory lane.

Families can enjoy hands-on fun together at the WASP – Worcester Aquanaut Severn Patrol action station where they can create their own puppet show and dress up as characters from the TV shows.

A FAB programme of events celebrating the exhibition can also be enjoyed at the Art Gallery & Museum throughout the summer, including spotlight talks by Graham Bleathman, one of the country’s leading illustrators well known for his work on Gerry Anderson’s TV series including Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and Stingray, and Marc Silk, the voice of Global Defence Force agent Captain Wayne Rigby in Thunderbirds Are Go as well as the voice of several guest characters in the show. Plus the popular Museum After Hours events return with a FAB theme.

Museums Worcestershire Senior Curator Deborah Fox comments: “We pride ourselves in providing top, family fun for the summer holidays and this year is a true classic where visitors can relive their childhood through Thunderbirds and friends, and share their memories with their families. We might even inspire some new fans!”

The exhibition has been made possible with the support of Fanderson, The Official Gerry And Sylvia Anderson Appreciation Society.

Check out www.museumsworcestershire.org.uk and our social media channels for up-to-date news and information on the exhibition and a fun FAB-themed programme of events and activities.

This year’s Worcester Show is also following the 60s theme, so prepare for a day of family fun, entertainment, food and community competitions when the Worcester Show is back at Pitchcroft on Sunday 9 August. Find out more at www.worcestershow.org.uk.

Saturday 18th July, Spotlight Talk | Graham Bleathman – Master of the Cutaway + meet and greet

A master of the technical illustration, join Graham for a fascinating insight as he talks about his experiences working on these amazing projects and his fantastic new work Worcester: 2066, specially commissioned for our summer exhibition 54321FAB! The talk will be followed by a meet and greet with Graham in the exhibition, where he will be autographing, sketching and meeting fans. There’ll even be appearances from Captain Scarlet himself and other favourite characters!

£10 for the talk; free entry to the exhibition.

Exhibition Details:
54321FAB!

Saturday 4th July – Saturday 6th September 2026 | Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum, Foregate Street, Worcester, WR1 1DT (www.museumsworcestershire.org.uk). Free entry to the exhibition, donations welcome

  • Tuesday – Saturday 10am – 4pm,
  • Sunday 10am – 3pm

FAB events and activities:

Talks and Events

Family Fun!

 

Some images from 2024’s 54321 FAB! The Art Of Supermarionation exhibition:

Three great offers, as an alternative to the World Cup!

Posted on by Parker

Three great offers, as an alternative to the World Cup!

In 1966, Geoff Hurst scored a hat trick at the World Cup Final to secure England’s victory over West Germany to lift the Jules Rimet trophy. Sixty years later and it’s World Cup fever again. Mindful that not everyone is a football fan we’ve put our thinking caps on to supply our own hat trick of super sales offers.

OFFER 1 – As an alternative to the football, order the two Supermarionation Super Space Theater titles Thunderbirds In Outer Space and Thunderbirds To The Rescue and get the FAB Challenge game absolutely free.

OFFER 2 – If you want more in the way of live action (and we don’t mean football highlights) then order the Space:1999 Super Space Theater titles Alien Attack and Destination Moonbase Alpha and get two extra free items, the Tony Anholt: This Charming Man audio interview CD and a set of the Doppelgänger picture cards.

OFFER 3 – Maybe you just want to relax with a cup of tea and your favourite biscuit whilst thumbing through some of our exclusive printed material? Order the Thunderbirds Are Go lobby cards set along with the ITC Brochures pack and we’ll throw in (football pun not intended) three FAB Books absolutely free – Playing Cards, Dinky Toys and Jigsaw Puzzles.

These special offers will continue until… well… back in 1966, BBC Commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme, just before Hurst’s third goal, declared (using our own artistic licence) ‘Some Fanderson Members are about to miss out- they think it’s all over, it is now!’

The offer will expire at midnight on Cup final day, 19th July 2026 (or whilst stocks last).

OFFER TERMS AND CONDITIONS (in addition to our standing Ts&Cs)

  • This offer is for Fanderson members only.
  • Members must buy the items detailed in each offer in the same transaction.
  • Members can take advantage of more than one offer in the same transaction.
  • There is no need to add the free items to your basket. We will add them when we are packaging up your order.
  • This is an online-only offer. It cannot be redeemed via the post.
  • Offer ends 19th July 2026

Fantastic free exhibition this summer!

Posted on by Parker

Fantastic free exhibition this summer!

Building on the huge success of the 2024 exhibition 54321 FAB! The Art of Supermarionation in Lichfield, Chris King is assembling an expanded version of the display in Worcester this summer.

Retitled 54321 FAB! The Future Was Fantastic!, this new iteration will introduce fresh exhibits, including an impressive collection of original puppets, studio models, artwork and memorabilia from across the Worlds of Supermarionation and beyond.

54321 FAB! runs at Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum from Saturday 4th July to Sunday 6th September 2026. Visitors can explore the exhibition Tuesday to Saturday from 10am–4pm, and Sundays from 10am–3pm, with last entry one hour before closing. Entry is free, making it an ideal summer outing for fans of all ages.

Fanderson is proud to confirm that the club is sponsoring the exhibition in partnership with Chris King, helping to bring this remarkable celebration of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson to a wider audience.

Keep an eye out for the postman!

Posted on by Parker

The postman’s on his way with your winter mailing

FAB Express 111 was posted today to all Fanderson members. As well as all the Anderson news and your views, this issue takes a FlashBack to Titan Goes Pop, the perennially popular episode of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s Stingray.

Unfortunately, we are extremely sorry that FAB Annual 2026 is not included in the winter mailing. Editor/designer Mike Jones has been unexpectedly distracted by some personal issues recently, and the team felt it was better not to rush to get an annual finished that we’re not happy with. We know many of you will be disappointed to not have an annual to open on Christmas morning, but hope you agree that it’s better that the book is the quality you expect, albeit coming to you in the spring. We’re all working to support Mike to get FAB Annual 2026 finished so it can be with you alongside FAB Express 112 in the spring mailing.

As we mentioned in issue 110 this summer, we’re now reviewing our merchandise pricing on the website. As well as postage prices going up recently, we’ve aligned ourselves with Royal Mail’s world postal zones to ensure you’re paying the right postage.

Meet Ross, your new editor!

Posted on by Parker

Ross Ironfield is your new editor of FAB Express

Hi everyone,

I’m delighted to be joining the Fanderson committee as the new Editor of FAB Express. As a lifelong fan of the fabulous futuristic worlds created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, it’s a real privilege to help shape the magazine’s next chapter. 

My favourite series has to be Thunderbirds, it was a huge part of my childhood growing up in the 1990s – along with Stingray, Captain Scarlet and Joe 90. I proudly collected all the comics, videos and toys released at the time – and later the many DVD and Blu-ray releases, not forgetting of course, the wonderful soundtrack releases and exclusive merchandise produced by Fanderson.

More recently I’ve been enjoying Thunderbirds Are Go, the 2015 series, with my six-year old son, who has cheekily pinched all my Thunderbirds models and action figures!

I look forward to working with members to continue the club’s proud tradition of high-quality, well-researched features and articles, starting with FAB Express 112 early next year. If you have any ideas, suggestions or would like to contribute – or even just to say hello, I’d love to hear from you. You can email me, or I’m on most social networks and you’ll find me on the Fanderson Facebook group.

FAB! 

Ross Ironfield 

Order in good time for Christmas

Posted on by Parker

We know, it’s not even December yet, but for some countries we’ll need to get merchandise orders on their way as soon as possible if they’re to arrive before Christmas!

You can see Royal Mail’s full details of last posting dates here, but to allow us time to package your order up and get it in the post, here’s a summary of ‘last order’ dates that will apply to the majority of Fanderson club members:

  • Wednesday 3rd December – everywhere outside the United Kingdom
  • Monday 15th December – UK (17th December if you add the optional Special Delivery payment to your order)

We’ll do our best to fulfil orders as quickly as possible, but we cannot guarantee orders will arrive by Christmas. If in any doubt, please place your orders as soon as you can. Remember, they’ll show as ‘complete’ in your online account once they’re in the post. Of course, we’ll save up any packages we haven’t been able to mail in time for Christmas and send them as soon as possible afterwards.

Thanks to Fanderson members, kids supported by Demelza are WINners!

Posted on by Parker

Young Joe McClaine presents our donation to Demelza

Over the last year Fanderson members have helped to raise an amazing £1234.11 for Demelza, helping them provide extraordinary care to children and young people with serious or life-limiting conditions, providing expert clinical care and helping to create extraordinary moments along the way. Activies have included our 2024 advent calendar, 44 FAB Years and items available for a donation to the charity.

Professor Ian McClaine took his son Joe along to Demelza to present our donation cheque.

Demelza’s CEO, Lavinia Jarrett, said,

“We’re so grateful to Fanderson for your generosity to Demelza.

“Without the support of organisations like yours, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do.

“Every donation we receive makes a difference to the children with serious or life-limiting conditions and their families who use our services.”

Fanderson has a great reputation for supporting worthwhile causes, and over the club’s 44 years members have raised in excess of £62,000 for Alzheimers Society, Baby Lifeline, Children In Need, Demelza, Diabetes UK, The Film And TV Charity, Hearing Dogs For Deaf People, International Rescue Corps, Macmillan Cancer Support, Orchid, Silverline, Terrence Higgins Trust, Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Appeal and many more.

With special thanks to Chris King for the presentation photo.

Recognition for Honorary Members at Project Ford

Posted on by Parker

Puppeteer, sculptor and director Mary Turner and actor, voice artist and writer Keith Alexander were recognised for their contributions to the Anderson productions, and to Fanderson, by becoming Honorary Members of the world’s only official Gerry and Sylvia Anderson appreciation society.

Mary and Keith were presented with certificates at the Project Ford event on 31st October 2025 and will receive free membership of the club.