FAB Annual 2025 on its way in time for Christmas, for most club members

Finally! We can confirm that FAB Annual 2025 has been mailed to Fanderson members today!

Hopefully, this will give enough time for the majority of members to find their annual under the tree this Christmas – certainly those in the UK should and maybe those in parts of Europe too. Unfortunately, due to ongoing industrial action in Canada we’ve been advised not to mail to members there, but we’ll keep your FAB Annuals safe and post them as soon as the action is over and the backlog of mail has cleared.

Together with FAB Express 108, mailed recently, our winter mailing is complete and we can get on with welcoming all the new club members who have been waiting patiently for their membership packages!

Fanderson 2024 advent calendar – DAY TEN

FREE LUCKY DIP – JOURNEY TO THE MOON MINI ALBUM!

If you spend over £10 with us in one transaction (see excluded items) you might want to add this to your basket to enter a free Lucky Dip for a chance to win a Journey To The Moon mini album.

Lucky Dip closes at midnight on 31st December 2024, or once stock is exhausted (whichever is the sooner).

COME BACK TOMORROW FOR ANOTHER GREAT OFFER!


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

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

Please note our last order days for Christmas, and see the various additional postage options available with merchandise orders.

[UK] Fireball XL5 returns to Talking Pictures TV

Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s 1962 series Fireball XL5 is returning to broadcast in the UK on Talking Pictures TV!

Talking Pictures TV will start another run of the black and white classic with Planet 46 on Saturday 23rd November at 14:25. See their full schedule for coming weeks here.

Talking Pictures TV is available in the UK on Freeview/Youview 82, Freesat 306, Sky channel 328 and Virgin 445, with a streaming service at www.tptvencore.co.uk

Like Ice In The Sun

It’s fitting that on this, Fanderson’s 43rd anniversary, we bring back an aspect of fandom that was big when the club started but has been largely forgotten over the years.

We’re proud to present the first chapter of a new Fireball XL5/Stingray crossover story by Robin Day and Keith Ansell. We’ll publish the story, one chapter each weekend, over the next 25 weeks.

Like Ice In The Sun

Underwater breathing experiments at Marineville start events that could end in a global civil war between the undersea races and the surface world and lead to the destruction of the entire Solar System.

The lives of Steve Zodiac and Troy Tempest along with the crews of Fireball XL5 and Stingray will never be the same again.

This is a crossover adventure set in the Gerry Anderson Universe.

Of this unique project, Keith says:

“Like Ice In The Sun began life as a writing game over 20 years ago with my friend Robin writing the first few pages and sending them to me to pick up where he left off. I then wrote the next few pages and sent the story back to him and so it went on for years gradually evolving into the novel length story. This was a labour of love written by two massive fans of Fireball XL5 and the related comic strips.

“Robin hosted a website called Space City for many years and produced the CGI artwork used by Carlton in their Fireball DVD release. I have been a member of Fanderson since 1992 and have written many short stories and comic strips for their publications collaborating with Shaqui le Vesconte and Richard Farrell. I also used to contribute to Dave Nightingale’s Century 21 magazine in the early 90s, writing the Fireball XL5 Encyclopedia that was published in issues 11 and 12, along with other features.

“Robin sadly passed away on 23rd February 2022 which was a great shock to me and his wife Pauline. We had still been working on Like Ice In The Sun right up to his death and had almost got it finished and ready for publication. I was determined to finish our epic tale and with Pauline’s help I think does justice to the two great TV series it is based upon.”

Download all the chapters released so far from our Fan Fiction page.

Like Ice In The Sun has been formatted as an A5-sized PDF, so it is readable on most devices, or can easily be printed. We’ll add a chapter per week here, then present the entire story as a complete work in week 25.

[UK] Network titles live on, thanks to Spirit Entertainment

Some of Network’s amazing HD restorations of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson productions are becoming available once again, thanks to Spirit Entertainment.

Fireball XL5, Stingray, Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons, Joe 90 and both Ultimate and Super Space Theater  Space:1999 Blu-ray Discs are available for pre-order now (due 5th August), with Supercar appearing on DVD too.

[UK] All Fireball XL5 episodes and Century 21 Slough now on ITVX

Although most episodes of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s productions have been available for some time on ITVX, free of charge, inexplicably only two episodes of 1962’s Fireball XL5 have been included. Now that’s been remedied, with all 39 episodes available from today on the streaming service.

Also added to ITVX today is the Century 21 Slough documentary:

On the eve of demolition, the former film studios where Stingray, Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons and Thunderbirds were launched are brought to life one last time. Join original AP Films team members as they say goodbye to the buildings, sharing memories as they tour recreated sets, models, and puppets alongside studio originals.

ITVX is free to view, with most of the Anderson content available ad-free too. There’s a free seven-day trial of the subscription Premium service (normally £5.99 a month/£59.99 a year) which offers even more content, ad-free, from the BBC, Channel 4, Channel 5 and Studio Canal.

Talking Pictures TV’s Noel Cronin awarded BEM

Film producer, editor and founder of Talking Pictures TV, Noel Cronin has been awarded the British Empire Medal in the 2024 New Year Honours, for services to Television Broadcasting.

Talking Pictures TV is a free vintage film and TV channel, and is currently the UK broadcast home of Fireball XL5 and Thunderbirds. It’s available on Freeview/Youview 82, Freesat 306, Sky channel 328 and Virgin 445.

See more on this story at the Watford Observer.

Image: Talking Pictures TV

[UK] The Noble Art of Fireball XL5 on TPTV

Talking Pictures have added The Noble Art of Fireball XL5 to their free Encore streaming service.

In this fascinating 17-minute documentary by Fanderson member Jeff Smart, legendary TV Century 21 and Look-in artist Mike Noble talks about his work on Fireball XL5, Captain Scarlet, Zero X and Space:1999 comic strips, among others.

The programme will also be broadcast on Talking Pictures at 14:40 on Saturday 20th January 2024. Talking Pictures TV is a free vintage film and TV channel available in the UK on Freeview/Youview 82, Freesat 306, Sky channel 328 and Virgin 445.

Don’t forget Jeff’s Talking Thunderbirds series on Encore too! Encore is a free service – watch via the red button on internet-connected Freeview TVs,  or register to gain access to a wealth of classic television and films.

Vote for Talking Pictures TV! (closes 14th November)

Vote now for Talking Pictures TV in the TV Choice Awards!

Talking Pictures TV, the vintage-film and nostalgia television channel founded by producer/editor Noel Cronin, recently made history for the premiere UK networked broadcast of Fireball XL5 as well as bringing back Thunderbirds for the first network broadcast in over two decades! It’s also home of the Talking Thunderbirds series of short interviews with people who worked on Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s 1964 masterpiece.

Talking Pictures TV has been shortlisted for the Favourite Channel/Streaming Service award, where it’s up against BBC iPlayer, Channel 5 and Netflix!

Vote now to show your support for “the smallest show on Earth” – Talking Pictures TV!

Voting closes on 14th November.

UPDATED: Let’s make it an Annual Affair!

UPDATED 23/11/23: Offer extended to end of December


As we prepare our winter mailing to all club members, we can now make remaining stocks of FAB Annual 2023 available to buy, just in time for Christmas.

And to really make it a Christmas to remember, until the end of November December we’ve got two great offers for you:

See all six items here. Just be sure to apply the relevant coupon code at checkout before you pay.


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

  • Discount will be applied to items as detailed above in the same transaction.
  • Apply either coupon code AnnualAffair3 or AnnualAffair6 before you pay to get the relevant discount detailed above.
  • Members must apply the coupon code themselves to get the discount. It cannot be applied after you have paid, and we cannot apply it retroactively.
  • This is an online-only offer. It cannot be redeemed via the post.
  • This offer ends on 30th November 2023, though Fanderson reserves the right to close the offer early.