[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

 

[AUS] Thunderbirds on 9Gem

Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s Thunderbirds is showing on 9Gem in Australia from 18th November.

You can see Thunderbirds in 30-minute instalments on 9Gem:

  • Saturday 18th November at 06:00 AEST (when it’s followed by Adventures In Rainbow Country, starring Stingray‘s Lois Maxwell)
  • then daily from Sunday 19th November at 04:00 AEST

You can also watch 50-minute versions on the 9Now online service.

If you know about one of Gerry and Sylvia Andersons’ productions being broadcast, please let us know so we can share the news!

FAB 98: Winging its way to you!

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: Fireball XL5 in high definition!

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!

 

Fanderson Podcast goes Down Under!

Click here for Podcast 9.

THIS EPISODE: Your host Ros Connors is joined all the way from Australia by Gary Files, best known as the voice of puppets Captain Magenta (Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons), Black Phantom and Captain Foster (Thunderbird 6) and Matthew Harding (The Secret Service) but also numerous other voices in all three Century 21 puppet series, plus a guest spot as Phil Wade in UFO Identified.

Ros also welcomes Mark Anthony Craig, who most club members will know as the winner of Look-in’s 1977 competition to design a space city, but more recently has become known for his model dioramas.

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.

Captain Scarlet And The Mysterons clip ©1967 ITC, The Secret Service clip ©1969 ITC, UFO clip ©1970 ITC, licensed by ITV Studios Global Entertainment

Vote for the Fanderson Podcast!

We hope you’re continuing to enjoy the Fanderson podcasts and, if so, ask you to vote for us in the British Podcast Awards!

Established in 2017, the British Podcast Awards were created to highlight the best podcasts of the year, made for Great Britain. The BPAs welcome all podcast makers to enter: from big brands to bedroom publishers, charities to comedians…

Whilst the winners in most categories will be decided by a panel of judges, anyone can nominate any podcast listed in the Apple Podcasts directory for the Listeners’ Choice award, which is being sponsored by BBC Sounds.

Please vote for the Fanderson Podcast at the Listeners’ Choice page before Sunday 4th July.

NEW! Cereal promotions book and more!

Now available in the Fanderson Shop are four new, exclusive club items:

Click on the links to see more and place your orders!

ITC Entertained The World Podcasts

Fans of the wider ITC catalogue beyond the Anderson productions are sure to be interested in the ITC Entertained The World podcast.

Host Jaz Wiseman is joined by Rodney Marshall and Al Samujh to discuss a single series or film in each issue. Each lasting around an hour, there are 11 in the series already, featuring The Baron, Danger Man, Gideon’s Way, Hammer House Of Horror, Man In A Suitcase, The Persuaders! The SaintStrange ReportThe Zoo Gang and the feature film The Tamarind Seed.

They’re all available from the link above, or you can subscribe at either iTunes or Google podcast store.