David Graham

Anderson stars gather for the Silver Screen Ball

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

The silver screen ballAn Anderson-themed evening of glamour and entertainment will be held at Pinewood Studios this winter to raise money for the Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity.

The Silver Screen Ball is an exclusive black-tie event taking place on Saturday 1st December 2018. It will be a fabulous evening where guests get to walk the red carpet and mingle with a  host of celebrity guests.

The evening will include a champagne reception, followed by a sumptuous three-course dinner with wine accompanied by amazing entertainment. The night will be rounded off with the presentation of the Sylvia Anderson Awards, celebrating emerging talent, and an Auction and Raffle supporting GOSH. Prizes include a replica Parker puppet! All this, plus dancing into the early hours.

Thunderbirds fans will be delighted to know that celebrity guests include Mary Turner, David Graham and Thomas Brodie-Sangster. They will be joined by:

  • Maureen Lipman
  • Anthea Turner
  • West End star Ben Forster
  • DJ Liz Kershaw
  • TV legend Barry Cryer
  • Eastender Debbie Arnold
  • Cass Lewis from Skunk Anansie
  • Game of Thrones & Holby star Christian Vit
  • Sky News presenter Stephen Dixon
  • TV chef Reza Mahammad

For ticket enquiries and bookings, please contact Adrian at tickets@sylviaanderson.co.uk

Book your tickets for Britscifi 2014!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

BritScifiLogo-300x99 National_Space_CentreThunderbirds voice artists David Graham, Matt Zimmerman and Shane Rimmer will be attending Britscifi at the Leicester Space Centre from 1st – 2nd March. The voice artists behind three of the Tracy brother (Alan, Gordon, and Scott), as well as Brains and Parker will be rubbing shoulders with stars from ‘old’ and ‘new’ Doctor Who, The Tomorrow People and Red Dwarf.

A few other very special guests to look out are:

  • Phil Ford – New Captain Scarlet chief script writer!
  • M G Harris – the author of Gerry Anderson’s Gemini Force One!
  • Jamie Anderson – Head of Production at Anderson Entertainment!

An event day pass allows you entry to the National Space Centre, including all six galleries, the Rocket Tower and SIM ride. The pass also gives you access to the whole event (some activities will incur an additional charge – autographs, professional photo shoot, some talks and A Dog’s Life).

Book your tickets for Briscifi

David Graham returns as Parker in Thunderbirds Are Go!

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

David Graham will play Aloysius Parker in Thunderbirds are Go!

Credit: ITV News

  • Thunderbirds Are Go! Voice Cast Revealed
  • David Graham reprises the role Parker
  • Rosamund Pike to play Lady Penelope

Fans of Gerry Anderson’s original Thunderbirds series got their dearest  wish today, as ITV Global announced that David Graham would reprise the role for which he is most fondly remembered. Almost 50 years have passed since his last appearance, but the voice artist will once again be playing the much-loved chauffeur and reformed crook, Aloysius Parker in ITV Global’s Thunderbirds are Go! Rosamund Pike (The World’s End, Gone Girl, Die Another Day) will play his aristocratic employer and International Rescue Agent, Lady Penelope.

Other cast members to be announced include:

  • Brains – Kayvan Novak (Fonejacker, Facejacker)
  • Alan and Scott Tracy – Rasmus Hardiker (Saxondale, Lead Balloon)
  • Virgil Tracy – David Menkin
  • Gordon and John Tracy – Thomas Brodie-Sangster (Love Actually,Game of Thrones)
  • Grandma Tracy – Sandra Dickinson (Amazing World of Gumball, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy)
  • The Hood – Andres Williams (M.I. High, Foyle’s War).

It appears that no announcement has yet been made as to the role of Jeff Tracy, the head of the Tracy family. However it has been confirmed that Thunderbirds Are Go! will also feature a range of brand new characters. Kayo – the Tracy brothers’ friend and fellow island resident – will be played by Angel Coulby (Merlin, Dancing on the Edge) and Colonel Casey voiced by Adjoa Andoh (Invictus, Doctor Who).

Giles Ridge, Executive Producer of Thunderbirds Are Go! said: “Each member of the cast has brought a brilliantly fresh and unique approach to these wonderful characters. I can’t think of anyone better than Rosamund to bring back to life the fabulous Lady Penelope and we are honoured that David Graham has joined the cast to revisit his role as Parker.”

Rosamund Pike commented: “I’m very excited to bring Lady Penelope’s wry wit and taste for adventure to a new generation. Exploring the scenes with David Graham has been an absolute delight. The scripts are very modern, very fresh and very funny. We’re all eagerly anticipating our next stint in the recording studio!”

David Graham, playing Parker, added: “I am triple chuffed to be on board the new series of Thunderbirds Are Go! and reprising my role of dear old Parker with such a distinguished cast. My driving skills are in good nick and I am delighted to be behind the wheel again with M’Lady. Cheerio!”

The series features an innovative mix of CGI animation and live-action miniature sets and is due to debut in 2015. Thunderbirds Are Go! is produced by ITV Studios and New Zealand-based Pukeko Pictures, with world-famous Weta Workshop (Avatar, King Kong, The Lord of the Rings) designing the series and producing the miniatures. The 26 x 30’ major new children’s series will debut on ITV and UK’s CITV Channel in 2015.

So, who would believe it? David Graham returns as Parker in Thunderbirds Are Go! What do you think about the casting decisions? Let us know on the Fanderson Facebook Group and Fanderson Forum.

Want to celebrate the exciting news with an episode of the original, ‘classic’ Thunderbirds? Check out our Thunderbirds episode guide and choose your viewing pleasure!

Network release two of Gerry Anderson’s early works

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Devil girl from Mars DVDOver the next few months Network DVD will be releasing two of Gerry Anderson’s first encounters with real film – and not puppets! The most significant of these is Crossroads to Crime. The crime thriller for Anglo-Amalgamated was Gerry Anderson’s directorial film debut, and the only feature-length film to be made by AP Films, co-founded by the legendary puppet pioneer in 1957.

Released in 1960 between the making of Four Feather Falls and Supercar, Crossroads to Crime features the talents of several of Anderson’s later Supermarionation collaborators, including voice artists George Murcell and David Graham, Anderson’s future wife Sylvia Thamm (an uncredited continuity supervisor), and Barry Gray, whose iconic themes famously complemented the Supermarionation series of the 1960s. Released here for the first time, the film is presented in a brand-new transfer from the original film elements.

It is hoped they will try to interview the only known living member of the cast, the stalwart of the Anderson studios David Graham, who was in so many of Anderson’s productions especially as the fantastic Parker in Thunderbirds. The DVD will be available on the 19th of August 2013 price £6.98.

The other release is David MacDonald’s Devil Girl From Mars (released today and pictured here) which is a rare science fiction piece from the notorious British b-movie studio of the Danziger brothers. At this point in his career Gerry was a freelance Sound Editor, gaining his first experience in Science Fiction under the name which he was usually billed as at the time, Gerald Anderson.

This British B-movie cult classic stars Patricia Laffan as a vinyl-clad, ray gun-toting Martian on the hunt for Earthmen to repopulate her home planet. Devil Girl from Mars is to be released in a brand-new transfer from original film elements in its as-exhibited theatrical aspect ratio.

The DVD is now on sale through Network’s website, priced £6.98.

Shane Rimmer reads classic Doctor Who story

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

The Gunfighters audiobook - read by Shane RimmerAn audiobook of the The Gunfighters, the classic Doctor Who story from the 1960s, has been narrated by Shane Rimmer.

The voice of Scott Tracy appeared in the original story in 1966 as the villainous Seth Harper alongside fellow Thunderbirds voice artist David Graham.

Shane reads the full unabridged Target novelisation that was written by Donald Cotton in 1985. It can be purchased as in  both CD format and as a digital download.

Listen to a sample of Shane’s narration on www.audiogo.com

3,000 attend Cosford Flights of Fantasy

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

RAF Cosford Flights of Fantasy

Photo credit: Dalek Sram

Nearly 3,000 people descended on Cosford Flights of Fantasy over the weekend of 24th – 25th November to see an incredible exhibition of Gerry Anderson puppets and memorabilia at the .

Among the many highlights of an amazing model and props display at RAF Museum Cosford were vehicles and sets from Space:1999 and the original Captain Black and Steve Zodiac puppets.

Matt Zimmerman, David Graham and Shane Rimmer were also in attendance, and were interviewed in the Museum’s atmospheric underground theatre by Chris Bentley about their time on Thunderbirds and other aspects of their careers. The trio – fans’ favourites from many past conventions – provided great comic entertainment, showing they have lost none of their ability to perform before an audience.

Effects guru Brian Johnson also appeared as a surprise guest. Brian, who became famous for his work on Thunderbirds and as Head of Special Effects on Space 1999, also spoke about his involvement in two very different cult science fiction films, The Day the Earth Caught Fire and 2001 – A Space Odyssey.

Fanderson ran a sales table over both days of the event, selling new memberships and exclusive merchandise to existing members. Thank you to everyone who came to say hello!

Share your memories, comments and photos of the event on the Fanderson Forum

Captain Black takes over RAF Museum Cosford

Posted on by 1266 Nick Williams

Over the weekend of 24th – 25th November the RAF Museum in Cosford will be hosting an amazing exhibition of rare puppets and memorabilia from the worlds of Gerry Anderson. For many fans a number of rarely seen puppets – including the original Captain Black – will be the star attractions of the weekend. For others, it will be the appearance of special guests David Graham, Shane Rimmer and Matt Zimmerman. For others it will be a chance to catch up and have a friendly chat with members of the Fanderson Committee!

Captain BlackThe event will feature puppets from Thunderbirds, Joe 90, Fireball XL5 and Captain Scarlet, as well as a fascinating range of models, costumes, full-sized vehicles and sets from the classic live action shows Space 1999 and UFO.

The exhibition will be a first for the RAF Museum Cosford and will be taking place in the National Cold War Exhibition alongside a backdrop of aircraft which inspired the look and design of the shows. There will also be a number of trade stands with associated merchandise.

Admission to the display is free and will be open from 10.00 to 16.30.

Shane Rimmer, David Graham and Matt Zimmerman will be attending on the Saturday and will be interviewed in the morning in the museum’s atmospheric bunker-style lecture theatre before participating in a question and answer session in the afternoon. Tickets for both sessions are now on general sale priced £15.00, and include a parking pass and a signed photo of the Thunderbirds puppets at Cosford.

Fanderson will be manning a table at the event and will have a range of merchandise available for members to buy. If you are planning to attend please feel free to stop by and say hello!

Read about the event on the RAF Museum website