THE UFO DOCUMENTARY / SPACE:1999 ALPHACON

By: Frank Garcia
Date: Friday, February 11, 2000

It is not often that a mere fan club has the resources and talent to produce a documentary about their favorite television show. Fanderson, the Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society based in England, has done just that with their one-hour production, THE UFO DOCUMENTARY made for their members. This is an examination of Gerry Anderson's TV series UFO starring Ed Bishop, George Sewell and Michael Billington, which ran from 1969 to 1970 on both sides of the Atlantic.
In spite of the fact that there are only 26 episodes, over the years the show has grown into a cult hit that has been described, on one hand as being 'ahead of its time' and another as containing 'wooden acting' by its cast. This was a sly reference to the fact that prior to this show, Anderson produced a string of successful children's puppet adventures like CAPTAIN SCARLET and THUNDERBIRDS.
In retrospect, it's fascinating to see the bold aspects of the show (adult storylines, dramatic acting and situations, occasional brutal action) as well as the hilarious anachronisms that have developed over the passage of time. (The series takes place in 1980, a year that was actually flashed in the main titles! We also saw a 'future' where we would all drive vehicles with gull-winged doors and dress in turtleneck fashions. A Selectric typewriter was also the device tapping out extraterrestrial bulletin alerts.)
UFO was, as devoted fans recall, a series about a secret war between Earth and aliens from a distant solar system who were covertly visiting our planet. To defend against these invaders, a secret international organization, SHADO (Supreme Headquarters Alien Defense Organization), headed by Commander Edward Straker (Ed Bishop) was assembled. Armed with a considerable budget, the defenses consisted of: a moonbase with three missile-armed interceptors; a futuristic submarine with a detachable interceptor aircraft Skydiver; S.I.D., an orbiting computerized satellite; land rovers; and the headquarters, which were based underneath a film studio.
In this documentary co-producer and co-directors Tim Mallett and Glenn Pearce not only do a reasonably professional job; they also advertise a second, 100-minute documentary devoted to Anderson's second live-action series, which was produced immediately after UFO, SPACE: 1999.
In THE UFO DOCUMENTARY, narrated by British actor Shane Rimmer (who guest starred on the show) we're treated to interviews with the cast and crew of the 1969-1970 series, including series creator and producer Gerry Anderson; the late, great special effects supervisor Derek Meddings; art director Bob Bell; director Alan Perry; series star Ed Bishop; co-stars George Sewell, Dolores Mantez, Vladek Sheybal; and script consultant Christopher Penfold.

THE UFO DOCUMENTARY begins with a well-edited collage of action moments from the series, synched to original music composed for the documentary by Tim Newnham and Paul Westerman. Throughout the documentary is a collection of well-chosen clips, providing the viewer with a broad overview of the series as a whole. And interspersed between the clips are talking head interviews with the various individuals involved with the show, who provide anecdotal memories.
Beyond clips and memories, the film is also a historical archive that will delight any fan of the show because of special effects film outtakes and behind-the-scenes stills. It's fascinating, at last, to see just how large are those silvery UFO spacecrafts as compared to the humans who filmed them. Also, with outtakes, it's funny and interesting to see how they're filmed and what happens when something goes wrong. You can see the wiring and just how wobbly the model can become. Consequently, you gain an appreciation of the quality of the special effects photography.
Indicative of the docu's fan origins, a number of fans are interviewed, including film researcher Chris Bentley who is also the webmaster of the Fanderson website.
What's not well known about UFO comes out near the end of the documentary, when series creator Gerry Anderson declares that the Moonbase on SPACE 1999 was designed for the second series of UFO. The series would no longer be Earth-based as previously seen, and an expanded moonbase was to become the foundation for new stories. When ratings in the USA tumbled because timeslots made it difficult for viewers to find the show, Anderson and Company were already well into development for a second season of SHADO space adventures. But as that deal fell apart, Anderson decided to salvage the money invested by reworking the revised premise into a new series altogether, with a new cast, called SPACE: 1999.
In the second documentary by Fanderson, also co-produced and co-directed by Tim Mallett and Glenn Pearce for their club members, the SPACE: 1999 AlphaCon talks to 1999's cast and crew during their appearance at a convention. For those who don't remember, SPACE: 1999 was a 1975-1977 space adventure drama that starred actors Martin Landau, his wife Barbara Bain and Barry Morse. In year two, Tony Anholt and Catherine Schell (as the alien Maya) joined the cast. On September 19, 1999, when a nuclear explosion knocked our satellite out of its orbit, we followed the adventures of Commander John Koenig (Landau) and his team living and working aboard the elaborate Moonbase Alpha. Each week they encountered a variety of aliens and visited alien worlds.
There's more fan participation and commentary provided in this documentary than in the UFO production, but also featured are chats with series creator Gerry Anderson, scriptwriter, actors Prentis Hancock, Alibe Parsons, model-maker Martin Bower, and director Bob Kellett. We learn from Gerry Anderson just how the series' premise came to be. Apparently, the President of the ITC network asked for a series that wasn't just about a moonbase colony but one that wasn't Earthbound and took place in space. That forced and inspired the notion that our satellite would be blasted out of orbit and sent spinning off into the depths of unknown space.
It's an interesting element of the documentary that we're given brief critical reviews of the series. One writer in particular says, 'Gerry Anderson used to do this stuff with puppets, and with Martin Landau and Barbara Bain, I swear you won't notice the difference.'
The documentary does a good job of providing an overview of the first season and examining how, in the second season, the show evolved into a more action-adventure format with stronger characterization. But scripts continued to fluctuate. As Anderson describes it, second season producer Fred Freiberger (STAR TREK, season three) even suggested one episode titled 'The Rules of Luton,' which was intended to be about a planet of talking plants who became angry at Koenig and Maya because they had damaged some flowers. Ouch!
The series' reputation of stunning special effects is also well covered with clips and commentary by model-maker and designer Martin Bower. It also presents its own rare footage: of special effects master Brian Johnson working with his crew and we observe them filming an Eagle spacecraft landing on a well constructed miniature model of an alien world.
To buy these videos, you have to be a member of Fanderson. To learn more about the club and information on joining, visit their website at: http://www.kikgraphics.demon.co.uk/fanderson.html.
In addition to these two documentaries, the club has also produced two double-CD soundtrack albums devoted to the two seasons of SPACE: 1999. The first volume contains complete scores of the series' first season composed by Barry Gray running approximately 140 minutes and the second album has the score of the second season composed by Derek Wadsworth running approximately 144 minutes. Fanderson also offers: a soundtrack for the Puppet shows, SUPERCAR and FIREBALL XL-5 and a 43-minute CD-mini-album of CAPTAIN SCARLET AND THE MYSTERONS containing new narration by Ed Bishop with music and sound effects.