Showing posts with label Gerry Anderson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gerry Anderson. Show all posts

Coming Up: Cool Corgi 'Stingray' Submarine from Gerry Anderson Supermarionation Series



Details:

The flagship of the World Aquanaut Security Patrol (WASP), Stingray is a renowned combat submarine piloted by Captain Troy Tempest and his hydrophone operator Lieutenant George Lee Sheridan, also known as ‘Phones’. 

The vessel was considered the most advanced submarine of the 2060s and was central to the WASP’s discovery of many advanced undersea civilisations, including the city of Titanica, ruled by the despotic King Titan and his warrior followers, the Aquaphibians. 

Measuring 85ft (30m) long, Stingray’s nuclear reactor powers a Dual Drumman Hydrojets Ratemaster Turbine that gives the vessel a surface speed of 400 knots and a submerged speed of 600 knots. This raw power also enables the ship to breach the surface and ‘jump’ out of the water for a short distance, a useful way to evade enemies. 

Stingray can safely submerge to a maximum depth of 40,000ft, comfortably above the deepest known point of the world’s oceans. A pair of landing skis can deploy from the underside of the hull to enable the submarine to safely land on the ocean floor. 

The submarine is armed with a complement of sixteen Sting missiles and carries several other small vehicles onboard for maximum operational flexibility while deployed. Most noticeable of these are a pair of Aqua Sprites, small submersibles located on the exterior hull of Stingray to port and starboard. 

The Aqua Sprites feature dry interiors for the pilot, detaching from the main hull and allowing for closer docking with other vessels underwater. In the event of an emergency underwater, the Aqua Sprites are also the primary means of evacuating Stingray. 

If the crew leaves the vessel in underwater equipment, they invariably use handheld Sea Bugs to enable speedier propulsion and movement while underwater. Above the surface, compact single-seat hovercraft called Monocopters are available on board to provide much quicker and safer movement over the invariable rough terrain. 

More info.

Thunderbirds Day 2019 announcement

Get your marianation on with a "Thunderbirds" marathon Sept. 30 on the Century 21 YouTube channel.

Coming Up: Soundtrack to Gerry Anderson's 1970s sci-fi live-actioner "UFO"


Out Sept. 13 from Silva Screen Records. Watch for pre-order info at Amazon.

Details from the label:
After a decade of creating pioneering puppet series made for children, Gerry & Sylvia Anderson took their first steps into live-action, with the 1969 feature film Doppelgänger (re-titled outside Britain as Journey To The Far Side Of The Sun). 
This science-fiction film approached its outer space subject matter with a gritty realism, and would set the tone for what was to be their first live-action television series: UFO. 
This new series took as a starting point the pioneering work of Dr Christiaan N. Barnard, the surgeon who performed the world’s first heart transplant operation. In UFO a dying race of aliens travel across vast distances of space to harvest organs from human beings to help ensure their own survival. To combat this threat the United Nations created SHADO, a top-secret organisation utilising the latest technology available to defend the Earth. 
To complement the series, the Andersons frequent musical collaborator Barry Gray created a multifaceted score that gave the programme its own musical identity. 
Elegantly crafted and a firm favourite with Barry Gray fans, the sound of UFO, particularly its ethereal “World Music” closing credits is, quite simply, a joy. Includes a bonus track, Trampoline performed by The Spencer Davis Group from the episode Ordeal.

01 UFO Main Titles
02 S.H.A.D.O.
03 E.S.P. from “E.S.P.”
04 Flashback from “Confetti Check A-O.K.”
05 The Choice from “Confetti Check A-O.K.”
06 Space Junk from “Conflict”
07 Straker and the General from “Conflict”
08 A Rose for Sylvia from “Ordeal”
09 Harlington Straker from “Identified”
10 Alien from “Identified”
11 Travelling Home from “Ordeal”
12 The Trip from The Long Sleep
13 Taken from Ordeal
14 Crash Landing / Dreambox from Ordeal
15 The Leisure Sphere from Survival
16 Enemy my Friend from Survival
17 The Affair from The Square Triangle
18 A Day at the Studio from A Question of Priorities
19 Who Are You? / John’s Death from A Question of Priorities
20 UFO End Titles
21 Bonus Track – Trampoline from “Ordeal” - The Spencer Davis Group

New film, "Century 21 Slough - End of an Era," documents end of Gerry Anderson's Supermarionation studio

Details:

A draughty warehouse on the Slough Trading Estate in the 1960s: what could possibly be so special about such a place? In Century 21, Slough, the former studios of iconic series such as Stingray, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, Joe 90, The Secret Service, UFO, and most famously Thunderbirds are revisited one final time by the crew before the demolition of the buildings in 2017. 

Original puppets and models from the series are returned to their former home as DAVID ELLIOTT (Director), MARY TURNER (Puppeteer), DEE ANDERSON (Daughter of Sylvia Anderson), ALAN SHUBROOK (Model Maker), DAVID LANE (Director/Producer), and Academy Award winner BRIAN JOHNSON (Special Effects) reminisce over the production of some of the most magical and impressive television and film achievements, with the aid of rare archive footage and photographs – some seen here for the first time! 

See also the final piece of Supermarionation filmed in the original building as David Elliott returns to the director’s chair and Mary Turner climbs the puppet bridge once again… 

New Thunderbirds are Go! teaser shows off Tracy Island

A peek at the upcoming Thunderbirds TV show.

Info:
The world of Thunderbirds Are Go, Tracy Island, miniature sets and craft have been lovingly made by none other than WETA Workshop - the model makers behind Lord Of The Rings, The Hobbit and Avatar. The series music has been specially composed by Ben and Nick Foster, best known for their work on Doctor Who and Torchwood.


First look at characters for new "Thunderbirds are Go!" animated series

I like the puppets more, but here's a look at the characters in "Thunderbirds are Go!" -- a new CGI-animated series based on Gerry Anderson's original "marionation" series of the 1960s.

The 26-episode show, Thunderbirds Are Go!, is due to air this spring using a blend of computer-generated animation technology and traditional live action models.

Gone Girl star Rosamund Pike provides the voice of Lady Penelope, driven around in a pink Rolls-Royce, number plate FAB1, by chauffeur Parker.
Fonejacker’s Kayvan Novak takes on Brains and Game of Thrones actor Thomas Brodie-Sangster voices John Tracy.

In a nod to the original 1960s series created by Gerry Anderson, who died in 2012, David Graham, the original voice of Parker, is reprising his role.

Trailer for upcoming Gerry Anderson "Supermarionation" documentary!

Looks awesome!

Details: Stand by for action, Filmed in Supermarionation will be taking off in October!

We are delighted to announce that Filmed in Supermarionation will have its premiere at the BFI on 30th September 2014 ahead of the October general release.

Directed and co-produced by Stephen La Riviere and hosted by Lady Penelope and Parker themselves, ‘Filmed in Supermarionation’ is a screen adaptation of his book of the same name and features a wealth of previously unseen archive footage, brand new interviews with the surviving casts and crews and clips from the shows themselves.

Some of the most memorable moments of the film are the ingenious and accurate recreations of the pioneering techniques used in the productions. 


Details on new Thunderbirds are Go! TV series

Actress Rosamund Pike will voice Lady Penelope in an update of Gerry Anderson's supermarionation "Thunderbirds" series set to air on British TV in 2015.
Other leading roles are taken by Thomas Brodie-Sangster (Game of Thrones, Love Actually) as brothers Gordon and John Tracy, Rasmus Hardiker (Saxondale, Lead Balloon) as Alan and Scott, with fifth Tracy brother Virgil played by David Menkin.

Master villain The Hood will be voiced by Andres Williams (M.I. High, Foyle's War). New characters include Tracey brothers' friend Kayo, played by Angel Coulby (Merlin, Dancing on the Edge) and Colonel Casey voiced by Adjoa Andoh (Invictus, Doctor Who).

...Made by ITV Studios and New Zealand-based Pukeko Pictures, the 26-part series will feature a mixture of CGI animation and live-action miniature sets.

The Weta Workshop, the special effects studio behind Lord of the Rings, King Kong and Avatar, will also be working on the new series.
 

Britain's Royal Mail unveils Gerry Anderson-themed stamps

A series of stamps paying tribute to Gerry Anderson's various marionation series is out now. From the press release:

Royal Mail is celebrating the iconic work of Gerry Anderson on a new set of stamps.

Gerry Anderson is the creator of the puppet characters from cult TV programmes such as Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and Stingray, that have thrilled millions of people since the 1960s.

FAB: The Genius of Gerry Anderson kicks off the 2011 Royal Mail Special Stamps programme in style as the issue contains the UK’s first ever ‘motion stamps’. A miniature sheet of four stamps has been specially printed so that when they are tilted back and forth the iconic opening sequence of Thunderbirds is played with each of the crafts launching: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1!

The latest stamps celebrate the 50th anniversary of these ground-breaking programmes which began with Supercar in 1961. The programmes celebrated on the main issue of stamps are Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, Joe 90, Fireball XL5, Supercar and Stingray. Whilst the miniature sheet of ‘motion stamps’ features stamps showing Thunderbirds 4, Thunderbirds 3, Thunderbirds 2 and Thunderbirds 1.

Gerry Anderson said: “I feel incredibly proud that my work has been chosen to appear on a set of Royal Mail stamps and to see actual animation of the opening scenes of Thunderbirds appear on the motion stamps is really wonderful.”

Philip Parker, Royal Mail Stamps spokesperson, said: “Gerry Anderson’s ingenuity and inventiveness caused a sensation in the 1960s. We‘re delighted that 50 years on we are able to recognise and celebrate his work on our first stamp issue of 2011.

“It’s particularly fitting that his characters will once again be visiting millions of homes across the UK as they arrive through the nation’s letterboxes on letters and cards. And also that the dramatic 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, opening sequence is now a UK first through its appearance on our new motion stamps.”