UFO (TV series)

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UFO
Genre	Science fiction
Creator(s)	Gerry Anderson, Sylvia Anderson
Starring	Ed Bishop Michael Billington George Sewell Gabrielle Drake Wanda Ventham Grant Taylor Peter Gordeno Dolores Mantez
Country of origin	United Kingdom
No. of episodes	26
Production
Running time	50 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	ITV
Original run	September 16, 1970 – July 24, 1971
Links
IMDb profile

UFO is a British television science fiction series created by Gerry Anderson & Sylvia Anderson and produced by the Anderson's and Lew Grade's Century 21 Productions for Grade's ITC Entertainment company. The Andersons had previously made a number of very successful marionette-based children's science fiction series including Stingray, Thunderbirds, and Captain Scarlet. He had also made one live-action science fiction movie, Doppelgänger, also known as Journey to the Far Side of the Sun, and now felt ready to move into live-action television and aim at a more adult market.

UFO was the Anderson's first totally live-action TV series. Experience with the one-hour format (Thunderbirds), good scripts, and exemplary production values led to an enjoyable good looking production. Despite the assumption of many TV stations the series was not aimed at children but deliberately sought an older audience with many episodes featuring adult themes such as adultery, divorce, and drug use.

UFO first aired in the UK in 1970 and in US syndication over the next two years. In all, 26 episodes, including the pilot, were filmed over the course of more than a year, with a five-month production break caused by the closure of the show's original studio.

An idiosyncrasy of the series is that the term "UFO" is pronounced as a word ("you-foh"), as suggested by the real-world originator of the term Edward J. Ruppelt, and not as the more common "you-eff-oh". This is particularly true of the lead character, Ed Straker. Technically speaking the series title should properly be pronounced "you-foh" as well. However, the "you-foh" pronunciation was not consistently applied and some supporting characters use the more traditional form.

In a sad coincidence, lead actors Ed Bishop and Michael Billington died in June 2005, within five days of each other.

Contents 1 Plot overview 1.1 UFOs 1.2 Aliens 1.3 SHADO 1.4 SHADO equipment 1.5 The stories 1.6 Special effects 2 Characters 3 Trivia 4 Predictions 5 Episodes 6 UFO stories in other media 7 Revivals 8 Translations 9 See also 10 External links

[edit] Plot overview

The premise of the show is that in the near future (a fictional version of 1980) the Earth is being harvested for replacement body organs by aliens.

[edit] UFOs

Their spacecraft can cross the vast distance between their planet and ours, but are only large enough to carry one or two aliens. The spacecraft can only survive for a couple of days in the Earth's atmosphere as it heats up and deteriorates and finally explodes. The alien craft can survive underwater though, and one episode deals with the discovery of a secret undersea alien base. In flight they are surrounded by horizontally-spinning vanes and emit a distinctive pulsing electronic whine (actually produced by series composer Barry Gray on an Ondes Martenot). The craft is armed with a laser-type weapon, but can be destroyed by conventional explosives. The aliens themselves are armed with machine gun-like weaponry that appear to shoot bullet-like projectiles.

[edit] Aliens

Captured aliens are human in appearance except for the green hue of their face which is stained by their breathing a green oxygenated liquid, which is believed to cushion their lungs against the extreme acceleration of interstellar flight. This is provided by a special helmet that is sealed around the neck and keeps the liquid contained to the head. To protect their eyes from the liquid the aliens wear opaque sclera contact lenses with small pinholes for vision. After the autopsy of the body of a captured alien it is discovered that the aliens are harvesting organs from the bodies of abducted humans. The show's opening sequence begins by showing the (remarkable for the time) image of the removal of one of the contact lenses from an obviously real eye with a pair of forceps — a sight which upset some squeamish viewers.

[edit] SHADO

To defend against the aliens, a secret organisation called SHADO (Supreme Headquarters Alien Defence Organisation) is established. Operating behind the cover of the Harlington-Straker Studios movie studio in England, SHADO is headed by Commander Ed Straker (played by Ed Bishop), a former United States Air Force Colonel and astronaut who poses as the studio's chief executive.

In reality, this was a clever cost-saving move by the producers — the studio was the actual studio where the series was being filmed, originally the MGM-British Studios, later Pinewood Studios, although the Harlington-Straker studio office block seen throughout the series was actually Neptune House - a building at the former British National Studios, in Borehamwood, that were owned by ATV. Pinewood's studio buildings and streetscapes were used extensively in later episodes, particularly "Timelash" and "Mindbender", the latter featuring scenes that actually showed the behind-the-scenes workings of the UFO sets when Straker briefly finds himself hallucinating that he is an actor on a TV series and all his SHADO colleagues are likewise actors.

Typical of Anderson productions, the studio idea was both practical and cost-effective for the production and a neat plot device. It removed the need to build an expensive exterior set for the SHADO base, while providing that all-important "secret" cover (concealment and secrecy are always central themes in Anderson dramas) with the trademark ring of plausibility. A studio was a business where unusual events and routines would not be noticed, and where comings and goings at odd times, the movement of vehicles, equipment, people and materiel would not excite undue interest and could easily be explained away as "sets", "props", or "extras".

A regular Anderson leitmotif was the concept of the mechanical conveyor — e.g., the automatic boarding tubes of Stingray and the Thunderbird craft. In UFO, this appeared in the guise of Straker's "secret" office, which doubled as a lift (elevator) that takes him down to the SHADO control centre located beneath the studio.

[edit] SHADO equipment

SHADO has a variety of high-tech hardware and vehicles at its disposal to implement a layered defense of Earth. Early warning of alien attack would come from SID (Space Intruder Detector), a computerized tracking satellite that constantly scans for UFO incursions into the solar system. The forward line of defence is MoonBase from which the three Lunar Interceptor spacecraft with nuclear missiles are launched. The second line of defense includes SkyDiver, a submarine mated with the submersible, undersea-launched Sky One interceptor aircraft which would attack UFOs in earth atmosphere. The last line of defense are ground units including the armed, tank-like SHADO Mobiles, fitted with caterpillar tracks. Special effects, as in all Anderson's marionette shows, were supervised by Derek Meddings, while the vehicles were designed by Meddings and his assistant, Michael Trim.

[edit] The stories

The show's concept was very dark for its time — the basic premise was that the alien invaders are coming to collect human bodies to use as involuntary organ transplant donors. A later episode, "The Cat with Ten Lives", contains a particularly sinister plot point suggesting that the UFO pilots are not humanoid aliens at all, but are in fact human abductees under the control of the alien intelligences.

The show also featured realistic, believable relationships between the human characters to a far greater extent than usual in a typical science fiction series, showing the clear influence of American programs like The Twilight Zone and Star Trek and British action series such as Danger Man. One early episode suggested that there might be an interracial romance between two continuing characters (something that was uncommon on British TV in those days), while others showed the heroes making mistakes with sometimes fatal consequences. And relatively few episodes of the series actually had happy or (for the characters) satisfying endings.

One especially dramatic episode "Confetti Check A-OK" is almost entirely devoted to the breakdown of Straker's marriage under the strain of maintaining his secret identity. Another, "A Question of Priorities" hinges on Straker having to make an agonising life-or-death choice — to rescue his critically-injured son by diverting an aircraft carrying SHADO mobiles to deliver life-saving medical supplies, or to attempt a last-chance intercept against an incoming UFO.

Another episode "The Square Triangle" includes a plot by a woman and her lover to murder her husband. When they accidentally kill an alien from a downed UFO instead, SHADO intervenes and doses the guilty pair with amnesia drugs. Straker realises the drugs will not affect their motivation, and SHADO cannot interfere without blowing its cover, and the end credits of this episode feature a very dark scene set in the future with the woman visiting her husband's grave.

Some critics complained that the emphasis on down-to-earth relationships weakened the show's science fiction premise and were also a means of saving money on special effects. The money-saving argument may have been true to a limited extent, but Anderson had always hoped to direct live action TV drama and although the marionette shows helped him develop impressive skills in effects and scripting, he had always considered them as essentially being a way of keeping in work and earning money while he tried to break into "real" TV. Others counter that the characters are more rounded than in other science fiction shows and that sci-fi concepts and special effects did not preclude realistic action and interaction and believable, emotionally engaging plots.

UFO confused broadcasters in both Britain and the United States who could not decide if it was a program for adults, or for children (the fact Anderson was primarily associated with children's programming did not help matters). This confusion — coupled with erratic broadcasts — are considered as contributing factors in its cancellation, although UFO is credited with opening the door to moderately successful runs of later live-action, adult-oriented programming by Anderson such as The Protectors and Space: 1999.

[edit] Special effects

The special effects, supervised by Derek Meddings, were of the highest quality and outstanding for their day, given the relatively limited resources at the team's disposal. The space sequences involving the Interceptors and UFOs are very well shot (showing the technical improvements that had come along since Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey), with tight editing, fast action, and spectacular explosions.

In a clever refinement of the underwater effect developed for Stingray, Meddings' team devised a disconcerting effect — a double-walled visor for the alien space helmets which could be gradually filled from the bottom up with green-dyed water. When filmed from the appropriate angle it produced a very convincing illusion of the helmet filling up and covering the astronaut's face.

After the 26 episodes were completed plans were drawn up for a sequel to be called UFO: 1999 which would have been set in a much bigger Moonbase. A subplot of the episode "Kill Straker!" sees Straker negotiating with SHADO's financial supporters for funding to build more moonbases within 10 years, which could be seen as a prologue to the UFO: 1999 concept. When American broadcasters dropped their support for a second season of UFO, the idea was dropped, but a couple of years later the concept was revised into an even more far-fetched story about the moon being blown out of orbit and Moonbase along with it — Space: 1999. When Space:1999 was broadcast there was no trace of the show that it was supposedly born from.

As with many Anderson productions, the series generated a range of desirable and well-executed merchandising toys based on the SHADO vehicles. The classic Dinky die-cast range of vehicles featured robust yet finely-finished products and included Straker's futuristic gull-winged gas turbine car, the SHADO mobile and the missile-bearing Lunar Interceptor (though the Interceptor was released in a lurid metallic green finish unlike the original's white). Like the Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet related models, the original Dinky toys are now prized collectors items. All the major vehicles, characters, and more have been produced in model form many times over by a large number of licencee companies; the Anderson shows and their merchandise have always had widespread popularity, but they are especially popular in Japan.

The complete series has been released on DVD in the UK and in North America and has been promised to be released "next year" for the past few years in Australia. Bonus features include a commentary by Anderson on the pilot episode "Identified", and an actor's commentary by Bishop on the episode "Sub-smash". There are also some deleted scenes and lots of stills and publicity artwork.

[edit] Characters

UFO had a large ensemble cast, and many of its members would come and go during the course of the series, with a number of actors — most notably George Sewell and Gabrielle Drake — leaving the series during the production break that occurred when the series had to change studios midway through production. It is established early on that SHADO personnel rotate between positions, so the occasional disappearance of characters — some of whom would later return in other positions — fits in with the concept of the series. Also, due to the scheduling of the series which did not reflect the production order, some episodes featuring departed cast members were not actually aired until late in the series, giving the impression that no major cast changes occurred. Among the major actors, only Ed Bishop appeared in all episodes. These are the major recurring characters in the series:

Comm. Ed Straker (Ed Bishop)

Former American air force pilot and astronaut originally from Boston who organized SHADO following a series of UFO attacks in 1970. Straker masquerades as the head of Harlington-Straker Film Studios, SHADO Headquarters being located directly below the studio. He was married to Mary Nightingale in 1970, but they soon divorced after the birth of John, their son. (Timeframes are never given for events before the series, but it would be reasonable to presume that their marriage had ended by the end of the flashback presented in "Confetti Check A-OK"). John was later killed when he was hit by a car and Straker, who was dealing with a UFO attack at the time, failed to procure the antibiotic drug that could have saved his life. ("A Question of Priorities"). One consistent element of Straker's character is that he refuses to drink alcohol — even though he has a fully stocked bar in his SHADO office. An early episode refers to him possessing willpower in order to avoid alcohol, which might suggest he was once alcoholic. Straker suffers from claustrophobia, a fact known only to the SHADO doctors and Alec Freeman.

Col. Paul Foster (Michael Billington)

Former test pilot whose plane was critically damaged when SHADO's Sky 1 intercepted and destroyed a UFO in close proximity to Foster's jet. His subsequent persistent investigation of the incident threatened to expose SHADO's existence and Straker considered having him killed, but instead was impressed enough with Foster to offer him a position with SHADO. Foster appears to be somewhat of a protégé of Straker's, as he is shown in a number of major positions. He is Moonbase Commander for a time (substituting for Lt. Ellis), is assigned to Skydiver for several months, and also receives a position of authority at SHADO HQ. He masquerades as one of Straker's film producers in the studio and enjoyed a brief relationship with Col. Virginia Lake. Foster has the unique distinction of having once actually befriended one of the aliens, though he was unable to prevent the creature from being killed by SHADO personnel; his overall demeanor became noticeably more cynical after this event (chronicled in the episode "Survival").

Lt. Gay Ellis (Gabrielle Drake)

Most often seen as Moonbase Commander during the first half of the series, Lt. Ellis is occasionally portrayed as lacking self-confidence, and at other times as a take-charge officer. She is briefly reassigned to SHADO HQ when it is suggested that she may be romantically involved with Interceptor pilot Mark Bradley. She also appears to be attracted to Ed Straker, though nothing comes of this.

Col. Alec Freeman (George Sewell)

SHADO's first officer until about the 3/4 point in the series (when Sewell left following the change of studios). A lady's man in his early 40s, Freeman is Straker's right hand man and, occasionally, his muscle. Everybody's pal at SHADO, Freeman takes a sardonic attitude towards some of the things Straker and SHADO must do to survive, and at least once submitted his resignation in protest over a decision. Straker's closest friend and best man at his wedding, Freeman was the very first operative recruited into SHADO.

Gen. James Henderson (Grant Taylor)

Straker's superior officer, Henderson heads the International Astrophysical Commission, which is a front for SHADO and is responsible for obtaining funds and equipment from government in order to keep SHADO operational. Straker and Henderson butt heads frequently over the needs of SHADO and economic realities.

Col. Virginia Lake (Wanda Ventham)

Virginia Lake first appears in the pilot episode of the series, as a SHADO scientist and prospective romantic conquest for Alec Freeman. During the last quarter of the season, Lake returns to the series to, ironically, take over the post of SHADO first officer, replacing Freeman. A computer specialist, she also served as Moonbase commander. She was romantically involved with Paul Foster for a time. She initially has a somewhat tense working relationship with Straker, though by the end of the series they appear to have grown close and she is seen comforting him in the final scene of the final episode.

Capt. Peter Carlin (Peter Gordeno)

During the first half of the series, Carlin is the commander of the submarine Skydiver and pilot of its interceptor aircraft, Sky 1. In 1970, Carlin and his sister found a UFO and were attacked; he was shot and wounded and his sister vanished. He joined SHADO in hopes of finding out what happened to his sister, and eventually learned that she had been harvested for her organs.

Lt. Nina Barry (Dolores Mantez)

One of Straker's first recruits into SHADO, Barry works as a tracker at Moonbase and later replaces Lt. Ellis as its commanding officer. She also serves aboard Skydiver at one point. She is another one attracted to Straker.

Capt. Lew Waterman (Gary Myers)

Initially an Interceptor pilot on the Moon, Waterman is later promoted to captain and replaces Peter Carlin as commanding officer of Skydiver and pilot of Sky 1. He becomes a very close friend of Paul Foster's.

Lt. Keith Ford (Keith Alexander)

Former television interviewer who became a founding member of SHADO and its main communications officer. Actor Keith Alexander left the series after the production break, so the character disappears at the 2/3 mark of the series.

Lt. Ayshea Johnson (Ayshea Brough)

SHADO operative stationed at headquarters in most episodes. Initially seen doing miscellaneous tasks (she's the woman seen smiling and waving during the opening credits), she later becomes SHADO's communications officer after the departure of Lt. Ford, and in her final episode appearance is shown working on Moonbase. NB: this character's full name is conjecture. In the credits she is identified only as Ayshea (as is the actress), however one episode gives her the name Lt. Johnson.

In 1970/71 Ayshea Brough introduced her own pop music programme " Lift Off With Ayshea ".

Dr. Doug Jackson (Vladek Sheybal)

SHADO psychiatrist and science officer. A somewhat sinister figure who sometimes appears to have his own agenda, Jackson serves a number of capacities within SHADO, including acting as prosecution officer during the court martial of Paul Foster. When Foster escapes custody after being found (falsely) guilty, Jackson successfully convinces General Henderson to have his guards use tranquilizer darts in their pursuit, rather than shooting to kill. It is implied that Doug Jackson is not the character's birth name, as he speaks with a strong Eastern European accent, however his origins are never explored.

Lt. Joan Harrington (Antonia Ellis)

Another Moonbase UFO tracker, Harrington appears to have a dislike for Lt. Ellis.

Miss Ealand (Norma Ronald)

SHADO operative masquerading as Straker's movie studio secretary. She is the first line of defence against anyone entering SHADO HQ via Straker's office elevator. The character is not seen in most of the post-studio change episodes, being replaced in two episodes by a Miss Holland (played by Lois Maxwell).

Lt. Mark Bradley (Harry Baird)

Caribbean-born Interceptor pilot based on the Moon. He becomes romantically involved with Lt. Ellis for a time, leading to a temporary assignment at SHADO HQ on Earth, and briefly assumes the position of Moonbase Commander. Baird left the series midway through the season.

[edit] Trivia

• It is never explained why female Moonbase personnel were required to wear purple wigs and extensive eye make-up. Gerry Anderson said it made them look more futuristic and film better under the bright lights, while Sylvia Anderson said she believed wigs would become accepted components of military uniforms by the 1980s. Whenever female Moonbase personnel visited Earth (as Ellis and Barry did from time to time), they never wore the wigs or make-up.
• Ed Bishop, who had dark hair in real life, initially bleached his hair for Bishop's unique white-haired look. He later began wearing a white wig when the bleaching began damaging his hair. Straker's unusual look may have been an attempt to make Bishop look like Captain Blue, the character he voiced in Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. Bishop, until not long before his death, possessed one of the wigs he wore on the show and took great delight in displaying it at science fiction conventions and on TV programs. He also kept a Certina watch that was specially made for his character.
• Many other male characters in the series also wore wigs, again because the Andersons felt that they would become fashionable for both sexes by the 1980s. Early episodes in which Michael Billington does not wear a wig can be identified by his receding hairline and long sideburns.
• On both Skydiver and Moonbase, SHADO pilots enter their interceptor craft by sliding down tubes. This is a reference to Anderson's earlier series, Thunderbirds, which had the characters accessing their craft in similar fashion.
• Ed Straker's dramatic gas turbine car, resembling somewhat the 1970 Citroën SM, was, in fact, a humble Ford Zephyr with a specially built aluminium bodyshell.
• The control consoles, computer panels and spacesuits of Moonbase make numerous appearances in other TV shows of the 1970s such as Dr Who, Timeslip, Doomwatch, The Tomorrow People, The Goodies and briefly appeared in the 1975 film Confessions of a Pop Performer. Some of the models also appear in the Dr Who story "Frontier In Space". An Alien spacesuit can also be seen in the Children's Film Foundation film Kadoing.
• One of the unnamed female Moonbase operatives was played by Shakira Baksh, later wife of actor Michael Caine. Shortly after she appeared in UFO, Michael Caine saw her in a television advertisement, and made it a point to find out who she was. After they were married, she appeared as a supporting actor with Caine and Sean Connery in the movie The Man Who Would Be King, playing the part of 'Roxanne.' Producer Gerry Anderson later said that he had lost his temper with her so badly on the set of UFO, that he always feared the idea of running in to Michael Caine at some actors' function, and being punched on the nose by him.^{[citation needed]}
• Sylvia Anderson, having had made a pair of very sheer trousers for actor Patrick Allen to wear in the episode "Timelash," later regretted not having had the nerve to ask him to wear a jock strap underneath, and commented on the DVD release of the series that "you should not be able to tell which side anybody's 'packet' is on."
• The futuristic, gull-winged cars driven by the Ed Straker and Paul Foster characters were originally built for the Anderson movie Doppelgänger (later re-named Journey to the Far Side of the Sun). During the shooting of the UFO series, David Lowe and Sydney Carlton raised funds to form a company called "The Explorer Motor Company," dedicated to the mass production of these cars for sale to the public. A plastic mold was made of the Straker car, in preparation for mass production, but the company never got off the ground. [1]
• Both Ed Bishop and Michael Billington have commented that the futuristic cars were 'impossible to drive.' (Partly because the steering wheel was designed for looks, rather than functionality.) Also, the gull-wing doors did not open automatically. Every shot in which the car door was seen to open automatically had to be arranged so that a prop man could run up to the car, just outside of the frame, open the door, and hold it open while Ed Bishop stepped out. In certain episodes (most notably "Courtmartial") the prop man can be seen
• In the episode "Mindbender" an alien device causes the SHADO operatives to hallucinate. In a wonderful twist of irony, the Ed Straker character hallucinates that he is an actor in a Sci-Fi television series about UFOs and aliens. He then steps out of the set, onto the actual sound stage where UFO is filmed, and we are able to see all of the sets that were used to film the series. Also, in Straker's hallucination, all of the actors (except Ed Bishop) are called by their real names. Paul Foster is called "Mike" (as in Mike Michael Billington), General Henderson is called "Grant" (as in Grant Taylor) and so on.
• Similarly to how the first opening of The Big O bears some resemblances to the Flash Gordon movie theme, the second opening of the anime shares some resemblance to UFO's Opening, both in music and in the "Infoburt" describing the various factors of the series'.

[edit] Predictions

UFO, which was filmed in 1969, made a number of predictions about what life in the 1980s would be like, some of which (to an extent) have come true. Among the innovations predicted by the series:

• Car telephones (aka cell phones)
• Gull-wing doors on automobiles (actually these had been pioneered over a decade earlier in real life, in the Mercedes-Benz 300SL, but were not widespread in 1969.)
• Spacecraft launched from an aircraft
• Extensive use of computers in day-to-day life, even to the extent of predicting and analyzing human behavior
• Voice print identification systems; also, vocal analysis used to identify individuals in the same way as fingerprints
• Spy satellites.
• The episode "Conflict" indicates that, in the UFO universe, racial prejudice was wiped out on Earth in the mid-1970s, a prediction that did not come true in the real world.
• That cars would drive on the right-hand side of the road in the UK and be converted to left-hand drive (a prediction that didn't come true either).
• UFO also featured episodes dealing with issues that would become topical in later years, such as space junk and the disposal of toxic waste.
• Cordless telephones (the 3 on Straker's office desk had no cord between the handsets and the base)

[edit] Episodes

Due to the then highly localized nature of the ITV "network" in the United Kingdom, the 26 episodes of UFO were shown out of production order, and every broadcaster showed the episodes in different order. As the list below indicates, based upon information from the book The Complete Gerry Anderson shows, on several occasions during the first run different broadcasters aired different episodes of the series on the same day. Some UK broadcasters did not air some episodes until 1973; as a result, some episode guides may list these episodes in different order. The North American DVD release of the series usually follows the production order, with a few diversions. The website ufoseries.com offers seven viewing order possibilities. According to The Complete Gerry Anderson, the episode "Exposed" was intended to be aired second, but it was produced fifth and appears as the fifth episode in the American DVD release.

Episode #	Original Air Date (UK)	Episode Title	Production order	Guest cast	Summary of events
1-01	16 September 1970	Identified	1	Shane Rimmer	After 10 years of planning, SHADO officially goes into operation and encounters its first UFOs.
1-02	23 September 1970	Exposed	5	Jean Marsh, Robin Bailey	When test pilot Paul Foster witnesses a SHADO operation, he's given a choice: join SHADO or die.
1-03	30 September 1970	Kill Straker!	16	David Sumner	Foster is brainwashed by aliens into hating Straker
1-04	30 September 1970	The Cat with Ten Lives	19	Alexis Kanner, Geraldine Moffatt, Windsor Davies, Lois Maxwell	Regan, a SHADO pilot, is controlled by an alien-programmed cat
1-05	7 October 1970	Conflict	6	Drewe Henley	After a SHADO craft is destroyed in an accident, Straker fights to have space junk removed from Earth's orbit.
1-06	7 October 1970	E.S.P.	15	John Stratton, Douglas Wilmer, Deborah Stanford	A man with ESP who knows about SHADO is taken over by the aliens.
1-07	7 October 1970	The Sound of Silence	18	Michael Jayston, Susan Jameson, Richard Vernon	A horse ranch owner is abducted by the aliens.
1-08	14 October 1970	A Question of Priorities	8	Suzanne Neve, Philip Madoc, Mary Merrall	Straker faces a terrible decision: attend to a UFO attack or deliver life-saving medicine to his critically injured son.
1-09	11 November 1970	The Square Triangle	11	Adrienne Corri, Patrick Mower, Allan Cuthbertson	SHADO as well as an alien find themselves in the middle of a murderous romantic triangle.
1-10	11 November 1970	Sub-Smash	17	Anthony Chinn	Straker must face his claustrophobia when Skydiver 1 is damaged and is unable to surface.
1-11	2 December 1970	Destruction	20	Stephanie Beacham, Philip Madoc, Edwin Richfield, Steven Berkoff	A ship goes to dump nerve gas, which the aliens try to get.
1-12	9 December 1970	The Computer Affair	2	Michael Mundell	A UFO collides with an Interceptor, whose pilot is in love.
1-13	16 December 1970	Close Up	13	Neil Hallett	Straker gets what may be the first photos of the alien homeworld.
1-14	30 December 1970	The Psychobombs	22	David Collings, Deborah Grant, Mike Pratt, Tom Adams	The aliens transform three humans into walking bombs.
1-15	6 January 1971	Survival	4	Suzan Farmer	Foster is stranded on the Moon, where he befriends a similarly stranded alien pilot.
1-16	13 January 1971	Mindbender	25	Stuart Damon, Charles Tingwell, Anouska Hempel	Hallucinations begin affecting Straker and other SHADO personnel.
1-17	20 January 1971	Flight Path	3	George Cole, Sonia Fox	A traitor in SHADO's midst opens the door for a possible alien attack on Moonbase.
1-18	20 January 1971	Ordeal	9	David Healy, Quinn O'Hara	Aliens abduct Foster.
1-19	3 February 1971	The Man Who Came Back	21	Derren Nesbitt, Lois Maxwell	When a SHADO pilot believed killed suddenly turns up alive and well, Straker is suspicious.
1-20	10 February 1971	The Dalotek Affair	7	Tracy Reed, Philip Latham	Communications problems at Moonbase are linked to a non-SHADO mining operation nearby.
1-21	17 February 1971	Timelash	24	Patrick Allen, Ron Pember	Straker and Col. Lake arrive at the film studio to find time standing still for everyone but them ... and an enemy.
1-22	3 March 1971	The Responsibility Seat	10	Jane Merrow	Straker falls in love with a journalist who threatens to expose SHADO's operation.
1-23	1 April 1971	The Long Sleep	26	Tessa Wyatt, Christian Roberts, John Garrie	When a woman wakes from a decade-long coma, it sparks a hunt for an alien bomb.
1-24	1 May 1971	Court Martial	12	Jack Hedley, Pippa Steel, Louise Pajo, Georgina Cookson	Foster is tried and sentenced to death after a security leak is traced to him.
1-25	10 July 1971	Confetti Check A-OK	14	Suzanne Neve, Shane Rimmer	A flashback episode looking at how SHADO was formed, and the effect this had on Straker's marriage.
1-26	24 July 1971	Reflections in the Water	23	James Cosmo, Richard Caldicott, David Warbeck, Anouska Hempel	Straker and Foster investigate a mysterious underwater dome.

Several episodes were edited together in the late 1970s to form Invasion: UFO, a movie syndicated to American and European broadcasters.

[edit] UFO stories in other media

Stories set in the Gerry Anderson UFO series have appeared in various media:-

• Two novelizations based upon the series were published in the UK and America.[2]
• In the comics "Countdown" and "TV Action".
• In 1991 to 1999 Entropy Express in Brighton, South Australia published 7 issues of a periodical called Flightpath, containing 39 text stories set in the UFO scenario. These include a crossover with Bergerac (TV series), and a crossover with Predator (film).

[edit] Revivals

Several attempts have been made to either revive or remake the series. The first attempt, as mentioned above, evolved into Space: 1999. In the 1990s and early 2000s there were scattered reports of production companies around the world investigating the possibility of producing a new TV series or film, most recently in 2003 when Carlton International Media (current rights holders for the series) announced that an American company was planning to produce a new series,^{[citation needed]} though as of 2005 nothing has yet come of this.

[edit] Translations

• (French) : Alerte dans l’espace
• (Spanish) : OVNI

[edit] See also

• Threshold - An American series broadcast in 2005 with noted similarities to UFO.

[edit] External links

• UFO at the Internet Movie Database
• UFO at TV.com
• UFO Episode Guide at Fanderson - the web site of the official Gerry Anderson Appreciation Society
• UFO series home page
• SHADO Library UFO series fan fiction
• Episode guide of the Countdown and TV Action comic-strip stories

Gerry Anderson
Television
The Adventures of Twizzle | Torchy the Battery Boy | Four Feather Falls | Supercar | Fireball XL5 | Stingray | Thunderbirds | Captain Scarlet | Joe 90 | The Secret Service | UFO | The Protectors | Space: 1999 | Terrahawks | Dick Spanner, P.I. | Space Precinct | Lavender Castle | New Captain Scarlet
Feature Films
Crossroads to Crime | Thunderbirds Are GO | Thunderbird 6 | Doppelgänger
Companies/Techniques
AP Films | Century 21 Productions | Supermarionation
Notable Collaborators
Sylvia Anderson | David Lane | Barry Gray | Reg Hill | Derek Meddings | John Read | Shane Rimmer