Gerry and Sylvia Anderson's imperishable TV creation Thunderbirds is 60 today, and how apt that it should be celebrating its diamond anniversary. Because, rather like the hardest known naturally occurring material, the concept is such an ingenious one that time cannot wear it away.
I will happily serve as "Exhibit A" with regard to the show's ability to capture the imagination of successive generations. As follows...
Although Thunderbirds launched on 30 September 1965, my first contact would have come during repeat screenings in the 1970s. From this distance, exactitude is impossible, but two moments do snap into sharp focus.
Edge-of seat perils, Bond-style gadgetry, a dash of espionage, a villain both hissable and hilarious, and Tracy Island: the coolest playground in the world with its movable swimming pool and lift-and-slide rocket entries. What kid didn't love all that?
That sleek six-wheeler leads me neatly on to the world of merchandise that surrounded the programme. Because Fab 1, as it was called – Lady Penelope's specially adapted, machine-gun-toting Rolls-Royce – was just one of a squadron of toys, models, books, comics and games that young fans would save up their pocket money for, or more likely add to their Christmas wish lists.
Here the adventures of the Tracy boys and their extended family, Lady Penelope and Parker, were brought to vivid and colourful life by a number of skilled illustrators. Among them was Frank Bellamy, whose beautiful work for Radio Times, especially in connection with Doctor Who, remains a highpoint in the magazine's history.
My quest for completion was such that, once I'd seen all 32 episodes of the TV series, and even the first feature film Thunderbirds Are Go, I made a special effort for the sequel Thunderbird 6. Learning from my local paper that there was to be a special screening in a distant village hall, I managed to get a lift there, but cycled all the way home. The excitement from seeing that movie gave me wings for the journey back.
The first time I met Gerry was at a "Mini-Con" on 16 August 1981 at a community centre in Lane End, Bucks. I'd worked my way through the Anderson series that followed Thunderbirds, and in those days I was a huge fan of Space: 1999.
With high hopes, I took along a poster I had designed for that particular series, and plucked up the courage to show it to him. He wrote the word "Approved" and autographed it, making not only my day but probably my year.
But we're getting ahead of ourselves. As full-time education receded and the world of work beckoned, you might think that my videos of Thunderbirds (yes, this pre-dates DVDs and Blu-rays) might start to gather dust on the shelves. But children came along, and of course, one of the many joys of parenthood is getting to treat them to some of your old TV favourites!
So perhaps I started them off with some Bod, Mr Benn and Bagpuss, but soon of course, I introduced them to the adventures of the Tracy brothers. And it was a good time to do it because there was a huge International Rescue renaissance going on in the 90s and noughties. The first run of BBC screenings averaged six million viewers a week, and Radio Times recorded the comeback in 2000 with four collectors' covers.
And that's to say nothing of the whole Tracy Island phenomenon. When the Thunderbird HQ became the most coveted Christmas toy of 1992, leading to a stock shortage, Blue Peter came to the rescue with an astonishingly popular "make it yourself", plus accompanying factsheet.
View oEmbed on the source websiteA decade later, the story came full circle for Thunderbirds' 50th anniversary. A new TV series combining CGI and model sets, Thunderbirds Are Go, premiered in 2015, and three "Anniversary Episodes" were made in Slough, the home of the originals. So I got my fanboy moment by seeing how they came together.
It was a joy to see puppeteers bringing life to Scott Tracy and Lady Penelope, to chat with modellers in the workshop and to get a sense of what it must have been like back in the days of AP Films and then Century 21. From 1957 to 1969 they operated a conveyor belt of TV classics, from Stingray to Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, plus of course the jewel in the Anderson crown.
The story has come full circle on a personal note, too, with me writing this. My friends and I were so inspired by Thunderbirds, back in the day, that we would reenact moments from it in our games, and later try to emulate their craftsmanship in the Super-8 films that we made.
Thunderbirds, Thunderbirds Are Go, The Anniversary Episodes and the documentary Fab at 60 are all available on ITVX
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