Fireball XL5, 1962
There can be no doubt of the cult status of those classic Gerry Anderson puppet series, even if the puppets gave me the creeps (they still do).
Fireball XL5 was the third series to come from AP films and the last to be made in black and white. Fireball was noted at the time for being the first Gerry Anderson production to be sold to an American network (NBC).
Filming the show began in February 1962 and a run of 39 episodes began later the same year.
The TV show was accompanied by an audio play, comic strips in popular publications TV Comic and Century 21 alongside other tie-ins including books, toys and model kits. Fireball XL5 was regularly repeated on British TV until 1974.
Summary
The series followed the missions of Fireball XL5, a vessel of the World Space Patrol that polices the cosmos in the year 2062. Commanded by Colonel Steve Zodiac, XL5 defends Earth from interstellar threats while encountering a wide variety of alien civilisations.
Clips
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Voices Of
Sylvia Anderson – Doctor Venus
David Graham – Lieutenant Ninety
Paul Maxwell – Colonel Steve Zodiac
John Bluthal – Commander Wilbur Zero
Gerry Anderson – Robert the Robot
Details
Channel: ITV
Created By: Gerry and Sylvia Anderson
Written By: Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, Alan Fennell, Anthony Marriott and Dennis Spooner
Produced By: Gerry Anderson
Original Transmission Dates: 28th October 1962 – 21st July 1963