UFO (1970 - 1973)

Country of Origin: UK
Date(s) of Broadcast: 16 September 1970 - 15 March 1973
Number of Seasons: 1
Total Number of Episodes: 26
Average Episode Running Times: 50 mins
Format: colour
Ratio: 1.33:1
Sound: mono

PLOT SUMMARY

In the year 1980, aliens are visiting the Earth, stealing organs from humans to keep their ailing race from dying out altogether. Against them stand the forces of SHADO, a top secret organisation led by Commander Ed Straker - boasting a base on the moon (complete with armed Interceptors spaceships), a fleet of submarines, SkyDivers that can fire off their front sections as aircraft, an orbiting early warning system known as SID and a fleet of ground defence vehicles, SHADO do constant battle with the aliens.

The Andersons gave up the puppets that had made them famous for this wonderful - if sometimes rather silly - futuristic epic pitting people in strange wigs against sinister organ-harvesting aliens. Inevitably it looks dated now, but when it works it works extremely well - the hardware design is second to none, the carnage and destruction of satisfyingly apocalyptic proportions (things always exploded so prettily in an Anderson show) and the scripts were dark, sometimes complex and always entertaining. And then of course there's that outstanding theme tune, simply one of the best ever. Brilliant.

As with most of Gerry Anderson's shows, continuity between episodes is tenuous to say the least and, with one or two exceptions, they can be shown in any order. Clearly Identified needs to be shown first, with Exposed coming second. Sub Smash should, ideally, precede episodes like Computer Affair, The Sound of Silence and Refelctions in the Water which all show UFOs travelling through or taking shelter in water - in Sub Smash, SHADO seem taken by surprise at this ability so it would make sense for this episode to come first.

The fact is that there seems to be no set running order for UFO and at least five variations seem to exist. The version promoted by the Gerry Anderson fan club, Fanderson and the subsequent British video releases seems fair enough (though some of the character development does go a little awry) and is certainly preferable to either the Japanese or US TV versions - in the latter watch for the peculiar placement of the crucial second episode Exposed. Perhaps the definitive version is that suggested by both Starlog Guidebook and an early issue of Century 21 magazine.

IN ORDER OF BROADCAST BY ATV TELEVISION, UK

Identified (16 September 1970)
Exposed (23 September 1970)
The Cat With Ten Lives (30 September 1970)
Conflict (7 October 1970)
A Question of Priorities (14 October 1970)
E.S.P. (21 October 1970)
Kill Straker! (4 November 1970)
Sub-Smash (11 November 1970)
Destruction (2 December 1970)
The Square Triangle (9 December 1970)
Close Up (16 December 1970)
The Psychobombs (30 December 1970)
Survival (6 January 1971)
Mindbender (13 January 1971)
Flight Path (20 January 1971)
The Man Who Came Back (3 February 1971)
The Dalotek Affair (10 February 1971)
Timelash (17 February 1971)
Ordeal (14 April 1971)
Court Martial (1 May 1971)
Computer Affair (15 May 1971)
Confetti Check A-O.K. (10 July 1971)
The Sound of Silence (17 July 1971)
Reflections in the Water (24 July 1971)
The Responsibility Seat (8 March 1973)
The Long Sleep (15 March 1973)

STARLOG/CENTURY 21

Identified
Exposed
Flight Path
Conflict
Survival
The Dalotek Affair
The Computer Affair
A Question of Priorities
Ordeal
The Responsibility Seat
The Square Triangle
Court Martial
Close Up
Confetti Check A-OK
E.S.P
Kill Straker!
Sub-Smash
The Sound of Silence
The Cat With Ten Lives
Destruction
The Man Who Came Back
Reflections in the Water
Mindbender
Timelash
The Psychobombs
The Long Sleep

ORDER OF PRODUCTION

Identified
The Computer Affair
Flight Path
Survival
Exposed
Conflict
The Dalotek Affair
A Question of Priorities
Ordeal
The Responsibility Seat
The Square Triangle
Court Martial
Close Up
Confetti Check A-OK
E.S.P
Kill Straker!
Sub-Smash
The Sound of Silence
The Cat With Ten Lives
Destruction
The Man Who Came Back
Reflections in the Water
The Psychobombs
Timelash
Mindbender
The Long Sleep

Argentina
Television Distributor: Uniseries

Australia
Television Distributor: Nick at Nite

Canada
Television Distributor: Canal D (Quebec)

France
Television Distributor: Série Club

Germany
Television Distributors: TM3; SAT1

Italy
Television Distributors: Canal Jimmy; TMC2; RAI 1; RAI 3

Japan
Television Distributor: Super Channel
Laserdisc Distributor: Bandai

New Zealand
Television Distributor: TVNZ Channel 2

UK
Television Distributors: ITV; BBC2; Sci-Fi Channel; Bravo
Video Distributor: Channel Five
DVD Distributor: Carlton

USA
Television Distributors: WBZ Channel 4 Boston; WPRI Channel 12 Providence RI; Channel 10 Philadelphia PA; Channel 2 Los Angeles CA; WTIC Channel 3 Hartford CT; The Sci-Fi Channel
Laserdisc Distributor: Image

Alerte dans l'espace - French title

REFERENCES

MAGAZINES

Classic Television no.4 (April / May 1998) pp.26-29 (UK)
illustrated article (Me and my SHADO by John Matthews)

Cult TV June 1998 pp.58-63 (UK)
illustrated article (Auto-erotica by John Kent)

Starburst vol.2 no.4 (1979) pp.10-13 (UK)
interview, review

Starburst vol.9 no.4 (December 1986) pp.22-23 (UK)
article

Starburst no.100 (1986) pp.22-23 (UK)
review

Starburst no.286 (June 2002) p.68 (UK)
illustrated DVD review

Starburst no.288 (August 2002) p.61 (UK)
illustrated DVD review

Starburst Special no.13 Outer Space (April 1997) pp.56-60 (UK)
illustrated interview with Ed Bishop (Straker's Story by Steven Eramo)

KEYWORDS

aliens, ufos, spaceships, computers, moonbases, organ harvesting, spacesuits, space wars, alien abductions

Last Updated: 15 October, 2008