Produced from 1973-1977 by Brits Gerry and Sylvia Anderson (and later American Freddie Freiberger), the outer pace series featured cutting-edge special effects, incredible sets and mind-blowing stories. Starring Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Barry Morse, Catherine Schell, Nick Tate, Prentis Hancock and Zienia Merton, the series recounted the epic odyssey of Moonbase Alpha.
On September 13, 1999, a nuclear explosion on the lunar surface caused the natural satellite to break away from Earth orbit and begin the strangest cosmic odyssey of all time. All those personnel, some 311 men and women, stationed on Moonbase Alpha, were marooned there, trapped for duration of the intergalactic sojourn. Using their incredible eagle spacecrafts as workhorses, the Alphans explored strange new worlds (and I mean really strange...) and attempted to find a suitable place to settle.
Along the way, they discovered a dead and dying universe where the dangers of technology ("The Guardian of Piri"), intellectualism over emotionalism ("Missing Link") and immortality ("Death's Other Dominion," "End of Eternity") were exposed. The stories were especially realistic, and often gruesome. One story, "Mission of the Darians" revealed how Machiavellian, humanoid aliens resorted to cannibalism when left with no supplies, and another, "Force of Life," involved our heroes in an alien life cycle that they could not control, let alone understand. Directed by the best veterans of the British film industry (like Charles Crichton and David Tomblin), the show featured moody, expressive cinematography and more than any series in history captured the isolation, awe, majesty - and downright terror - of deep space.
Critics harped all over the series' supposed scientific flaws, jealousTrekkies lost their tempers because Space:1999 immediately shot to the top of the ratings charts in markets all over the world, and a controversial two season odyssey was underway. Before it was finished, Space:1999, a thesis about "the technological downfall of 20th century man," according to Science Digest, offered one of the most interesting millennial ponderings to come down the pike in ages.
Interview with script-editor, Johnny Byrne
Interview with Martin Landau, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary.
Interview with special effects director, Brian Johnson
Space:1999 Concordance