Fireball XL5
| Fireball XL5 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre |
Action Adventure Children's Science fiction |
| Created by |
Gerry Anderson Sylvia Anderson |
| Written by | Gerry Anderson Alan Fennell Anthony Marriott Dennis Spooner |
| Directed by | Gerry Anderson David Elliott Bill Harris John Kelly Alan Pattillo |
| Voices of | Gerry Anderson (uncredited) Sylvia Anderson John Bluthal David Graham Paul Maxwell |
| Theme music composer |
Barry Gray Charles Blackwell (lyrics) Don Spencer (vocals) |
| Composer(s) | Barry Gray |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 39 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Gerry Anderson |
| Cinematography |
John Read Ian Struthers |
| Editor(s) | Gordon Davie Eric Pask |
| Camera setup | Single |
| Running time | 25 mins approx. per episode (excluding advertisements) |
| Production company(s) | AP Films |
| Distributor | ITC Entertainment |
| Release | |
| Original network | ATV |
| Picture format |
Black and white Film (35 mm) |
| Audio format | Mono |
| Original release | 28 October 1962 – 27 October 1963 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Supercar |
| Followed by | Stingray |
Fireball XL5 is a science fiction themed children's television show following the missions of spaceship Fireball XL5, commanded by Colonel Steve Zodiac of the World Space Patrol. The show aired for a single 1962—63 series, produced by husband and wife team Gerry and Sylvia Anderson through their company APF, in association with ATV for ITC Entertainment, and first transmitted on ATV on Sunday 28 October 1962. While developing his new show, Anderson thought a brand of motor oil – Castrol XL – had an interesting sound. A phonetic change created the name "Fireball XL", with the "5" added as the title seemed a bit flat without the numeral.
The show featured the Andersons' Supermarionation, a form of puppetry first introduced in Four Feather Falls (1960) and Supercar (1961) and used again in their subsequent productions such as Stingray, Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet. Thirty-nine black and white half-hour episodes of Fireball XL5 were made on 35mm film: all subsequent Anderson series were produced in colour.
Several Anderson series have been shown in syndication in the US, but Fireball XL5 is the only Anderson series to have run on a US network. NBC (the National Broadcasting Company) ran the series in its Saturday morning children's block from 1963 through to September 1965.
A similar programme often confused with Fireball XL5 due to a number of similarities and settings is Space Patrol (known as Planet Patrol in the U.S.), produced by Gerry Anderson's former business partner and co-founder of AP Films, Arthur Provis.
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