Infinity Limited is an Australian science education television series produced by the ABC in Melbourne between 1982 and 1984.From archived 4 June 1984 South Australian TV guide at television.au Despite the show's short run, it proved popular with primary school children around Australia. 37 episodes were made. Each episode was broadcast between 12 and 19 times from 1982 to 1991, with the exception of episode 83/9 "The Big Heater" which was only broadcast three times between 1982 and 1983.
The show initially starred Kim Trengove and Stefan Dennis as Kris (Kristal) and Rick who run a small business called Infinity Ltd. Dennis left the show after 20 episodes in late 1983 and was replaced by Mark Little as Rosco for the final 17 episodes. Infinity Ltd. were generally called upon to solve basic science-based problems for people. Their office was located above the basement/office of Vortex Ventures, a company who makes it their business to try and steal Infinity Ltd's customers, usually without success. Ross Williams starred as Valerian J. Vortex, the inept owner of Vortex Ventures, with Ian Scott as Arthur Plankton, his long suffering assistant who often showed signs that he was smarter than Vortex gave him credit for. Plankton is often made to perform tasks he is not happy with, such as climbing the air conditioning duct in order to eavesdrop on Infinity Ltd. Infinity Ltd. are aware of Vortex and Plankton and consider them a minor annoyance, rather than a serious threat to their business.
Characters Kris Kristal (Kim Trengove), known as Kris to most people, is one half of Infinity Limited. Although it's a fairly even partnership, she seems to get the final say and leaves the more physical tasks to Rick. If she sees Rick on a break, she assumes he's been slacking off while she's been away. Despite this, Kris and Rick are good friends, maybe even lovers, but being a kids' show, this is not explicitly mentioned or shown. Kris appears to be in her early 20s.
Rick Rick (Stefan Dennis) is slightly more sceptical of new ideas, taking some convincing from Kris before he's fully on board. Although he is a hard worker, he also likes his leisure time, which makes Kris sometimes think he doesn't pull his weight. He leaves for unexplained reasons and is replaced by Rosco. Rick appears to be in his early 20s.
Rosco Practical-minded and handy at building things, Rosco (Mark Little) doesn't come up with any scientific ideas, leaving that up to Kris. He replaces Rick as the other half of Infinity Limited. Rosco appears to be in his early 20s.
Vortex Valerian J. Vortex is the owner of Vortex Ventures, rival company to Infinity Limited. Vortex is greedy, lazy, ignorant, and unscrupulous, but not as stupid as he first appears. He can grasp scientific concepts but lacks the patience to understand a concept fully. He can also invent many different types of machine, most of which are at least partially successful before developing a fatal flaw. He is a self-described genius, and often ignores the advice from his assistant Plankton which is usually correct. Most episodes feature his latest poorly thought out but imaginative get rich quick scheme. He is almost always seen wearing a blue suit and tie. He has a moustache and a bald patch and his remaining hair is styled upwards, reminiscent of the horn-like hairdo of the Pointy-haired Boss from the comic strip Dilbert. Vortex appears to be in his early to late 30s.
Plankton Arthur Plankton is the long suffering assistant of Vortex. He is rarely called by his first name which is only mentioned in a couple of episodes. Where Vortex is intellectually lazy, Plankton is physically lazy, although his reluctant participation in the experimental phase of Vortex's plans could explain that. Plankton lacks Vortex's guile and generally wants to do right by people but is lead astray by Vortex. He is slightly smarter than Vortex and usually notices the flaws in Vortex's plans but is ignored by Vortex. Plankton usually wears blue jeans, a thin grey V-neck school jumper with yellow, maroon, yellow stripes around the neck, and a thin grey knee-length jacket. Plankton appears to be in his late 20s to early 30s.
Relationships It is hinted that Kris and Rick might be romantically involved. Their office also appears to be a house and it's unknown where they live when they're not working. In "The Generation Gap", Kris's mum is supposed to be coming for dinner which suggests that the office is in their home. In "Melting Moments", Kris hugs Rick's arm when she introduces him to her old school friend Lucy which makes them look like a couple. Also in "Melting Moments", Miss Abernathy appears enamoured of Vortex, even calling him by his first name, at least until his latest invention fails to live up to his promises. In "The Generation Gap", Plankton notices the librarian and seems very interested in her but is interrupted by Vortex before he can chat her up.
Episode Structure Most episodes involve Infinity Limited being hired by a new client with a different problem. They will research several different methods and perform experiments to see which solutions work, and which solutions suit the client best. In about half of the episodes, Vortex will send Plankton to spy on Infinity Limited, usually by crawling up the air duct that connects their office in the basement with Infinity Limited's office upstairs. He will then try to sabotage Infinity Limited's plans while coming up with his own idea to present to the client. In the remainder of the episodes, Vortex will be doing something that just coincidentally is thematically related to the problem that Infinity Limited is solving. Vortex's plans inevitably fail in the end, and always by his own doing.
Vortex and Plankton's ignorance allows them to research the science behind the problem and explain it to each other, which is a device used to explain the scientific concept to the kids in the audience. This happens with Infinity Limited as well, with only one of the two characters understanding the concept and explaining it to the other, or alternatively, seeking expert advice where the expert explains it to both of them. Concepts are explained to other characters, not directly to the children in the audience, and later demonstrated on screen to make it engaging for the kids watching.
The series promotes critical thinking and demonstrates the difference between thorough investigation and leaping to conclusions. Many episodes discuss environmental issues as well as general scientific concepts.
Episodes Ep. no. Title Science concept Running time Production number Writer Additional cast Plot outline Runs First year Last year Notes 83/1 The Earth Speaks Fossils 19'36" 325324 Hardy Stow Catherine Wilkin Johnny Quinn Mary Anne Gillis Simon Rogers A workman at an excavation site discovers a mysterious object in the ground which he takes to Infinity Limited for identification. Rick and Kris conclude that it is either bone or a fossil. A visit to the museum sees the find identified as a tooth by the curator of fossils. At the same time they see a variety of other fossils which illustrate characteristics of various animals. Indications that the tooth seems to be from a Diprotodon, a wombat-like animal living in Australia until 20,000 years ago, lead to the decision to investigate further with technical advice from the curator. Careful excavation, along with measurements and photographs, leads to the discovery of a jawbone and the indications of a valuable 'find'. Meanwhile Vortex Ventures follow Infinity Limited investigators to the museum, and jump to the conclusion that fossils have been stolen (empty cases in the display galleries). As usual with these two, a short attempt at investigation does not get them far. Vortex decides to 'fake' the fossils after a little research indicates what they looked like. Unfortunately for these two, a later visit to the museum shows them the truth about the empty cases. 16 1983 1991 83/2 Thick as a Brick Brickmaking 19'59" 325329 Hardy Stow Alton Harvey Marilyn O'Donnell Infinity Limited investigates why the mudbricks a woman is making to build her house develop large cracks as they dry. Meanwhile, Vortex builds a mudbrick brickmaking machine powered by his assistant Plankton to sell bricks to the woman. 18 1983 1991 83/3 To Bee or Not to Bee Bees and pollination 19'26" 325330 Bronwen Nicholls Ernie Bourne Carol Yelland Kris and Rick investigate why a beekeeper's bees have mostly died. Vortex's theory is that the music from a nearby music festival has chased them away and that the bees will return when the festival is over. 18 1983 1991 83/4 Don't Count Your Chickens Egg incubation 19'50" 325328 Bronwen Nicholls Peter Green Cindy Unkauf Kris and Rick investigate why some chicken eggs have failed to hatch in an incubator at a children's home. After getting the idea from a magazine Plankton was reading, Vortex decides to raise ostriches to sell ostrich eggs. 18 1983 1991 Copyright 1982 83/5 Veg's Revenge Nutrition 19'56" 325312 Jim Burnett Alan Rowe Andrew McKaige Simon Rogers Kris and Rick's friend Greg is working at a mine where all the miners are getting sick. Kris and Rick check out the food while Vortex is convinced it's an infectious disease. 16 1983 1991 Copyright 1982 83/6 The Case of the Terminated Trout Water pollution 19'49" 325331 Ian McFadyen John Larking Roy Baldwin A farmer comes to Kris and Rick to help prove that a tanker spill on a nearby highway was responsible for the dead fish in the stream on his property. Vortex blames the owner of a nearby factory, ignoring Plankton's attempts to stop him. 17 1983 1991 83/7 Good Vibrations Noise pollution 19'56" 325333 Ian McFadyen Andrew McKaige Roy Edmunds Andrew Righetti Jay Righetti Glen Robinson Jeff Sellenger Kris's friend Greg's band, "World War III", is disturbing the sleep of a neighbour who works night shift. While Kris and Rick investigate sound proofing, Vortex demonstrates his latest invention to Plankton: the tin can telephone. 16 1983 1991 83/8 These Fuelish Things Alternative energy sources 18'48" 325334 Unknown Terry McDermott A farmer asks Infinity Limited to help him reduce his energy bill by converting cow pats into methane. Kris and Rick investigate more workable sources of alternative energy while Vortex and Plankton build a methane machine. 16 1983 1991 83/9 The Big Heater 19'49" 325313 Ian McFadyen Peter Harvey-Wright 3 1982 1983 This is the only episode not to be shown after 1983, being marked in TIS as "Removed" (to Melbourne) after its third run. 83/10 Thin Air Wind energy/Wind resistance 19'41" 325314 Ian McFadyen Vince D'Amico A delivery driver comes to Infinity Limited to discover who is stealing petrol from his van. After Plankton is blown across the street while wearing an advertising sign, Vortex decides to build a wind powered car. 17 1982 1991 Copyright 1982 83/11 Waste High Waste disposal 19'55" 325332 Unknown John Bowman Colwyn Roberts During a garbage strike there are protests outside a factory. Kris and Rick think of ways to safely dispose of the factory's waste paint which is diluted in hazardous solvent. Vortex plans to sell the waste at a profit. 17 1982 1991 Copyright 1983 83/12 Vision from Above Flight 19'55" 325335 Ian McFadyen Keir Saltmarsh A model plane enthusiast asks Infinity Limited why his plane crashed. Vortex decides to build a gigantic kite to take aerial photos with Plankton as the photographer. 18 1983 1991 The episode explains how an aeroplane flies using an incorrect explanation which is still commonly believed today. 83/13 An Air-Raising Experience Balloons 19'52" 325323 Michael Harvey John Murphy