Thunderbirds is a British science fiction television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, filmed by their production company AP Films (APF) and distributed by ITC Entertainment. It was filmed between 1964 and 1966 using a form of electronic marionette puppetry called "Supermarionation" combined with scale model special effects sequences. Two series, totalling 32 fifty-minute episodes, were made; production ended with the sixth episode of the second series after Lew Grade, APF's financial backer, failed in his efforts to sell the programme to US network television.
Set in the 2060s, Thunderbirds was a follow-up to the earlier Supermarionation productions Four Feather Falls, Supercar, Fireball XL5 and Stingray. It concerns the exploits of International Rescue, a life-saving organisation with a secret base on an island in the Pacific Ocean. International Rescue operates a fleet of technologically advanced rescue vehicles, headed by five craft called the Thunderbird machines. The main characters are the leader of International Rescue, ex-astronaut Jeff Tracy, and his five adult sons, who pilot the Thunderbirds.
Thunderbirds premiered in September 1965 on the ITV network and has since aired in at least 66 countries. Besides tie-in merchandise, it was followed by two feature films: Thunderbirds Are Go and Thunderbird 6. Periodically repeated, it was adapted for radio in the 1990s and has influenced many TV programmes and other media. Its other adaptations include an anime reimagining (Thunderbirds 2086), a live-action film (Thunderbirds) and a part-CGI, part-live-action remake (Thunderbirds Are Go). Three supplementary episodes, based on tie-in audio plays and made using the same puppet techniques as the original series, have also been produced.
Widely regarded as the Andersons' most popular and commercially successful series, Thunderbirds has been praised for its special effects, directed by Derek Meddings, and its musical score by Barry Gray. It is also remembered for its title sequence, which begins with an oft-quoted countdown by Jeff Tracy voice actor Peter Dyneley: "5, 4, 3, 2, 1Thunderbirds Are Go!" A real-life search and rescue service, the International Rescue Corps, was named after the organisation featured in the series.
Premise
Set between 2065 and 2067,Archer and Hearn 2002, pp. 120; 142.Bentley 2005, pp. 42; 95.Bentley 2008, pp. 95; 113.Hearn 2015, p. 46.Although some sources (including Marriott 1993, pp. 114–121) indicate that Thunderbirds is set in the 2020s, Gerry Anderson confirmed that International Rescue is formed in 2065 (Hearn 2015, p. 46). Shots of props that point to settings other than the 2060ssuch as a wall calendar indicating that the final episode, "Give or Take a Million", takes place in December 2026 were dismissed by Anderson and art director Bob Bell as production design errors (Hearn 2015, p. 46). Thunderbirds follows the exploits of the Tracy family, headed by American industrialist and ex-astronaut Jeff Tracy. Jeff is a widower with five adult sons: Scott, John, Virgil, Gordon and Alan.Listed by age, in descending order, as stated in Bentley 2005, pp. 53–57. According to Marriott 1993, pp. 116–117, Virgil is the second-oldest son and John the third-oldest. The Tracys make up International Rescue, a secret organisation founded to save human life. They are aided in this mission by technologically advanced land, sea, air and space vehicles that are called into service when conventional rescue methods prove ineffective. The most important of these vehicles are the five "Thunderbird machines", each assigned to one of the five Tracy brothers:
Thunderbird 1: a hypersonic rocket plane used for fast response and danger zone reconnaissance. Piloted by Scott, rescue co-ordinator. Thunderbird 2: a supersonic carrier aircraft which ferries supporting vehicles and equipment in detachable capsules called "pods". Piloted by Virgil. Thunderbird 3: a single-stage-to-orbit spacecraft. Piloted alternately by Alan and John, with Scott as co-pilot. Thunderbird 4: a utility submersible. Piloted by Gordon and usually launched from Thunderbird 2. Thunderbird 5: a space station in Earth orbit that relays distress calls from around the world. Manned alternately by "space monitors" John and Alan.Bentley 2005: vehicle descriptions, pp. 45–49.
The family live on Tracy Island, International Rescue's secret base of operations in the South Pacific Ocean. They own a luxurious villa that they share with four other people: Grandma Tracy, Jeff's mother; scientist and engineer Brains, who designed the Thunderbird machines; Brains' assistant Tin-Tin, who is also Alan's girlfriend; and Tin-Tin's father Kyrano, the Tracys' retainer.Bentley 2005, p. 44.Bentley 2008, p. 95.The names "Tracy Island" and "Hood" are not used in the TV series, appearing only in tie-in media. In this remote location, International Rescue is safe from criminals and spies who envy its technology and attempt to acquire the secrets of the Thunderbird machines.
Some of International Rescue's operations are triggered not by innocent misadventure, but rather sabotage or criminal negligence. For missions involving undercover work, the organisation incorporates a network of field agents led by English aristocrat Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward and her butler Aloysius Parker. Based at Creighton-Ward Mansion in Kent, Penelope and Parker travel in FAB 1: a specially modified, pink Rolls-Royce. International Rescue members acknowledge orders with the expression "FAB" (a shortening of the 1960s buzzword "fabulous", spoken as an initialism: "F-A-B").
International Rescue's most persistent opponent is a master criminal known as The Hood.Bentley 2005, p. 61. Based in a temple in Malaysia, and possessing powers of hypnosis and dark magic, The Hood exerts telepathic control over Kyrano, his estranged half-brother, and manipulates the Tracys into rescues that unfold according to his own designs. This gives him opportunities to spy on the Thunderbird machines and, by selling their secrets, make himself rich.
Production Development
Thunderbirds was the fifth series to be co-created by Gerry Anderson and filmed by his production company APF, whose studios were located on the Slough Trading Estate. Pitched in 1963, the series was commissioned by Lew Grade of ITC, APF's parent company, following the commercial success of Stingray.Archer and Hearn 2002, p. 103.
The series' premise was inspired by the West German mining rescue known as the "Wunder von Lengede" (Miracle of Lengede). In October 1963, the collapse of a nearby dam flooded an iron mine in the municipality of Lengede, trapping 50 men underground. Efforts to save them were hampered by the length of time it took to bring rescue equipment to the site. Lacking the means to drill an escape shaft, the authorities were forced to requisition a heavy-duty bore from Bremen, more than away, and transport it to Lengede by train, in a journey that took eight hours. In the end, 21 miners were saved and the other 29 died.Bentley 2005, pp. 6–8. Seeing the advantages of faster emergency response, Anderson came up with the idea of an "international rescue" organisation that uses supersonic aircraft to transport equipment quickly over long distances.
Wanting to set this concept apart from APF's earlier productions, Anderson tried to pitch the stories at a level that would appeal to both adults and children. Whereas earlier series had aired in afternoon children's timeslots, Anderson wanted Thunderbirds to be shown during the evening to attract a wider family audience.Bentley 2005, p. 12. Series co-creator Sylvia Anderson recalled that "our market had grown and a 'kidult' show [...] was the next step."Anderson 2007, p. 21. The Andersons retired to their holiday villa in Portugal to expand the premise, script the pilot episode and compose a writers' guide. According to Sylvia, the writing process entailed a "division of labour", whereby Gerry devised the action sequences and she handled characterisation.La Rivière 2009, p. 106. The decision to make a father and his sons the main characters was influenced by the premise of Bonanza, as well as Sylvia's belief that the use of more than one heroic character would broaden the series' appeal.Anderson 2007, p. 31.Cull 2006 (August), p. 202. The Tracy brothers were named after Mercury Seven astronauts: Scott Carpenter, John Glenn, Virgil "Gus" Grissom, Gordon Cooper and Alan Shepard.
The series' title was derived from a letter Gerry had received during World War II from his brother Lionel, an RAF flight sergeant based overseas.Bentley 2005, p. 13. While stationed in Arizona, Lionel had made reference to Thunderbird Field, a nearby United States Army Air Forces base.La Rivière 2009, p. 111. Drawn to the "punchiness" of "Thunderbirds", Anderson renamed the series, whose working title had been "International Rescue", as well as the star vehicles, which had initially been designated Rescues 1 to 5. His inspiration for the launch sequences of Thunderbirds 1, 2 and 3 came from contemporary US Air Force launch procedure: Anderson had learnt how the Strategic Air Command kept pilots on permanent standby, seated in the cockpits of their aircraft, ready for take-off at a moment's notice.Cull 2006 (August), p. 198.
In the DVD documentary The Thunderbirds Companion, Anderson explained how rising production costs made overseas distribution particularly important and essentially caused Thunderbirds to be made "as an American show". During the characterisation and casting process, the Andersons' top priority was to give the series transatlantic appeal, increasing the chances of securing a US network deal and the larger audiences that the American market had to offer.Bignell 2011, p. 81. Additionally, the scripts were typed on US-standard Letter paper and used American spelling, in order to make it appear as though the scripts were written by Americans.
Casting and characters + Main charactersBentley 2005: Character biographies, pp. 52–61. Name Role(s) Voiced by Jeff Tracy Leader of International Rescue Peter Dyneley Scott Tracy Thunderbird 1 pilotThunderbird 3 co-pilotIt is stated in one episode, "The Uninvited", that Scott occasionally mans Thunderbird 5 (Bentley 2005, p. 53). Shane Rimmer Virgil Tracy Thunderbird 2 pilot David Holliday Jeremy Wilkin Alan Tracy Thunderbird 3 astronautThunderbird 5 Space Monitor Matt ZimmermanZimmerman was cast after the dialogue recording for the pilot, "Trapped in the Sky", in which Alan was voiced by Ray Barrett (Bentley 2005, p. 63). Gordon Tracy Thunderbird 4 aquanautThunderbird 2 co-pilot David Graham John Tracy Thunderbird 5 Space MonitorThunderbird 3 astronaut Ray Barrett Brains Tracy Island's resident engineer and scientist David Graham Tin-Tin Kyrano Maintenance technicianLaboratory assistant Christine Finn Kyrano Manservant and cook on Tracy Island David Graham Grandma Tracy Housekeeper and cook on Tracy Island Christine Finn Lady Penelope International Rescue's London agent Sylvia Anderson Aloysius Parker Penelope's butler and chauffeur David Graham The Hood Criminal and International Rescue's arch-enemy Ray Barrett
British, Canadian and Australian actors formed most of the voice cast. To ensure transatlantic appeal, it had been decided that most of the main characters would be American; therefore, it was essential that the actors put on convincing accents. The only American actor on the cast was David Holliday, who had been spotted in London's West End and cast as Virgil Tracy.Bentley 2005, p. 17.Bentley 2005, p. 18. Following the completion of Series One, Holliday returned to the US. For Series Two and the feature films, Virgil was voiced by Jeremy Wilkin.Bentley 2005, p. 33.