Customer Reviews

Filmed In Supermarionation: A History Of The Future

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There are plenty other books available, by or for either Anderson, by and about Derek Meddings, about Mike Trim, and by Alan and Martin Shubrook (same publisher) and Chris Bentley. Very likely there's not much more to add to the story of AP Films and TV Century 21. But this book ties it all together and places as much emphasis on the people behind the backdrops and push-rods and above the strings, and as much on the business as the craftsmanship. It's obviously intended as a labor of love, and it's appreciated as such.

I posted the following 3 Star review on Amazon UK a while back:

"I'd been waiting for this book for several months and the excerpts posted on the author's website looked very promising. However, for me at least, the book didn't quite live up to expectations and the promise of those excerpts. Of necessity, the author has had to rely on various other books for references and has quoted from some at length, eg My Fab Years, What Made Thunderbirds Go and 21st Century Visions. These quotes plus the remembrances of some members of the crew who, ultimately, fell out with/felt hard done by Gerry Anderson provide the backbone of the text. There's seems little evidence of any fresh input from either Gerry or Sylvia Anderson. Thankfully, the book confines itself to setting out the story of these puppet production without incorporating episode guides and the illustrations are quite good. As a general cofee table book it's a welcome addition, but those early teasers promising the 'real story' with suggestions that the popular mythology was quite wide of the mark have really not lived up to expectations and there are no significant revelations. Buy it by all means, but, if you don't own them already, I'd recommend that you buy copies of the books that it relies upon."

Whilst I wouldn't consider the above to be a particularly harsh review, it attracted some indignant comments from a few people and it became clear to me that there was more to the publication of this book than initially met the eye. Those commenting mentioned 'Fanderson'. This turns out to be the Official/Authorised Gerry Anderson Fan Club, endorsed and supported by Gerry Anderson and his companies. A quick look at the fanclub's public forum soon revealed the back story:

The book is an unauthorised and unlicensed publication and the author appears to have a very antagonistic relationship with Fanderson. In much the same way as Buddy/Incrediboy wanted so much to be affiliated with Mr Incredible in Pixar's 'The Incredibles', so it would seem that the author has been hankering to be involved in the running of Fanderson from his mid teens. As the forum reveals, the ill-feeling that the author has generated has stretched the patience of those runnng the Fanclub to the point where they have banned him from posting on their forum. Because the book is unauthorised the Fanclub does not advertise it, despite it being of interest to its members. Nevertheless. a group of the author's supporters remains determined to promote his book through their postings on the forum and won't hear a bad word said about their man. I do not know any of the various personalities involved and have never posted on a fan forum in my life, but it is fascinating and amusing to see how these fanboy squabbles develop.

Regardless, of the squabbles, I would make some further comments on the book itself. As I have said, previously, it's not a bad read, but it is hardly the definitive book it was hyped to be. Apart from trawling through public libraries for some old press cuttings to confirm or illustrate previously recited stories, much of the content of the book is either quoted verbatim from other publications, or appears to be transcribed from DVD bonus feature documentaries and commentaries, a couple of which the author had produced for a cult TV DVD reissue company. As one reads the book there is real sense of having heard most of the story before. It pulls a lot of stories together from multi-media sources with authority, but doesn't really add a great deal that is new and of real significance.

So if you've not read many books on the subject and have a particular interest in the history of the company, rather the personal stories of those involved, then it's a good read, but if you want something more about why things happened rather than the nuts and bolts of how they happened then I would recommend that you read Gerry and Sylvia Andersons' biographies/memoires and Derek Meddings's 21st Century Visions as a starting point to explore the story of these old TV shows and the people who made them.

In conclusion, I remain ummoved from, "Not bad, but hardly the definitive book". Buy/read the book and draw your own conclusions, but be cautious about the hype or you could find yourself disappointed.

Childhood memories of summer holidays and Saturday morning TV came flooding back as I began to read this rather wonderful tribute to the works of the Andersons and the dedicated team that brought the world International Rescue and Stingray.

The book itself is lavishly illustrated with great behind the scenes images that make you realise the love, attention and sheer ingenuity of the team behind many of my favourite TV shows. The author uses a wealth of well sourced interviews and weaves them in beautifully with new accounts from the people who were actually there. Add to that painstakingly meticulous research and he has, in my opinion, produced a definitive account of the perfect puppet producers. All this is done with a real narrative flair and great warmth and humour. I've found previous books on the subject to be rather dry and to have rather missed the point - The shows were great fun. This book is too.