British Invaders 436: The New Avengers (Part 1)
November 12, 2023 Leave a Comment
The New Avengers was the 1970s follow-up to the 1960s classic ITV espionage series The Avengers. It included some science-fiction elements and is often considered a “spy-fi” show. It isn’t related to the Marvel Superhero franchise of the same name.
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The Green Man was a 1990 BBC adaptation of the novel by Kingsley Amis from 1969. Albert Finney stars as hotelier and heavy drinker Maurice Allington. What happens when a teller of ghost stories sees a ghost of his own?
Humans was a Channel 4 series about androids called “synths” that ran from 2015 to 2018. It brought up ideas of consciousness, rights, personhood and more.
Thunderbirds was a 1960s Supermarionation puppet series from Gerry Anderson. In one of our “spinoff to different medium” discussions, we’re now covering the three Thunderbirds movies. The original puppet-based format went into the cinema with Thunderbirds are Go (1966) and Thunderbird 6 (1968). Puppets were replaced by real live actors for Thunderbirds (2004)!
Nobody’s House was a 1976 ITV children’s series about a ghost only known as “Nobody”. A family buys an old house in the country and discovers that it’s haunted! The ghost of a Victorian workhouse boy teaches us about the past and introduces us to a few more ghosts.
Episode 1 of The Quatermass Experiment was first broadcast on July 18, 1953 — 70 years ago today! The Quatermass serials would become some of the most influential television programs from the UK. Join us as we celebrate the anniversary of this classic.
The Midwich Cuckoos was a 2022 SkyTV adaptation of John Wyndham’s 1957 novel. All of the women of childbearing age in the village of Midwich become pregnant at the same time. What will the children born of this event be like?
Space Patrol was a marionette puppet series from 1963. Larry Dart, Slim and Husky travel the solar system and beyond aboard Galasphere 347. This crew hails from Earth, Venus and Mars, and they encounter a variety of aliens.
Intruders was BBC 2 and BBC America co-production from 2014. The miniseries was based on the novel by Michael Marshall Smith. Why are people behaving strangely and going missing? What is the struggle for control that some characters seem to be going through?
Ivor the Engine was an animated children’s show that first ran on ITV in 1958 and 1959. It moved to the BBC for its return in the 1970s. This Smallfilms production was set in rural Wales, and it was about a steam engine with a mind of his own. It also featured donkeys, elephants and dragons!
Lost in Austen is a 2008 ITV drama where a modern-day woman finds herself inside the events of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Can she stand in for Elizabeth Bennett? What will Miss Bennet make of modern-day London?
The Curse of the Mummy is a 1970 episode of ITV’s Mystery and Imagination series of TV plays. This adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1903 novel The Jewel of the Seven Stars features the daughter of an Egyptologist taking change when her father inexplicably falls ill….
Terry Pratchett’s Going Postal was a 2010 Sky Television adaptation of one of the Discworld novels (also called Going Postal). Former con artist Moist von Lipwig must pay for his crimes by attempting to revive the postal service. Can this public institution successfully compete against a commercial communications system called “The Clacks”?
Haunted brought two ghost stories by contemporary authors to ITV for Christmas 1974.
The Avengers was a classic 1960s ITV espionage series. This “spy-fi” show included some science-fiction elements along with its spy concepts. It isn’t related to the Marvel Superhero franchise with the same name.
Remember Me is a 2014 BBC ghost story about Tom Parfitt (played by Michael Palin). Why is he terrified of what’s in his house? What isn’t he telling people? Why does death seem to follow him wherever he goes?
Kaldor City is a series of audio plays unofficially based on both Doctor Who and Blake’s 7. The series from Magic Bullet Productions includes characters from Doctor Who: The Robots of Death and Blake’s 7: Weapon. This is our annual discussion of a spinoff of a British TV show into another medium.
Bagpuss was a 1974 stop-motion animated children’s series from the BBC and Small Films. Each episode focuses on a newly discovered item that has a story to tell. These stories and folktales are told through songs, storytelling and different types of animation.
Gerry Anderson’s New Captain Scarlet was a 2005 computer-animated remake of the 1967 Supermarionation puppet series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. After inadvertently starting a war with the alien Mysterons, the Spectrum organization must defend the Earth! Can humanity survive?
Five Children and It was a BBC serial from 1991. Based on the book by E Nesbit, it has a group of four children encountering a Psammead (a sand fairy) that grants wishes. Will these four young siblings learn to be careful what they wish for?
Alice Through the Looking Glass was a very faithful adaptation of the Lewis Carol novel Through the Looking Glass (which was the sequel to Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland). This 1973 BBC production features Sarah Sutton as Alice. Sutton would go on to play Doctor Who Companion Nyssa in the 1980s.