The Quatermass Experiment

One of the earliest influences on British Science-Fiction television is a 6-part series known as The Quatermass Experiment. TV at the time of the early '50s was either broadcast live (with or without recording it) or filmed first. On American TV we had the likes of Buck Rogers, Atom Squad, Captain Video and His Video Rangers and Johnny Jupiter all broadcast live. Sadly, not all were recorded and preserved in an archive for the future, but at least we still know they once existed. The Dinosaurs of Sci-Fi. They were also primarily aimed at kids. But American TV had already begun the transition to recording shows for syndication (on either film or videotape), which is why I decided to start this Sci-Fi review blog on The Adventures of Superman in 1952. It's the earliest example of the genre I could find in its entirety. I have a few episodes of other contemporaries, like Captain Z-RO, but there aren't enough records to figure out when they aired or a complete episode guide.

On BBC by this time many shows were still done live. Even though many were filmed much of those in the archives were lost or thrown away. It pains me to hear of an old series that has been completely lost because all the footage was intentionally destroyed. In July, 1953, began a new series that would spawn three sequel shows and movie remakes. It was called The Quatermass Experiment, it was broadcast live, and more importantly it as for adults. Like a stage play the production was performed once and that was it. The BBC went about filming the first two episodes before dropping the plan. These two episodes represent some of the oldest surviving example of British TV drama. Unfortunately I could not find a copy of them anywhere, on the internet or as part of a box set of DVDs. Since the sequel series, Quatermass II, broadcast in 1955 is available in the public domain I had hoped some industrious BBC person would share these with the world, but alas not.

I will have to pretend for this month and for August that my Temporal DVR failed to record The Quatermass Experiment. A motion picture was made with the same title (renamed The Creeping Unknown in America) and I will cover the plot then. But in brief, The British space program is in full effect and launched its first manned mission to space. Out of three astronauts one comes back alive and changed, the other two are missing. Professor Quatermass, head of the British Experimental Rocket Group, has a mystery to solve and a possible alien threat to reveal. I love this pre-Sputnik Sci-Fi story telling. And one of my favorite series of all time, Doctor Who, can traces its existence back this series as well.