Captain Tempest had us all at sea S
We turn the clock back 55 years to mark Stingray’s final underwater adventure
UBMARINES, underwater civilisations and a beautiful but mute water-breather called Marina helped to make children’s series Stingray popular with young viewers.
It was the first British TV series to be filmed entirely in colour and followed the adventures of Captain Troy Tempest and his crew as they patrolled the world’s oceans in their nuclear-powered submarine as part of the World Aquanaut Security Patrol or WASP for short. The ocean floor also included the kingdoms of Titanica, ruled by King Titan, and Pacifica.
The ITV special was the latest “Supermarionation” offering from husband and wife Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and followed their earlier success with Fireball XL5.
It pre-dated the release of Thunderbirds, and Stingray’s underwater scenes were achieved by filming shots through the glass of an aquarium.
Canadian actor Don Mason was the voice of Troy Tempest and the puppet’s clean-cut features were modelled on Maverick film star
James Garner, while Marina’s features were inspired by French actress Brigitte Bardot and Swiss-born Ursula Andress.
The series also featured a love triangle with Troy pining for Marina and Lieutenant Atlanta Shore nursing a flame for Troy.
A total of 39 half hour episodes were made with the finale – Aquanaut Of The Year – being broadcast 55 years ago on ITV on June 27, 1965. It saw Captain Troy looking back at some of his greatest adventures as he collected a top award.
Barry Gray wrote Stingray’s haunting closing theme tune, Aqua Marina, and also worked on other of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson programmes including Thunderbirds, Joe 90 and Space 1999.
It began with the lyrics “Marina, Aqua Marina. What are these strange enchantments that start whenever you’re near?”.
Stingray featured on Royal Mail stamps in 2011 celebrating British achievements although Gerry Anderson once said he was always critical of his famous TV shows. “I always used to think that they were terrible,” he revealed. “I didn’t see much on screen but the faults. I couldn’t get a puppet to pick something up or to walk.
“Their mouths were letterboxes flapping open and shut, but I got to the point where I thought I’d better stop running down these pictures because everybody in the world, except me, seems to like them.”
CANADIAN-BORN actress Lois Maxwell, who later found fame as the original Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond films, was the voice of Lieutenant Atlanta Shore in Stingray.