PRESENTED IN SUPERCOLORISATION
Old shows, new hues
RELEASED OUT NOW! 1960-1963 | U | Blu-ray
Creator Gerry Anderson
Cast Nicholas Parsons, Graydon
Gould, Paul Maxwell
BLU-RAY DEBUT Stingray was the first Gerry Anderson series made in colour, but it’s no longer the oldest one you can watch in colour. A digitally colourised version of Fireball XL5’S “A Day in the Life Of A Space General” has been available for some years but now it’s joined by an episode of Western show Four Feather Falls, two of Supercar and two more of XL5 for this HD collection.
While some of the selections may seem oddly esoteric (there’s more jazz and less space hardware than you might expect, and an Irish accent that should be reported to the European Court of Human Rights), the colourisation – using colour stills as reference – is impressive. You’re left convinced that this is how Gerry Anderson imagined them looking all along, even if occasionally the palette is a little garish – especially the red bits on Supercar, which look potentially radioactive.
Extras Two two-hour long “special presentations” – originally live-streamed events – showcasing the colourised episodes (so, bizarrely, you get some of them twice in the same box set). They’re introduced by characters from the shows in a series of corny but cute comedy sketches; Crime Traveller gets a namecheck!
You also get some other Gerry Anderson curiosities, including behind-the-scenes footage and two episodes of You’ve Never Seen These! Directed by Anderson, this was a quirky ’50s docuseries spotlighting people who do odd things, such as a pub landlord who prides himself on offering the world’s worst service and a woman who recreates famous paintings using a typewriter. Crazy times! Plus: a 16-page “Supercolorising book”. Get your felt tips out…
Nicholas Parsons won the Tex Tucker role after reading in parts when Anderson visited his wife, actor Denise Bryer.