WHEN WE WAS FAB
A FORMATIVE INFLUENCE FOR generations of British sci-fi fans, Gerry Anderson’s string-bound perennial featured five fantastic, futuristic rescue craft bankrolled by millionaire exastronaut Jeff Tracy and crewed by his square-jawed sons Scott, Virgil, Alan, Gordon and John, working from their secret Pacific base, Tracy Island.
Keeper of the Anderson legacy is son Jamie Anderson. Would he agree that Thunderbirds is his dad’s most enduring creation? He laughs at the question. “If I said anything other than that, people would think I was taking the piss! No, it absolutely is, certainly in the UK. If you say Thunderbirds, people know Gerry Anderson. If you say Gerry Anderson, people know Thunderbirds.”
When came along in 1965, Gerry’s team – including second wife Sylvia – had already produced futuristic children’s series , and , backed by the generosity of TV mogul Lew Grade. As launched on ITV in autumn 1964, filming had already begun on its successor, working title . Its final name would come via Gerry’s late elder brother Lionel, an RAF flyer posted Stateside. The show’s concept, meanwhile, had been inspired by the Lengede German mine rescue of November 1963.
