Andersonic Issue 25 goes “Countdown”, interviews Thunderbirds puppet sculptor Joy Cuff

Andersonic Issue 25 Promotional ImageIssue 25 of the Gerry and Sylvia Anderson-inspired Andersonic zine has just been published, sporting  a wonderful homage cover by Richard Farrell to the classic, sadly short-lived SF comic Countdown, which would morph into the longer-running Countdown and TV Action, then TV Action.

We’re treated to the second instalment of the UFO comic strip “Trojan Horse”, in colour inside, drawn by Richard and written by Graeme Bassett, who previously wrote strips for Alan Fennell’s Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet comics in the 1990s.

The new issue leads, however, with an interview with Thunderbirds puppet sculptor Joy Cuff, sharing her rarely seen behind-the-scenes photos.

Working on the show was her first job out of Art School and she created numerous characters for the first series, including Jeremiah and Ma Tuttle, two canny hillbilly secret agents for International Rescue introduced in “The Imposters”, voiced, respectively, by Peter Dyneley and Sylvia Anderson; and the Duchess of Royston, seen in “The Duchess Assignment”, voiced by Ray Barrett.

One of the striking matte shots Joy Cuff worked on for 2001: A Space Odyssey. Image © Warner Bros

One of the striking matte shots Joy Cuff worked on for 2001: A Space Odyssey. Image © Warner Bros

Joy , whose work included Fahrenheit 451, The Vengeance of She, Mackenna’s Gold, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen and Erik the Viking, also discusses her time working on 2001: A Space Odyssey, where she built the moon landscape and worked as assistant to Bob Cuff on matte shots for the film.

In a feature on Anderson Title Sequences, the zine asks, what makes a good title sequence? Does the source material have to be any good or is it just down to slick editing and a good theme?

Mike Coldwell takes a look at El Hudat’s two episodes of Stingray, “Star of the East” and “Eastern Eclipse”, with input from David Graham, the voice of El Hudat himself.

Mark Braxton looks at Space: 1999 episode “The AB Chrysalis”, while Richard Farrell casts a critical eye over the UFO story “Sub-Smash”; and a feature on the Supercar episode “The Lost City” examines the influence of this episode on the subsequent APF and Century 21 series. There’s an A-Z of Space:1999 Year 2, too, and a look at the UFO from, er, UFO!

Published every six months, run on a strictly non-profit basis, Andersonic covers the films and television series of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. Each issue contains features and articles which explore and discuss their many series, from the black and white Supercar and Fireball XL5, 1960s series Stingray, Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, Joe 90 and The Secret Service; the live-action series UFO and Space:1999 and later series such as Terrahawks, right up to The New Adventures of Captain Scarlet.

In previous issues, the team have also covered the films Doppelganger and Into Infinity and featured interviews with, amongst others, Mike Trim, Dominic Lavery, Shaun Whittacker-Cook, Jan King, Robert Easton, Tony Harding and Mike Noble.

Andersonic is available to buy at www.andersonic.co.uk, plus one or two other outlets, including, at present, eBay for a limited time only. Back issues are still available from the web site

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Categories: Animation, downthetubes Comics News, downthetubes News, Other Worlds, Television

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1 reply

  1. Sounds interesting. Ordered a copy.

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