Episode Guide

• Shooting script dated 23rd June 1976. Filmed 25th August- 28th September 1976
• Edited with part 2 in the compilation movie Destination Moonbase Alpha

• The Superswift was built by Martin Bower in 3 weeks.
• The small pilot ship was also built by Martin Bower
• The domes were redressed from the towers in A B Chrysalis
• Martin Bower also built a second 22" Eagle. It is seen in publicity photos over the waste domes, but it is not in the episode.
• The aliens were made from latex painted in grease, with plastic tubing through which "blood" was pumped.

• You would not be able to see a faster than light ship- it would be infinitely redshifted and thus invisible. If you could see it, your first view would be it landing; then you would see the image of it travelling backwards into space as the light caught up with the spacecraft. It covers 8 million miles in 6 seconds, which is 7.2 times the speed of light.
• In Koenig's crashed Eagle, fires are burning. Once the external doors are open for the firefighters, the vacuum would extinguish the flames.

Alpha Personnel:

Alpha Technology:

• The fixed laser cannons are seen. They are also in The Metamorph, Seed Of Destruction, The Beta Cloud and The Dorcons.
• The Ellendorf Quadrographic Brain Complex was used to test the artificial heart in Catacombs Of The Moon and also appears in The Lambda Factor.
• The silver firesuits are seen, both in the crashed Eagle and in the Records Lab fire. Note they do not have oxygen backpacks.
• The Records Unit, consisting of technician Clive Kander, films significant events on a small hand-held camera. This is the only episode where Eagle crashes or alien contact is recorded.

Aliens:

Alien blobs

Cast:

• Stuart Damon first appears as Parks in Matter Of Life And Death
• David Jackson also appeared as Alien Strong in Rules Of Luton

Maya transforms into the full armour (bogu) of a Kendoka, and attacks Sanderson with a shinai (a staff consisting of bamboo slats bound together). Her role is performed by sensei Okimitsu Fujii, one of the founding fathers of kendo in the UK. In Testament of Arkadia Koenig and Luke Ferro practice kendo (performed by stuntmen Eddie Stacey and Gerry Crampton). In several martial arts, Maya's short stick would equally effective. Known technically as a yawara-bo or kubotan (the latter form is often sold as a keychain), it is easily improvised with pens, flashlights or any short stick around 5 - 6 inches long. Techniques include striking, attacking pressure points, and leverage for compliance locks.

David Jackson on his role:
They gave me the script, and I didn't even have to memorise it! 'Your character is actually a 7 foot tent with blood vessels and eyes on the outside of it, and it can grow up to 9 feet.' They had a fellow about my size inside, dressed in a swim suit, sweating like anything, manipulating this thing, more like a teepee than a pyramid. It kept going up and down and sweating blood and I was just offstage in a T shirt and trousers. It was fun!