Episode Guide

• Background
• Cast/Sets
• SFX
• Music
• Science
• Continuity
• Errors
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Space Warp

Eagle 1 gets lost in space and, as if that isn't enough, Moonbase Alpha has problems of its own when Maya's ability to transform herself into any living entity goes out of control. ITC summary

Background

• Shooting script dated 13th July 1976. Revised 27th July.
• A "Double Up Helena" script, filmed simultaneously with A Matter of Balance. Shooting schedules dated 30th July, 16th August. Filmed 6th Aug- 24th Aug 1976
• For the scene when the Maya animal throws Alan in Medical, a low camera angle meant a false ceiling was installed. The stuntman (Tim Condren) bounced off a trampoline, but was so intent on missing the ceiling he landed two feet short of the mat. He broke two teeth and his collar bone.
• Edited into the 1982 compilation movie Cosmic Princess

SFX

• The Menon cruiser is a redressed version of the Archanon spaceship from Mark Of Archanon with a new nose section. In long shots it is docked with the 22 inch Eagle. Closeups of the 44 inch Eagle docked use a larger version of one bulkhead built for this episode.
  
• Menon cruiser model photos
• Hangar jib model photos

The 2nd Eagle model is in the foreground, the 3rd is barely visible behind flames which severely damaged the model. The first Eagle model, with a striped rescue pod, and a moonbuggy are also in this shot (top right), almost completely hidden by the flames.

• The hangar crash scene severely damaged one of the 44" Eagles. Full sequence in pictures

Music

• Original score by Derek Wadsworth
• ITC Music Cue Sheet

Science

• The data bank cartridges have Arabic numerals.
• "Area Copernicus of the Copernicus depression". There is a Copernicus crater on the Moon; obviously it must be in walking distance of Moonbase Alpha. Copernicus is incorrectly called a mountain in Journey To Where.
• The Betanon scout cruiser is said to be 12 parsecs from the mothership Admenon when it entered the space warp. That is considerably farther than the 5 light years the Moon moves. Although they use space warps, they evidently have faster than light capabilities anyway.

Continuity

Chronology:

1807 days after leaving Earth orbit (Tue 24 Aug 2004)

Alpha Personnel:

0 fatalities.

Alpha Technology:

• An anaesthetic gas cylinder is used in the airlock. The red cylinder is marked "ANAESTHETIC PRO-CHLR1".
• The Alphans capture a faster than light spacecraft and a space warp detector. The space warp detector is seen in The Lambda Factor (in the Engineering workshop), Devil's Planet (in Eagle 1, showing a street plan) and The Immunity Syndrome (in Eagle 4).
• We see a close up of the stun gun stun/kill slider switch.
• In the Eagle hangar, we see two laser tanks from The Infernal Machine, plus the side boosters from New Adam, New Eve and the spine boosters from The Metamorph
• The moonbuggy is used. It has lost the wing mirrors.

The Eagle remote control appears on Alan's desk in Command Center and in the Eagle 4 cockpit.

Medical thermographic scans are used.

Eagles:

Eagle 1 (Koenig); 2 (Refuelling); 4 (Maya, crashed)

• The refuelling arm is also in Rule Of Luton and was a grab arm in The Exiles.
• The forward view screen is seen. It is also seen in The A B Chrysalis, Seed Of Destruction, Bringers Of Wonder part 2, The Seance Spectre and Devil's Planet.

Maya transformations:

• Space Animal 1, Mentor/male Psychon, Space Animal 3
• Maya changes into her father Mentor, from The Metamorph. Although scripted as such, it is plainly not Brian Blessed and could be another Psychon (the costume is Dorzak's).

Planets:

None

Aliens:

"Grasshopper" (credits) / "Captain Duro" (dialogue), captain of the Menon, (scout ship for the mothership Admenon). Humanoid.

Props:

• Mentor's costume created for this episode is used again as Dorzak's costume.
• The perspex screen (see Duro picture) was featured as the alien screen in The A B Chrysalis. The space warp detector equations were Maya's equations in that episode.
• In the recording of Capt Duro, the round panel behind him is the communications panel from the Golos Life Support Centre in The Exiles.

Errors

Alan's spacesuit visor knocks open during the fight.

Observations

• Space: 1899 is a spoof version of this episode, conceived and produced by Gareth Randall and first shown at fan conventions in 2000. In 3 minutes, 30 seconds, it reveals the episode as a black and white silent movie, complete with caption cards. It is available on the Fanderson documentary DVD (2004).

Merchandise:

• Novelised in The Time Fighters by Michael Butterworth published by Star (UK paperback), Warner (US), Bastei (Germany) and re-edited in Year Two (Powys, 2006).
• UK video: Polygram volume 23 (1996)
• UK DVD: Carlton (2001)
• UK Blu-ray: Network (2015)
• US video: Columbia House volume 7 (1997)
• US laserdisc: Image Entertainment volume 22 (1991)
• US DVD: A&E set 7 (2002)
• US Blu-ray: Shout! Factory (2019)
• Australia DVD: Magna Pacific (2003)
• Japan DVD: Pioneer (2001)
• France DVD: TF1 (2002)
• Germany DVD: EMS (2005)
• Germany DVD: Sunrise Entertainment / Crest (2013)
• Germany Blu-ray (SD): Crest (2012)
• Germany Blu-ray (HD): Fernsehjuwelen (2016)
• Italy DVD: Pulp Video (2005)
• Italy DVD: Collector's Edition Mondo Home (2007)

Links

• Images
  • High Definition Images
  • Publicity Images
  • Space Warp detector prop photos
• Transcript Copyright Martin Willey
• More observations
• Critics comments Chris Bentley, Anthony McKay, John Kenneth Muir et al
• Behind the scenes sound
• Panini story summary

External Links

• Ken Scott's episode guide
• Mailing List discussion