The Production GuideScript To Screen: Alpha Child
by Martin Willey
The Production GuideAlpha Child was scheduled to be filmed over 12 days, from Friday 5th July 1974 to Monday 22nd July, although several days included scenes for other episodes.
The filming started after lunch on Friday 5th July, after the morning was spent completing Force Of Life.
The Force of Life scenes included more corridor shots (see script to scene for the previous day). There is just one remaining scene, 89, of many "running away as the reactor explodes" shots.
Scenes 62 and 63 are short scenes of Alphans watching Koenig announcing that Zoref has escaped from Medical Centre. One of the Alphans seen here, but unnamed in the call sheet, is Mike Stevens, who together with the female Alphan will be in the Nuclear Generating Area shots in the afternoon. The featured guard on the right is Jack Shepherd, who will later appear as a Thulian in Death's Other Dominion. The foreground guard is presumably Norton Clarke.
Scene 67 are the empty shots of the corridors seen in Main Mission.
Scene 72 is when Koenig, Bergman, Helena and Carter leave the travel tube and meet the guards. Koenig calls Paul and tells him to cut the power.
The final corridor scene is 78, another short running scene, in which Alan says "I may be able to cut him off".
Next we move briefly to stage L for scenes 75 and 80 in Medical during the power cuts. Mathias has a couple of angry calls to Main Mission: "Morrow! What's happened to the power in here? Our patients are dying!".
In the afternoon the crew moves to stage M, the third stage of the day, using the Nuclear Generating Area set left over from Force Of Life. Actress Rula Lenska, 2 years before her break in Rock Follies, spent just this afternoon working on the series. Extras Mike Stevens and the actress from the Alpha Child corridor scene earlier in the day are working in the generating area.
There are just 3 scenes, with the last filmed first. This is scene 24, when Helena takes Jackie to see the Joan Conway, and Jackie closely observes the computer panels. The electronics department had to provide the video feeds for 8 screens, including close-ups of the "meterscan camera" shown here (a TV camera pointing at four meters).
Next is scene 16A ("they pulled this place apart when he died. There was no radiation leakage."), followed by scene 18, with Koenig and Helena in the observation room ("He's a deaf mute.")
The rest of the episode is mostly based in Main Mission and Medical, so the re-use of the set adds a little variety to the locations.
| GROUP THREE PRODUCTIONS LIMITED | "SPACE 1999" TELEVISION SERIES. "FORCE OF LIFE" - EPISODE 9. |
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| CALL SHEET NO: 14 |
| DIRECTOR: | DAVID TOMBLIN | STAGE: | 'H' and 'L' |
| DATE: | FRIDAY, 5TH.JULY, 1974 | UNIT CALL: | 8.30.AM. |
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| ARTISTE | CHARACTER | D/R | MAKE-UP CALL | SET CALL | |||||||||
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| INT. CORRIDOR SC.NOS:89.62.63.67. 72.78. 'H' STAGE | |||||||||||||
| MARTIN LANDAU | KOENIG | 321 | 7.30 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| BARBARA BAIN | HELENA | 322 | 7.30 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| BARRY MORSE | BERGMAN | 324 | 8.00 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| NICK TATE | CARTER | 326 | 7.30 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| TONY ALLYN | 1ST GUARD | 327 | 8.00 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| JACK SHEPHERD | 5TH GUARD | 336 | 8.00 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| STAND-INS: | |||||||||||||
| Alan Meacham for Mr.Landau | - | 8.00 | 8.30 | ||||||||||
| Suzanne Heimer for Miss Bain | - | 8.00 | 8.30 | ||||||||||
| Ron Watkins for Mr.Morse | - | 8.00 | 8.30 | ||||||||||
| EXTRA ARTISTES: | |||||||||||||
| QUENTIN PIERRE | 2ND GUARD | ) | 8.00 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| 2 ALPHAN | CROWD | - | 8.00 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| NORTON CLARKE | SECURITY GUARD | ) | 8.00 | 8.30 | |||||||||
| STUNT ARTISTES: | |||||||||||||
| ALF JOINT, ARRANGER | - | 8.00 | 8.30 | ||||||||||
| PROPS: | Commlock. Laser guns. Wrist monitors. | ||||||||||||
| INT.MEDICAL CENTRE. SC.NOS: 75.80. 'L' STAGE | |||||||||||||
| ANTON PHILLIPS | MATHIAS | 327 | 9.30.am. | 10.30.am. | |||||||||
| VINCENT WONG | ORDERLY | 328 | 9.30.am. | 10.30.am. | |||||||||
| DAVID McNALLY | PATIENT | 336 | 9.00.am. | 10.30.am. | |||||||||
| PROPS: | Heart machine. Sensors. Dummy commlock. | ||||||||||||
| ELECTRICAL: | Lights out for Sc.75.80. | ||||||||||||
| ELECTRONIC: | Heart readings. | ||||||||||||
| EPISODE 10 "ALPHA CHILD" - DIRECTOR: RAY AUSTIN INT.NUCLEAR GENERATING AREA. SC.NOS: 24.16A.18. STAGE 'M' | |||||||||||||
| MARTIN LANDAU | KOENIG | 321 | ) | FROM ABOVE | |||||||||
| BARBARA BAIN | HELENA | 322 | ) | ||||||||||
| RULA LENSKA | JOAN CONWAY | 325 | 12.00., | for 2.00.pm. | |||||||||
| WAYNE BROOKS | JACKIE | Caravan 4 | 12.00., | for 2.00.pm. | |||||||||
| STAND-INS: | |||||||||||||
| Alan Meacham for Mr.Landau | ) from above | ||||||||||||
| Suzanne Heimer for Miss Bain | ) | ||||||||||||
| A.N.OTHER for Master Brooks | 12.30. | for 2.00.pm. | |||||||||||
| EXTRA ARTISTES: | |||||||||||||
| 3 FEMALE TECHNICIANS | ) | ||||||||||||
| 1 MALE TECHNICIAN | ) | 10.30.am. | 11.00.am. | ||||||||||
| PROPS: | Clipboards. commlocks. wrist monitors. | ||||||||||||
| ELECTRONIC: | Scs.16A.18.24.
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| RUSHES: | Theatre 7 at 5.30.pm | ||||||||||||
| CATERING: | AM break to be advised. PM break on 'M' Stage | ||||||||||||
| TRANSPORT: | (1) Ray Atkin to collect Mr.Landau and Miss Bain at 6.45.am. (2) Unit car (Doug) to collect Mr.Morse at 7.15.am. and then Mrs Sarrag(Tutor) at 11.15.am. (3) Unit car(Brian) to collect Chaperone and Wayne Brooks at 11.15.am. |
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KEN BAKER, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR.