1983 in television: Gerry Anderson returns with Terrahawks

Fans of cult television, this one included, were delighted to learn that Gerry Anderson, producer of such puppet classics as 'Thunderbirds', 'Captain Scarlet' and 'Stingray' and live-action series including 'UFO', 'Space:1999' and 'The Protectors', was to launch a new puppet science-fiction series in autumn 1983. 'Terrahawks', co-produced by Anderson with Christopher Burr, trod familiar ground but with a whole new set of characters; the premise was that in the year 2020, an elite force named the 'Terrahawks', was established in South America to defend Earth from alien attack, after a NASA base on Mars had been destroyed by the aliens.

Unlike with Anderson's earlier series, the puppets used were not marionettes but latex hand puppets, not unlike those used by Jim Henson for his 'Muppet' characters. This was known as 'Supermacromation', following on from the 'Supermarionation' technique of using electronically-enhanced marionettes in Anderson's earlier series.  The Terrahawks were led by Dr. "Tiger" Ninestein, one of nine clones. He was joined by second-in-command Captain Mary Falconer who would often rein in Ninestein's trigger-happy instincts. Other pilots included Captain Kate Kestrel, who led a dual life of pop singer (signed to "Anderburr Records", an obvious in-joke) and her co-pilot Lieutenant Hawkeye, who had micro-computers in place of his eyes. In addition to the human crew, the Terrahawks were assisted by spherical robots named Zeroids, the most prominent of which were Sergeant-Major Zero (voiced by veteran comedy actor Windsor Davies, famed for playing Sergeant-Majors in film and TV) and Space Sergeant 101.

The alien enemy was led by three androids, modelled on the oldest citizens of their home planet Guk. Zelda was the leader, with the power of teleportation and the chief architect of the schemes to conquer Earth, accompanied by her 'sister' Cy-Star (geddit?) and 'son' Yung-Star. Both are cowardly in contrast to Zelda, and prefer to laze about than partake in Zelda's schemes. They also had 'Cubes'; robot equivalents to the Terrahawks' Zeroids which had the power to combine and change into weapons as required.

The series had the familiar Anderson motifs of advanced technology, futuristic vehicles such as Ninestein's car HUDSON (a Rolls-Royce with camouflage technology built in) and dramatic action laced with liberal doses of humour.
Indeed it could be argued that 'Terrahawks' itself is just an updated cross between 'Thunderbirds' and 'Captain Scarlet'; with each member having an aircraft assigned to them (similar to 'Thunderbirds') while taking on an alien invader, similar to 'Captain Scarlet'.

The series ran for 39 episodes over three seasons, and was shown on ITV in the United Kingdom. Although successful during its televised run, it was overlooked during the 1990s when the earlier Anderson series (all produced via Lew Grade's ITC company) began to pick up in popularity with repeat runs on BBC TV. 'Terrahawks', which was produced by Anderson Burr Pictures, was not released on DVD until several years after the other series had been issued.

Below is the opening sequence to 'Terrahawks' complete with an unmistakably 1980s theme tune :)

1983 in rock: KISS lick it up and wash off the makeup

1983 was a significant year for veteran glam rockers KISS. They'd endured a few tough years after a run of success in the 1970s, kicked off by their 'Alive' album selling by the truckload and culminating in the group being seen everywhere from comic books to lunchboxes. The KISS logo was plastered on merchandise wherever you looked, but by 1980 the cracks were showing in the apparently closely-knit masked foursome. First drummer Peter Criss washed off his Cat makeup and quit the band, then guitarist Ace Frehley, whose status in the band was becoming undermined (not helped by his ideas being outvoted by bassist Gene Simmons and rhythm guitarist Paul Stanley), began to suffer from the effects of alcohol abuse.

KISS had tried and failed to change style, experimenting with disco ('I Was Made for Loving You') and their attempt at a serious concept album ('Music From The Elder') bombed badly, as their fans threw up their hands in horror at it. The band got the message and released 'Creatures of the Night' a year later, the hard rock album which they'd promised to make a year previously, but by that stage Frehley was slipping out of the band and into his own problems. Simmons and Stanley now had two new members in drummer Eric Carr and new guitarist Vinnie Vincent to find new mask designs for; Carr became 'the Fox' while Vincent wore an Egyptian-themed mask for his one tour in make-up. Sensing that the game was up for the band famed for never appearing in public without full make-up applied, they decided to drop their masks altogether in 1983 and appear in public as themselves for the first time since achieving fame a decade earlier. Initially, they chose MTV as the vehicle to unveil themselves, then released the 'Lick It Up' album with a simple band shot on the cover. Simmons, now barefaced, still poked out his tongue on the cover, a gesture intended to say 'hey, it is still us!'.

The move did work out for the group in the short-term; the band got the publicity they desired and the records started to sell again. However, tension between the founding members and Vinnie Vincent meant that the guitarist was shown the door by the end of the tour. This disappointed some fans, impressed with his flashy guitar playing in the live setting, but after recruiting Mark St John to record 1984's follow-up 'Animalize', they looked set to continue their recovery. Alas, St John was unable to tour with the band owing to a condition similar to arthritis which rendered him unable to play guitar; Bruce Kulick was quickly hired to tour in his place before being promoted to full-time guitarist shortly afterwards. This line-up would continue for the remainder of the decade, maintaining a solid touring and recording schedule.

The original line-up of KISS finally reunited in 1996 after a successful 'Unplugged' performance for MTV saw the then-current band play with Criss and Frehley, even putting the make-up back on and going back into those outrageous costumes. However, that did not last and both Criss and Frehley were out, then in, then out of the band in subsequent years. Currently, drummer Eric Singer and guitarist Tommy Thayer complete the band, and controversially both wear make-up designs made famous by Criss and Frehley. This is now possible since the rights to the designs were acquired by Simmons and Stanley from Criss and Frehley, but it does not sit well with all of the band's fans.

Heading back to 1983 then here is KISS with their video for 'Lick It Up'. The outfits are very much of their time, it must be said! :)

1983 in television: Channel 4 repeat The Prisoner

OK it is a little bit of a cheat, since 'The Prisoner', co-created by and starring actor Patrick McGoohan was of course made in the 1960s. That said, although it had been shown on the ITV network in the 60s, and repeated in the mid-1970s (leading to the formation of a fan club whose membership once outranked that of CND, but years of mismanagement have rendered it a pale shadow of its former self today), the 1983 screening of this cult television series was actually the first time it had been nationally networked on UK television.

The reason for that was because when the series was first seen in the UK, it went out at different times, in different regions across the United Kingdom. Without going into too much detail, the ITV network actually consisted of a collection of regional TV stations, each having some autonomy over their schedules. Thus, when (or whether) you saw a programme was often dependent on the regional scheduler.  The new station, Channel 4, launched in late 1982, had the same schedule for the whole country (except for Wales, which had its own fourth channel, S4C). It was originally intended to be a minority-interest channel, funded mainly by those ITV regional companies, and with the ironic exception of Wales (where Portmeirion is, the location setting for 'The Village') it was on this station that 'The Prisoner' got its first national screening in the autumn of 1983.

For those who have no idea what this show is about, or why it is so significant, I'll attempt to sum it up. However, there have been many books and a lot of other literature written on this one television series, and it still attracts a following to this day!

Essentially, the series follows an unnamed man who, it is implied, worked for the British Government in a very high-ranking role. He is seen to resign from his post and return home, intending to take a holiday - but is instead followed home, whereupon he's knocked unconscious with gas and when he wakes, he finds himself not in his London flat but in a strange, mysterious location - The Village. From there he is given a number (6) and is identified only by that number from then on, throughout the series.

The programme was a vehicle for its star, Patrick McGoohan, at one time the highest-paid actor in Britain. He was sufficiently popular and influential to be given a virtual free reign to make the programme as he saw fit, by his backer Sir Lew Grade of television producers ITC. McGoohan took the opportunity to touch on many themes in the series; ostensibly a spy thriller there were elements of science fiction, fantasy, action and adventure and all centred around the theme: who is this man and why did he resign from his high-ranking position?

By the time of this 1983 screening, McGoohan had long since left the UK to live and work in the United States, taking work only when he felt it worthwhile and refusing to be drawn on the themes made in 'The Prisoner'. An intensely private man, he resisted many calls for interviews but did agree to make a short film which was supposed to help clarify things regarding 'The Prisoner'. However, the film he produced, known as 'The LA Tape' only raised more questions, shown partially in a documentary commissioned by Channel 4 which was shown in early 1984, after the concluding episode of 'The Prisoner'.

The programme's cult following received a huge boost as a result of this screening however, and membership of the fan club blossomed. Nowadays, with this and many other TV series readily available on DVD or Blu-Ray, or even on YouTube, there is not quite the same cachet about watching this unique series as there was when it was rarely seen. The 1983 screening of 'The Prisoner' was a significant TV event, at least for one 18-year old viewer who had always been fascinated by the programme and its imagery. 1983 was the first time I'd seen the entire programme in full, from the start, and despite Channel 4 mucking up the episode order (a debate which has itself seen many pages printed!), it hooked me instantly and I remain a fan of the series to this day.

With the uncertain state of the world in 2013, it is worth watching this series made almost 50 years ago to see just how many predictions made back then came true, or are becoming true even now. If you haven't seen it, you may be surprised just how relevant much of it remains.

For viewers who want to know more about 'The Prisoner', including locations used in filming, there is a lot of content available here:

Australia II takes sailing's America's Cup

The America's Cup, a yacht sailing contest which had been in existence for over a century (to little publicity, at least in the UK) sprang into public consciousness in 1983, when the Australian vessel Australia II emerged as a serious contender for the trophy, defeating all challengers to take on the American holders, represented in 1983 by the Liberty vessel.

The trophy was named the America's Cup in honour of the schooner America, which won a race around the Isle of Wight in 1851 to take the trophy, presented by The Royal Yacht Squadron of the UK. Ever since, it had been in the possession of the New York Yacht Club (NYYC) and, so the story goes, the trophy was actually bolted in place at NYYC, so confident were they that they could defend it against any challenger.
Australia II, representing challengers the Royal Perth Yacht Club, and backed by businessman Alan Bond, boasted a winged keel design that had been kept a closely-guarded secret. The design was controversial since the NYYC had claimed that it was illegal under contest rules, however it had been ruled legal by the authorities, and the vessel easily qualified through the challenger series to become the contender to take on the NYYC vessel in the final contest. The speed of the Australia II in these challenges, coupled with its secret weapon keel design, aroused media interest which made this year's America's Cup one that attracted more publicity than ever before.

The final races themselves took place between September 14th and 26th, and it was the NYYC who took the first two with Liberty, before Australia II won the third race. Liberty won again to go 3-1 up in the series, but Australia II then won the fifth race and then the sixth, to take it to a deciding race. Until then, the series had never gone to even six races, let alone a deciding seventh. A closely-fought race with several lead changes ended with Australia II winning by 41 seconds to take the America's Cup and become the first successful challenger since that 1851 race around the Isle of Wight.

There were mass celebrations throughout Australia, where the race had been televised live in the small hours, while in the United States the loss of the cup after 132 years, and the end of the longest winning streak in any sport was greeted with dismay. Liberty skipper Dennis Conner took the loss badly, stating that he had "just wanted to hide" after becoming the first US skipper to lose the America's Cup.

The loss was avenged four years later in Australia, when a fired-up US team, once again skippered by Dennis Conner, reclaimed the trophy with the vessel Stars and Stripes 87. Conner later claimed that losing the trophy in 1983 was the best thing that had happened to them since it made them realise just how much they appreciated their trophy. When they reclaimed the trophy, they were given a ticker-tape parade in New York and an audience with President Ronald Reagan.

30 years have passed since that historic win for Australia II, and there will be a new America's Cup series of races in 2013. The United States will be represented by the Golden Gate Yachting Club with their vessel Oracle Team USA 17, (with a crew including multiple Olympic gold medallist Sir Ben Ainslie from Great Britain), and they will race against The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron with their vessel Aotearoa. 


Relive that moment in September 1983 when America's Cup became Australia's Cup with this news clip from the time (2023 update - dead link replaced):

Newspaper publisher Eddy Shah vs the print unions

An industrial dispute which became extremely significant took place in 1983 when Eddy Shah, a newspaper publisher from North West England expanded his operations from his base in Stockport, into Warrington. In doing so, he recruited non-union labour which provoked the National Graphical Association (NGA) into a walkout. Shah promptly fired six of the unionised workers, and a bitter dispute between the publisher and the union followed. However, the Thatcher government had recently introduced legislation aimed at curbing trade union power, and it had become illegal for unions to protest with so-called 'secondary picketing'; that is,  picketing of workplaces not directly involved in the dispute at hand. A mass picket against Shah's Warrington offices led to the NGA receiving a fine, which led to members in London's Fleet Street also walking out.

The dispute dragged on for several weeks and became increasingly bitter, and it came to a head in November 1983 when a mass picket consisting of over four thousand NGA members was confronted by a police operation including riot-trained squads. The police charged at the picketing union members and forcibly broke up the demonstration, ushering in a new era of confrontation between police and trade unions.
Shah ultimately prevailed in the dispute when the TUC failed to back the NGA, and the union conceded defeat. Eventually, Shah's publishing company entered into a single-union agreement with a different union, the Electrical, Electronic, Telecommunications and Plumbing Union (EETPU).

The significance of this victory for the regional publisher became apparent three years later when Rupert Murdoch used similar methods, only on a much larger scale, to centralise his newspaper printing operations to Wapping in London with new machinery. An even bigger and more bitter dispute took place then, but once again it was the publisher who prevailed and union power in the printing industry was broken once and for all.

Eddy Shah himself ventured into national newspaper publishing in 1986 with the launch of Today newspaper, the first British newspaper to be printed in colour. In an ironic twist, the paper failed to gain sufficient circulation and collapsed, only to be bought out by Murdoch's News International empire. (It eventually closed down in 1995.) He tried again in the late 1980s with The Post, a tabloid-style newspaper, which once again failed to attract readers and closed down after only five weeks. Following this, Shah sold up and left the publishing industry. He now runs leisure businesses, hotels and golf courses.

The industrial dispute between Eddy Shah's publishing companies and the trade unions set the tone for many more increasingly bitter industrial disputes in the 1980s, most notably the miners' strike in 1984/5, with the police becoming cast in the role of government enforcers.

A news clip reporting on the dispute:

1983 in rock: Ritchie Blackmore gets Bent Out Of Shape with Rainbow

It wasn't yet public knowledge but guitar legend Ritchie Blackmore had been working behind the scenes to reform the classic line-up of Deep Purple during this year. To the rest of us, his band Rainbow (at that time, also featuring former Purple bassist Roger Glover) were still very much a going concern; they released their seventh studio album 'Bent Out Of Shape' in August of 1983, their third with singer Joe Lynn Turner at the helm. The band had by this time moved away from the sword 'n' sorcery imagery of the Ronnie James Dio days, to a sound more suited to American radio, closer to the likes of Foreigner.

They had also appeared to have become a more stable outfit than had previously been the case, although Blackmore had once again made one change to the line-up with the recruitment of drummer Chuck Burgi in place of previous incumbent Bobby Rondinelli. 'Bent Out Of Shape' continued in this style, with singles 'Street Of Dreams' and 'Can't Let You Go' smoothly produced to get radio airplay, with Blackmore's guitar taking a less prominent role. 

Rainbow had announced a UK tour for September of this year, which came as a surprise to your correspondent as they would start off with two shows at Liverpool's Royal Court theatre. Blackmore had been handed a life ban at the nearby Empire six years previously, when he ventured into the royal box during a Rainbow show there and proceeded to assault the ornate plasterwork with his guitar. He'd missed out the UK altogether during 1982's tour supporting previous album 'Straight Between The Eyes', with fans in this country having to settle for a live video release on VHS, taken from a US concert.

The support for this tour was Lita Ford, who was still making a name for herself following the demise of her old band the Runaways, and she gave a good account of herself performing tracks from her then-current release 'Out For Blood'. She later went in a more melodic rock direction herself and scored numerous hits towards the end of the 1980s but at this time, her style was more classic heavy metal. With the hall packed out, anticipation was high as the PA played the traditional 'Land Of Hope And Glory' prelude to the start of the concert. The clip from 'Wizard of Oz' as heard on Rainbow 'On Stage' heralded the group as they kicked things off with 'Spotlight Kid'. Five tracks from 'Bent Out Of Shape' were performed, with several fan favourites from across their back catalogue also played, including hits 'I Surrender' and 'All Night Long'.

The stage set, a huge pair of eyes with rotating lights inside, was retained for this tour despite it being based on the 'Straight Between The Eyes' album cover of the previous year, presumably they thought it might as well get a belated outing in the UK! Turner's smoother style of vocal suited older, more ballad-related material such as 'Catch The Rainbow' more easily than heavier tracks such as 'Long Live Rock 'n' Roll'.

The two dates went down well with the Liverpool audience, though an enduring memory for me was actually meeting Joe outside the venue shortly after their first night's performance. A confession from one of the gathered throng that the show had been taped prompted him to express some surprise - 'Really - you TAPED that s**t?' He'd felt that as it was the beginning of the tour the band had not yet got up to speed properly, but to a young rock fan like me, it was a great gig. What I hadn't realised was that (and the following night) would be the only times I'd see any incarnation of Rainbow live. I was too young to go to gigs when Dio was part of the band, and of course in the spring of 1984 Blackmore announced he was putting Rainbow 'on ice' - the reason for that became clear soon afterwards when news of the Deep Purple reunion was broken by Tommy Vance on his Friday Rock show on BBC Radio One.

Blackmore himself only returned to Merseyside twice after this; in autumn 1984 he, with Ian Gillan and Roger Glover, took part in a charity football game organised by Phil Easton of Radio City, held at Prescot (near Liverpool), and played a show in autumn 2001 at Liverpool Philharmonic Hall with Blackmore's Night. That was a vastly different experience to his Rainbow days, to put it mildly, and after he quit Deep Purple for the second and final time in 1993, he assembled a new band under the Rainbow name in 1995-96. That soon morphed into the Renaissance/folk influenced outfit Blackmore's Night, formed with his wife Candice Night, and they have since released numerous albums under that moniker.

From the 1983 album 'Bent Out of Shape' this is 'Street Of Dreams':

Korean passenger jet shot down by Soviet fighter jets with loss of 269

A tragic Cold War incident took place in September 1983 when a civil airliner, Korean Air Lines flight KAL 007, heading for Seoul from Anchorage in Alaska, was shot down by Soviet fighter jets with the loss of 269 passengers and crew. 

At first, the Soviets only admitted to an incident with an 'unidentified aircraft' which they claimed had violated their airspace, but later admitted that they had shot down the airliner, a Boeing 747, having insisted that the aircraft (flying in the dark) had violated Soviet airspace, was flying with no navigation lights and did not respond to communication.

Investigations, hampered somewhat by Soviet refusals to hand over evidence including the flight recorders, concluded that the aircraft had deviated from its scheduled course because of an error in the navigation system, which had not been spotted by the flight crew.

With the loss of all on board, including a sitting US congressman and 22 children under the age of 12, the incident increased an already-tense Cold War situation. The shooting was condemned by then US President Ronald Reagan, who subsequently ordered the banning of civilian flights by the Soviet airline Aeroflot to the United States.

It wasn't until the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s and the election of Boris Yeltsin as Russian President, that more details emerged. Yeltsin authorised the release of top-secret memos and the fight recorders themselves, which bore out the theory that the aircraft had mistakenly deviated from its scheduled path.

Ultimately, the loss of 269 victims who had no connection, or interest in global politics was a black day, being as they were innocent victims of two global superpowers faced off against each other.

Artist's impression of KAL 007 (Wikipedia)