Journey Into Space: Frozen In Time
Journey Into Space was a BBC Radio science fiction serial first broadcast from 1953 to 1956. Three series were originally broadcast, all written and produced by Charles Chilton.
The first series, Operation Luna, was originally titled Journey To The Moon and broadcast in 1953/4. The first four episodes, set on Earth, were not popular with audiences, but the serial grew in popularity when the story blasted off for space in episode five. The tapes of this first series were erased, but the series was re-recorded and re-broadcast in 1958, under the new title Operation Luna, but with the first four episodes omitted. The second series, The Red Planet, was the last time that a BBC radio show achieved a higher rating than its TV opponent.
Operation Luna followed the adventures of Captain ‘Jet’ Morgan and his crew, as they attempt the first Moon landing, only to encounter a fleet of UFOs who send them back in time.
The second series, The Red Planet, broadcast in 1954/5, sees Jet and his crew travelling to Mars, where they discover a plot by the Martians to invade Earth.
The third series, The World In Peril, broadcast in 1955/6, was a direct continuation of the story begun in series two, and followed Jet Morgan and his crew's return to Mars in an attempt to avert the impending Martian invasion.
The Return From Mars was a revival of Journey Into Space, written by Charles Chilton for Radio 4’s Saturday Night Theatre in 1981, and continues the story from approximately the end of The World In Peril, with the crew returning to Earth after thirty years in space, missing presumed dead.
Frozen In Time was another stand-alone story, written by Charles Chilton and broadcast in 2008. Returning from a trip to Neptune, the crew awaken from suspended animation in order to rescue a stranded mining expedition on Mars.
The Host was a further one-off episode, this time written by Julian Simpson, and broadcast in 2009, which sees the crew thwart the plans of a sentient information being to take over the Universe.
The first series, Operation Luna, was originally titled Journey To The Moon and broadcast in 1953/4. The first four episodes, set on Earth, were not popular with audiences, but the serial grew in popularity when the story blasted off for space in episode five. The tapes of this first series were erased, but the series was re-recorded and re-broadcast in 1958, under the new title Operation Luna, but with the first four episodes omitted. The second series, The Red Planet, was the last time that a BBC radio show achieved a higher rating than its TV opponent.
Operation Luna followed the adventures of Captain ‘Jet’ Morgan and his crew, as they attempt the first Moon landing, only to encounter a fleet of UFOs who send them back in time.
The second series, The Red Planet, broadcast in 1954/5, sees Jet and his crew travelling to Mars, where they discover a plot by the Martians to invade Earth.
The third series, The World In Peril, broadcast in 1955/6, was a direct continuation of the story begun in series two, and followed Jet Morgan and his crew's return to Mars in an attempt to avert the impending Martian invasion.
The Return From Mars was a revival of Journey Into Space, written by Charles Chilton for Radio 4’s Saturday Night Theatre in 1981, and continues the story from approximately the end of The World In Peril, with the crew returning to Earth after thirty years in space, missing presumed dead.
Frozen In Time was another stand-alone story, written by Charles Chilton and broadcast in 2008. Returning from a trip to Neptune, the crew awaken from suspended animation in order to rescue a stranded mining expedition on Mars.
The Host was a further one-off episode, this time written by Julian Simpson, and broadcast in 2009, which sees the crew thwart the plans of a sentient information being to take over the Universe.
|
Part 1
Returning from a trip to Neptune in the spaceship Ares, Jet intercepts a distress call from a Martian mining expedition. He awakens the rest of the crew from suspended animation, only for them to find Jet has been awake for over thirty years, due to a faulty sleep pod. The crew land on Mars and help repair the expedition’s spacecraft, but they become suspicious that something is not as it seems when Lemmy discovers a desiccated corpse in a cave. First broadcast: 12 April 2008. Original Story by Charles Chilton. Cast: David Jacobs, Michael Beckley, Alan Marriott, Chris Moran, Emma Fielding, Stephen Hogan, Kate Harbour. |
|
Part 2
Lemmy deciphers a tape, found in the cave, and discovers that the thorinium the expedition is mining is highly radioactive and not the safe, environmentally friendly energy source the company is claiming it to be. Meanwhile, Mitch is held at gunpoint and locked in the Ares by the expedition’s computer expert Astrid, who is hoping to return to Earth alone, with a full cargo of thorinium. Lemmy and Doc find another body in the cave, with indications of radiation poisoning. Jet rescues Mitch from the Ares and stops the take-off. Mitch releases Lemmy and Doc from the cave, after they have been locked in, and the crew watch as the expedition’s repaired ship Saviour 1 takes off. Doc explains that every member of the expedition will die of radiation sickness before they reach Earth. The crew intercept a distress call from a Russian spacecraft and set off to give assistance. First broadcast: 12 April 2008. Original Story by Charles Chilton. Cast: David Jacobs, Michael Beckley, Alan Marriott, Chris Moran, Emma Fielding, Stephen Hogan, Kate Harbour. |
