Very British Futures

A for Andromeda &
The Andromeda Breakthrough

A for Andromeda is a BBC science fiction TV series that originally aired in 1961. It was the first adult BBC science fiction series since the Quatermass trilogy of the Fifties. The series was created by reknown (and controversial) astronomer Fred Hoyle and television writer and producer John Elliot, and was directed by Michael Hayes (Replaced by John Knight for the sequel). It is notable for being one of the earliest mainstream TV dramas to explore the themes of artificial intelligence and realistic alien contact. In showbiz terms, it is also the production which made a star of Julie Christie, who would go on to become one of the most famous actresses of the Sixties.

A for Andromeda follows a group of scientists who receive a radio signal from the Andromeda galaxy containing instructions for building a powerful computer. Once built, the computer reveals a formula for creating a new form of life. Meanwhile a multinational company called Intel are stealing information from the project via a mole. Shockingly, one of the team, Christine, is hypnotised by the machine and killed. Her body is used as a blueprint for a newly grown woman who is christened Andromeda. However, as Andromeda grows more aware, she begins to be torn between the will and agenda of the alien AI and her own humanity.

The Andromeda Breakthrough is the sequel originally broadcast in 1962. It picks up directly where the previous one left off, with Andromeda and Dr Flemming, the scientist who has treated the computer with suspicion almost from the beginning, having escaped from the island where it was created. Soon they are abducted by Intel and taken to the Middle Eastern country of Azaran, where the alien computer has been recreated. Too late, the humans realise that the computer has a deadly plan for human civilisation, and only the dying Andromeda can save them.

Both series were groundbreaking for television in mixing scientific concepts with contemporary politics and a more cynical view of business and political institutions.

In 2006, BBC4 remade A for Andromeda as a TV movie. Richard Fell wrote and directed, whilst it starred Tom Hardy and Kelly Reilly.

For this episode I was delighted to be reunited with writers Nigel J Anderson and Brian M Clarke, who had been my very first guests when we covered Pathfinders in Space. I must also mention Michael Thompson, who helped with the glossy production values on this particular podcast.

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