I’ve only known about this show for a couple of years and
figured for the purposes of this blog that it most probably featured a space
suit or two. The trouble is that finding
images from it has proved something of a quest, and images that are of any use
to this blog even more difficult to track down.
And then a couple of nights ago I came across this...
Which tells us everything we ever wanted to know, really.
As the cover image of that particular week’s TV-Times, you
can see how there were high hopes for the show and how they were banking on the
star qualities of Hendry to command a goodly wodge of viewers to sit before
their televisions in a prime time hour. But
it was not to be. So the story goes;
that after just three weeks of failing to get the right size of audience the
show was moved to a later slot and then cancelled... to all but fade from
public memory so it would seem.
I don’t know if Don Quixote in space was ever going to be a
mainstream idea but I think it’s certainly an interesting premise and I would
love to see the remaining episode some time.
Of special interest to this blog though is the space helmet
that’s tucked under Hendry’s arm, there.
That is of course one of those lovely Journey to the far side of the Sun aka Doppelganger helmets that Hendry would have worn a couple of years
earlier while appearing in that very same film with Roy Thinnes. Given the air
dates for Don Quick and the production time to make five odd hours of TV back
then, I’m guessing these were loaned out from ‘Anderson-land’ during the break
in filming UFO while they moved
studios. It also helps to explain the
sudden proliferation in helmet colour for the second set of UFO episodes, given that they went out
yellow and came back red from Doomwatch
and white from Don Quick.
Can’t help feeling there’s still even more of these ‘guest appearances’
out there, apart from what’s already been blogged and the couple I’ve still yet
to share.
Steve
Oddly enough I've been thinking about this series for a couple of days now. Because it was 1970 and I was 12 (and had a tasco refractor telescope) I was interested. My dad who controlled the TV, was an avid fan of Ronald Lacey (best Actor ever according to him)-so we watched it. I recall only three things: There was something rude about 1 episode, maybe even a bit of female topless nudity (or near nudity)- "Hey I was 12- it mattered". Secondly I recall one episode where a giant dog cocked it's leg over the spaceship and urinated (I was 12 yadda yadda). The last thing was the very downbeat nature of the Sc-Fi (kinda like Dark Star)-this may well have been due to Ronald Lacey, who always managed to look uncomfortable and rather creepy. Lastly the concept which is the thing that most remains with me, two crappy blokes in a crappy spaceship doing a crappy job... If I could write I'd revive it....
ReplyDeleteReally appreciate the memories. You've just made me want to see it even more than I already did. Only 1 episode left but are the scripts still out there? It sounds to me that it might have been a little ahead of its time.
DeleteMany thanks, johns
Being only nine at the time I recall nothing of any of the story lines but I do distinctly remember that weasely welsh actor (sorry, don't know his name) uttering all sorts of scatological nonsense some of which I had to ask my Father the meaning. I'm sure he regretted letting me stay up so late on that occasion. So for me, thanks to Dad, it was quite educational. Otherwise, utterly unmemorable.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I was delighted to learn the trivia regarding the helmet and that it may have been briefly fondled by the lovely C(K)atherine S(c)hell. Ooh, err Missus.
even the not so keen reviews still make me want to see it! I'm really happy it's getting some feedback if only on my little blog site. I've been into my sci-fi for years and I can't believe I knew nothing at all about this show until a few years ago. So far off the radar it's crime.
DeleteThanks for the comments
Even stranger, I found myself thinking about it in this same month of May 2012!
ReplyDeleteI rememebr watching it, enjoying it, and being disappointed when it was cancelled but not much about the content. Would love to see it again. Somewhere out there its still beaming into deep space...perhaps one day we'll learn how to catch all these transmissions!!
Welcome and thank you for the comments, Alister. Apart from raising awareness that there were smash mash spacemen before there were smash smash martians, cooking up a little debate about Don Quick must rank as one of this blogger's happiest achievements thus far. Any more of this and we'll have to start a fan club!
ReplyDeleteBTW the Welsh actor I mentioned was Talfryn Thomas
ReplyDeletehttp://www.imdb.com/name/nm0859560
http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/dadsarmy/5210.shtml?page=10
I seem to remember he may have been in drag in the episode DQ that springs to mind. I know, it's a ghastly thought.
Will the fan club be having annual conventions?
:-)
Your original description put an image in my mind and now that I've google-imaged Talfryn Thomas I find it's exactley the same person I was thinking it might be. Spooky! or at least Weasely
ReplyDeleteI officially declare the fan club will gather after they've found all the missing episodes and on the day of the delux DVD release.
I barely remember this series but it must've made an impression on me because I've tried to dig up reference on it several times, with limited success. My recall is going to be very fallible and I missed most of the episodes but I remember the first episode as being on the edge of stylized 60's drama. There was no real effort at realistic set design which accentuated the surreal feel of the show, although there was some effort to exploit the contemporary interest in the expolits of the Apollo missions . I also recall a more adult-orientated/Barberella type theme to the first episode which is probably why it was killed off.
ReplyDeleteOk lets see if this helps jog the memories
ReplyDeletetype; Don Quick Rex, into your google search and see if it takes you to the first of three pages of stills from the show. rex appears to be an image agency
It's the best collection of images I've found so far.
Let me know how you get on. tried to do a Hyperlink but its just not happening.
as always thanks for the comments DeadSpiderEye
Thanks for the tip, some great photos there.
DeleteAlso if anyone is interested a lot of photos from the series can be viewed on the Rex Features photo agency http://www.rexfeatures.com/search/?&kw=the%20adventures%20of%20don%20quick&sft=&pg=1&context=&viah=N&ord=O&pl=40&smtpfx=&stk=N&lkw=lorna%20heilbron&iso=GBR&od=G
ReplyDeleteThanks Stevek, oddly enough I was over there looking at them again last night. This is the same place I was referring to above via a google search. recommend to fans
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteFor nearly fifty years, I've thought I must have imagined this show. Today I tracked it down. It's quite a relief.
ReplyDeleteSee, I bloody knew I wasn't insane.
Glad to finally help with that maddening itch
DeleteHi out ther, isn't it amazing what bits of nonsense you remember from all those years back, when it's hard to remember what you ate yesterday! I too remember the quirkiness of this series and it's almost hard ash charm. The episode with the giant dog urinating over the spacecraft was the final scene as they prepared to take off again. Another fine job done as they had convinced the inhabitants of the planet that there was no such thing as giant animals so they should no longer cower away and be afraid of them! Maybe some early recordings out there somewhere?
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the memories. That's a bit of detail I've not heard before
DeleteIn one episode, everyone lived in a skyscraper, the rich at the top, and the poor at the bottom. Actually it was worse than that, the poorer you were, the lower down, and the less space you had. So it was extremely hot at the bottom, and it got cooler as you went up.
ReplyDeleteThis was deliberate, that's how they controlled the environment for the rich. If they were cold, they selected the temperature that they wanted, and it drew the heat from the appropriate floor.
They didn't know it worked that way (or they had forgotten), but they did know how bad it was at the bottom.
I wish someone would rediscover the tapes, I would love to see these stories
Delete