This article primarily discusses screen and audio works of fiction based on Thunderbirds, a British Supermarionation television series created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson. It also covers imitations and references in other media.
Produced by AP Films (APF) for ITC Entertainment, the series has inspired various adaptations, imitations and parodies since it was first broadcast in 1965. It has been recognised for its enduring popularity, especially in the UK, and is widely regarded as the Andersons' most successful production.
Among other works, Thunderbirds has generated two film sequels, a TV anime and a live-action film adaptation. A remake, Thunderbirds Are Go, made using a combination of computer animation and live action, premiered in 2015 and ran for three seasons. Also in 2015, three new puppet episodes were created to mark the 50th anniversary of the original series.
For a discussion of Thunderbirds tie-ins – including novels and novelisations, comics and games – see Thunderbirds merchandise.
Audio plays
From 1965 to 1967, Century 21 Records released 19 Thunderbirds audio plays on 7-inch, 33 RPM, vinyl EP records (promoted as "mini-albums"). Three of these were original stories; the rest were re-tellings of TV episodes based on those episodes' soundtracks. In 2015, the original stories were adapted for the screen to mark the series' 50th anniversary (see #The Anniversary Episodes).
In April 2021, Big Finish Productions announced the launch of a new series of audiobooks based on the Anderson productions. The first of these, Thunderbirds: Terror from the Stars (an adaptation of the 1966 tie-in novel Thunderbirds by John Theydon) was released in May 2021. A second Thunderbirds story, Peril in Peru (based on the novel Calling Thunderbirds), was released in November 2021. Produced by Anderson Entertainment, the audiobooks feature Jon Culshaw as the voices of Jeff Tracy and Parker with Genevieve Gaunt as Lady Penelope.
Film sequels and adaptations
Thunderbirds popularity led APF to make two feature film sequels with financial backing by United Artists. The first, Thunderbirds Are Go, premiered on 12 December 1966; the second, Thunderbird 6, and 29 July 1968. Written and produced by the Andersons and directed by David Lane, both were critical and commercial failures. During the early 1980s, several Thunderbirds episodes were combined to create three made-for-TV compilation films. In 2004, a live-action film adaptation, Thunderbirds, was released.
Compilation films
In the early 1980s, episodes from Thunderbirds and other Anderson productions were re-edited and combined to make a series of compilation films. These were produced by ITC's New York office under the supervision of writer David Hirsch and producer Robert Mandell. Intended for broadcast in two-hour family timeslots, the format was branded "Super Space Theater" and sold to American cable and syndicated TV. Three Thunderbirds compilations – each 90 minutes long and re-edited with new, animated title sequences – were produced: Thunderbirds To The Rescue (a combination of "Trapped in the Sky" and "Operation Crash-Dive"), Thunderbirds In Outer Space ("Sun Probe" and "Ricochet") and Countdown to Disaster ("Terror in New York City" and "Atlantic Inferno"). Although the home video releases of the "Super Space Theater" compilations led to copyright issues that delayed the releases of the original episodes in their uncut forms, the UK versions proved to be a major commercial success for the distributor, Channel 5 Video.
Thunderbirds (2004)
A live-action film adaptation – Thunderbirds, directed by Jonathan Frakes and produced by StudioCanal, Universal Pictures and Working Title Films – premiered on 24 July 2004. All the Thunderbird machines seen in the film are based on the original designs, albeit with modern refinements. As BMW, the owners of Rolls-Royce, would not allow the production to use its brand, FAB 1 was redesigned as a modified Ford Thunderbird. The plot focuses on Alan Tracy, Tin-Tin and a newcomer – Brains' son, Fermat – who battle the Hood as he plots a gold bullion raid on the Bank of England.