''Masters of Venus'' is a 1962 British

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

film serial A serial film, film serial (or just serial), movie serial, or chapter play, is a motion picture form popular during the first half of the 20th century, consisting of a series of short subjects exhibited in consecutive order at one theater, gene ...

in 8 parts, made by the

Children's Film Foundation The Children's Film Foundation (CFF) was a non-profit organisation which made films for children in the United Kingdom originally to be shown as part of childrens' Saturday morning matinée cinema programming. The films typically were about 55 ...

for cinema distribution as a Saturday morning serial for children. It's directed by

Ernest Morris Ernest Morris (1913–1987) was an English film director. Selected filmography * ''Three Crooked Men'' (1958) * ''Night Train for Inverness'' (1960) * ''The Court Martial of Major Keller'' (1961) * ''Three Spare Wives'' (1962) * ''What Every Wo ...

, and stars

Norman Wooland Norman Wooland (16 March 19053 April 1989) was an English character actor who appeared in many major films, including several Shakespearean adaptations. Wooland was born in Düsseldorf, Germany to British parents. During the Second World War he ...

Mandy Harper Mandy or Mandie may refer to: People * Mandy (name), a female given name and nickname * Iván Mándy (1918-1995), Hungarian writer * Mark Mandy (born 1972), Irish retired high jumper * Philip Mandie (born 1942), a former judge on the Supreme Co ...

and

Robin Stewart Robin Stewart (9 October 1946 – 22 November 2015) was an English actor, game show host and reporter who was best known for playing Mike Abbott, the son of Sid James' character Sid Abbott in the 1970s sitcom '' Bless This House''. Early life ...

. It was made in black-and-white. The screenplay concerns two children who are accidentally launched into space in a rocket built by their father, and land on the planet

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never fa ...

. It was distributed as a weekly serial for Saturday morning cinema clubs, presented in eight 16-minute parts, each of which ends on a cliffhanger. The complete serial has a running time of 133 minutes (2 hours 13 minutes). In the 1950s and 1960s this type of serial was common, as a 'B' feature shown before the intermission, which was followed by a full-length feature film. Many such serials were made, by the Children's Film Foundation among others.

Synopsis

The rocket ''Astarte'' is prematurely fired into space by Venusian saboteurs. On board are two children. When the rocket ends up on Venus, they experience a sequence of ''Flash Gordon'' style adventures, in a civilisation which consists of the super-advanced survivors of Atlantis. Ultimately, by their intervention, war between Earth and Venus is averted. Suspense is built up quite well in the early instalments, thanks to the mystery surrounding the motives of the saboteurs, and also because the rocket doesn't actually reach Venus until part 4.

Production

Within the overall title of ''Masters of Venus'', each of the eight parts also had an individual chapter title. One of the regular characters, the Venusian girl Sunia (or Marla, according to other sources), was played by the 16-year-old

Zienia Merton Zienia Merton (11 December 1945 – 14 September 2018) was a British actress born in Burma. She was known for playing Sandra Benes in '' Space: 1999''. Early career Merton was the daughter of Minny and Cecil Burton. Her mother was Burmese, and ...

, who later in her career would appear on television with

William Hartnell William Henry Hartnell (8 January 1908 – 23 April 1975) was an English actor. He is best remembered for his portrayal of the First Doctor, first incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in ''Doctor Who'' from 1963 to 1966. In film, ...

in ''Doctor Who'' (in the 1964 serial ''Marco Polo''), and with

Martin Landau Martin James Landau (; June 20, 1928 – July 15, 2017) was an American actor, acting coach, producer, and editorial cartoonist. His career began in the 1950s, with early film appearances including a supporting role in Alfred Hitchcock's ''North ...

and

Barbara Bain Barbara Bain (born Mildred Fogel; September 13, 1931) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Cinnamon Carter on the action television series '' Mission: Impossible'' (1966–1969), which earned her three Primetime Emmy Awar ...

in Gerry Anderson's sci-fi series Space:1999 (1975–77), as series regular Sandra Benes. The plot revolved around two types of Venusians, a group of five-fingered ones and a group of six-fingered ones. All the actors playing the latter had to wear gloves, to simulate 6 fingers, and as a pair could not be found small enough for Zienia the Director simply told her ''to just keep her hands clasped, and not to point at anything''.

Chapters

#Sabotage #Lost in Space #The Men With Six Fingers #The Thing in the Crater #Prisoners of Venus #The Killer Virus #Kill on Sight #Attack

Cast

- Doctor Ballantyne *

- Pat *

- Jim *

Robin Hunter Robin Ian Hunter (4 September 1929 – 8 March 2004) was an English actor who was also a performer and writer in musicals, music hall and comedy.Newley, Patrick (16 April 2004)Robin Hunter.''The Stage'' Life and career The son of actor Ian ...

- Peter *

Patrick Kavanagh Patrick Kavanagh (21 October 1904 – 30 November 1967) was an Irish poet and novelist. His best-known works include the novel '' Tarry Flynn'', and the poems "On Raglan Road" and "The Great Hunger". He is known for his accounts of Irish life t ...

- Mike *

Arnold Diamond Arnold Diamond (18 April 1915 – 18 March 1992) was an English character actor, regularly cast in small parts on television. He graduated from RADA in 1936, and his stage work included the RSC, and three years in Agatha Christie's ''The Mo ...

- Imos *

George Pastell George Pastell (13 March 1923 – 4 April 1976) was a Cypriot character actor in British films and television programmes. Sources vary as to whether his real name was Nino (IMDb) or George Pastellides (BFI). His marriage record gives his name a ...

- Kallas *

Ferdy Mayne Ferdy Mayne (or Ferdie Mayne) (born Ferdinand Philip Mayer-Horckel; 11 March 1916 – 30 January 1998) was a German-British stage and screen actor. Born in Mainz, he emigrated to the United Kingdom in the early 1930s to escape the Nazi regi ...

- Votan * Jackie Martin - Borlas *

- Marla *

Tony Calvin Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

- Joe * Robert Bruce - George *

Andrew Laurence Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is frequently shortened to "Andy" or "Drew". The word is derived ...

- Colonel Armstrong * Robert James - Stewart

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 0056229 1962 films British science fiction films Films directed by Ernest Morris Films shot at Pinewood Studios 1960s English-language films 1960s British films