"Ordeal" is the nineteenth episode aired of the first series of ''

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

'', a 1970 British television science fiction series about an

alien invasion The alien invasion or space invasion is a common feature in science fiction stories and film, in which extraterrestrial lifeforms invade the Earth either to exterminate and supplant human life, enslave it under an intense state, harvest people ...

of Earth. The screenplay was written by

Tony Barwick Anthony Clive "Tony" Barwick (10 July 1934 – 18 August 1993)https://www.myheritage.com/research/collection-10182/biographical-summaries-of-notable-people?itemId=447240&action=showRecord was a British television scriptwriter who worked ex ...

and the director was Ken Turner. The episode was filmed from 8 August to 20 August 1969, and aired on

ATV Midlands Associated Television was the original name of the British broadcaster ATV, part of the Independent Television (ITV) network. It provided a service to London at weekends from 1955 to 1968, to the Midlands on weekdays from 1956 to 1968, and t ...

on 14 April 1971. Though shown as the nineteenth episode, it was actually the ninth to have been filmed. The series was created by

Gerry Anderson Gerald Alexander Anderson (; 14 April 1929 – 26 December 2012) was an English television and film producer, director, writer and occasional voice artist. He remains famous for his futuristic television programmes, especially his 1960s produ ...

and

Sylvia Anderson Sylvia Beatrice Anderson (; 25 March 1927 – 15 March 2016) was an English television and film producer, writer, voice actress and costume designer, best known for her collaborations with Gerry Anderson, her husband between 1960 and 1981. In a ...

with

Reg Hill Reginald Eric Hill (16 May 1914 – 1999) was an English model-maker, art director, producer, and freelance storyboard artist. He is most prominently associated with the work of Gerry Anderson. Early life Born on 16 May 1914, Hill started his ...

, and produced by the Andersons and

Lew Grade Lew Grade, Baron Grade, (born Lev Winogradsky; 25 December 1906 – 13 December 1998) was a British media proprietor and impresario. Originally a dancer, and later a talent agent, Grade's interest in television production began in 1954 ...

Century 21 Productions AP Films or APF, later becoming Century 21 Productions, was a British independent film production company of the 1950s until the early 1970s. The company became internationally known for its imaginative children's action-adventure marionette tel ...

for Grade's

ITC Entertainment The Incorporated Television Company (ITC), or ITC Entertainment as it was referred to in the United States, was a British company involved in production and distribution of television programmes. History Incorporated Television Programme Compan ...

company.

Story

Col. Foster gets drunk at a party the night before a scheduled fitness check at a SHADO-run health farm (featured in this sequence on the soundtrack is

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

' single "

Get Back "Get Back" is a song recorded by the British rock band the Beatles and Billy Preston, and written by Paul McCartney though credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. It was originally released as a single on 11 April 1969 and credited to ...

"). He passes out in a

sauna A sauna (, ), or sudatory, is a small room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a ...

at the farm, and awakens just as aliens are kidnapping him. The aliens put Foster in a UFO and take off. Foster's friend and colleague, Captain Waterman in command of Skydiver, is ordered to destroy the UFO carrying Foster. However, Waterman, flying Sky One, cannot bring himself to do so: instead he uses Sky One to disable it, forcing a crash-landing on the Moon, where Foster is rescued by Moonbase operatives. Inside Moonbase, they find that Foster has been put in a spacesuit and made to breathe the liquid that the aliens must breathe in order to survive the journey from their home planet. When his helmet is removed, he struggles to re-adapt to breathing air. He then awakens properly back inside the sauna, realising that he was simply imagining the abduction while all along he was safely on Earth. The episode ends with Foster singing a rendition of

Beautiful Dreamer "Beautiful Dreamer" is a parlor song by American songwriter Stephen Foster. It was published posthumously in March 1864, by Wm. A. Pond & Co. of New York. The first edition states on its title page that it is "the last song ever written by Steph ...

Cast

Starring

Ed Bishop George Victor Bishop (11 June 1932 – 8 June 2005), known professionally as Ed Bishop or sometimes Edward Bishop, was an American actor. He was known for playing Commander Ed Straker in ''UFO'', Captain Blue in ''Captain Scarlet and the Myste ...

— Commander Edward Straker *

George Sewell George Sewell (31 August 19242 April 2007) was an English actor, best known for his television roles, but also active on stage and in films. Early life and career The son of a Hoxton printer and a florist, Sewell left school at the age of 14 a ...

— Col. Alec E. Freeman * Michael Billington — Col. Paul Foster *

Gabrielle Drake Gabrielle Drake (born 30 March 1944) is a British actress. She appeared in the 1970s in television series '' The Brothers'' and ''UFO''. In the early 1970s she appeared in several erotic roles on screen. She later took parts in soap operas ''Cr ...

— Lt. Gay Ellis *

Vladek Sheybal Vladek Sheybal (born Władysław Rudolf Zbigniew Sheybal; 12 March 1923 – 16 October 1992) was a Poles, Polish character actor, singer and director of both television and Theatre director, stage productions. He was well known for his portrayal ...

— Dr. Douglas Jackson *

Dolores Mantez Dolores Brenda Harding (''née'' Mantey; 17 October 1936 – 30 November 2012), known professionally as Dolores Mantez, was a British television actress of the 1960s and early 1970s, best known for her appearances in Gerry Anderson's scienc ...

— Lt. Nina Barry * Gary Myers — Capt. Lew Waterman * Keith Alexander — Lt. Keith Ford *

Ayshea Ayshea (born Ayshea Hague, 12 November 1948) is a British singer, actor and television presenter. Biography Born in Highgate, London, and educated at Arts Educational School, London, Ayshea was trained in ballet, music, drama and dance. She mad ...

— Lt. Ayshea Johnson

Other cast

Basil Moss Basil David Moss (25 May 1935 – 28 November 2020) was a British character actor, who featured regularly on television in the 1960s and on radio in the 1970s. Early life He was educated at St Paul's School, which he followed with actor's traini ...

— Dr. Frazer *

Quinn O'Hara Quinn O'Hara (January 3, 1941 – May 5, 2017), born Alice Jones, was a Scottish-born American actress and nurse. Early life O'Hara was born in Edinburgh. Later, she and her mother moved to Cardiff where she attended a convent school, then to ...

— Sylvia Graham *

Jeremy Wilkin David Jeremy Wilkin (6 June 1930 – 19 December 2017) was an English actor, best known for his contributions to the television productions of Gerry Anderson. Born in Byfleet, Surrey, Wilkin emigrated to Toronto, Ontario, Canada after completi ...

— Lt. Gordon Maxwell * David Healy — Joe Franklin * Joseph Morris — Medic * Peter Burton — Perry * Mark Hawkins — Lt. Gary North

Production notes

Locations used for the filming included Neptune House at

ATV Elstree Studios The BBC Elstree Centre, sometimes referred to as the BBC Elstree Studios, is a television production facility, currently owned by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The complex is located between Eldon Avenue and Clarendon Road in Boreh ...

, Borehamwood. The music used for the opening party scene is

' "

". The instrumental playing during the subsequent party flashback scene is "Trampoline" by

The Spencer Davis Group The Spencer Davis Group were a British band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (keyboards, guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). Their best known songs include the UK numbe ...

. The song "

" sung by Foster while in the sauna at the end is by Stephen Foster written in the early 1860s.

References

External links

{{UFO (TV series) 1971 British television episodes UFO (TV series) episodes