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The Cloud Of Death
Synopsis:
A large dark cloud is blocking the sun’s heat and causing the temperature to drop dramatically. This is a ploy by the Neptunians in an attempt to blackmail Earth for more slaves. Galasphere 347 investigates and finds the cloud made of electrically charged particles that reflect heat and are almost impossible to disperse. The only hope lies in using a massive spaceborne mirror that will reflect and concentrate the sun’s heat, burning the cloud away...
Cast
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Captain Larry Dart
Husky
Slim
Colonel Raeburn
Marla
Professor Haggarty
Cassie
Tyro
Neptunian
Moon Observatory Scientist
Cloud Dispersal Officer
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Dick Vosburgh
Ronnie Stevens
Ronnie Stevens
Murray Kash
Libby Morris
Ronnie Stevens
Libby Morris
Ronnie Stevens
Libby Morris
Ronnie Stevens
Ronnie Stevens
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And The Moral Is:
• Every Cloud Has A Zenton Lining.
Today I Will Be Mostly Learning... :
• It is possible to burn things by reflecting the heat of the Sun onto them - this may have been inspired by the story of Archimedes who developed 'a burning mirror' to destroy approaching enemy ships. Ten years after Space Patrol was first broadcast, in 1973, a Greek engineer used 50 soldiers with large mirrors to set fire to a boat to prove it could have been done.
Huskyisms:
• “I’ve heard of collecting flutter-bys but never collecting clouds!”
Slimantics:
• “Don’t be nonscensical!”
• “Everything is in apple pie order!”
Raeburnt:
• “We can guarantee you a warm welcome... “
A Venusian Has...:
• The ability to bully her employer, according to Raeburn. But just this once. Or so he admits.
“Don’t Call Me Pop!”:
• Haggarty gets the idea for the space mirror from a book by Issac Newton written 500 years ago. (He’s actually a hundred years out, as Newton lived in the latter half of the seventeenth century)
Riding Along In My Monobile... ‘:
• Raeburn visits Haggarty.
‘I’m An Alien!‘:
• Telepathy does not require an Elektran, according to Tyro.
Ooh, Bitch... :
• Tyro: "Earthmen really are pathetic creatures.”
Continuity:
• The crew of Galasphere 347 are on ‘emergency call’ in the rest room at Space Headquarters.
• The Neptunians have not been able to capture any ships for nearly two years.
• Raeburn’s conversation with Tyro suggests this is the first communication with Neptune in a long time, indicating that even though the planet was responsible for the events in The Slaves Of Neptune, nothing was actually done about it.
• The conclusion of this story, with Raeburn negotiating with Tyro about joining the UGO, leads to events in The Planet Of Thought.
Take A Break:
• Having collected a sample of the cloud, the crew of Galasphere 347 land back at Space Headquarters and disembark.
"Ahh... what Issac Newton did in 1670,
Aloysius O’Brien O’Rourke Haggarty can do in 2100!"
Professor Haggarty
Astro Viewer Working:
• Tyro does not appear to luminesce when seen on screen while talking to Raeburn.
Hoorah!:
• To emphasise the cold, most characters are seen with scarves or coats on, even indoors.
• There is a nicely composed shot as Galasphere 347 melts the cloud to reveal the Earth.
Boo!:
• The ‘Galasphere 024’ launch is used.
• Raeburn pronounces laser as ‘lay-zah’.
• Husky’s ion gun disappears when he returns to the Galasphere.
• As does Raeburn's scarf in the last shot as he is briefing Dart on the mission. The scarf is also absent from a number shots of him seen on monitors.
Computer Central:
• First screened: May 19th 1963 (ABC Midlands)
• Running time: 24 minutes 44 seconds
• This episode would appear to have been recorded prior to The Slaves Of Neptune, with Ronnie Stevens voicing Tyro instead of Libby Morris. This also ties in with some facts (see Continuity) as this episode supposedly sees the first contact between Earth and Neptune in some time.
• BFCC Classified - 22nd September 1998
• VHS - Volume 6
• DVD - Complete Series Box Set, Disk 4
• Roberta Leigh obviously liked the title, using it again for the pilot film of The Solarnauts.
Listings
• London, August 15th 1963:
In the year 2100 the weather is strictly controlled, so there is dismay at Space Headquarters when the sun is blotted out by a cloud which should not be there. It can only have been put there with evil intent.
• Wales, October 30th 1963:
In the year 2100 clouds are quickly dispersed. But one afternoon a cloud blots out the sun and the sky grows dark. Consternation increases when the cloud is discovered to be artificial.
Brahms & List
• A Cloud Of Death: Television Weekly, Wales.
Ready To Lift ?:
The first installment of what could be considered the series only two-parter with The Planet Of Thought (if seen back-to-back, as in the video release) is a good straight forward adventure that uses past events well and follows them up, leading to a sequel.
 
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