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Deadly Whirlwind

Synopsis:
A fungus is killing vegetation on Mars so Haggarty develops a fungicide that Galasphere 347 disperses over the affected area. But a whirlwind absorbs some of the chemicals and is blown into space. A massive artificial planet appears, and Neptunian leader Tyro attempts to blackmail Earth into surrendering as slaves or face destruction. The gravity from the planet will alter the orbits of the inner planets, causing a collision. Raeburn refuses, but then more bad news is received. The whirlwind is also on a collision course with Earth and its lethal chemicals will kill everyone when it arrives in twelve hours time...

Galasphere 347 approaches Asteroid

Cast
Captain Larry Dart
Husky
Slim
Colonel Raeburn
Marla
Professor Haggarty
Cassie
Gabbler
The Martian President
Tyro
Neptunian
Doctor Marshall
Scientist
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 Dick Vosburgh
Ronnie Stevens
Ronnie Stevens
Murray Kash
Ysanne Churchman
Ronnie Stevens
Ysanne Churchman
Libby Morris
Dick Vosburgh
Libby Morris
Ysanne Churchman
Ronnie Stevens
Dick Vosburgh
And The Moral Is:
• It’s An Ill Wind...

Today I Will Be Mostly Learning... :
• Gravity affects the orbits of the planets.

Raeburnt:
• To Tyro “You’ll never be able to conquer Earth as long as there’s an Irishman living on it.”

Gabblings:
• "But I'm a Martian parrot, and I like Martian plants!"

A Venusian Has...:
• Admiration for Raeburn’s devotion to his plants.

To Coin A Phrase:
Gabbler: "The light's a magic one! It's destroyed the metal!“ Haggarty: "Destroyed it? Shivering shamrocks! So it has! You've found the answer... “

“Don’t Call Me Pop!”:
• Haggarty says “Don’t call me Pop!” to Cassie and Gabbler even when they haven’t !
• “Shivering Shamrocks! Where’s the war ?”
• “Well, well. A compliment from Raeburn, and I have to be at death’s door before receiving it!”

The UGO Needs You:
• Dart: “That sounds like a tricky job.” Raeburn: “That’s why you’re highly paid.”

Riding Along In My Monobile... ‘:
• Raeburn visits Haggarty when told of the Neptunians plan.

Ooh, Bitch...:
• There’s a brilliant running battle of insults between Raeburn and Haggarty over work and sleep.

‘I’m An Alien!‘:
• The physiology of Martians means that the chemical, developed to destroy a Martian fungus, is harmless to them but would prove fatal to Earth people and Venusians.

Continuity:
• Mars is prone to dust storms.
• Raeburn refers to having previously offered robots to the Neptunians.
• There is a laser cannon in Moon Crater Four.

Plot Device:
• The whirlwind which is initially a threat proves a saving grace. Convenient but unexpected.

"The Martian Observatory has informed us that the whirlwind
is full of chemical... and when it reaches Earth's atmosphere,
all the people will die."
Marla


Haven’t I Seen... ?:
• Doctor Marshall is Doctor Brown from the Jupiter Scientific Headquarters.
• The scientist producing the chemical is Doctor Duncan.
• The laser is footage from Mystery On The Moon.

Take A Break:
• Having guessed the Neptunians are behind the artificial planet, Raeburn contacts Tyro who is cryptic about its purpose, ending with "You will soon find out... "

Astro Viewer Working:
• Real footage of the moon behind some clouds and daybreak over the sea is used for establishing a night scene, then the following morning.
• A final close-up shot of Colonel Raeburn is reversed (i.e. back-to-front).

Hoorah!:
• The whirlwind is an intriguing effect.

Boo!:
• The shot where Galasphere 347 lifts away from Space Headquarters is footage usually used for the landing but played backwards. In this case, the music that accompanies it is also played backwards.
• The demise of the artificial planet is out of focus and happens too quickly.
• And if the artificial planet is of an unknown metal as Marla reports, wouldn’t the samples of Neptunian metals Haggerty tests successfully have made it a known metal ?

Computer Central:
• First screened: April 16th 1964 (Associated-Rediffusion London)
• Running time: 23 minutes 59 seconds - the shortest episode of the series.
• BFCC Classified - 9th August 1999
• VHS - Volume 8
• DVD - Complete Series Box Set, Disk 5

Listings
• London, April 16th 1964:
A whirlwind loaded with deadly poison is no joke, but this is what threatens Space Headquarters.

Ready To Lift ?:
A real doom and gloom premise with two threats to Earth, one of which is played off against the other. It’s all a little convenient and we know the end isn’t nigh but this is a really good episode.






On to the next episode
Episode Guide Series One
Episode Guide Series One
Episode Guide Series Two
The Unknown Asteroid
The Evil Eye Of Venus
Secret Formula
The Telepathic Robot
Deadly Whirlwind
The Jitter Waves
Sands Of Death
The Hairy Men Of Mars
The Grass Of Saturn
Forcefield X
The Water Bomb
Destruction By Sound
The Shrinking Gas Of Jupiter
Episode Guide Series Two
We close on the blazing sun in space before fading to a view of ringed planet Saturn. A gyroscope-like ship, enclosed in a flickering bubble of energy, speeds past us and beyond accompanied by almost musical radiophonic tones. We see it pass the Moon before spinning away to the twilight of the Earth's curved horizon... As we hear a grinding rhythmic electronic score, we see scenes of a futuristic city under a dramatic sky. Some buildings and antennae rotate, light pours from other structures as bullet-shaped and spherical vehicles move rapidly back and forth... 'This is Earth - the year 2100. New York is the headquarters of Space Patrol and men from Earth, Mars and Venus live and work there as guardians of peace. This is the story of those men, whose courage and daring make the universe safe for us all.'
We close on the blazing sun in space before fading to a view of ringed planet Saturn. A gyroscope-like ship, enclosed in a flickering bubble of energy, speeds past us and beyond accompanied by almost musical radiophonic tones. We see it pass the Moon before spinning away to the twilight of the Earth's curved horizon... As we hear a grinding rhythmic electronic score, we see scenes of a futuristic city under a dramatic sky. Some buildings and antennae rotate, light pours from other structures as bullet-shaped and spherical vehicles move rapidly back and forth... 'This is Earth - the year 2100. New York is the headquarters of Space Patrol and men from Earth, Mars and Venus live and work there as guardians of peace. This is the story of those men, whose courage and daring make the universe safe for us all.'
We close on the blazing sun in space before fading to a view of ringed planet Saturn. A gyroscope-like ship, enclosed in a flickering bubble of energy, speeds past us and beyond accompanied by almost musical radiophonic tones. We see it pass the Moon before spinning away to the twilight of the Earth's curved horizon... As we hear a grinding rhythmic electronic score, we see scenes of a futuristic city under a dramatic sky. Some buildings and antennae rotate, light pours from other structures as bullet-shaped and spherical vehicles move rapidly back and forth... 'This is Earth - the year 2100. New York is the headquarters of Space Patrol and men from Earth, Mars and Venus live and work there as guardians of peace. This is the story of those men, whose courage and daring make the universe safe for us all.'