The Pathfinders Saga

Professor Norman Wedgwood is the head of an experimental rocket group on remote Buchan Island in Scotland. His children, Geoff, Valerie and Jimmy visit him to watch the launch of his latest rocket, along with journalist Conway Henderson. When the pilot is taken ill, Jimmy finds himself taking his place on a mission to the Moon along with his pet hamster, Hamlet. After several harrowing hours in space, Jimmy, Hamlet and the rocket are finally brought down to earth.

Episodes / Also starring

1. The Rocket Station (April 24, 1960)

   • Phyllis Kenny: "Pat Maxwell"

   • ROGER OSTIME: "Official"

   • Michael Verney: "Mr Field"

2. Count Down (May 1, 1960)

   • Phyllis Kenny: "Pat Maxwell"

   • Michael Verney: "Mr Field"

3. The Strange Illness (May 8, 1960)

   • Michael Verney: "Mr Field"

4. Storm In Space (May 15, 1960)

5. Solar Flare (May 22, 1960)

   • ANNETTE KERR: "Mrs Wedgwood"

   • MEL OXLEY: "Newscaster"

6. The Falling Star (May 29, 1960)

   • Phyllis Kenny: "Pat Maxwell"

   • ANGUS LENNIE, EDMOND BENNETT: "Fishermen"

   • MEL OXLEY: "Newscaster"

   • Michael Verney: "Mr Field"

Professor Norman Wedgwood and his team are planning another rocket mission to the Moon. Once again, Geoff, Valerie and Jimmy are on hand to witness the launch of a new rocket MR1 (Moon Rocket 1), along with journalist friend Conway Henderson. However, when the automatic supply ship MR2 (Moon Rocket 2) fails to launch Henderson and the children make a desperate rescue attempt with Jimmy's pet Hamlet.

They set off in MR2, only to discover Valerie has stowed away. MR1 lands first but MR2 nearly collides with an unknown object.

Inside a large cavern, the group discovers an airlock, which leads them all to discover an alien craft, the fossilised body of a man, and an ancient journal regarding the man - an alternative human who fled earth, with others, from a war only to die from lack of supplies on the Moon.

Elsewhere, meteors strike MR1 and the rocket explodes, meaning that only two members of the expedition of can leave in MR2. Then Wedgwood makes an attempt to fly the alien vessel. Eventually, the entire group return safely to earth. Once back home, Wedgwood remarks "As man reaches out to touch the stars, who knows what he may find."

Episodes / Also starring

1. Convoy To The Moon (September 11, 1960)

A mission to the Moon is in peril when a rocket develops a malfunction. A second rocket launches in a desperate effort to save the crew.

1. • JOHN RAE: "Gatekeeper"

   • IVOR SALTER: "Security Guard"

2. Spaceship From Nowhere (September 18, 1960)

One of the rockets successfully lands on the Moon. The second rocket picks up a third, unknown rocket, in orbit around the Moon.

2. • DAVID MORRELL: "Newscaster"

3. Luna Bridgehead (September 25, 1960)

As exploration begins it quickly becomes apparent that someone or something has been on the Moon before them.

3. • Journalists: Mavis Walker, Alex Carlton, Francis Hall

4. The Man In The Moon (October 2, 1960)

Jimmy finds an underground cavern, and another spaceship. Valerie makes a shocking discovery.

5. The World Of Lost Toys (October 9, 1960)

A civilization visited the moon 400m years ago. Meanwhile, a meteor shower threatens the rockets.

5. • Terence Soall: "Russian"

6. Disaster On The Moon (October 16, 1960)

A video recording in the alien spaceship tells the sad fate of the ancient civilization, and gives a clue to their identity. Meanwhile, the meteor shower destroys the mothership. Can they use MR2, not designed for a return voyage, to get back to Earth?

7. Rescue In Space (October 23, 1960)

The MR2 leaves for Earth, with only one adult and one child aboard. The rest of the crew stays behind in the cavern, learning as much as they can about the ancient visitors before the air runs out. But does the ancient spaceship left behind by the visitors still work?

A secondary mission in a new rocket, MR4 (Moon Rocket 4), to the Moon takes off from Buchan Island. This time Henderson takes the lead role as pilot accompanied by Professor Wedgwood's oldest son Geoff as radio operator, Professor Mary Meadows, Henderson's niece Margret along with Hamlet. However one of the crew turns out to be science writer named Harcourt Brown who has plans to divert the ship to Mars determined there is life on the planet. Brown succeeds in getting MR4 to Mars, but with the length of the journey, the crew decide that the only way to get home is to find water on Mars.

Encountering Lichens, crevasses and other perils, Brown discovers no intelligent life and feels cheated by the others so he decides to leave the others behind on the planet but lichens infiltrate MR4, giving the Rocket crew a chance to overpower him.

Earth has moved out of the Martian orbit, making the journey home impossible. Yet Brown has a theory that if the gravity pull of the Sun could get home but the crew slowly succumbs to gamma rays. A total eclipse with Mercury blocks the rays but they quickly find themselves being caught in Mercury's gravity pull.

Buchan Island makes various satellite fixes on Mercury, which enables MR4 to make the journey home but Brown ponders of the idea of life on another planet and sees Venus as a possibility...

Cast

• GEORGE COULOURIS: "Harcourt Brown" / "The Imposter"

• GERALD FLOOD: "Conway Henderson"

• PAMELA BARNEY: "Professor Mary Meadows"

• STEWART GUIDOTTI: "Geoffrey Wedgwood"

• HESTER CAMERON: "Margaret Henderson"

Crew

• Writer(s): MALCOLM HULKE, ERIC PAICE

• Producer(s): SYDNEY NEWMAN for ABC

• Director(s): GUY VERNEY

• Designer(s): DAVID GILLESPIE

• Programme adviser: MARY FIELD

Episodes / Also starring

1. The Imposter (December 11, 1960)

Professor Wedgwood plans another moon expedition and the crew await the last minute arrival of a Professor Hawkins, but a mystery man takes his place in the rocket.

1. • HUGH EVANS: "Ian Murray"

   • ASTOR SKLAIR: "John Field"

   • BERNARD HORSFALL: "Professor Hawkins"

   • PETER WILLIAMS: "Professor Norman Wedgwood"

   • Margaret Worsley: "Airport stewardess"

   • Hamlyn Benson: "Guard"

   • Ian Sadler: "Doctor"

   • Alan Barry: "Technician"

2. Sabotage In Space (December 18, 1960)

The expedition is on its way to the Moon, but the crew do not know that one of their party is an impostor.

2. • HUGH EVANS: "Ian Murray"

   • ASTOR SKLAIR: "John Field"

   • BERNARD HORSFALL: "Professor Hawkins"

   • MAURICE DURANT: "Hammond"

3. The Hostage (December 25, 1960)

The impostor, Harcourt Brown, has taken control of the moon rocket and holds Margaret hostage as he heads for Mars. What can Conway Henderson do to foil this crazy plan?

3. • HUGH EVANS: "Ian Murray"

   • ASTOR SKLAIR: "John Field"

4. Lichens! (January 1, 1961)

Harcourt Brown has diverted the rocket to the red planet to prove his theories on intelligent life on Mars. After six weeks, the rocket approaches the barren surface of Mars - but there is nothing solid on which to land.

5. Zero Hour On The Red Planet (January 8, 1961)

Taken to Mars against their will, the British space explorers search for precious water for the long journey back to Earth.

6. Falling Into The Sun (January 15, 1961)

With Earth quickly moving away from Mars, the explorers must leave immediately or face 16 months in the lifeless Martian desert.

• HUGH EVANS: "Ian Murray"

• ASTOR SKLAIR: "John Field"

• Lisa Peake: "Peruvian"

Returning from their unexpected trip to Mars the crew of MR4 intercept a distress signal from US astronaut Captain Wilson and change course for Venus to attempt a rescue. However, Brown sees what appears to be a settlement or a city of some sort. Desperate to investigate, Brown edits Wilson's message and tricks the crew into landing on Venus so as they can rescue him.

The crew discover, much to Brown's delight, that the planet is capable is sustaining life and is a vast jungle, and find Wilson's rocket-capsule ransacked and ripped apart from the inside by something. Brown gets separated and finds Wilson, who then tricks him into finding his 'city'.

Henderson, Meadows, Geoff, and Margaret enter caves in a volcano and find cavemen living within. Margaret finds Wilson, Brown, and a Venusian cave-child whom she names 'Kiki'. The group are forced to escape the lava flow and find themselves in a desert.

Travelling through the desert, the Wedgwood party discover Venus is a living duplicate of Earth, with dinosaurs and prehistoric humans existing parallel to each other. They discover diamonds, uranium deposits, and an ancient burial ground for Kiki's ancestors.

Returning to the jungle, they discover the lava has set the jungle alight in the direction of MR4. Brown decides to set the rocket to overload but Henderson stops him, and a Russian rocket lands nearby. The pilot, Colonel Korolyov, explains they have extra fuel for MR4, in exchange for Wilson's secret mission - an experiment in stellar telecommunications.

Aware of his responsibilities in hijacking MR4, and that to him Venus is an unspoiled paradise, Brown announces he is remaining behind since Kiki has lost her parents. MR4 is given fuel for the return journey in space and takes off. Finally, after months away from home, the rescue party return to Buchan Island.

Episodes / Also starring

1. SOS From Venus (March 5, 1961)

Returning to Earth, Henderson and crew receive an SOS message from the direction of Venus. A US astronaut's spaceship has been damaged by a meteorite. Henderson and a Russian supply rocket begin a rescue attempt.

1. • HUGH EVANS: "Ian Murray"

   • ASTOR SKLAIR: "John Field"

2. Into The Poison Cloud (March 12, 1961)

The MR4 arrives at Venus. Harcourt Brown is convinced that he has seen signs of life on the surface and lies to Henderson telling him that Capt. Wilson has already been forced to crash land on the planet.

3. The Living Planet (March 19, 1961)

Geoff and Margaret locate Wilson's crashed spaceship, which is empty and ransacked by something with very big teeth. Wilson and Brown set out to find the Venusian city.

4. The Creature (March 26, 1961)

The hairy thing with the big teeth traps Professor Meadows and Margaret in the MR4 rocket but it vanishes before Geoff comes to the rescue. They set off into the jungle to find the others.

4. • Bob Bryan: "The Venusian"

5. The Venus People (April 2, 1961)

The explorers become lost and separated in a cave system under a mountain which is home to a clan of primitive cave people. To add to their woes they realize that the area is prone to volcanic activity.

5. • Brigid Skemp: "Venusian child"

   • Bob Bryan: "The Venusian"

6. The City (April 9, 1961)

Margaret's new little cave girl pal Kiki helps the crew escape from the lava caves. Brown's Venusian city turns out to be a disappointment and Professor Meadows becomes ill after she receives an insect bite.

6. • Brigid Skemp: "Venusian child"

   • HUGH EVANS: "Ian Murray"

7. The Valley Of The Monsters (April 16, 1961)

The Russian supply rocket is soon due to arrive in orbit so the long walk back to the MR4 begins.

7. • Brigid Skemp: "Venusian child"

   • HUGH EVANS: "Ian Murray"

   • ASTOR SKLAIR: "John Field"

8. Planet On Fire (April 23, 1961)

A jungle fire puts the MR4 at risk and Brown plans to sabotage it to safeguard Venus from future human exploitation. Kiki helps Capt. Wilson back to the rocket after he gets thumped by a Venusian Neanderthal.

• Brigid Skemp: "Venusian child"

• HUGH EVANS: "Ian Murray"

• Bob Bryan: "The Venusian"

• ASTOR SKLAIR: "John Field"