"Moonbase 3" (1973) TV series

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

1 September 1973 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Sci-Fi

Plot:

The adventures of David Caulder and his crew stationed on Moonbase 3 on the moon's surface. In the 21st century...

Plot Keywords:

Moon | Futuristic

Cast

Ralph Bates	...	Michel Lebrun (6 episodes, 1973)
Fiona Gaunt	...	Helen Smith (6 episodes, 1973)
Donald Houston	...	David Caulder (6 episodes, 1973)
Barry Lowe	...	Tom Hill (6 episodes, 1973)
Christine Bradwell	...	Ingrid (4 episodes, 1973)
Peter Bathurst	...	Director General (3 episodes, 1973)
Garrick Hagon	...	Bruno Ponti (3 episodes, 1973)
John Hallam	...	Peter Conway (3 episodes, 1973)
Tom Kempinski	...	Stephen Partness (3 episodes, 1973)
Madhav Sharma	...	Rao (3 episodes, 1973)

Runtime:

50 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

The costly Moonbase spacesuits were reused in the "Doctor Who" (1963) stories "Invasion of the Dinosaurs" (1974) and "The Sontaran Experiment" (1975).

Quotes:

David Caulder: Out there is a remorseless, implacable enemy; the most hostile environment Man has ever met. Now we must fight it together.

What an innovative show!

Moonbase 3 was an ambitious attempt by the BBC in 1973 to create a technically accurate science fiction program. It also followed the "New Wave" of science fiction writing then popular.

In traditional science fiction, larger-than-life heroes zoom across the galaxy, fight swashbuckling space battles with evil interplanetary despots, and woo beautiful alien women. On Moonbase 3, scientists and administrators attempt to conduct experiments while beset with budget cutbacks, equipment failures, work stress, personal isolation, and a heartless Earth bureaucracy.

The stories are often grim and depressing. The base is small and understaffed, the technology is unreliable, and everyone is under constant pressure to produce breakthroughs. Outer space is deadly and unforgiving; a tiny error in piloting your rocket can kill everyone aboard.

Small teams of researchers on a European moonbase are isolated for weeks at a time, leading to psychological stress and conflict. Many times in the series the researchers can only stand helplessly watching their experiments fail and their friends die. It's easy to see why the program was never an audience-pleaser.

However, the program has some extremely innovative themes which are never explored in other television or movie dramas. It shows how difficult, yet personally rewarding, scientific research is. It shows what a difference having a good manager makes. It shows how following the rules really can work, and how rule-bending seat-of-your-pants rocket jockeys can get everyone killed.