"Survivors" (1975) TV series 1975-1977

Creator:

Terry Nation

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3

Release Date:

16 April 1975 (UK)

Genre:

Sci-Fi

Plot:

When a genetically engineered virus kills ninety-five percent of the world's population, the survivors...

Plot Keywords:

Virus | Post Apocalyptic | Epidemic

Cast

Lucy Fleming	...	Jenny Richards (32 episodes, 1975-1977)
Ian McCulloch	...	Greg Preston (26 episodes, 1975-1977)
Denis Lill	...	Charles Vaughan (24 episodes, 1975-1977)
Stephen Dudley	...	John Millon (22 episodes, 1975-1977)
Tanya Ronder	...	Lizzie Willoughby (19 episodes, 1975-1976)
John Abineri	...	Hubert Goss (17 episodes, 1976-1977)
Lorna Lewis	...	Pet Simpson (15 episodes, 1976-1977)
Carolyn Seymour	...	Abby Grant (13 episodes, 1975)

Runtime:

50 min (38 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Brecon Beacons, Powys, Wales, UK

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

Creator Terry Nation left after the first series because of differences with producer Terence Dudley.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Cult of...: Survivors (#1.4)" (2006)

Bring out your dead

Survivors is a show about the aftermath of a deadly plague. The title of the show indicates the plague originated in a lab in the Far East, and was accidentally released after a beaker was dropped. Air travel helped the flu-like disease spread around the world quickly and wipe out most of the population.

In England scattered survivors of every age, race and creed band together in small communities, learning to become self sufficient. The survivors often discuss the future, struggling to preserve a sense of normality and trying to plan ahead for building a new world.

This series was created by Terry Nation, better known as the creator of Doctor Who's most deadly enemies the Daleks. I suspect Terry Nation got a lot of his inspiration from such books as Earth Abides and The Day of the Triffids. Particularly the parts about new societies. I've only seen the first series of this show. It was made the year before I was born. Apparently after the first series it started to go downhill, as writers were running out of ideas. Terry Nation was unhappy with the path the show was taking and disowned the later episodes. I think he wanted an ending more like Earth Abides, where post-plague society slips into primitive illiteracy.

Survivors is popular enough to have its own website, created by fans of the show. It has some interesting discussions and speculation about what it would be like to live in the post-apocalypse world, and recommends books with the same theme.