ONCE R2-D2 AND C-3PO HAD popularised cute robots in the late ’70s, every TV show was chasing android action; Doctor Who had K9, Battlestar Galactica Muffit the daggit, and Buck Rogers In The 25th Century had his little pal Twiki. But Britain’s cheekiest robot entertainer was Metal Mickey, created in 1978 by record producer (and one-time guitarist for David Bowie) Johnny Edward as a robotic pop star. Andy Thompson and Chris Verner of effects company Theatrescene built a sophisticated remote-controlled robot, voiced and operated by Edward himself.
Mickey quickly became a star in some ITV regions, co-hosting Saturday morning show The Saturday Banana with Bill Oddie from autumn 1978, before making a bid for pop stardom with a cover of ’50s doo-wop ditty “Lollipop” (it didn’t break the Top 40).
In spring 1980, BBC1’s Jim’ll Fix It presented Mickey to not only a wider audience but also to Humphrey Barclay, comedy boss at ITV franchise London Weekend Television. Barclay had recently rejected the idea of a Metal Mickey show, after Edward pitched him a tape of Saturday Banana highlights, but a Fix It clip, showing Bracknell youngster Stuart Finn with Mickey in his local supermarket, finally clinched the deal.
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Making Alien - Jaws in Space - Forty-five years on from its original release, Alien continues to terrify. We dissect what arguably remains the most chilling instalment in the saga
The seven-strong crew of the commercial mining spacecraft the Nostromo seal their fate after reluctantly responding to a mysterious distress signal on a hostile planet. Here, a face-hugging alien from a derelict ship impregnates and later kills executive officer Kane (John Hurt) after its offspring is birthed onboard. After being unleashed, the fearsome newborn with acid for blood proceeds to dispatch the remainder of the crew.Ridley Scott's much more convoluted prequels have yet to reveal how the knowledge that led to this initial interception was acquired. However, the premise of the original Alien is perfect in its uncomplicated purity.
PURE AND SIMPLE
IN THE FINAL PART OF OUR EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW, SHOWRUNNER RUSSELL T DAVIES TALKS RELAUNCHING DOCTOR WHO
TO CAP IT ALL OFF
CELEBRATING 40 YEARS OF THE BBC SERIES THE TRIPODS
FRENCH REVOLUTION
THE WALKING DEAD SPIN-OFF SHOWRUNNER DAVID ZABEL ON BEING GIVEN THE TOUGH TASK OF REUNITING DARYL AND CAROL IN FRANCE
SILENT KILLERS
THE DIRECTOR OF HOLLYWOOD'S SPEAK NO EVIL REMAKE ON HORROR, COMEDY AND JAMES MCAVOY
BRING OUT YOUR DEAD
THE GHOST WITH THE MOST RETURNS FINALLY - IN BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
TEENAGE DREAM
JOE LOCKE HITS THE ROAD RUNNING
MOB RULE THE PENGUIN
GOTHAM'S UP FOR GRABS IN BRUISING NEW CRIME SAGA BUT WHERE IS THE BATMAN?
SEASON OF THE WITCH
AS MARVEL TELEVISION CARVES OUT A NEW PATH FOR ITSELF, WE SPEAK TO CREATOR JAC SCHAEFFER, PLUS A CAST OF STARS LED BY KATHRYN HAHN AND JOE LOCKE, ABOUT THE MAGIC OF WANDAVISION'S SPIN-OFF AGATHA ALL ALONG
Ghouls Allowed
Even silence can't save you at this year's Halloween Horror Nights