An offshoot from the legendary Armchair Theatre, Out of this World was devised to present the science fiction genre at its intelligent best to an adult audience.
Designed as an offshoot from the legendary Armchair Theatre, Out of this World was devised by television colossus Sydney Newman (Doctor Who, The Avengers) and Irene Shubik (The Wednesday Play, Rumpole of the Bailey) in 1962 to present the science fiction genre at its intelligent best to an adult audience.
An anthology series produced by Leonard White, dramatising the cream of literary science fiction, from such writers as Isaac Asimov, Clifford Simak and Philip K. Dick, and using the considerable scriptwriting talents of Clive Exton, Leon Griffiths and Terry Nation, the show was a tremendous success, paving the way for Irene Shubik's later classic series Out of the Unknown. Hosted by veteran actor Boris Karloff, each episode explored every aspect of the genre from satire to suspense, from tense drama to sparkling comedy, with the greatest flair and invention that Sixties television could provide.
This long awaited release presents the only surviving episode, an adaptation of Isaac Asimov's Little Lost Robot, with Maxine Audley as the formidable 'robopsychologist' Susan Calvin. Also included are two audio recordings of otherwise lost episodes Impostor by Philip K Dick, dramatised by Terry Nation who devised the Daleks forDoctor Who the following year, and Cold Equations, Tom Godwin's suspenseful tale featuring a very young Jane Asher, the impeccable Peter Wyngarde and a screenplay by Clive Exton. Exton's script for John Wyndhams The Dumb Martian, which heralded the series, is also included to download.
Digitally remastered presentation of Little Lost Robot
Alternative VidFIRE presentation of Little Lost Robot
Audio commentary with Leonard White and Mark Ward, moderated by actor-comedian Toby Hadoke
Cold Equations (Paul Bernard, 1962, audio only): adaptation of a short story by Tom Godwin, featuring a very young Jane Asher and the impeccable Peter Wyngarde, with a screenplay by Clive Exton.
Impostor (Peter Hammond, 1962, audio only): Terry Nation's adaptation of a Philip K. Dick story
Dumb Martian (1962): downloadable PDF of the script for this lost episode, adapted from a story by John Wyndham
Illustrated booklet with essay by Oliver Wake and Simon Coward, and full credits
