Some of the sci-fi puppet characters in the series are Professor Z, his sidekick, Adam, hero Buks de la Rey, lady communications expert Lida, and a variety of goodies, baddies and aliens such as Pikki, a rather captivating little robot, and space creatures like the Krokon prince.

The series is about a space freight courier company called Interster with offices and terminal buildings on the Foreshore, which by 2300 stretches far out into a futuristic reclaimed Table Bay.

The series–which is in its pre-production stage and is as yet unnamed–was conceived by Lindsay du Plessis.

In an interview, du Plessis, director of the series for the independent production company, Astral Film Enterprises, said initially there would be 13 episodes.

There is no certainty at this stage that the public will see all 13 episodes, however, as SATV has withheld final approval for the full series until the first three have been judged successes or failures.

Apparently, SATV is sceptical about such an ambitious project being possible in South Africa.

The space series, which is similar to The Thunderbirds or Redding Internasionaal as it was known here, is for the Afrikaans service.

The idea for it was initially put to the English service, but as has happened before was offered to the Afrikaans service after indecision and delays forced the producers to look elsewhere.

The series is a co-production in that the idea was sold to SATV by veteran film and television producer Dirk de Villiers.

“We told Dirk that if he could sell the idea, we’d do a deal,” said Du Plessis.

At the moment, work on the series is underway in De Villiers’ city centre studios, where I saw a short pilot programme recently and was shown some of the electronically sophisticated puppet characters and other sci-fi technology.

Du Plessis summed up the technique to be used as “electro marionation” or more light-heartedly as the “right combination of madness and electronic expertise.”

Colin Buckland is the designer and builder of the puppets, the electronic expert who is the project’s chief special effects tricks man.

Other members of the team are Jan Correwijn, design and sculpting of the puppets’ features; Anthony Pritchard, set design; and Gerry Lotter and Gavin Keyser, special effects.

Du Plessis said the series would not be “just flashing lights and nothing else” but a highly sophisticated one dependent on special effects.

And going by the pilot programme and some of the puppets and other electronic gadgetry, his claim is quite justified.

The mother ship, a scale model of a huge, grey spaceship made from everything from part of a skateboard to pencil sharpeners, the grilles off Dinky toys, plastic cups, biscuit tins and a variety of other bits and pieces, not only looks authentic but is also has fully operational moving parts.

And the puppets are, underneath their “skins,” sophisticated electronic characters.

Du Plessis said that though the series was a sci-fi one with puppets, the market being aimed for was not exclusively a youth one but “kidult”–a trade word for a combined child-adult market.