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The puppet and live action series of Gerry Anderson enthralled me as a child, and were the inspiration for what I do today, editing and co-publishing a number of specialist titles on science fiction and fantasy modelling and special effects subjects.

At a time in the '60s when special effects in film and television were in their infant stage, Gerry's productions were streets ahead (compare the slick visuals in Thunderbirds with those in an episode of Doctor Who from the same period), his team consistently producing realistic looking vehicles and environments and pioneering a number of techniques that would be embraced by the FX industry as a whole, one of the most notable being that of 'kit-bashing'.

...'Kit-what-ing?' I hear you cry?

Introduced by FX maestro Derek Meddings, whose portfolio would go on to include the creation of miniature and special effects for several Bond films and many other genre movie milestones, kit-bashing is the technique of incorporating parts from commercially available injection plastic model kits into studio miniatures for detailing, a time-saving method of producing both 'guest' vehicles (i.e. those that would appear in only one episode) and also certain details of those craft that would become the hardware stars of the shows, appearing regularly throughout a series.

As an example of this process, take the futuristic-looking helijet that appears in several episodes of Thunderbirds. An iconic vehicle, and one much loved by fans, this particular aircraft was ingeniously created by taking two 1/32 scale Huskie helicopter kit bodies and sticking them together back to back. The engines and vertical wings are from an Aurora B58 Hustler kit and there's also half the main body from a Revell Atlas Booster under the craft. These models can still be picked up on auction sites today, as the photographs of my recently created replica of this craft show.

...And how about the SHADO mobile, that funky, metallic blue, tank-like vehicle from Gerry's later live action series UFO? The mobile's tracks and wheels are from a 'Tiger Joe' large plastic tank toy available at the time (examples still crop up fairly regularly on eBay), and the vehicle fairly bristles with discretely placed bits from other kits too, including pieces raided from the 1/40 scale Honest John Rocket Launcher by Life-Like or Adams, 1/24 Airfix James Bond Autogyro, 1/21 Tamiya Long Tom, 1/24 Revell Gemini Capsule, 1/40 Tillie-the-Toiler anti-aircraft gun by Life-Like or Adams and 1/40 Revell Scissors Bridge and M-48 Tank Launcher (and that's not the full list!).

Back to Thunderbirds, who can forget International Rescue's MOLE digging machine? I'm putting together a replica of one at the moment - a multi-media, studio scale 'garage' kit (Note: Not a kit for beginners. As an example of the skills required, I'm scratch building a replacement drill bit for the front because I'm not happy with the one supplied, but this is nevertheless an absorbing and satisfying subject to get your teeth into if you're an experienced modeler/scratch builder). The Mole and its tracked cradle as seen on screen includes parts from the Airfix/Dapol girder bridge kit (this kit's girder sections, central ribbed parts and, in particular, square foot pads, turn up all over the place in Gerry's series from Fireball XL5 onwards- the studio must have kept Airfix in business by buying so many of them), an Everything Is Go Atlas rocket kit, a large scale Aurora B58 hustler, a Faller round restaurant kit, an Airfix Footbridge kit and the holy grail of Anderson modelers - a Vickers Vigor tractor toy. The Vickers Vigor was the basis for most of the tracked vehicles seen in the series and an example of this toy can now command a four-figure sum at auction (I kid you not!). In the photographs you can see my Mole cradle under construction, plus a page from Modelling the 21st. Century Volume II showcasing modeler Dave Ruther's superb Mole scratch build.

The finesse of the model makers at Gerry's old AP Films/Century 21 studios really stands out in their approach to kit-bashing. For example, would you say the MOLE looks largely cobbled together from a toy tractor and handful of kit parts - of course you wouldn't. Everything they made which utilised kit bits for detailing looked like a purpose-built and totally believable vehicle, with each kit part appearing to have a legitimate function as part of the overall design. Try sticking a few kit bits onto a basic craft shape at random and you won't get anywhere near the same result - these modelers were incredibly skilful at their art, with an eye for what should go where and the ability to think laterally, cutting down, grouping and turning parts around so as to make their origins unrecognisable.

Before CGI effects kit-bashing was adopted for many movie blockbusters, including 2001: a Space Odyssey, worked on by one Brian Johnson, a former Anderson employee who would return to the fold to create and film Moonbase Alpha and the Eagle spacecraft for Space:1999 (themselves featuring many kit parts for detailing). In the late seventies the craft of the original Battlestar Galactica series took kit-bashing to an extreme, every inch of the titular craft being smothered in kit parts.

Mainly the premise of replica builders today, recreating kit-bashed craft is an art form, with some scratch builders getting so bogged down in obsessively identifying and hunting down every single piece used on a TV or studio miniature that it takes them many years to actually get down to the business of building their replicas. If you're intrigued, many excellent websites exist to explain 'which bit went where' - simply Google in the name of the craft you are looking for, the series title, plus the word 'parts' and chances are you will come up with an appropriate reference source...

Right - that Mole replica is calling seductively again... Until next time, happy modeling!

Modelling the 21st, Century Volumes I and II available from: www.scififantasymodeller.co.uk

Mike Reccia

You can get to grips with Thunderbird 3 in our game Thunderbirds Docking Station.