Adam Adamant Lives! (partially lost BBC children's TV series; 1966): Difference between revisions

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==Availability and Reception==
==Availability and Reception==
The series became a cult hit and was massively influential. The show was supposedly an attempt by the BBC to enjoy the same huge success as ''The Avengers''<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/classic/adamant/intro.shtml</ref> (another British TV show from the 1960s with many missing episodes), and Adam Adamant himself was very much based around the Doctor from another British classic, ''Doctor Who.'' (in fact, ''Adam Adamant'''s show-runners were Sydney Newman and Verity Lambert, the former having been responsible for getting both ''Doctor Who'' and ''The Avengers'' off the ground in the first place, and the latter having written for ''Doctor Who'' extensively.)
The series became a cult hit and was massively influential. The show was supposedly an attempt by the BBC to enjoy the same huge success as ''The Avengers''<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/classic/adamant/intro.shtml</ref> (another British TV show from the 1960s with many missing episodes), and Adam Adamant himself was very much based around the Doctor from another British classic, ''Doctor Who.'' (in fact, ''Adam Adamant's'' show-runners were Sydney Newman and Verity Lambert, the former having been responsible for getting both ''Doctor Who'' and ''The Avengers'' off the ground in the first place, and the latter having written for ''Doctor Who'' extensively.)


Due to the BBC poorly archiving and cataloging the majority of their television programs from the 1950s and 1960s, thirteen episodes are missing in their entirety. The BBC (through their Archive Treasure Hunt campaign) urges any member of the public to come forward with home video recordings so that the missing episodes can be restored and released to home media.
Due to the BBC poorly archiving and cataloging the majority of their television programs from the 1950s and 1960s, thirteen episodes are missing in their entirety. The BBC (through their Archive Treasure Hunt campaign) urges any member of the public to come forward with home video recordings so that the missing episodes can be restored and released to home media.
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==List of Episodes==
==List of Episodes==
{|class="wikitable"
===Season 1===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
|-
! Season
! style="background-color:lightblue" | #
! Name
! style="background-color:lightblue" | Episode Title
! Status
! style="background-color:lightblue" | Original Air Date
! Original Air Date
! style="background-color:lightblue" | Status
! Comment
! style="background-color:lightblue" | Comment
|-
|-
| rowspan="1"| None
|0||''Adam Adamant Lives'' (Pilot)||Unaired||<span style="color:orange;">'''Partially Found'''</span>||1902 sequence reused in ''A Vintage Year for Scoundrels''.
| align=center|''Adam Adamant Lives'' (Pilot)
| align=center|'''<span style="color:orange;">Partially Found'''</span>
| align=center|Unaired
| align=center|1902 sequence reused in ''A Vintage Year for Scoundrels''
|-
|-
| rowspan="16"| Season 1
|1||''A Vintage Year for Scoundrels''||June 23, 1966||[https://youtu.be/FLB2WFszjQU <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|''A Vintage Year for Scoundrels''
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLB2WFszjQU <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|23 June 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''Death Has a Thousand Faces''
|2||''Death Has a Thousand Faces''||June 30, 1966||[https://youtu.be/fTMdsAsE0pA&t <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTMdsAsE0pA&t <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|30 June 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''More Deadly Than the Sword''
|3||''More Deadly Than the Sword''||July 7, 1966||[https://youtu.be/XJqNma-t35I <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJqNma-t35I <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|7 July 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Sweet Smell of Disaster''
|4||''The Sweet Smell of Disaster''||July 14, 1966||[https://youtu.be/Mu9Zx2MubS0 <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mu9Zx2MubS0 <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|14 July 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''Allah Is Not Always With You''
|5||''Allah Is Not Always With You''||July 21, 1966||[https://youtu.be/m05e4QJkr74 <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m05e4QJkr74 <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|21 July 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Terribly Happy Embalmers''
|6||''The Terribly Happy Embalmers''||August 4, 1966||[https://youtu.be/KzWdQlG6T2A <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzWdQlG6T2A <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|4 August 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''To Set a Deadly Fashion''
|7||''To Set a Deadly Fashion''||August 11, 1966||[https://youtu.be/Oa2BLiBmX2k <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oa2BLiBmX2k <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|11 August 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Last Sacrifice''
|8||''The Last Sacrifice''||August 18, 1966||[https://youtu.be/NXS58VH1-2A <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXS58VH1-2A <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|18 August 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''Sing a Song of Murder''
|9||''Sing a Song of Murder''||August 25, 1966||[https://youtu.be/BSS5eGHZtDc <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube in lower-quality.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSS5eGHZtDc <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|25 August 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube (though of '''Lower Quality''')
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Doomsday Plan''
|10||''The Doomsday Plan''||September 1, 1966||[https://youtu.be/sOhHYsrZ5FI <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOhHYsrZ5FI <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|1 September 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''Death by Appointment Only''
|11||''Death by Appointment Only''||September 8, 1966||[https://youtu.be/ro5UPM02G2M <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ro5UPM02G2M <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|8 September 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''Beauty Is an Ugly World''
|12||''Beauty Is an Ugly World''||September 15, 1966||[https://youtu.be/EsFcjcPjqCE&t <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsFcjcPjqCE&t <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|15 September 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''The League of Uncharitable Ladies''
|13||''The League of Uncharitable Ladies''||September 22, 1966||[https://youtu.be/3ljTGTWu4dM&t <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ljTGTWu4dM&t <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|22 September 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''Ticket to Terror''
|14||''Ticket to Terror''||September 29, 1966||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||One photo exists, no surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|29 September 1966
| align=center|One photo exists, no surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Village of Evil''
|15||''The Village of Evil''||October 6, 1966||[https://youtu.be/hsxxalaIWnc&t <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsxxalaIWnc&t <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|6 October 1966
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''D for Destruction''
|16||''D for Destruction''||October 13, 1966||[https://youtu.be/CwLGNXlx6Mo <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||Recovered in 2003, On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwLGNXlx6Mo <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
|}
| align=center|13 October 1966
 
| align=center|Recovered in 2003, On DVD and YouTube
===Season 2===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! style="background-color:lightblue" | #
! style="background-color:lightblue" | Episode Title
! style="background-color:lightblue" | Original Air Date
! style="background-color:lightblue" | Status
! style="background-color:lightblue" | Comment
|-
|-
| rowspan="13"| Season 2
|1||''A Slight Case of Reincarnation''||December 31, 1966||<span style="color:orange;">'''Partially Found'''</span>||4 minute audio extract available on DVD.
| align=center|''A Slight Case of Reincarnation''
| align=center|'''<span style="color:orange;">Partially Found'''</span>
| align=center|31 December 1966
| align=center|4 minute audio extract available on DVD
|-
|-
| align=center|''Black Echo''
|2||''Black Echo''||January 7, 1967||[https://youtu.be/oUDa4kqws20&t <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUDa4kqws20&t <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|7 January 1967
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
|-
|-
| align=center|''Conspiracy of Death''
|3||''Conspiracy of Death''||January 14, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|14 January 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Basardi Affair''
|4||''The Basardi Affair''||January 21, 1967||<span style="color:orange">'''Partially Found'''</span>||Complete audio recording recovered in 2017.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:orange">Partially Found'''</span>
| align=center|21 January 1967
| align=center|Complete audio recording recovered in 2017
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Survivors''
|5||''The Survivors''||January 28, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|28 January 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''Face in a Mirror''
|6||''Face in a Mirror''||February 4, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|4 February 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''Another Little Drink''
|7||''Another Little Drink''||February 11, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|11 February 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''Death Begins at Seventy''
|8||''Death Begins at Seventy''||February 18, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|18 February 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''Tunnel of Death''
|9||''Tunnel of Death''||February 25, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|25 February 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Deadly Bullet''
|10||''The Deadly Bullet''||March 4, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|4 March 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''The Resurrectionists''
|11||''The Resurrectionists''||March 11, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|11 March 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''Wish You Were Here''
|12||''Wish You Were Here''||March 18, 1967||<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>||No surviving footage or audio.
| align=center|'''<span style="color:red;">Lost'''</span>
| align=center|18 March 1967
| align=center|No surviving footage or audio
|-
|-
| align=center|''A Sinister Sort of Service''
|13||''A Sinister Sort of Service''||March 25, 1967||[https://youtu.be/AAv2NzqZTEA <span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>]||On DVD and YouTube.
| align=center|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AAv2NzqZTEA <span style="color:green;">Found]'''</span>
| align=center|25 March 1967
| align=center|On DVD and YouTube
 
|}
|}
''All information correct at time of writing''<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Adamant_Lives!#Episode_list</ref>
''All information correct at time of writing''<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Adamant_Lives!#Episode_list</ref>


==Legacy==
==Legacy==
''Adam Adamant Lives!'' has remained a beloved cult classic over the years, and has gone on to inspire many. Two such examples include New Wave band Adam and The Ants (eventually shortened to just Adam Ant) in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and the ''Austin Powers'' film franchise was said to have been influenced by ''AAL!'''s plot and Gerald Harper's unique look while playing the titular character.<ref>http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/517661/index.html</ref>  
''Adam Adamant Lives!'' has remained a beloved cult classic over the years, and has gone on to inspire many. Two such examples include New Wave band Adam and The Ants (eventually shortened to just Adam Ant) in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and the ''Austin Powers'' film franchise was said to have been influenced by ''AAL!'s'' plot and Gerald Harper's unique look while playing the titular character.<ref>http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/517661/index.html</ref>  


BBC 4 ran a six-part documentary series on the show in 2008,<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0074t1p</ref> and Diamanda Hagan of Channel Awesome/TGWTG ran a retrospective series covering all of the surviving episodes.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOt8i0lTzwazb3bj-dDS42LvzoXQUXGIV</ref>
BBC 4 ran a six-part documentary series on the show in 2008,<ref>http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0074t1p</ref> and Diamanda Hagan of Channel Awesome/TGWTG ran a retrospective series covering all of the surviving episodes.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLOt8i0lTzwazb3bj-dDS42LvzoXQUXGIV</ref>

Revision as of 15:11, 1 November 2019

Adam-Adamant-Lives-The-Complete-Collection-Front-Cover-34716.jpg

Cover of the UK DVD, which collates all of the extant episodes.

Status: Partially Lost

Adam Adamant Lives! was a live-action children's television show produced by the BBC, airing from the 3rd of June 1966 to the 25th of March 1967 for 30 episodes (including one unaired pilot) over two seasons.

Premise

The show starred Gerald Harper as the eponymous hero, a swashbuckling Edwardian adventurer who is cryogenically frozen by his nemesis, The Face, and wakes up in 1960s England, where everything has changed for him. He and his companion Georgina Jones (played by Juliet Harmer) go on adventures together, with the series taking a particularly satirical look at the 1960s culture Adam finds himself completely out of his depth in.

Availability and Reception

The series became a cult hit and was massively influential. The show was supposedly an attempt by the BBC to enjoy the same huge success as The Avengers[1] (another British TV show from the 1960s with many missing episodes), and Adam Adamant himself was very much based around the Doctor from another British classic, Doctor Who. (in fact, Adam Adamant's show-runners were Sydney Newman and Verity Lambert, the former having been responsible for getting both Doctor Who and The Avengers off the ground in the first place, and the latter having written for Doctor Who extensively.)

Due to the BBC poorly archiving and cataloging the majority of their television programs from the 1950s and 1960s, thirteen episodes are missing in their entirety. The BBC (through their Archive Treasure Hunt campaign) urges any member of the public to come forward with home video recordings so that the missing episodes can be restored and released to home media.

The 2006 PAL DVD release has all seventeen surviving episodes,[2] spread over five discs. The show is also available ripped on YouTube.[3]

List of Episodes

Season 1

# Episode Title Original Air Date Status Comment
0 Adam Adamant Lives (Pilot) Unaired Partially Found 1902 sequence reused in A Vintage Year for Scoundrels.
1 A Vintage Year for Scoundrels June 23, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
2 Death Has a Thousand Faces June 30, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
3 More Deadly Than the Sword July 7, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
4 The Sweet Smell of Disaster July 14, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
5 Allah Is Not Always With You July 21, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
6 The Terribly Happy Embalmers August 4, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
7 To Set a Deadly Fashion August 11, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
8 The Last Sacrifice August 18, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
9 Sing a Song of Murder August 25, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube in lower-quality.
10 The Doomsday Plan September 1, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
11 Death by Appointment Only September 8, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
12 Beauty Is an Ugly World September 15, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
13 The League of Uncharitable Ladies September 22, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
14 Ticket to Terror September 29, 1966 Lost One photo exists, no surviving footage or audio.
15 The Village of Evil October 6, 1966 Found On DVD and YouTube.
16 D for Destruction October 13, 1966 Found Recovered in 2003, On DVD and YouTube.

Season 2

# Episode Title Original Air Date Status Comment
1 A Slight Case of Reincarnation December 31, 1966 Partially Found 4 minute audio extract available on DVD.
2 Black Echo January 7, 1967 Found On DVD and YouTube.
3 Conspiracy of Death January 14, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
4 The Basardi Affair January 21, 1967 Partially Found Complete audio recording recovered in 2017.
5 The Survivors January 28, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
6 Face in a Mirror February 4, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
7 Another Little Drink February 11, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
8 Death Begins at Seventy February 18, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
9 Tunnel of Death February 25, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
10 The Deadly Bullet March 4, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
11 The Resurrectionists March 11, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
12 Wish You Were Here March 18, 1967 Lost No surviving footage or audio.
13 A Sinister Sort of Service March 25, 1967 Found On DVD and YouTube.

All information correct at time of writing[4]

Legacy

Adam Adamant Lives! has remained a beloved cult classic over the years, and has gone on to inspire many. Two such examples include New Wave band Adam and The Ants (eventually shortened to just Adam Ant) in the late 1970s and early 1980s, and the Austin Powers film franchise was said to have been influenced by AAL!'s plot and Gerald Harper's unique look while playing the titular character.[5]

BBC 4 ran a six-part documentary series on the show in 2008,[6] and Diamanda Hagan of Channel Awesome/TGWTG ran a retrospective series covering all of the surviving episodes.[7]

External Links

References