Journey to the Far Side of the Sun

For most British kids growing up in the '60s their science fiction diet was made up of Doctor Who and/or Gerry Anderson's puppet shows. Of course, calling Fireball XL5, Stingray, Captain Scarlet, Joe 90 and Thunderbirds merely puppet shows is undermining their brilliance. While Doctor Who was suffering from wobbly sets and dodgy alien make up, Anderson was creating fantastic worlds of adventure that would have been impossible to create in any other way, given the limitations of TV budgets. For children the fact that they were marionettes, but very good ones, didn't matter, it was always about the action and adventure. It is a mark of their ingenuity that they are still showing on television today and are being enjoyed by kids brought up on slick CGI animation and computer games

In 1969 Anderson released a live-action movie called JOURNEY TO THE FAR SIDE OF THE SUN (aka DOPPELGANGER). It was an opportunity to combine his skills as a storyteller and special effects wiz, to produce a groundbreaking film that went on to become a cult sci-fi classic.

Set 100 years into the future, scientists discover an exact duplicate of the Earth orbiting on the other side of the sun. Two astronauts are sent to uncover the secrets of this planet, but when their journey ends three weeks early they must embark on a life or death mission to determine whether they have arrive back home or on a strange mirror world. A guaranteed mindbender.

JOURNEY TO THE FAR SIDE OF THE SUN is released for the first time on DVD on September 8 by Universal Pictures UK. It is available from major retailers including Amazon and Play.