As if
masterminding the successful 1970-74 period of Doctor Who was not enough, in 1973 Terrance Dicks and Barry Letts
also devised a more serious sci- fi show Moonbase
3. Instead of adventures and monsters, this series was intended to take a
different tack heading into the future. It certainly depicts a more believable
scenario than ITV’s Space 1999
eschewing fantasy for a more straight laced depiction of life in an isolated
environment. It’s a premise
you could run with now, probably more successfully, however back then this series’ initial six episodes were its only ones. Somehow it never took off
with viewers in 1973 who given the pedigree involved were probably expecting aliens
and space plagues. Even Terrance Dicks later acknowledged they “overdid the
grimness and forgot about the sense of wonder that science fiction is all
about.” Yet when you watch it, while the pace is certainly slow there is lots
going on and out of the six episodes at least three are good enough to be
considered alongside the best of UK 1970s telefantasy shows.
