“Anything can happen in the next half hour!” Those scene-setting words are just one of the many fondly remembered elements associated with 1960s pop cultural phenomenon Stingray. First broadcast in 1964, the programme was created for ITC by the legendary Gerry and Sylvia Anderson, and was the third entry in their Supermarionation series. One that mixed ground-breaking marionette puppetry and ahead-of-their-time model special effects. It followed the adventures of the operatives of WASP (the World Aquanaut Security Patrol) – Captain Troy Tempest, his navigator Phones, the mysterious mute Marina, and Commander Shore and his daughter Lieutenant Atlanta Shore – who patrolled the world’s oceans in undersea craft Stingray fighting villainy, righting wrongs and discovering strange new civilisations.
To celebrate the 60th anniversary of this much-loved property Anderson Entertainment, in conjunction with ITV Studios, will be launching Stingray: Deadly Uprising in July, a multi-platform narrative experience. If you are familiar with Doctor Who forays into this kind of event (like ‘Time Lord Victorious’) you will be aware of what to anticipate. If not, then expect a storytelling adventure that encompasses audio, prose, comics and live performance; all interlocked instalments and yet acting as standalone stories as well.
Promising unprecedented levels of jeopardy for the Stingray team the official synopsis runs as follows:
Witness the cunning Titan launch his most audacious plot yet against the World Aquanaut Security Patrol (WASP), forging alliances with sinister undersea races and hijacking Marineville’s latest technological marvel. It’s up to Troy Tempest, along with the valiant Stingray crew, to thwart Titan’s nefarious plans, protect Marineville and prevent the conquest of the surface world.
You can find full details of everything Stingray: Deadly Uprising has to offer cross-media on the official website here. For our own Broken Frontier audience, of course, the most exciting ingredient in the mix here is the comics part of the proceedings. This mixes new material from a number of top names in comics (including some regular BF faves) alongside classic strips from cult classic ’60s comic TV Century 21. We have an exclusive reveal today below consisting of both preview art and reactions from the creators involved in getting to play with these much-loved characters!
Stingray Comic Anthologies
Collected for the first time since publication, these anthologies contain comic strips from TV Century 21 plus ten brand new comic strips, each featuring a different undersea race – some from the TV series, some new – along with stories and background articles to put the Stingray material in context.
“Tales From The Depths” – Comic Anthology Volume One
This anthology combines TV Century 21 classics with five brand-new stories, introducing different undersea races and escalating tensions. From jailbreaks to new alliances, each tale pushes Stingray’s crew closer to Titan’s trap, culminating in a cliffhanger that sets the stage for an all-out conflict.
“Battle Lines” – Comic Anthology Volume Two
The saga concludes in this anthology, combining additional classic comic strip adventures with five more brand-new stories where desperate measures lead to alliances both made and broken. As Titan’s forces launch a decisive assault on Marineville turning the terraneans’ might against them, it’s up to Stingray and newfound allies to defend their home.
With the first anthology available to preorder July and the second in September, both will be exclusively available to buy in hardback from the Gerry Anderson Store.
Art by Matt Brooker from ‘The Undefeated’
Here’s what the creators involved have to say about getting to add their own contributions to the Stingray mythos:
James Swallow: Writer – The Undefeated, Triple Cross
“Comics were probably the first adventure stories I ever read, so it’s been great for me to be able to circle back around to this medium in my writing career all these years later! I love the unique challenges of scripting comics – the versatility of framing, the thrill of a page-turn reveal and the collaboration with talented artists. And I’ve got fond memories of reading the Anderson TV21 strips, so having the opportunity to pen a couple of Stingray tales was something I couldn’t pass up!”
James Swallow is an award-winning, BAFTA-nominated scriptwriter, and a New York Times, Sunday Times and Amazon #1 bestselling author of over sixty novels. He is the creator of the Marc Dane action thriller series, and has written for franchises such as Star Trek, Doctor Who, Tom Clancy, Marvel and several high-profile video games. His comics work includes the urban fantasy series Rivers of London and the long-running war title Commando. He lives and works in London.
Keith Burns: Artist – Warning Below The Waves, Anthology 1 & 2 Covers
“I watched re-runs of Stingray with my siblings growing up so it’s a dream job to working on this project. Stingray itself is a thing of beauty and I’m having great fun with it and all the other vehicles involved. I love the design of Gerry Anderson’s worlds and love painting the sea so this is very dreamy.”
Born in Dublin in 1974, Keith Burns is an award-winning artist and illustrator specialising in The Second World War. He began his career in comics where he learnt the art of capturing movement and storytelling in images. He is a full member of the Guild of Aviation Artists and has sat on the selection committee judging artwork suitable for entry into the annual exhibition. As a full member, Keith has also critiqued member’s artwork at various museums up and down the country and held a solo exhibition at the RAF Club in London.
Keith’s commercial work can be seen on stamps, jigsaws, book covers, magazine covers, comic’s (interior art and covers) and in ladybird books. His recent book with James Holland titled The Second World War Illustrated took five years to complete and contains 288 paintings. Keith has been commissioned by the RAF, the Army and the SAS LRDG Charity and in 2018 completed the only official RAF100 painting. He also produces fine art paintings for a gallery depicting The Great War and The Second World War as well as motorsport purchased by collectors worldwide. He is currently working on further WW2 aviation comics with Garth Ennis. Keith is also happy walking out the front door and painting what he sees.
Ernie Altbacker: Writer – Battle For Marineville
“It was an honor, not to mention loads of fun, to write on this project for Stingray‘s 60th anniversary. Long Live The Anderverse!”
Ernie Altbacker has been writing movies and television, both live action and animated, for over thirty years. His credits include animated features such as Batman Hush, Justice League Dark, and Green Lantern: Beware My Power. He was a Comic Con nerd before it was trendy.
John McCrea: Artist – Shifting Seas
“I was a big fan of Stingray as a kid and deeply admire Ron Embelton’s art on the original comics, so it was a delight to be asked to do this strip and to be connected with the world of Gerry Anderson”
Art by John McCrea from Shifting Seas
John McCrea is a respected illustrator and comic book artist which has seen him draw for many of the major Western publishers including the big two: Marvel and DC Comics. He has illustrated iconic characters such as Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, the Hulk, Spider Man, Daredevil, Wolverine, Star Wars, Judge Dredd and the Simpsons amongst others. In addition, he works as an illustrator in book, record and magazine publishing and undertakes design and story boarding work for multimedia and the entertainment industry including being a Lucasfilm accredited artist.
Brian Williamson: Artist – Shadows From The Deep
“I am incredibly pleased to participate in this celebration of Stingray, as the original comic strip, in TV21, inspired me to draw comics in the first place. Before this, my weekly reading was Pippin and Playhour, but I was never tempted to draw the fluffy creatures to be found inside their pages. TV21 was different, featuring a host of Supermarionated shows, the strips drawn by the very best in the business, at the top of their game. Whether it was Ron Embleton on Stingray, Frank Bellamy on Thunderbirds, Mike Noble’s stellar Fireball XL5 or Captain Scarlet the art was magnificent and inspiring. Inspirational, but equally daunting. I can’t fill their shoes, but I’m grateful for this opportunity to play in the same ballpark.”
I’m a Scottish comic book illustrator and writer, based in London. Although comics are my first love, I also work on advertising projects, storyboards for films and TV, character designs, and book illustration. At art school ( Duncan of Jordanstone, Dundee ) my predilection for “low art” was greatly frowned upon and it was suggested that if that was what I wanted to do I should leave the course, as it wasn’t “real art.” These days the pendulum has swung a bit with Duncan of Jordanstone now offering a range of comics-oriented courses, and it boasts the world’s first Professor of Comic Studies. So – I was right, they were wrong. And that’s what’s important. Not that I’m unbearably smug about that, or anything.
Lee Sullivan: Artist – Voyage To Danger, Battle For Marineville
“It’s a thrill to work on another of the Anderson favourites! My younger, TV Century 21-reader self would have been both amazed at accomplishing this feat and yet bewildered at how long it took to get here. I can still recall the excitement of reading those early strips and even the special smell of the printed comic. Formative stuff!”
Art by Lee Sullivan from ‘Voyage to Danger’
Lee Sullivan has been a comic-book artist since 1987, working on Transformers, Doctor Who Magazine (semi-regularly, becoming well-known for his drawings of the Daleks), ‘RoboCop’ & ‘William Shatner’s TekWorld’ comics for Marvel/Epic US; ‘Judge Dredd’ for 2000 AD; the Radio Times ‘Doctor Who’ strip; five years on ‘Thunderbirds Magazine’; Fabbri’s ‘Doctor Who: Battles in Time’ comic strips and ‘Doctor Who DVD Files’ illustrations.
He produced six graphic novels for the Titan comic book series ‘Rivers of London’ and worked as a concept artist in the TV industry and produced two album covers for his sax-playing hero, Roxy Music’s Andy Mackay. He has also supplied box artworks for the Big Chief Studios Gerry Anderson figures. From 2022-24 he was regular artist on the canonical Fourteenth Doctor strip for Panini’s DWM, once again featuring Daleks and subsequently the first Fifteenth Doctor comic strip anywhere. Lee wrote and drew a new comic strip for Anderson Entertainment’s ‘Fireball XL5’ Anthology alongside their ‘Thunderbirds’ and ‘Space: 1999’ jigsaw puzzle artworks, and returned to produce new strips for the for their Stingray Anthologies.
Simon Fraser: Artist – Tempest Fugit, Rescue in the Depths
“I’ve been a fan of Stingray and all the Anderson shows since before I can really remember. Similarly when I was learning about comics the TV21 work of artists like Ron Embleton , Mike Noble and Frank Bellamy was hugely influential on my developing comics brain. How could I not want to be part of that lineup?”
Art by Simon Fraser from ‘Tempest Fugit’
Simon Fraser is a Scots comics artist and writer living in Jersey City NJ USA. His credits include drawing Judge Dredd, Kingsman and Doctor Who. He created the Eagle Award winning character Nikolai Dante (with Robbie Morrison ). He’s worked for numerous UK & American publishers including DC Comics, Image Comics, Dark Horse Comics, IDW, Millarworld and, most often, for 2000 AD.
Nick Abadzis: Writer – Tempest Fugit, Rescue in the Depths
“It’s been such a huge pleasure working on Stingray and getting to play in that particular sandbox – or should I say, deep ocean trench. No lie – I’ve loved these characters since I was about three years old and their voices came to me as if I’d been writing them for years and it was just so much fun. (Well, Marina doesn’t speak, but you know what I mean.) I get to work with my old friend Simon Fraser too, also one of my fave 2000 AD artists, so two lifetime ambitions fulfilled! I hope the readers feel the joy we felt putting together this little contribution to the legend. Viva Stingray, and here’s to the next 60 years!”
Nick Abadzis has been creating books, magazines, comics and stories for both adults and children for more than thirty-five years and has been honoured with various international storytelling awards including an Eisner for Laika. He also works as an editorial consultant for publishing, a corporate graphic recorder and sometime VR filmmaker, most recently in collaboration with Oscar and BAFTA-winning film director Asif Kapadia (on a 3D animation based on Laika). He is currently at work on Skin Trouble (new title to be announced!), a graphic memoir about racism in the USA and the UK, co-authored with his wife, Angela.
Jack Knoll: Writer – Shadows From The Deep
“I am proud to be a part of this impressive cohort of artists and writers that have been brought together to celebrate sixty years of Stingray. My story, Shadows From The Deep, is a love letter to the episode, The Invaders, which is one of my favourite (and one of the most bonkers) stories from the television series. Stingray was evidently produced with a lot of love and hard work from the AP Films team, and Andrew Clements has cultivated that same environment for Deadly Uprising. I think readers of the comic anthologies will appreciate the freedom that the individual writers and artists have been given to demonstrate what Stingray represents to them as fans and creative professionals. It means that every facet of the series has been explored. Stingray is rich in different tones and themes – heroes and villains, comedy and drama, action and romance – and we have endeavoured to leave no stone unturned!”
Jack Knoll has been a long-time collaborator with Anderson Entertainment, contributing as a writer and researcher to projects such as the Century 21 Tech Talk series and the Joe 90 | Project 90 Technical Operations Manual. Jack also hosts and produces regular live streams across Anderson Entertainment’s social media channels. Founder of the Security Hazard blog, Jack uses his spare time to pen specialist articles and videos on the work of Gerry Anderson, including informative, tongue-in-cheek commentaries on every episode of Stingray.
Ben Wolf Page: Writer – Warning Below The Waves
“Part of the magic of the Stingray TV series is the way the filmmakers create the illusion of an entire world just off screen. Through comics we’re able to look around and experience those stories within the universe we know and love.”
Ben Wolf Page is a puppeteer, filmmaker, and a regular contributor to Gerry Anderson projects. Prior to writing Warning Below the Waves he adapted two Stingray novels for re-publication and full cast audio drama production.
Chris Thompson: Writer – Shifting Seas
“Given the overall project has tied in quite closely with familiar elements from the show, I figured my job on Shifting Seas would be to write something a bit different, and to come up with a villain that was much more alien but still quite grounded. I took a lot of inspiration from the Snowmen and the Astrans from Fireball XL5”
Chris Thompson is a writer, designer and illustrator from Belfast. His portfolio includes writing and illustrating Anderson Entertainment’s growing range of Technical Operations Manuals, penning three graphic novels spanning three Anderson properties, and creating a wide range of trailers for Big Finish’s popular Doctor Who audio drama range.
Andrew Clements: Writer – Desperate Measures
“Growing up during the 1990s Anderson renaissance, my most prized possessions were the VHS tapes and the reprints of the iconic TV Century 21 comics. The latter in particular were a source of inspiration for my young imagination, and it has been a genuine joy and an honour to have had the opportunity to add another tale to Stingray’s long and rich history.”
Andrew Clements is a writer and producer who has worked on many Anderson Entertainment projects over the last few years. His work as a producer includes the recent range of Thunderbirds and Stingray audio dramas and the Stand By For Action blu-ray. He has also written and directed the mini-series Century 21 Tech Talk, and written for the New Captain Scarlet and Terrahawks graphic novels.
Connor Flanagan: Artist – Triple Cross / Colourist – Voyage To Danger, Battle For Marineville
“With the Stingray Comic Anthologies I feel deeply privileged to be able to collaborate as both an Artist and Colourist across multiple strips. This past 7 years, I have been uniquely positioned as part of the Anderson Entertainment family, to help usher in a new era of Gerry Anderson Comics. To date I have illustrated Graphic Novel adaptions of Space Precinct: Reloaded (2018), New Captain Scarlet: Operation Sabre (2022), and Terrahawks: Deep Blue Z (2024).
All of this work now culminates with my involvement in these wonderful Stingray Anthologies. How lucky am I? I now get to ride the wave with Stingray in the company of such prolific and talented creatives! With the arrival of these anthologies fans will no longer need to STAND BY FOR ACTION! For bold, colourful, new, underwater action has finally arrived!”
Connor Flanagan is an Irish Illustrator and Film-maker. He is a graduate from the University of Ulster, Belfast with BA Hons in Visual Communication, specialising in Screen Based Imaging. He has worked predominately in the field of film and video as a Cameraman and Video Editor. He was an EPK Cameraman on the film ‘Grabbers’ (2012). Most recently he has been involved with an FX team working on remastered Visual effects of Classic Doctor Who episodes for the Season 15 Bluray set. His early Art and Design career involved 11 Plus practice paper illustrations, logo design, and setting design for stage shows. In 2018 Connor returned to Illustration with his Comic work on Space Precinct Reloaded and continues to work with Anderson Entertainment on new comic adaptions of Gerry Andserson creations.
Ian Edginton: Writer – Voyage To Danger
“The Anderson shows have been steeped into my DNA. Growing up in the 1960s, Stingray, Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet were all essential viewing and reading in TV21. It wasn’t just the action and adventure but the interconnectedness and world building that gave the feeling of a there being much larger world off screen. The shows and comics were instrumental in my pursing the career that I have. It’s been a joy and a privilege to come full circle and write for something that was such an influence on me.”
Ian Edginton is a New York Times Best-Selling Author and multiple Eisner Award nominee. He has worked on a wide variety of comic book titles and franchises ranging from The X-Men, Wolverine and Batman to licensed properties including Alien, Predator, Terminator and Star Wars.
He has also written series based on various game titles such as Assassin’s Creed, Dead Space, Warhammer and Warhammer 40k. More recently, he has worked with the bands Iron Maiden and KISS and written several Doctor Who and Torchwood audio dramas for Big Finish and BBC Worldwide.
For more details on Stingray: Deadly Uprising don’t forget to check the Stingray site here!
[…] a thrill to work on another of the Anderson favourites,” enthuses Lee Sullivan. “My younger, TV Century 21-reader self would have been both amazed at accomplishing this […]