Star Maidens
| Star Maidens | |
|---|---|
 Christiane Krüger (centre) and Lisa Harrow (right) in Star Maidens | |
| Also known as |
Die Mädchen aus dem Weltraum (Germany) Les Filles Du Ciel (France and French Canada) |
| Genre | Science fiction |
| Created by | Jost Graf von Hardenberg |
| Developed by | Eric Paice |
| Written by |
Eric Paice John Lucarotti Ian Stuart Black Otto Strang |
| Directed by |
Freddie Francis James Gatward Wolfgang Storch Hans Heinrich |
| Starring |
Judy Geeson Lisa Harrow Christiane Krüger Pierre Brice Christian Quadflieg Gareth Thomas Dawn Addams |
| Composer(s) | Berry Lipman |
| Country of origin |
United Kingdom West Germany |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | James Gatward |
| Editor(s) |
Alan Killick (supervising) Robert C. Dearberg |
| Location(s) |
Bray Studios On location: Windsor, Bracknell, Black Park |
| Cinematography | Ken Hodges |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
Portman Productions Scottish Television Enterprises |
| Distributor | Amalgated Global Television |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | ITV |
| Picture format | 4:3 (16 mm film) |
| Audio format | Mono |
| Original run | 1 September 1976 – 1 December 1976 |
Star Maidens is a British-German science-fiction television series made by Portman Productions for the ITV network. Produced in 1975, and first broadcast in 1976, it was filmed at Bray Studios and on location in Windsor and Bracknell, Berkshire, and Black Park, Buckinghamshire. The series was partly financed by a German company, Werbung im Rundfunk (Advertising On The Radio).
Overview
The series presents a "battle of the sexes" and role reversal scenario in which two male domestics escape from the female-ruled planet Medusa and, arriving on Earth, are pursued by the Medusan security forces. When the Medusans fail to re-capture the two men, they bring two human hostages—a man and a woman—back with them to their home planet. The series' 13 episodes concern the two groups' attempts to adapt to life on the different planets while brokering an exchange for the hostages.
Regarded as something of a camp novelty, Star Maidens tuned in to the sexual equality revolution of the time, and features some female dominance elements. The series has some similarities with the British science-fiction series Space:1999, whose second season was in pre production at Pinewood around the same time. Although Star Maidens was shot at Bray Studios by a different production company and did not benefit from as large a budget, both series featured the work of production designer Keith Wilson, whose prop and set designs from Space:1999 were adapted for Star Maidens, leading to a very similar look and feel. Lead actresses Judy Geeson and Lisa Harrow appeared in guest roles in the first season of Space:1999, Geeson in the episode "Another Time, Another Place" and Harrow "The Testament of Arkadia". For the series' German dub, German natives Christiane Krüger and Christian Quadflieg provided their own voices, while the voices of the British cast were dubbed by other German actors.
DVD release
The complete series of Star Maidens is available on Region 2 DVD from Delta Entertainment. The two-disc set includes an interview with actor Gareth Thomas as a special feature.
External links
- Star Maidens at the Internet Movie Database
- Star Maidens at TV.com
- Star Maidens at OldFutures