Stingray (1964 TV series) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Stingray
Genre	Children's science fiction
Created by	Gerry and Sylvia Anderson
Written by	Gerry and Sylvia Anderson Alan Fennell Dennis Spooner
Directed by	David Elliott John Kelly Alan Pattillo Desmond Saunders
Voices of	Ray Barrett Robert Easton David Graham Don Mason Lois Maxwell Sylvia Anderson
Opening theme	"Stingray"
Ending theme	"Aqua Marina" (sung by Gary Miller)
Composer(s)	Barry Gray
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	39 (list of episodes)
Production
Producer(s)	Gerry Anderson
Cinematography	John Read
Editor(s)	David Lane Harry MacDonald Eric Pask
Running time	25 minutes
Production company(s)	AP Films
Distributor	ITC Entertainment
Release
Original network	ATV
Picture format	35 mm (Eastmancolor)
Audio format	Mono
Original release	4 October 1964 (1964-10-04) – 27 June 1965 (1965-06-27)
Chronology
Preceded by	Fireball XL5
Followed by	Thunderbirds

Stingray is a cool British science-fiction TV show for kids. It was made by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and produced by AP Films. The show came out in October 1964 and had 39 episodes, each about half an hour long.

This series was filmed using special puppets called marionettes and amazing scale models for effects. It was one of the first shows to use a technique called "Supermarionation", which made the puppets seem more alive! Stingray was also the first British TV show made entirely in colour. This was done to make it popular in America.

The story takes place in the 2060s. It's all about the World Aquanaut Security Patrol (WASP). This group protects Earth's oceans. Their main submarine is called Stingray. It's crewed by Captain Troy Tempest, his navigator Lieutenant "Phones", and Marina. Marina is a quiet young woman from under the sea. Their adventures involve meeting different underwater civilisations, some friendly and some not so friendly. They also explore strange things happening in the ocean.

Dive into the World of Stingray

This section tells you more about the amazing world of Stingray.

The Awesome Stingray Submarine

The Stingray is a powerful nuclear-powered combat submarine. It's the main ship for the World Aquanaut Security Patrol (WASP). The WASP's job is to keep the Earth's oceans safe in the mid-2060s. The Stingray is armed with "sting missile" torpedoes. It can travel super fast underwater, up to 600 knots (1,100 km/h; 690 mph). It can also go really deep, over 36,000 feet (11 km; 6.8 mi)!

Marineville: The Underwater Base

The WASP base is called Marineville. It's a city built several miles inland on the West Coast of North America. A tunnel connects it to the Pacific Ocean. This tunnel has a special "ocean door" where Stingray launches from. When there's an emergency, loud drumbeats sound through the base. The whole base can even be lowered into underground bunkers for safety! WASP team members say "P.W.O.R." when they get orders. It means "Proceeding With Orders Received."

Meet the Stingray Crew

• Captain Troy Tempest: He's the brave pilot of Stingray. He has a strong, square jaw!
• Lieutenant George Lee Sheridan, "Phones": He's the navigator and also listens for sounds underwater using a hydrophone. He's Troy's best friend.
• Commander Sam Shore: He's the boss of Marineville. He uses a special "hoverchair" to move around.
• Lieutenant Atlanta Shore: She's Commander Shore's daughter. She works in the control tower and has a crush on Troy.
• Marina: She's a quiet young woman from under the sea. She was a slave to King Titan but joins the WASP. She can breathe underwater and on land. Troy likes her a lot, which makes Atlanta a bit jealous!

Underwater Villains and Adventures

The series starts when the WASP finds out that many advanced civilisations live on the ocean floor. One of these is Titanica, ruled by the mean King Titan. He commands the Aquaphibians, who are warrior people with dangerous submarines called "Mechanical Fish."

In the first episode, Troy and Phones are captured by Titan's forces. Marina, who was Titan's slave, helps them escape and joins the Stingray crew. King Titan gets super angry about Marina's betrayal. He promises to get revenge on "terraneans" (land people) and the WASP.

Titan often tries to destroy Stingray and Marineville. But his plans usually fail because his helper, Surface Agent X-2-Zero, is not very good at his job. X-2-Zero is Titan's spy on land. He lives in a run-down house on a Pacific island called Lemoy. Inside, he has lots of fancy spy equipment!

Some episodes are about meeting other undersea races, some friendly, some not. Others involve investigating strange natural events. The last episode is a special "clip show" where Troy is named "Aquanaut of the Year." They show clips from past missions to remember his adventures.

Episodes of Stingray

Here are the episodes of Stingray, listed in the order they were first shown.

Stingray was the first Supermarionation show to have a Christmas episode ("A Christmas to Remember"). It also had a clip show as its final episode ("Aquanaut of the Year").

Special Stingray Episodes

The creators used scenes from a planned but unused clip show to make a special Stingray movie. This movie was shown only to Japanese TV executives and never on TV.

Later, the extra scenes from this movie were found and added to Stingray DVDs. In 2008, BBC Wales and Granada International made a new Stingray clip show called "The Reunion Party." It used parts from three episodes and was shown on BBC Four.

Stingray Movies for TV

In the early 1980s, two Stingray compilation films were made for American TV. They were later released on video. These films were part of a TV package called "Super Space Theater." Each Stingray movie was made by editing together four original episodes. The second movie, Invaders from the Deep, was even shown as the first episode of the TV comedy show Mystery Science Theater 3000 in 1988.

Meet the Characters

Here are the main characters and the actors who voiced them.

WASP Heroes and Friends

• Captain Troy Tempest: He's the brave pilot of the Stingray submarine.
• "Phones": Troy's best friend and the navigator of Stingray. He's also great at listening to underwater sounds. His real name is George Lee Sheridan.
• Marina: A quiet young woman from under the sea. She used to be a slave to King Titan. She can breathe both in and out of water. She joins the Stingray crew and Troy likes her a lot.
• Commander Samuel Shore: The boss of Marineville. He uses a special hoverchair because he can't walk. He was injured protecting an ocean mining platform.
• Lieutenant Atlanta Shore: Commander Shore's daughter. She helps control things in Marineville Tower. She likes Troy.
• Sub-Lieutenant John Horatio Fisher: A junior helper in Marineville Tower. He's training to be an aquanaut.
• WSP Commanders: Three leaders from WSP Headquarters in Washington, D.C.. They give missions to the main characters.
• Admiral Jack Denver: The head of WASP's underwater research. He's friends with Commander Shore.
• "Doc": Marineville's doctor.
• Aphony: Marina's father and the ruler of Pacifica, a peaceful underwater city.
• Oink: A cute seal pup who becomes Marina's pet. He saved the Stingray crew from a bomb!

Recurring Villains

• King Titan: The mean ruler of the underwater city of Titanica. He's always fighting the WASP.
• Surface Agent X-2-Zero: Titan's clumsy spy on land. He lives in a hidden base on Lemoy island.
• The Aquaphibians: A group of undersea warriors who work for King Titan. They make gurgling sounds when they talk.
• Teufel: Titan's pet, a large fish with special powers. Titan treats Teufel like a god.
• El Hudat and Abu: A dictator and his helper from a country called Hudatvia.
• Grupa and Noctus: Two undersea beings who cause trouble for the WASP.