The Tomorrow People

A British Sci-Fi children's Classic! Tomorrow people is the PRIME example of the "Golden Age" of British Children's television of the 70's. In 1973 Doctor Who was king and Thames Television decided to give the BBC a run for their money. The result was The Tomorrow People! Since this was produced in the 70's, the show is certainly dated along with campy special effects and wobbly sets (imagine Doctor Who on even a tighter budget!)but there is quite a charm to this series, and certainly will bring back alot of memories (especially those of us in the States who were early Nickelodeon viewers in the early 80's) Fortunately these episodes are being released on Region 0 DVD's in the U.K.! Not only is it great to have these episodes in good quality, but the fine folks at Big Finish Productions (who are also producing new Tomorrow People audio adventures with the original cast) have added recorded commentary from cast members including Nicholas Young (John), Peter Vaughan-Clarke (Steven), Philip Gilbert (Tim), Elizabeth Adare (Elizabeth) and conducted by Nicholas Briggs. The Commentary tracks are actually worth the price of the DVD alone! These give a FANTASTIC insight into the making of and behind the scenes stories. Many times they'll contribute their own comments about the scenes (ala MST3K) or even stray from the subject completely and will have you literally rolling on the floor with laughter! Highly amusing and recommended!

Due to a timeslot conflict back in the days before even VCRs I never saw this back in the day so I am taking advantage of social distancing to binge it online to see what I am missing. I have been told that this was Thames TV's pale imitation of Doctor Who which is both factually correct but misses the point. First of all it had a fair run for any series. Dr Who is almost unique for it's long run so it's a bit unfair to use that yardstick. The effects and sets are cheaper than Dr Who but not as cheap as late Blakes 7. If I had seen it as a kid I am sure I would have loved it just as much as other stuff I was watching then. As an adult I am smirking a bit but definitely a fan. There is a tendency for villains to give up a bit easily (perhaps in fear of Whitehouse?) but there are some very sophisticated ideas being thrown about and (mostly) the science is real rather than technobabble with a credited science adviser. The worst thing about it is that either it was hurriedly rehearsed or they were too pressed to re shoot as flubbed lines are a bit too common and last night I lost it laughing at the boom mike popping in and out of shot but that's minor.

A really excellent series,it started off a bit shaky with the awful Kenny and the overacting Carol while Jon and Stephen were great from the start. Elisabeth brought some real acting to the show and the series really had some good stories especially "The Blue And The Green". I thought the introduction of Mike Hollaway as Mike Bell was good,he was a rebel and argued with Jon,which the others didn't do. The series got better with each season and it was always one of those shows that when it finished you thought Why? I highly recommend the DVD releases. "Castle of Fear" was a gem later on,loved the fact a Tomorrow person could create ghosts and even the Loch Ness Monster! I also really liked Hsui Tai,OK her English wasn't too strong but she was very sweet. I didn't enjoy the 90s remake,they should have watched the original,to see how to do a really good Sci-Fi show!

The late Philip Gilbert was great as the all knowing Bio computer Tim.

My memory of the show was completely buried from when I had seen it on Nickelodeon when I was a kid. Then I saw mention of it somewhere not long ago, and it all came rushing back to me, memories of what had been my favorite TV show at the time. That prompted some searching, and as a result, I am the proud owner of the first two seasons of The Tommorow People on DVD, which I ordered from Blackstar in the U.K. Watching it was quite an experience, being torn between thinking "this is so cheesy" and "this is absolutely brilliant". As I found watching the commentary, I wasn't the only one. Featuring Nicholas Young (John), Peter Vaughn-Clarke (Stephen), and Philip Gilbert (the voice of Tim), they made what I thought was going to be a technical commentary into a hilarious inside look at the making of the show, which they obviously thought was as cheesy and brilliant as I did. Everyone thinking of getting the DVD's should watch it. This is especially easy as the DVD's you order from the U.K. are Region 0, which means they can be watched all over the world (don't be fooled by blackstar.co.uk or amazon.co.uk when they mark them as Region 2 on the websites, they are all Region 0). Well worth the money for anyone who remembers the show and wants to take a stroll down memory lane.

The Tomorrow People is an unusual series about the next evolution of humanity. Children are being born with the abilities of telekinesis, teleportation, and telepathy, and call themselves Tomorrow People. They cannot kill anyone, and hide their abilities from the saps (homo sapiens, the normals) while getting drawn into adventures by aliens and time travelers determined to exploit their abilities.

It's a startling and refreshing take on kids shows at the time. The Tomorrow People are fully aware of what they are when they "break out" and gain control of their powers, and are aided by Tim, their biological computer. It's very much like a kid's version of Doctor Who but with less horror and nihilism. Good performances from the cast of children actors help as well.

There are problems though. The budget and production values are bad even for seventies television, most noticeable in any monster or spaceship shots. There's a weird homoeroticism to it as well, most noticeable in the story arc "The Medusa Strain" with a bit part from Star Wars actor David Prowse as a loincloth wearing android. Many of the early arcs are split among four or more episodes which lead to a lot of padding and wasted time.

The stories are still oriented towards a kids audience, so adults may find themselves wishing for more depth. While the plots are still fresh the show is dated fairly heavily now, and a lot of the impact is lost since many kids shows cover SF themes. Still, for those of us that watched it as kids on Nickelodeon in the late seventies/eighties, it was a mind-expanding experience, right down to the psychedelic opening sequence. Worth a rental if you like British SF or want to remember it if you watched again, but there are too many flaws to make it a classic.