Fireball XL5

Fireball XL5 is a UK VHS release by Carlton Home Entertainment on 15th April 1998 and re-released by Carlton on 6th September 2000 and 5th February 2001.

## Description

Set in the year 2062, the series follows the missions of Earth spaceship *Fireball XL5*, commanded by Colonel Steve Zodiac of the World Space Patrol. Zodiac's crew comprises the glamorous Venus, a doctor of space medicine; middle-aged navigator and engineer Professor Matthew Matic; and co-pilot Robert: a transparent, anthropomorphic robot who often exclaims "*ON-OUR-WAY-'OME!*" as *XL5* returns to base.

*XL5* patrols Sector 25 of charted interstellar space and is one of at least 30 "Fireball XL" vessels (an *XL30* is mentioned in the episode "The Firefighters"). The ship has a "gravity activator" for artificial gravity and consists of two detachable sections. A winged nose cone dubbed *Fireball Junior* houses the cockpit and serves as a self-contained short take-off and vertical landing craft for exploring planets. The main, larger section contains a navigation bay, laboratory, workshops, lounge and crew quarters, together with the rocket motors that enable interstellar travel. On arrival at an alien world, the main section usually remains in orbit while *Fireball Junior* travels down to the surface.

The World Space Patrol is based at Space City, located on an unnamed island in the South Pacific Ocean. The organisation is headed by Commander Zero, assisted by Lieutenant Ninety. For unspecified reasons, the city's 25-storey, T-shaped control tower is shown to rotate (in one episode, a character accidentally causes it to turn fast enough for those inside to suffer vertigo). *XL5*'s deep-space patrols are missions of three months' duration; between missions, the ship is on call at Space City. The ship blasts off from a mile-long launch rail ending in a 40-degree incline. On its return to Space City, it lands vertically in a horizontal attitude using underside-mounted retro-rockets.

## Opening (Original 1998 release)

1. European Captioning Institute Warning Screen (1995-2005)
2. Carlton Warning Screen (1994-2004)
3. Carlton Home Entertainment children's trailer from 1997 [announced by Martin Jarvis]

## Closing (Original 1998 release)

1. Carlton Home Entertainment logo (1997-1999)

## Opening (September 2000 re-release)

1. European Captioning Institute Warning Screen (1995-2005)
2. Carlton Warning Screen (1994-2004)
3. Children's Videos from Carlton trailer from 1999 [announced by Nick Mercer and Jade Chaston]

## Opening (February 2001 re-release)

1. Carlton Warning Screen (1994-2004)
2. Carlton Video "Bring the Magic Home" children's trailer from 2000 [announced by Justin Fletcher]

## Trailers and info

### Original 1998 release

* Carlton Home Entertainment children's trailer from 1997 with clips of "Tots TV", "Rosie and Jim", "Starla and the Jewel Riders", "Bananas in Pyjamas", "Beatrix Potter", "Old Bear and Friends" and "The Willows in Winter".

### September 2000 re-release

* Children's Videos from Carlton trailer from 1999 with clips of "Jellikins", "The Fairies", "Dream Street", "Kingdom Of Rhymes: Incy Wincy Spider", "The Big Garage", "Beatrix Potter", "Tots TV", "The Wind in the Willows", "The Willows in Winter", "Bananas in Pyjamas", "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie" and "Annabelle's Wish".

### February 2001 re-release

* Carlton Video "Bring the Magic Home" children's trailer from 2000 with clips of "A Monkey's Tale", "Thunderbirds", "Beatrix Potter", "Jellikins", "Tots TV", "Dream Street", "Bananas in Pyjamas", "Annabelle's Wish", "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie" and "Casper's Haunted Christmas".