First airing on 30 June 1962, this British Series by Associated British Corporation is a Spin-Off from Armchair Theatre and hosted by Boris Karloff. He introduces each episode by sharing a small detail related to the play, one that won't give away spoilers about the work. The terminology "play" for the story that he hosts is a carry-over from Armchair Theatre, where it's a conceit of the show that you're watching a theatre performance on the telly. Sydney Newman and Irene Shubik are credited as producers for this ABC series, with many different directors and scriptwriters.
Shubik would later create Out of the Unknown for the BBC, which had a virtually identical premise.
Episodes
- "Dumb Martian", the backdoor pilot episode, airing as part of Armchair Theatre.
- "Dumb Martian" by John Wyndham, teleplay adaptation by Clive Exton, directed by Charles Jarrot.
- "The Yellow Pill", airdate 30 June 1962
"The Yellow Pill" by Rog Phillips, teleplay adaptation by Leon Griffiths, directed by Jonathan Alwyn. - "Little Lost Robot", airdate 7 July 1962
"Little Lost Robot" by Isaac Asimov, teleplay by Leo Lehman, directed by Douglas James - "Cold Equations", airdate 14 July 1962
"The Cold Equations", by Tom Godwin, teleplay by Clive Exton, directed by Paul Bernard - "Impostor", airdate 21 July 1962
"Impostor", by Philip K. Dick, teleplay by Terry Nation, directed by Peter Hammond - "Botany Bay", airdate 28 July 1962
Original story, teleplay by Terry Nation, directed by Guy Verney - "Medicine Show", airdate 4 August 1962
"Medicine Show", by Robert Moore Williams, teleplay by Julian Bond, directed by Richmond Harding - "Pictures Don't Lie", airdate 11 August 1962
"Pictures Dont Lie", by Katherine Maclean, teleplay by Bruce Stewart, directed by John Knight - "Vanishing Act", airdate 18 August 1962
Original story, teleplay by Richard Waring, directed by Don Leaver - "Divided We Fall", airdate 25 August 1962
"Divided We Fall", by Raymond F Jones, teleplay by Leon Griffiths, directed by John Knight - "The Dark Star", airdate 1 September 1962
"Ape Of London", by Frank Crisp, teleplay by Denis Butler, directed by Peter Hammond - "Immigrant", airdate 8 September 1962
"Immigrant", by Clifford Simak, teleplay by Terry Nation, directed by Jonathan Alwyn - "Target Generation", airdate 15 September 1962
"Target Generation", by Clifford Simak, teleplay by Clive Exton, directed by Alan Cooke - "The Tycoons", airdate 22 September 1962
"The Tycoons", by Arthur Sellings, teleplay by Bruce Stewart, directed by Charles Jarrot
Not to be mistaken for the 1987 series about a half-alien who can freeze/unfreeze time.
Out of this World contains examples of:
- Adaptation Dye-Job: In the adaptation of "The Cold Equations", Lee's hair is changed from brown to red, which can be heard when Barton reads it off her identity disk.
- Adaptation Expansion: The adaptation of "Impostor" expands the story to make it fit the hour-long programme. Some of the changes include more characters (such as Mutants) and more subplots (such as Carter suspecting Peters of being the human-like robot).
- Adaptation Name Change:
- In the adaptation of "The Cold Equations", Marilyn Lee Cross's name is shortened to simply Lee Cross.
- In the adaptation of "Impostor", Spence Olham's name is changed to Robert Carter.
- Beeping Computers: In the adaptation of "The Cold Equations", Barton's Emergency Dispatch Ship's computer/radio makes lots of clicking, clacking, whirring, and a low-volume high-pitched noise to show there's lots of complicated actions associated with piloting the starship.
- Domed Hometown: "Impostor" is described as being set in a city with an artificial sky. The dome is needed because radiation outside of the dome has turned people into Mutants.
- Genre Anthology: Each "play" is a different Science Fiction story, mostly live-action adaptations of existing short fiction stories.
- Horror Host: Episodes open with Boris Karloff in a context relevant to some detail of the episode's Science Fiction play. For "Cold Equations", he talks about how lonely it is to travel between the stars. For "Impostor", he talks about the fantastic problem faced by Robert Carter.
- Kill and Replace: "Impostor" features a robot designed to look identical to a specific human being and, after killing them, to take their place.
- Live-Action Adaptation: The majority of episodes are adaptations of existing short fiction stories.
- "Cold Equations" adapts Tom Godwin's "The Cold Equations"
- "The Dark Star" adapts Frank Crisp's Ape Of London
- "Divided We Fall" adapts Raymond F Jones's "Divided We Fall"
- "Dumb Martian" adapts John Wyndham's "Dumb Martian"
- "Immigrant" adapts Clifford Simak's "Immigrant"
- "Impostor" adapts Philip K. Dick's "Impostor"
- "Little Lost Robot" adapts Isaac Asimov's "Little Lost Robot"
- "Medicine Show" adapts Robert Moore Williams's "Medicine Show"
- "Pictures Don't Lie" adapts Katherine Maclean's "Pictures Dont Lie"
- "Target Generation" adapts Clifford Simak's "Target Generation"
- "The Tycoons" adapts Arthur Sellings's "The Tycoons"
- "The Yellow Pill" adapts Rog Phillips's "The Yellow Pill"
- Minimalist Cast: Each episode has only a few characters, which allows for slower turnover of actors. "Impostor" had the most actors of the surviving episodes; twelve, not including Horror Host Boris Karloff.
- Mundane Made Awesome: The opening title sequence uses bongos and piano as music, and video of microscopic life to evoke the imagination of a completely "out of this world" setting.
- Mutants: Added to the adaptation of "Impostor", there are mutants living outside of the city dome, frightened of the "normals" who hate them.
- One-Word Title: Episodes "Impostor" and "Immigrant", in keeping with their source material, "Impostor" and "Immigrant".
- Or My Name Isn't...: When introducing "Impostor", the Horror Host proclaims that if Carter's problem isn't the most amazing you've ever heard, then his name isn't Boris Karloff.
- Poorly Disguised Pilot: "Dumb Martian" was aired as part of Armchair Theatre, complete with Boris Karloff as Horror Host, inviting the audience to join him next saturday when the new series would air.
- Stuff Blowing Up: "Impostor", an adaptation of Philip K. Dick's "Impostor", ends with a robot exploding. In the original work, it was visible all the way to Alpha Centauri.
- Why Am I Ticking?: "Impostor" features a man trying to prove that he is not a human-like robot with a hidden bomb. At the end, he realizes that he IS a robot, and it's the realization that causes him to explode.
