The Quatermass Experiment

18/07/1953

The Quatermass Experiment is a British science fiction serial broadcast by BBC Television during the summer of 1953. Set in the near future against the background of a British space programme, it tells the story of the first crewed flight into space, supervised by Professor Bernard Quatermass of the British Experimental Rocket Group. Originally comprising six half-hour episodes, it was the first science fiction production to be written especially for a British adult television audience. The serial was the first of four Quatermass productions screened on British television between 1953 and 1979. It was transmitted live from the BBC's original television studios at Alexandra Palace in North London, one of the final productions before BBC television drama moved to West London. Only two episodes survive in the archives, as the other four were not recorded during their live broadcast.