NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Dick Spanner, P.I.

Dick Spanner, P.I. was a tongue-in-cheek 1986 British television series featuring puppets filmed entirely in stop-motion animation, starring mild-mannered robot private detective Dick Spanner as the suitably square-jawed titular hero (voiced by Shane Rimmer). Stop motion is an animation technique which makes things that are static appear to be moving. ... Comedy has a classical meaning (comical theatre) and a popular one (the use of humour with an intent to provoke[[ laughter in general). ... Gerry Anderson, born 14 April 1929, is a British producer, director and writer, famous for his futuristic television programmes, particularly those involving specially modified marionettes, a process called Supermarionation. His first television production was the 1957 Roberta Leigh childrens series The Adventures of Twizzle. ... Shane Rimmer (born 28th May 1936) is a Canadian actor and voice actor. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... It has been suggested that Channel Four Television Corporation be merged into this article or section. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A television program is the content of television broadcasting. ... Stop motion is an animation technique which makes things that are static appear to be moving. ... ASIMO, a humanoid robot manufactured by Honda. ... A private investigator, or PI, is a person who undertakes investigations. ... Shane Rimmer (born 28th May 1936) is a Canadian actor and voice actor. ...

The series consisted of 22 six-minute episodes, covering two story arcs: "The Case of the Human Cannonball" and "The Case Of The Maltese Parrot", both consisting of 11 episodes each. The programme was originally seen in the UK on Channel 4 as part of its Sunday morning show Network 7, but was later given a late night showing, where its sly satire and sight-gags could perhaps be better appreciated. It has been suggested that Channel Four Television Corporation be merged into this article or section. ... Network 7 was a shortlived but influential BAFTA winning youth music and arts programme screened on Channel 4 over two seasons in 1987 and 1988. ...

Occasionally referred to as "the world's strangest private investigator," this blurb from one episode says it all:

The series was created by Terry Adlam, and produced by Gerry Anderson, of Thunderbirds fame. It also was the basis for the Anderson-created Tennants Pilsner advertising campaign using the Lou Tennant character. Gerry Anderson, born 14 April 1929, is a British producer, director and writer, famous for his futuristic television programmes, particularly those involving specially modified marionettes, a process called Supermarionation. His first television production was the 1957 Roberta Leigh childrens series The Adventures of Twizzle. ... Thunderbirds is a British mid-1960s television show devised by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson and made by AP Films using a form of puppetry dubbed Supermarionation. The series followed the adventures of International Rescue, an organisation created to help those in grave danger using technically advanced equipment and machinery. ...

Categories: Century 21 Productions | Fictional robots | Fictional private investigators | Channel 4 television programmes | Stop motion characters Gerry Anderson, born 14 April 1929, is a British producer, director and writer, famous for his futuristic television programmes, particularly those involving specially modified marionettes, a process called Supermarionation. His first television production was the 1957 Roberta Leigh childrens series The Adventures of Twizzle. ... The Adventures of Twizzle (or simply Twizzle as it was known in some territories) was the very first television show produced by AP Films and specifically Gerry Anderson, after being approached by author Roberta Leigh (who also co-produced with Anderson) and her colleauge Suzanne Warner. ... Torchy the Battery Boy was the second television series produced by AP Films and Gerry Anderson. ... Four Feather Falls was the third puppet TV show produced by Sylvia and Gerry Anderson, from an idea by Barry Gray. ... Supercar was a childrens TV show produced by Gerry Andersons AP Films for ATV and ITC Entertainment. ... Fireball XL5 was a science fiction-themed childrens television show produced in Britain in 1962 by the husband and wife team of Gerry and Sylvia Anderson through their company APF in association with ATV for ITC Entertainment. ... Stingray (1964 â€“ 1965) is a childrens marionette television show, made by Sylvia and Gerry Anderson and produced by AP Films for ATV and ITC Entertainment. ... Brains Thunderbirds is a mid-1960s Sylvia and Gerry Anderson television show which used a form of puppetry called Supermarionation. Cast, crew, and production notes Thunderbirds was the fourth and by far the most successful of the childrens series made by AP Films (APF) for the British television company... Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, often referred to in shorthand as simply Captain Scarlet, is a science fiction television series produced by the Century 21 Television company of Sylvia and Gerry Anderson and Lew Grade and first shown in Britain (originally on ATV Midlands, but later the whole of the... For other uses, see Joe 90 (disambiguation). ... This article is about the television series. ... UFO was a British television science fiction series created by Gerry Anderson and produced by Andersons and Lew Grades Century 21 Productions for Grades ITC Entertainment company. ... The Protectors was a British television series, an action thriller created by Gerry Anderson - his second TV series using live actors as opposed to animated puppets. ... Left to right: Barbara Bain, Catherine Schell and Martin Landau from Space:1999s second season. ... North American DVD release of the series. ... Space Precinct is a British television series that aired during the 1994-1995 season on Sky One and BBC Two in Britain and in syndication in North America. ... Promotional poster for Lavender Castle. ... Gerry Andersons New Captain Scarlet (or more commonly New Captain Scarlet) is a United Kingdom-produced computer-generated imagery action-adventure TV series which debuted in February 2005 as part of the Ministry of Mayhem on ITV1. ... Thunderbirds Are GO (DVD cover) Thunderbirds Are GO! was the first feature film to be made from the highly successful Supermarionation series Thunderbirds. ... Thunderbird 6 was a British science fiction-adventure motion picture released in 1968. ... DoppelgÃ¤nger was a 1969 Science Fiction film directed by Robert Parrish. ... AP Films (APF) was a British independent film production company of the 1950s and 1960s. ... Century 21 Productions was a British film and television production company of the 1960s and 1970s, best known for the hit TV series Thunderbirds. ... Supermarionation (standing for super marionette animation) is a puppetry technique devised by the British production company AP Films and used extensively in its numerous action-adventure series, the most famous of which is undoubtedly Thunderbirds. ... Gerry Anderson and Sylvia Anderson are most famous as the production team for several futuristic childrens television shows involving specially modified marionettes, a process called supermarionation. Their most famous production is Thunderbirds, which was produced by their production company, originally known as AP Films and later renamed Century 21... David Lane is a British television and film director, best known for his association with series produced by Gerry Andersons AP Films. ... Barry Gray (July 18, 1908 in Lancashire, England - April 26, 1984 in Guernsey, Channel Islands) was a British musician and composer who is best known for his work for Gerry Anderson. ... Derek Meddings (15 January 1931â€“10 September 1995) was a British television and cinema special effects expert, initially noted for his work on the Supermarionation television puppet series produced by Gerry Anderson. ... Shane Rimmer (born 28th May 1936) is a Canadian actor and voice actor. ...