Those with a puppet fetish would be advised to take in the pre-Thunderbirds work of puppetmaster Gerry Anderson. Hilarious thrills can be found with the adventures of Supercar, the short-lived '59 kiddie series in which hero Mike Mercury and pre-teen sidekick Jimmy Gibson board Supercar, which can soar through water as well as through the air. My favourite bits happen when Jimmy's pet chimpanzee shows up to provide forced comic relief. Notably, this series boasts what must be some of the ugliest puppets in puppet history. Check out the mug on Mike Mercury! WARNING: The collection runs close to 17 hours, so the Supercar theme song may well begin to induce insanity after a few episodes.

Also out is the Fireball XL5 collection, Anderson's '62 series in which a superfitted spaceship bolts about the galaxy, getting itself (and its crew) into all sorts of trouble. With its characters (including Robert the Robot - wonder where they got that idea) exploring space, "where strange races inhabit distant planets," this bit of intergalactic exoticism could be seen as a precursor to the original Star Trek series.

» Matthew Hays