Space Riders is a 1984

1984 in film

-Events:* The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name.* Tri-Star Pictures, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS, releases its first film....

 movie directed by Joe Massot

Joe Massot

Joe Massot was a writer and director who was most notable for the film Wonderwall which featured George Harrison's first soundtrack, and the Led Zeppelin concert film The Song Remains The Same...

 starring Grand Prix motorcycle racing

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix is the premier championship of motorcycle road racing currently divided into three distinct classes: 125cc, Moto2 and MotoGP. The 125cc class uses a two-stroke engine while Moto2 and MotoGP use four-stroke engines. In 2010 the 250cc two-stroke was replaced...

 world champion Barry Sheene

Barry Sheene

Barry Stephen Frank Sheene MBE was a British World Champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.-Early life:...

 as himself. It tells the story of Sheene's pursuit of the world title, including his recovery from a near-fatal accident at Brands Hatch

Brands Hatch

Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit near West Kingsdown in Kent, England. First used as a dirt track motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently holds many British and international racing events...

.

A re-enactment of the accident is the opening scene of the movie. Despite his position atop the marquee, Sheene does not appear in about 80% of the film's footage.

Much of the filming of the race sequences with Barry Sheene

Barry Sheene

Barry Stephen Frank Sheene MBE was a British World Champion Grand Prix motorcycle road racer.-Early life:...

 took place at Donington Park

Donington Park

Donington Park is a motorsport circuit near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England.Originally part of the Donington Hall estate, it was created as a racing circuit during the pre-war period when the German Silver Arrows were battling for the European Championship...

 race circuit close to East Midlands Airport. Many of the stunts were arranged by Stunt coordinator Roy Alon

Roy Alon

Roy Alon was a British stuntman.Born in Otley, near Leeds, during his 36-year career he appeared in over 1,000 films including the James Bond and Superman films. His debut came in A Bridge Too Far....

.

The film was written and produced by Felicity Hibberdine. An outstanding feature of the film is the use of hit songs from the era as narration. Hits such as "Don't Stop Me Now

Don't Stop Me Now

"Don't Stop Me Now" is a song by English rock group Queen, featured on their 1978 album Jazz. Written by vocalist Freddie Mercury, it was recorded in August/September 1978 at Super Bear Studios in Berre-les-Alpes , France, and is the twelfth track on the album.Musically, the song is based around...

" by Queen

Queen (band)

Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...

, "Glittering Prize" by Simple Minds

Simple Minds

Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...

, and "Hungry Like the Wolf

Hungry Like the Wolf

"Hungry Like the Wolf" is a song by the British New Wave band Duran Duran. Written by the band members, the song was produced by Colin Thurston for the group's second studio album Rio . The song was released in May 1982 as the band's fifth single in the United Kingdom...

" by Duran Duran

Duran Duran

Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...

 are used to add to the mood.

Trivia: This film also featured Marina Sirtis

Marina Sirtis

Marina Sirtis is a British-American actress of Greek descent. She played the role of the human/Betazoid Commander Deanna Troi, ship's counselor, on the television and film series Star Trek: The Next Generation.-Life:...

 who later found fame in Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...

 as Counselor Deanna Troi.

Released on VHS

VHS

The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....

. Not available on DVD

DVD

A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....

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This film should not be confused with the 1978 movie Silver Dream Racer

Silver Dream Racer

Silver Dream Racer is a film starring David Essex and Beau Bridges. Essex stars as Nick Freeman, a motorcycle racer who, following the death of his brother, inherits a revolutionary prototype motorcycle, and is determined to race it at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.The opening title scenes...

 with David Essex

David Essex

David Essex OBE is an English musician, singer-songwriter and actor. Since the 1970s, Essex has attained nineteen Top 40 singles in the UK , and sixteen Top 40 albums...

.