Star Maidens
Encyclopedia
Star Maidens is a British science-fiction television series made by Portman Productions for the ITV
Network. Produced in 1975, and first screened in 1976, it was filmed at Bray Studios
and on location in Windsor
, Bracknell
and Black Park
. The series was part financed by a German
company, Werbung im Rundfunk.
The series offered a battle of the sexes/role reversal scenario in which two male domestics escape from the female-ruled planet Medusa, land on Earth and are pursued by the Medusan security forces. When the Medusans fail to recapture the two men, they take two Earth hostages - a man and a woman - back with them to their home planet. The thirteen episodes of the series deal with the two groups trying to adapt to life on the different planets whilst brokering an exchange for the hostages.
Regarded as something of a camp novelty, Star Maidens tuned in to the sexual equality revolution of the time, and features some Femdom elements. The series shares some similarities with the British sci-fi series Space: 1999
, which was in production at the same time. Although Star Maidens did not benefit from as large a budget, both series had the same production designer (Keith Wilson
), and various props, sets, and even sound effects from Space: 1999 were re-used for Star Maidens. Lead stars Judy Geeson and Lisa Harrow also had guest roles in the first series of Space: 1999.
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
Network. Produced in 1975, and first screened in 1976, it was filmed at Bray Studios
Bray Studios (UK)
Bray Studios is a film and television facility at Bray, near Windsor, Berkshire, England. The films Alien and The Rocky Horror Picture Show were shot there...
and on location in Windsor
Windsor, Berkshire
Windsor is an affluent suburban town and unparished area in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is widely known as the site of Windsor Castle, one of the official residences of the British Royal Family....
, Bracknell
Bracknell
Bracknell is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Bracknell Forest in Berkshire, England. It lies to the south-east of Reading, southwest of Windsor and west of central London...
and Black Park
Black Park
Black Park is a Country Park in Wexham, Buckinghamshire, England to the north of the A412 road between Slough and Iver Heath. It is managed by Buckinghamshire County Council...
. The series was part financed by a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
company, Werbung im Rundfunk.
The series offered a battle of the sexes/role reversal scenario in which two male domestics escape from the female-ruled planet Medusa, land on Earth and are pursued by the Medusan security forces. When the Medusans fail to recapture the two men, they take two Earth hostages - a man and a woman - back with them to their home planet. The thirteen episodes of the series deal with the two groups trying to adapt to life on the different planets whilst brokering an exchange for the hostages.
Regarded as something of a camp novelty, Star Maidens tuned in to the sexual equality revolution of the time, and features some Femdom elements. The series shares some similarities with the British sci-fi series Space: 1999
Space: 1999
Space: 1999 is a British science-fiction television series that ran for two seasons and originally aired from 1975 to 1977. In the opening episode, nuclear waste from Earth stored on the Moon's far side explodes in a catastrophic accident on 13 September 1999, knocking the Moon out of orbit and...
, which was in production at the same time. Although Star Maidens did not benefit from as large a budget, both series had the same production designer (Keith Wilson
Keith Wilson (production designer)
Keith George Wilson was an award-winning production designer who began work at AP Films, working as art assistant on Fireball XL5 and many other Gerry Anderson productions to follow. As a production designer he created all the futuristic sets for Space: 1999 and Star Maidens...
), and various props, sets, and even sound effects from Space: 1999 were re-used for Star Maidens. Lead stars Judy Geeson and Lisa Harrow also had guest roles in the first series of Space: 1999.