Journey into Space: Operation Luna [Audiobook] [Audio CD]

This is superb, quite simply superb. I could leave it at that because that says it all really.

Operation Luna is the rerecording of Journey Into Space, the latter was made, transmitted and then lost. The rerecording was done minus the first four episodes of the original and begins where the crew are ready to blast off rather than several installments of build up. This gives the whole thing a pacey feel about it that the original probably lacked.

I always state when writing about dramas/comedies etc that I will not go into plot details as I hate spoilers and others probably do to.

Now this thirteen part radio drama was, as stated, rerecorded from the original using mostly different actors, it was then lost just like the original for many many years before finally being found by a BBC engineer and cleaned up for broadcast in 1996, released onto tape and finally this CD set.

It sounds like it was recorded yesterday, the clean up is that good and the sound design crystal clear.

The packaging is rather hit and miss though. It has a lovely cover with retro 50's sci fi imagery which is bright and colourful.

The downside is that it doesn't have a physical booklet to acompany the set, instead Audio Go have resorted to giving us a PDF file of one on disc one and is a little mean and stingy if I'm being honest even though it is very informative and enjoyable I do prefer a copy that I can hold in my hands and it surely wouldn't have been that expensive to produce one, after all they have been doing it for years so why stop now.

The other problem is that all seven discs are stacked on top of each other which will eventually lead to scratching, this isn't the first time I've complained about this. I love my radio dramas and it does annoy me when they are not packaged properly.

The set is nicely rounded off with a documentary chronicling the eveolution of the whole Journey into Space legend and also includes a five minute extract from the original recording, which is lost forever and. although brief, does give us a glimpse ito something that can never be heard again and is very welcome indeed.

I had the misfortune to buy the updated stories The Host and Frozen In Time and I thought they were very disappointing, this is far superior and prove that they really did know how to make quality radio dramas in those days, something that the people who have taken on the job todday can really learn from.

A wonderful seven hours of historic radio and even if you are not a sci fi fan but have a general interest in old time radio then you all really need to buy this set.

Still magical and just as fresh today as it has ever sounded, nearly 60 years after it was first broadcast on BBC radio, Journey Into Space is surely one of the most engaging productions in radio history. I remember listening to this first series (`Operation Luna') during a repeat run as a small boy in the late 80s and being totally captivated. I have loved it ever since and subsequently bought all three series on cassette as a teenager, though my persnal favourite is still the second series, 'The Red Planet'.

Journey to the Moon (Operation Luna) was penned by BBC producer Charles Chilton and originally broadcast in weekly 30 minute episodes from September 1953 to 1954. Set in 1965 (a pretty good estimate for the first moon landing), it charts the attempt of Captain Jet Morgan (Andrew Faulds, later a Labour MP), Doc (guy Kingsley-Poynter), Stephen `Mitch' Mitchell (Bruce Beeby) and Lemmie Barnett (Alfie Bass) to land a spacecraft on the moon. But what will they find when they get there? And will they be the only ones there? The series was originally 18 episodes long but the first four episodes (which took place on Earth) were not very well received by listeners. Popularity increased when the rocket `Luna' blasts off on its journey in episode 5. The series was re-recorded for broadcast in 1958 when all the original tapes were erased, omitting the first four episodes , giving us the 13 episode series that was to become known as `Operation Luna'.

Part of what makes Operation Luna such a joy to listen to is simply the quality of the storytelling and the strength of its very well-defined characters. Jet Morgan is courageous and strong, Mitch (an engineer) is practical but short-tempered, Doc is calm and intelligent. How radio-operator Lemmy Barnett ever became an astronaut is anybody's guess, but what he lacks in his knowledge of the solar system he makes up for with wit and resourcefulness.

Chilton's script is hugely inventive and filled with plenty of very sound science and philosophy at a time when landing on the moon was still a distant dream. There is also some neat social and environmental commentary provided by a mysterious `voice' first heard by the four crew members in episode 9. There are plenty of dangers for the four men to face during their voyage. In one high point in the story, all power systems aboard the ship have failed and Luna is stuck on the moon for a number of weeks, plunged into darkness and running low on food and oxygen. Jet reads from H.G Wells' classic novel `The First Men in the Moon' to keep their spirits up. It is a superb, imaginative production, rightly regarded as classic radio.

The BBC released this series on CD a number of years ago, but only in a small run and at rather a high price. Thankfully they saw fit to do so again and this new release contains every 30 minute episode in its full glory on 7 discs, and at an attractive price. The quality of the transfer to CD is excellent, given the age of the production. The first disc also contains a PDF file with a 16 page booklet about the series. Also included is a half-hour documentary about the series and the last remaining very brief snippet of recording from the original `Journey to the Moon'.

This is an engaging period piece, a science fiction epic complete with cliff-hangers that speaks of the wonder and imagination, now seeming fresh with innocence, which informed such dramas in the 1950's.
This is a 13 episode re-recording (1958) of the original drama now lost (1953). It has been beautifully restored and is as clear as a bell.
Charles Chilton drama pits his intrepid rocket crew, in their first manned flight to the moon, against paranoia, claustrophobia, time travelling aliens and homicidal cavemen in roughly that order. It's an absolute blast. Characterisation is clear and distinct, to the clipped ramrod straight Jet Morgan (he is well acted by Shakespearean actor of the time Andrew Faulds), the by standard comedy number 2 , plain talking and bumbling Lemmy (Alfie Bass), calm and reassuring Doc (GK Poynter) and hot headed Mitch (David Williams). There's also the `voice' (David Jacobs, who also does the bit parts), an alien entity who turns out to look like a cross between a baboon and an armadillo. Heady stuff, and reminiscent of days when sci-fi had an emphasis on fun and wonder.
This package also contains an informative pdf guide full of great background and an episode guide (fascinating when detailing the 4 `lost' episodes) and original artwork, plus a Charles Chilton and cast hosted documentary "Journey into Space...again" broadcast 1999. This also has some fascinating insights, such as the revelation that the BBC mailrooms used to be staffed by facially disfigured war veterans employed by Reith, himself a disfigured veteran. This in turn apparently inspired Chilton in his depiction of an alien that looks frightening but sounds and is benevolent.
This is recommended especially for sci-fi buffs with a love of the genres history, and those with a nostalgic fondness for radio drama serials of the time.