End of an era as BBC effects workshop closes

A WORKSHOP which has produced generations of memorable television creations including Dr Who’s Daleks, and Blake’s Seven spaceships is to close with the loss of 22 jobs.

Far more realistic digital technology and up-to-date effects have made the BBC special effects department surplus to requirements after decades spent making aliens and monsters from plywood and aluminium.

Fans of old BBC series will remember the "fx" department mainly for the Dr Who props it built which have become icons of TV history.

Most notable were the Daleks, monsters moving around on unseen wheels trying to conquer the universe. Cynics pointed out their attempt at global domination would fail because they couldn’t climb stairs.

But while the series were popular in the Sixties and Seventies, the mechanical special effects appeared dated compared to what could be seen in Hollywood films.

The technicians and carpenters in the department used whatever materials the BBC budgets would allow, mostly wood, metal and rubber, to produce the models.

Both the spaceship in Blake’s Seven and, more recently, the one in Red Dwarf, were created by the department.

They also made Marvin the Paranoid Android for another cult series, Hitch-hikers Guide to the Galaxy, and some of the robots in Robot Wars.

More recent special effects, such as those in BBC’s Walking with Dinosaurs and Blue Planet, are provided by outsourced production houses using the latest digital technology and computer animation.

Lesley McMahon, the BBC post-production manager, said: "There has been a steady decline in the market for these kind of special effects as demand for 3D and digital effects has increased and programme budgets have been squeezed."