Review for Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers: The Complete Series

Arthur C. Clarke’s World of Strange Powers seems older than it is. I guess 1985 was a time when TV was on the cusp of improved quality with better TV effects and computer-generated graphics as well as even exterior shots being filmed on video-tape. This show falls just the wrong side of that with its grainy exterior footage (archival mainly and shot on 16mm though presumably the Arthur C. Clarke shots were contemporary); its pixelated computer generated graphics and music by the great Alan Hawkshaw who somehow typifies TV of the the late 70’s / early 80’s (Grange Hill, Countdown, and keyboard player briefly with ‘The Shadows’). But the series is all the better for that in my book. Not only is it downright fascinating viewing in its own right, it’s a historic document in its own right, featuring many interviews with normal folk in normal places from around the period.


Of course this wasn’t the first series to feature Arthur C. Clarke (author of many significant science fiction works, not least the screenplay for ‘2001 A Space Odyssey’ which firmly established him as something of a futurist. Curiously (and possibly because of his sexuality during a time when being actively gay could get you a prison sentence) he moved to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in 1958 and stayed there until his death at the age of 90 (2008).
A previous series featuring his introductions and commentary (with a curious hint of a Somerset accent) had aired some five years earlier, ‘Arthur C. Clarke’s Mysterious World’, and had proved to be immensely popular. As a result Yorkshire TV decided to delve further into the realms of the weird with this excellent series of half hour programmes, each exploring some aspect of the unexplained.


Each starts out with the same glassy skull rotating on a turntable with some keyed (and pixelated) computer graphics over the top and then introduces Arthur C Clarke, seen strolling down a beach with a large umbrella, completely at odds with the description of the man as a futuristic visionary. It then cuts to the man himself, delivering lines to camera from outside an abode in Sri Lanka, setting the scene for each episode. Each episode then has narration by Clarke or by Anna Ford, who actually does the lion’s share of the voice-work.


The two disc set contains 13 episodes, each focussing on some unique aspect of ‘special powers’ and I have to say that they’re extremely intriguing. Usually a mix of archival footage, interviews with eye witnesses and those with supposed ‘special powers’ and a conclusion which generally sits on the fence as to whether the evidence is definitive or not. One thing’s for sure, Mr. Clarke definitely keeps an open mind.

So episodes feature people who believe they can foretell the future, including their own deaths, as well as aeroplane crashes in startling detail before the actual events. Then there’s poltergeists, telepathy, psychokinetics, reincarnation, the use of dowsing rods, and good old fashioned ghosts.



There are interviews with Uri Geller (still much in favour at the time), James Randi and Titanic survivor Eva Hart who credits her mother’s premonition of the accident for saving her life and getting her on to the lifeboats quickly.



So here’s what you get with original release dates.

Episodes

1.Warnings from the Future – 3 April 1985
2.Things That Go Bump in the Night – 10 April 1985
3.From Mind to Mind – 17 April 1985
4.Stigmata: The Wounds of Christ – 24 April 1985
5.Ghosts, Apparitions and Haunted Houses – 1 May 1985
6.Have We Lived Before? – 15 May 1985
7.Fairies, Phantoms and Fantastic Photographs – 22 May 1985
8.An Element of the Divine – 5 June 1985
9.Walking on Fire – 12 June 1985
10.Message from the Dead – 19 June 1985
11.The Roots of Evil – 26 June 1985
12.Metal Bending, Magic and Mind Over Matter – 3 July 1985
13.Strange Powers: The Verdict – 10 July 1985



All in all a great series for anyone interested in either mysterious and unexplained phenomenon or retro TV. If, like me, you’re a fan of both then this represents a piece of TV heaven.