- Adventures of Stephen Brown
"The Adventures of Stephen Brown" is a
science fiction series that is broadcast weekly onSix TV in the Southampton and Oxford areas, a free-to-view terrestrial RSL channel, with older episodes shown on the internet channel TV Chichester and Beacon TV. Several episodes have been uploaded onto You Tube. Six or seven new stories appear each year and due to its tongue-in-cheek nature and lack of pretentiousness the show has built up a small cult following.Usually consisting of 12 episodes per year, the series centres around the adventures of an alien being called Stephen Brown, portrayed by Ryan Brady who has recently replaced Chris Wilkes who was SB from 2000-6. He is accompanied on his travels on his spacecraft The Venturer by his loyal companion Algy (Ben Johnson), and brother and sister Max (Scott Cook) and Sally Crawford (Hazel Walton). They are joined by their faithful robot, Robo. Stephen's arch-nemesis is the criminal known as The Death, dressed entirely in black and sometimes accompanied by his thuggish follower Blocklon.
Other productions made by Beacon include an adlibbed comedy-soap called The Parsons, a drama serial titled Doorstops, a chat show Beacon Banter and bloopers programme The Beacon Files. The club also has a spin-off production group called Karisma, also non-profit making which makes local history and events programmes.
Overview
Stephen Brown was born on the planet Rubart home of the Melastones. As a child he was framed for the murder of his brother an event he blames on arch enemy The Death. Stephen's father took him to Earth in his spacecraft The Venturer and re-married there having a daughter called Lizzie. Stephen and Lizzie eventually recovered The Venturer and set off on their own adventures
The Venturer is an advanced spacecraft run by an intelligent computer called Robo Venturer normally travels in subspace but is capable of travelling through time. The ship is also equipped with a teleport system which forms the method by which Stephen and his companions travel back and forth between The Venturer and the planets they visit.
This series is based on a true experience. While on vacation to Hollywood,Florida in the United States, the producers of this series witnessed a strange incident of a landing spacecraft. A man who claimed to be called Stephen Brown landed on Earth on a mission to spy on human beings. He came along with his brothers, Alex Brown and Michael Brown and sister Anna Brown.
Now, in the year 2008, all of the "Browns" have adjusted quite well into the human lifestyle according to the producers of the show. The initial event that occurred in the 1970s transformed the producers so much that they decided to create a series about their experience; hence the birth of The Adventures of Stephen Brown. Few people to this day, know the true origin behind the series.
Amongst the many adversaries that Stephen Brown has faced there are the Tubcons a robotic army created by the maniac Savdro and the Terricins.
Cast and characters
* Stephen Brown - Ryan Brady
* Algy - Ben Johnson (set to depart early on in 2008 season)
* Max Crawford - Scott Cook
* Sally Crawford - Hazel Walton
* Charlotte "Lottie" Mortimer - Katie Whiteland (joins midway through 2008 season)
* The Death - Robert Hampton
* Blocklon - Matthew Hampton
* Robo - voice of Simon SansburyThere are often also various other characters in episodes. These are usually one-off characters who don't appear again. However they are often played by crew members or actors who have appeared in previous episodes as different characters.
Cast notes
Between 1987 and 1999 four different actors played the role of Stephen Brown. Chris Wilkes has played the part for the last six years up to 2006. Wilkes took a brief break from his role in 2004, with Matthew Lambourne playing Brown in his absence. Current SB Ryan Brady has been joined by Chris and former lead actors Stephen Launay and Joshua Ive in a special 20th anniversary story, "20:20 Vision".
Companions
Lizzie (Sarah Miatt) travelled with Stephen on The Venturer for many years. Emma(Jo Hearn) fell in love with Stephen before breaking his heart. Other companions include Sarah(Jenni Notley), Jimmy(Nick Wilkes) (rescued from London during the Blitz), and Astradis Kanasis aka Astra (Emma Giles).
Production
Production credits
* Title Music - Jonathan Leech
* Title Sequence - Beacon Visual Design
* Camera Operators - Stephen Launay, Matthew Hampton and Robert White
* Boom Operator - Jonathan Leech
* Financial Advisor - Warren Pike
* Visual Effects - Simon Doidge, Ryan Brady, Ben Johnson
* Designer - Paul Fryer
* Incidental Music - Mat Hasker
* Script Editors - Paula Cartwright, Simon Doidge
* Producer - Chris Wilkes
* Assistant Producer - Simon Sansbury
* Directors - Matthew Hampton, Stephen Launay, Chris Wilkes, Steve ChurchettProduction notes
Southampton-based Beacon, a voluntary based video group which started up in July 1987, produce the series on a very low
budget . The series was created by Stephen Launay.Beacon has a membership of around 60, with an age-range of 17-mid 60s. The members take turns appearing in productions. Some of the members have acting experience, mainly on the amateur dramatics circuit, while most of the crew have at some point worked in local television.
The Adventures of Stephen Brown began as an audio tape serial in 1987. From 1990 onwards the series became transferred from audio to video, the last audio story being produced in 1999 when the audio stories were finally dropped.
Locations
The series is filmed mainly in the Locks Heath area, near Southampton. The club owns a small studio for interior scenes. The show has used many locations, including the New Forest, Lee-on-Solent, Portsmouth and longer trips out to Blackgang Chine on the Isle of Wight, Wales, St Malo in France and London.
The club has been fortunate to enjoy cameo appearances from celebrities over the years when they have been appearing in panto at the Kings Theatre, Portsmouth. Celebrities who have popped up in Stephen Brown over the years include Spencer Kelly (2001), Mark Raffety from Neighbours (2002), EastEnders' Leila Birch (2002), Tony Adams from Crossroads (2002) and Jansen Spencer from Neighbours (2003).
External links
* [http://www.theadventuresofstephenbrown.co.uk Official Website of The Adventures Of Stephen Brown]
* [http://www.niroku.com Niroku Graphic] - animations showing SFX work for SB
* [http://www.beacontv.co.uk Links to Stephen Brown videos]
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