The Eagle was first seen in TV show Space 1999, the final production from the creator of Thunderbirds

Gerry Anderson’s iconic spaceship, The Eagle was painstakingly recreated by a team at Pinewood Studios for a feature documentary.

The Eagle Obsession, produced by Sean Stuart and Anne Marie Gillen is all about the spaceship that was seen in the TV series Space: 1999, Anderson’s first live-action show.

The decision to rebuild the Eagle Transporter cockpit began with director Jeffrey Morris, who grew up as a huge fan of Space: 1999.

Morris wanted to try to construct a fully professional, studio-grade duplicate of the Eagle cockpit, built to the same spec as for a feature film; not a fan replica.

Makinarium UK, the practical-effects and fabrication studio based on the Pinewood Studios lot, came on board as a partner for the project. Working in the N-Block workshop, the Makinarium team – led by long-time Pinewood craftsman Robin Lawrence – executed the build using a blend of CNC machining, 3D printing, engineered fabrication, and hand-finished detailing. Even the iconic ‘dentist chair’ pilot seats were recreated entirely from scratch.

The designer of the original Eagle for Space: 1999, Oscar®-winning visual effects supervisor Brian Johnson, visited the workshop early on, giving his official approval and support.

The cockpit itself was designed from newly-drafted technical plans created by Hollywood production designer Timothy Earls, known for his work across science-fiction franchises. Under Morris’ supervision, Earls assembled full architectural schematics based on extensive research into:

• Keith Wilson’s original 1973 production designs
• Archival set photography
• Frame-by-frame episode analysis
• Surviving blueprint references

The build took place from December 2023 to February 2024. Once finished, the cockpit was transported to the TV2 Stage at Pinewood Studios – just yards away from the M Stage where Space: 1999 had filmed 50 years earlier.

Filming took place in late May/early June 2024 during a one-day shoot. Actor Nick Tate – who had played astronaut Alan Carter in Space: 1999 – flew in from Los Angeles to reprise his role inside a cockpit rebuilt in painstaking detail.

Gerry Anderson’s son Jamie, now CEO of Anderson Entertainment, also visited the production, as he had done years ago when looking round the Space: 1999 sets as a boy.

The reconstruction and filming were completed under standard fair-use documentary guidelines.

The premiere of The Eagle Obsession is held at The Rio Cinema in Dalston, on 11 December. Click here for more information on tickets.

With thanks to director Jeffrey Morris and producer Sean Stuart for their contribution to this article.

Build photos credit: Makinarium. Other photos credit Sean Stuart.