Editing Out of the Unknown (section)

==Series two==
{{further|List of Out of the Unknown episodes#Series 2|l1=List of series two episodes}}
[[Image:OOTU Telesnaps.jpg|frame|right|{{center|A sequence of [[tele-snaps]] from the series two episode "[[Reason (Asimov)|The Prophet]]"}}]]
In parallel with preparing for the second series of ''Out of the Unknown'' Shubik was producing another anthology series, ''Thirteen Against Fate'', comprising adaptations of short stories by [[Georges Simenon]]. To assist her she was assigned a script editor, initially Rodney Gedye and then, after Gedye left following clashes with Shubik,<ref>Ward, ''Out of the Unknown'', p. 153.</ref> [[Michael Imison]]. As with series one, finding suitable stories for adaptation remained a problem. On her annual visit to New York Shubik placed an advertisement looking for stories in the [[Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America|Science Fiction Writers Association]] Bulletin. One author who answered the advertisement was [[Larry Eisenberg]], whose stories ''The Fastest Draw'' and ''Too Many Cooks'' were commissioned. Two further adaptations, of [[E.M. Forster]]'s "[[The Machine Stops]]" and [[Mordecai Roshwald]]'s ''[[Level 7 (novel)|Level 7]]'' (dramatised as "Level Seven"), were scripts that had been offered to film studios for some years without success. Another script, adapting [[Colin Kapp]]'s ''Lambda 1'', had been commissioned for series one but shelved, owing to the technical problems it involved. When the special effects designer Jack Kine indicated that he had a solution to the technical challenges, the script was brought back into production for series two. Five further adaptations were commissioned: [[John Rankine (writer)|John Rankine]]'s ''The World in Silence'', [[Henry Kuttner]]'s ''The Eye'', Frederik Pohl's ''Tunnel Under the World'' and Isaac Asimov's "[[Satisfaction Guaranteed (short story)|Satisfaction Guaranteed]]" and "[[Reason (Asimov)|Reason]]" (dramatised as "The Prophet"). Three original stories were also commissioned: "Frankenstein Mark II" by [[Hugh Whitemore]], "Second Childhood" by [[Hugh Leonard]] and "Walk's End" by [[William Trevor]].

In response to [[Kenneth Tynan]]'s use of the word "[[fuck]]" on the [[satirical]] programme ''[[BBC-3 (TV series)|BBC-3]]'' Sydney Newman issued directives to his producers regarding language and content. In the case of ''Out of the Unknown'' this led to particular attention being paid to the scripts for "Second Childhood" (about reawakening of [[lust|sexual desire]] when an elderly man undergoes a [[rejuvenation (aging)|rejuvenation]] process) and "Satisfaction Guaranteed" (about a woman taking a [[robot]] as a lover). The theme music was given a faster pace.

Series two was broadcast on Thursday nights at 9:30&nbsp;p.m., beginning with the episode "The Machine Stops" on 6 October 1966. The new series was promoted by the ''[[Radio Times]]'', then owned by the BBC, with a front cover photograph of [[Yvonne Mitchell]], star of "The Machine Stops", and an article previewing the upcoming episodes written by Michael Imison. The two most notable productions of the series were "The Machine Stops" and "Level Seven". "The Machine Stops", directed by [[Philip Saville]], was a particularly challenging production, later described by Shubik as "the most complex and technically demanding script I have ever had in my hand"<ref>Shubik, ''Play for Today'', p. 126.</ref>—requiring large and complex sets, including construction of one with a working [[monorail]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Houldsworth |first=Richard |date=November 1991 |title=Fantasy Flashback: Out of the Unknown – The Machine Stops |journal=TV Zone Special |issue=3 |pages=46–48 |issn=0960-8230}}</ref> The adaptation was met with good reviews ("A haunting film – and a deeply disturbing one"<ref>Ward, ''Out of the Unknown'', p. 172.</ref> – ''[[The Times]]'') and was awarded first prize at the Fifth ''Festival Internazionale del Film di Fantascienza'' (''International Science Fiction Film Festival'') in [[Trieste]] on 17 July 1967.<ref>Ward, ''Out of the Unknown'', p. 276.</ref> Due to the expected complexities of editing, the episode was recorded onto 35mm film instead of videotape, and still exists as this original film negative. It is the only episode produced during the show's black and white era that exists in its original broadcast format.

"Level Seven" was adapted by [[J. B. Priestley]] and directed by [[Rudolph Cartier]]. Priestley's script had begun life as a potential screenplay for a feature film and condensing it down to ''Out of the Unknown'''s standard running time of 50 minutes proved impossible. In the end Shubik convinced the management of the BBC to allow "Level Seven" to run to 60 minutes as a one-off. Reviewing "Level Seven" in ''The Listener'' (also then owned by the BBC), [[John Courtenay Trewin|J. C. Trewin]] wrote that "the tension was inescapable, the excitement incontestable, more so, undoubtedly, than other thrusts into the future".<ref>Ward, ''Out of the Unknown'', p. 198.</ref> The robot costumes created for "The Prophet" were later reused in the ''Doctor Who'' serial "[[The Mind Robber]]".<ref>{{cite journal |last=Pixley |first=Andrew |date=20 November 1996 |title=Doctor Who Archive: The Mind Robber |journal=[[Doctor Who Magazine]] |issue=245 |pages=27 |issn=0957-9818}}</ref>

Despite its positive reception, only four of the thirteen episodes are known to survive.