Editing Gerry Anderson (section)

===''Space: 1999''===
{{Main|Space: 1999}}

Following ''The Protectors'', Anderson worked on several new projects, none of which he was able to take into production. A proposed second series of ''UFO'' was not undertaken, and a return to marionettes in the television pilot for a series called ''[[The Investigator (TV pilot)|The Investigator]]'' failed to find a buyer. Elements of the abandoned second series of ''UFO'' were eventually turned into what became the most expensive television series ever made at that time, ''[[Space: 1999]]''.

Another futuristic science-fiction adventure, it was based on the premise that a huge thermonuclear explosion on the Moon's surface (caused by the storage of nuclear waste there) projected the Moon out of orbit and into interplanetary space. The series starred the American husband-and-wife actors [[Martin Landau]] and [[Barbara Bain]], who had gained international fame in the TV series ''[[Mission: Impossible (1966 TV series)|Mission: Impossible]]''. They were cast at the insistence of Grade, and against Sylvia Anderson's strenuous objections.{{citation needed|date=December 2011}}

The Andersons' marriage broke down during the first series of ''Space: 1999'' in 1975; Gerry announced his intention to separate on the evening of the wrap party.<ref name="SAbio">{{cite book
 | last = Anderson
 | first = Sylvia
 | title = Yes M'Lady
 | year = 1991
 | publisher = Smith Gryphon
 | isbn = 978-1-85685-011-7
}}</ref><ref name="GAbio-171">Archer, Nicholls, p. 171</ref> Sylvia severed her ties with [[Group Three]], and, to alleviate his financial plight, Anderson sold his share of the profits from the APF/Century 21 shows and their holiday home in Portugal to [[Lew Grade]].

Between making the two series of ''Space: 1999'', Anderson produced a one-off television special, ''[[The Day After Tomorrow (TV special)|The Day After Tomorrow]]'' (also known as ''Into Infinity''), about two spacefaring families en route to [[Alpha Centauri]], for an NBC series of programmes illustrating current scientific theory for popular consumption. While making this project, Anderson met Mary Robins (b. 1949), a secretary working at the studios; they began a relationship and were married on 11 April 1981.<ref name="auto">''What Made Thunderbirds Go!''</ref>

''Space: 1999'' was successful enough that a second (and final) series went into production in 1976 with American producer [[Fred Freiberger]] brought in to replace Sylvia Anderson. Freiberger was known for producing the final season of the original ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series|Star Trek]]''. Under Freiberger the series underwent a number of cast and cosmetic changes. ''Space: 1999'' marked the end of Anderson's association with ATV.

By the late 1970s, Anderson's life and career were at a low point: he was in financial difficulty, found it hard to get work, and he experienced family difficulties.