Nina Thomas Movies

British glam rock superstars Slade made their collective acting debut in this downbeat drama about a pop group's struggles with success. In the late '60s, Barry (Dave Hill), Paul (Jim Lea), and Charlie (Don Powell) are musicians who are barely making a living playing pub dates, weddings, and socials backing up egocentric vocalist Jack Daniels (Alan Lake). One night, the boys find themselves opening for a ghoulish show band called The Undertakers, and a prank played on their lead vocalist, Stoker (Noddy Holder), backfires and leads to a car chase which lands both groups in jail for the night. After a long night of thinking, Barry, Paul, and Charlie decide that they have no future with Daniels, and bring new pal Stoker aboard as their singer. Calling themselves Iron Rod, the new quartet clicks musically, but manager Ron Harding (Johnny Shannon) doesn't care for their new style and stops booking the group. Robert Seymour (Tom Conti), a marketing man from a wealthy family who thinks there's quick money in pop music, enters the picture and informs the band that he can make them major stars. Wary of Seymour but eager for success, the group signs a new management deal, and after Seymour changes their name to Flame and gives them an image makeover, the band scores a hit record and is soon playing a series of sold-out shows. But as fame beckons, tensions rise between the musicians and is not at all helped when Harding reenters the picture. Slade members Jim Lea and Noddy Holder wrote a set of original songs for the film, two of which ("Far Far Away" and "How Does It Feel") became hit singles in the U.K. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The six-part Doctor Who adventure "The Monster of Peladon" takes place some 50 years after the events depicted in the ninth-season story arc "Curse of the Peladon." The Doctor (Jon Pertwee) makes a return visit to the troubled planet Pelodon, where he ends up in the middle of a war between hostile factions of the the Galactic Federation, and also a labor-management mining dispute which likewise threatens to tear the the planet apart. And that's not all: A former adversary of the Doctor may again be at large -- in the form of a hostile ghost. Like its "prequel," "The Monster of Peladon" was written by Brian Hayles. Episode one originally aired on March 23, 1974. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the third episode of the six-part story "The Monster of Peladon," the Doctor (Jon Pertwee) discovers that the "ghost" of sacred Pel warrior Aggedor is actually an illusion, created by a matter projector. The real source of unrest and dissension on the planet Peladon is a a subversive named Eckersley (Donald Gee). Even worse: Eckersley is in league with the Doctor's old enemies, the Ice Warriors. Originally telecast April 7, 1974, "The Monster of Peladon, Episode 3" was written by Brian Hayles. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In the fifth episode of the six-part story "The Monster of Peladon," the Doctor (Jon Pertwee) has learned that the Ice Warrior Azaxyr (Alan Bennion) intends to strip the planet Pelidon of the precious mineral trisilicate, the better to help Galaxy 5 win its war against the Galactic Federation. Though the Doctor is able to get rid of most of the Ice Warriors, the subversive Eckersley (Donald Gee) manages to escape, taking the Queen of Peladon (Nina Thomas) along as hostage. Originally telecast April 21, 1974, "The Monster of Peladon, Episode 5" was written by Brian Hayles. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi