Rent The Boy from Space (1980)

3.9 of 5 from 61 ratings
3h 20min
Rent The Boy from Space Online DVD & Blu-ray Rental
  • General info
  • Available formats
Synopsis:
When brother and sister Dan and Helen see a mysterious object falling from the sky one night, they set out to look for traces of a meteorite in the nearby sandpit. There, they are confronted by a strange thin man, and discover a boy called Peep-peep who speaks a bizarre alien language. Originally broadcast in 1971, as part of the BBC's educational 'Look and Read' strand, 'The Boy from Space' was shown again in 1980 in a revised version featuring new presenters Wordy and Cosmo, as well as updates - including a new foreword and a voice-over - to the main drama.
Actors:
, , , , , , , , , Phil Cheney
Directors:
Pat Farrington, Jill Glindon Reed
Producers:
Claire Chovil
Writers:
Richard Carpenter
Studio:
BFI Video
Genres:
Children & Family, Kids’ TV, TV Action & Adventure, TV Classics, TV Sci-Fi & Fantasy
BBFC:
Release Date:
25/08/2014
Run Time:
200 minutes
Languages:
English Dolby Digital 2.0
Subtitles:
English Hard of Hearing
DVD Regions:
Region 2
Formats:
Pal
Aspect Ratio:
Full Screen 1.33:1 / 4:3
Colour:
Colour
Bonus:
  • The complete 1980 series (10 x 20 mins): all ten episodes of the BBC's classic Look and Read series, featuring Dan, Helen and Peep-peep's story, as well as helpful reading tips from Wordy and Cosmo
  • Feature-length presentation (70 mins): exclusive version of Dan, Helen and Peep-peep's adventures, edited specially for this release
  • BBC Records LP - audio version (55 mins): original spoken-word recordings from the 1972 vinyl release, narrated by Charles Collingwood
  • BBC Records LP - film version (55 mins): an exclusive presentation, combining audio from the 1972 LP with footage from the 1980 TV broadcast
  • Wordy's Think-ups: original animations from the series
  • Downloadable PDFs of original 1971 and 1979 pamphlets
Disc 1:
This disc includes the following episodes:
1. The Meteorite
2. The Spinning Compass
3. The Man in the Sandpit
4. In Danger!
5. The Hold-Up
6. Where is Tom?
7. The Hunt for the Car
8. The Lake
9. Captured!
10. In the Space-ship
Disc 2:
This disc includes the Special Features

More like The Boy from Space

Found in these customers lists

126 films by taz

Reviews (1) of The Boy from Space

Good fun - The Boy from Space review by YR

Spoiler Alert
08/06/2025

This is a two-DVD set providing two different versions of "The Boy from Space". If you want to watch the feature length film from beginning to end, then be sure to rent disc 2 (it was originally filmed in 1971, but it looks like they filmed a new preamble in 1980 when the children were older). The other version (on disc 1) is a children's show called "Look and Read" where the film was repackaged into a season where they showed excerpts of the film and were encouraging the viewers to reflect on the grammar told in the story (the "Boy from Space" originally being a book). There are also a number of humorous animated segments (populated by weird and wonderful creatures and people in space) where they sing a song about some aspect of grammar (the animated segments can also be viewed in isolation on disc 2). I didn't grow up in the UK, so I didn't see these as a child. Yet, I really enjoyed these. I would have been watching this if I lived here (I was just the right age). I especially enjoyed the uninterrupted feature length film. It was just so nostalgic and lovely and good natured (although when I looked at online comments, some people who saw it as kids found it scary). Also, the film was surprisingly well-acted (Sylvestra le Touzel, who plays the girl, eventually became a high respected actress in period dramas and such). The space aliens, with their weird-sounding language and futuristic clothing and hair and technology, are actually kind of retro-cool. Mostly, I loved the friendship that developed between the two human children and "Peep-Peep", the boy from space. It's a reminder of how children accept friendships more openly than adults, and often have a natural tendency to help people in need. The adults, meanwhile, are the ones who are too absorbed in their own affairs (there are four main adults in this story, two alien and two human). In the end, the film becomes a kind of science-fiction crime story, and it's really not a spoiler to say that the kids save the day.

0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.

Unlimited films sent to your door, starting at £23.99 a month.