A for Andromeda: The Machine

"The Machine" is the second episode of the A for Andromeda television series and first aired on the BBC on October 10th, 1961.

Synopsis
At the behest of the Ministry of Defence, Doctor John Fleming goes to the London Institute of Electronics where he is allowed to use their computer resources to decode the subspace messages that he picked up at Bouldershaw Fell. There, he meets a young woman named Christine. Working to translate the code, Fleming theorizes that the signals are actually a mathematical set of instructions, which includes designs for the construction of a larger, more complex computer system. The Ministry gives Fleming permission to begin construction on the computer and they set up a military research center Thorness in Scotland. The computer is activated and begins to output its first set of instructions.

Meanwhile, Fleming's colleague, Dennis Bridger sells out to an unscrupulous industrialist named Kaufmann, who represents a company known as Intel.

Notes & Trivia

 * The story is told in flashback from the recollection of Professor Ernst Reinhart.


 * First appearance of actress Julie Christie as Chrstine. This is Christie's first major acting role.