In 1966, Candy, Andy and the Bearandas and their rainbow-striped Mini came to life at Century 21 studios in Slough. Created as a comic book, and a series of annuals and story books for young readers, Candy was the brainchild of Gerry Anderson, more widely known for his ‘supermarionation’ projects such as Stingray, Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet. Win thousands of sweet matching puzzles: with new puzzles added every 2 weeks, your sugar fix is never far away!

The Candy and Andy books fail to explain the children's relationship with the Bearandas. It is clearly not a genetic bond, so were Candy and her brother adopted? Is Andy even Candy's brother? We are never told.The series saw two panda bears, Mr and Mrs Bearanda, bringing up their plastic children, Candy and Andy, in a picture-perfect English Village. Surreal and unusual, even for the time, Candy never quite reached the same popularity as Anderson’s other projects. However, a new photobook published by Four Corners now presents these photo-strips in all their technicolour glory. All images: Candy, Andy & The Bearandas, published by Four Corners An unusual, and often (purposefully) forgotten, Gerry Anderson creation… Candy and Andy have their own peculiar charm, although that’s often lost because of their resemblance to the Children of the Corn. This very unusual and mostly forgotten Gerry Anderson project featured in TV Century 21. Gerry wanted to have a different style of comic strip, and so decided to have the characters photographed rather than drawn. Despite its unusual style, and strange characters (with no explanation of why two dolls were living with Mr and Mrs Bearanda, nor why they were pandas, nor whether they were adopted parents, guardians, or captors of the doll children), the Candy and Andy comic (called simply “Candy”) ran for 154 issues as well as many annuals and story books.

The new series was given a unanimous thumbs down by television executives, but undeterred, Anderson turned his idea into a publication franchise, spawning 154 issues of a comic and several books. The whole sorry episode lasted less than three years but it was long enough to screw-up a generation of under 5s. Andy goes to the diner to tell Max that he is going to say to Caroline that he loves her. Max helps him choose the best scenario to tell her, since according to her the diner is a horrible place. Andy then goes to his shop and sees Caroline and Max dressed up as cupcakes. He was going to tell her he loves her, but she ran away because she saw her friend Stacey. Caroline runs in his shop and see's him on the toilet. Embarrassed, Andy tells her he loves her. Spin the Daily Booster Wheel to receive jelly fishes and other tasty rewards! Master time-limited match 3 challenges to earn boosters and clear the jelly!

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In 1966, at the height of his powers, “supermarionation” creator Gerry Anderson came up with a bold concept for a new television series. He had already designed the puppets and with the recent success of Thunderbirds behind him, it looked certain that the new project would be given the green light. The weekly stills-based adventures were photographed by trusted Anderson photographer Doug Luke who found the whole process very frustrating with toppling pandas and awkward dolls to deal with on a daily basis. The new series was given a unanimous thumbs down by television executives, but undeterred, Anderson turned his idea into a franchise, spawning 154 issues of a comic and several books. The whole sorry episode lasted less than three years but it was long enough to screw-up a generation of under 5s. Candy and Andy are just like any other children, except that they are life-size dolls and live with two panda bears called Mr and Mrs Bearanda. They drive around in a Mini called Stripey. What’s not to like? Caroline and Andy have sex, which unfortunately leads to Caroline developing a rash, who thinks it may be herpes. Caroline also wants to text Andy about getting together, and Max reveals to her that Andy is not dating just one girl, but several. Caroline is convinced that one of Andy's friends has given her herpes and meets with him at a local coffee shop to tell him so. Andy tells Caroline that he has only slept with two other women and will get tested. He also tries to assure her not to go to the worst-case scenario. In the end, Caroline finds out that she doesn't have herpes, just a reaction to a cheap fabric softener she used to wash her sheets.

Andy is an outgoing man. He is fun to hang around with and is good with jokes. He used to work on Wall Street, pushing pharmaceuticals in an office. Andy had access to unlimited pills. One day he went into the office, and saw that it was all gone, and there was nothing there left. Then he used all his savings to open up Candy Andy's Sweets & Treats. After selling candy for some time, he closes up his shop in And the Psychic Shakedown. Candy Darling “never lost her head even when she was giving head”, Reed sang. He’d sung about her before – she was the Candy who said “I’ve come to hate my body / And all that it requires in this life” on the third Velvet Underground album in 1968. Reed had feared the reaction of his characters to Walk on the Wild Side, but, he later recalled: “Candy Darling told me he’d memorised all the songs and wanted to make a ‘Candy Darling Sings Lou Reed’ album. It probably wouldn’t sell more than a hundred copies!” Darling, too, was a transgender Warhol superstar, appearing in Flesh (1968) and Women in Revolt (1971). There were other films, too – but it was a brief career. Darling died of lymphoma, aged 29, in 1974. Little Joe The very unusual and mostly forgotten Anderson project never explained why two (very sinister) human dolls were living with pandas (why pandas?) and it was unclear whether Mr and Mrs Bearanda were Candy and Andy’s adopted parents, guardians, or captors. With their panda parents, Candy and Andy live in a world of humans (and a talking hedgehog). It should be enchanting, but the reality is deeply disturbing. Sea Monkeys There have been plenty of toys that allowed children to put their natural creative energies to work. Lego, Erector sets, and countless…

Sprint series Atari’s Indy 800 brought multi-player racing to the masses, but the company’s Sprint series took the genre to the next… In 1966, at the height of his powers, "supermarionation" creator Gerry Anderson came up with a bold concept for a new television series. He had already designed the puppets and with the recent success of Thunderbirds behind him, it looked certain that the new project would be given the green light.

Andy is a sweet and loving person and has a horrific sense of humor, often bantering with Max and trading good-natured insults. While he is apparently physically attractive, part of his charm comes from his wit and charisma. He makes a lot of jokes, and is very generous, providing Max with unlimited free candy, even before he started Caroline, and even offering to pay their shop's rent when they were struggling. He has the qualities of a good boyfriend, being thoughtful, considerate, and romantic, and will go to lengths if he believes it will make Caroline happy. Andy is also very helpful, and knows what advice is good or not, and is patient and tolerant, able to and even happy to deal with Caroline's spoiled side and the general chaos she and Max create.In 1966, at the height of the popularity of his “Supermarionation” TV shows, Gerry Anderson developed a concept for a new television series. Candy and Andy are just like any other children, except that they are plastic and live with two panda bears called Mr and Mrs Bearanda. They drive around in a Mini called Stripey. Undeterred, Anderson turned his idea into a franchise, spawning 154 issues of a comic (photographed by Doug Luke) and several books and merchandising tie-ins.