Tanya Alexander

Tanya Alexander
Space: 1999 character

Suzanne Roquette as Operative Tanya Alexander
First appearance "Breakaway"
Portrayed by Suzanne Roquette
Home planet Earth
Affiliation Moonbase Alpha
Species Human
Gender Female
Rank Main Mission Operative
Section Main Mission

Tanya Alexander is the name of a semi-recurring character on the United Kingdom science fiction television series Space: 1999. The role was portrayed by German actress Suzanne Roquette.

Character biography

Although her position on Moonbase Alpha was never specifically stated, she appeared to be a senior operative in Main Mission. She has been seen at every workstation in Main Mission: Paul Morrow's Controller's desk, Alan Carter's Reconnaissance desk and, on one occasion, presiding over David Kano's Computer station.[1]

She appears to be on excellent terms with the senior staff. In the alternate future reality pictured in "Another Time, Another Place", Tanya was seen to have settled on the devastated Earth in a small hamlet populated by Victor Bergman, Helena Koenig, Paul and Sandra Morrow and their children, the late Regina Carter, and David Kano. Some fans have speculated that she may have been Kano's wife.

Tanya appeared to have romantic attachments to at least two of the featured characters. In "Black Sun", she visits Paul Morrow's quarters after Koenig has released all personnel from their duties. The look exchanged between them as he strums his guitar and she sits beside him on the bed can hardly be construed as platonic. (Maybe this is just in response to their expected imminent demise). In later episodes, she appears to have taken up with Alan Carter, as she seems to be his choice on several occasions for public displays of affection in "Another Time, Another Place", "Alpha Child", and "The Last Sunset".

Some speculation has arisen as to the character's proper name. For years, fandom has established the name as 'Alexander'. An examination of first series scripts show no documentation of a surname in the character lists. In "Breakaway", it sounds as though she could have introduced herself to Koenig as 'Tanya Alexandreva'. Assuming a Russian background, Martin Willey has chosen to spell the name as 'Aleksandr' in The Catacombs website. In later years, Series One story editor Johnny Byrne has revealed that he was rather smitten with actress Suzanne Roquette[2]

Series two

Like several characters from Series One, she did not appear in any second-series episodes; the reason for her absence was never given on screen. The Tanya character was the victim of the budget cuts and creative changes initiated by American producer Fred Freiberger. The only Main Mission background players from the first series re-hired by Freiberger were Sarah Bullen (Kate) and Annie Lambert to give the new series some familiar faces.

Her departure from Moonbase Alpha was chronicled in the Powys Media novel, Space: 1999 The Forsaken by John Kenneth Muir (featuring a foreword by Prentis Hancock) in which the character reveals an unplanned pregnancy and fears that she will have to have an abortion in light of the ban on new births on Alpha (i.e. "Alpha Child", "The Exiles"); a small group of Alphans mutinies to settle with her on a habitable planet, led by Paul Morrow.

References

  1. ↑ Space: 1999 episode "The Last Sunset"
  2. ↑ "Dragon's Domain" Commentary, A&E DVD
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