Arthur C. Clarke’s Mysterious World, Volume 1: UFO’s/Strange Skies (1980)

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Science fiction luminary Arthur C. Clarke comes right out the box on this one, stating bluntly: “UFO’s are very common. If you’ve never seen one, you’re either unobservant or you live in a cloudy area.” It’s amazing to consider how attitudes have changed in 30 years since this program originally aired. Today, someone as famous as Clarke would catch all sorts of flak for being so adamant about the universal presence of UFO’s.

In 1980, people still wanted to know as much as possible about unexplained phenomenon. Nowadays, there better be some diffusing joke attached to any talk about strange sightings or the peanut gallery will be quick to slap an aluminum dunce-cap on your head. The UFO’s portion of the video does indeed spend some time debunking certain photos from consideration, but other evidence presented isn’t so easy to reject. In 1978, an airplane off the coast of New Zealand spotted multiple saucer-like, luminous objects following them on consecutive flights, all captured on both camera and radar. Upon investigation of the evidence, scientists concluded that “no known explanation can account for all the facts.”

Beyond mere UFO sightings in the sky, Clarke addresses close encounters as well. Several people tell their stories about visitors to their farms…it’s always farms. Clarke isn’t convinced that aliens would be so sneaky, intimating that their arrival/return would be far too spectacular for anyone to miss. But he does also go on to say: “You may wonder; what should you do if you do meet a man from space? Be very polite and be prepared for a long journey.”

With the Strange Skies portion of the video, historical speculations on the canals of Mars and the existence of the planet Vulcan receive proper documentary treatment. The ability to curiously explore why people once believed something that we now know to be untrue, without a snide attitude attached, has become a lost art. Just like anyone intelligent today, Clarke ultimately dismisses the misguided conclusions of others. He’s just more empathetic as to why they would believe such things, and he’s not out to be a dick over how he’s superiorly smarter than them. I mean, he even tackles the Star of Bethlehem in a wholly respectful manner. The measured analysis on vastly interesting topics makes me want to watch the other 5 volumes of the Mysterious World video series.