Sylvia Anderson dead: ‘Thunderbirds’ co-creator was voice of Lady Penelope puppet

Sylvia Anderson, Thunderbirds

‘Thunderbirds’ actress and co-creator Sylvia Anderson poses with the puppet Lady Penelope outside of Phillips Bayswater in London after the doll was sold at auction for 34,500 pounds Sterling (US $56,500) Tuesday, Sept. 19, 1995.

“Thunderbirds” co-creator and actress Sylvia Anderson is dead, according to multiple reports. She was 88.

Her daughter Dee Anderson told The Guardian that the writer-producer died at her home in Bray, Buckinghamshire, after a short illness.

“Sylvia was a mother and a legend. Her intelligence was phenomenal but her creativity and tenacity unchallenged,” her daughter said. “She was a force in every way, and will be sadly missed.”

Sylvia Anderson was best known for voicing the Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward character on the futuristic puppet TV series she created with her husband. Gerry Anderson, whom she divorced in 1981, died in 2012 at age 83 after a battle with Alzheimer’s disease.

The BBC reports the pair pioneered a production technique using electronic marionette puppets, called “Supermarionation.” Voices were recorded first, and then the electric signal from the dialogue moved the puppets’ heads while filming scenes.

Sylvia Anderson also worked on TV shows “Joe 90,” “Captain Scarlet,” “Stingray,” “UFO” and “The Secret Service.” She most recently worked as head of programming for HBO in the UK and had been writing a show with her daughter called “The Last Station.”

She’s survived by her daughter, her son Gerry Anderson Jr., four grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.