The Anomaly Research Centre, also know as the ARC, was the first secret government facility used by the government department of the same name. The ARC was tasked with tracking and containing Anomalies and the dangerous creatures that came through them. After a temporary suspension, the ARC operation was relocated to a second building, elsewhere.
Facilities[]
Operations room[]
This was the largest room of the ARC. When first introduced, the room was well lit, with grey flooring; it mostly stayed empty, with only the Anomaly Detection Device being place in the center and a few desk around the sides. Around the edge of the room was a curved ramp that lead to the offices, also it featured a vehicle entrance. (Series 2)
Later on, several changes occurred in the ops room. The lighting was made darker, and a number of desks and workbenches were set up, many of which held some of Connor Temple's inventions. In the centre of the room, a large black circle was painted on the floor along with the ARC logo. Many of the unnamed staff worked on the benches. (Series 3)
Outerim walkway[]
The outerim walkway faced into the ops room. It lead from the vehicle entrance, up onto the second floor of the building. Guards were often seen walking along the walkway on security patrols. The walkways purpose was unknown, presumably it was a safe area, out of reach of any creatures that may find there way into the main room.
Armoury[]
The armoury was where the weapons of the ARC team were kept, for use by the field team and the Special Forces Soldiers. It was primarily for standard guns and expedition equipment however some non standard items included scuba-diving gear, a Harpoon gun and other mobility equipment. (Series 2) Later on the armoury was moved and this room was turned into a storeroom. (3.3)
Laboratories[]
There were a number of labs seen inside the ARC; many of the labs were manned by unnamed scientists. Two overlooked the Ops room via glass windows. After the ARC bombing, a new temperature-controlled lab was installed, where Abby Maitland grew a number of tropical plants. (Episode 3.5) You also had a lab when you worked at the ARC (Primeval Evolved).
Offices[]
The curved ramp in the operations room lead up to James Lester and Oliver Leek's offices. This was where Lester spent most of his time. There was a landing outside the office doors that overlooks the Ops room.
Jenny Lewis had a small office (‘’The Lost Island’’) and team leader Nick Cutter also had his own office off the main hallway (Episode 2.5) but it apparently never got “kitted” out for the next team leader Danny Quinn. (‘’Fire and Water’’)
Recreation rooms[]
The rest room was where the core team could chill out after a mission. There was a large sofa, and several games consoles. There was also a kitchen to the rear of the room which was used by the core team as well as the other members of the ARC staff. Directly across the hall was a gym and the team’s locker room. (Series 2)
Later on, the gym area was set up as another lab (Series 3) and Cutter built his Anomaly predicting Matrix in there. (Episode 3.2, 3.3)
Car park[]
A set of doors in the operations room lead into the ARC's indoor car park, this was where the team's Toyota Hilux would park. (Series 2) It is known that a containment lorry could fit in this car park, as this was where a Columbian Mammoth was temporarily held. (Episode 2.6) There was another interior car park that lead into the ARC's main hallway. (Series 3) The outside car park was used by other staff and was located behind the ARC. (Episode 2.6, 3.5)
Other areas[]
There was a main hallway which lead up to the main operations room and gave access to almost all other rooms.
Much of the ARC remained unseen but somewhere there was a Human Resources department (Episode 2.2) and a creature containment facility that housed some animals that came through the Anomalies; the Columbian Mammoth, a Dracorex and possibly other creatures.
The ARC building was originally in an open area, with low security allowing people like Helen Cutter to enter the premises (Series 2), but later, a high security perimeter fence was added to prevent such intrusions. (Series 3)
History[]
The Anomaly Research Centre was never seen before the second Forest of Dean incursion. At some point in the new timeline, after the Anomalies' existence was discovered by the Home Office, the Anomaly Research Centre was founded to take the place of the Anomaly-investigating branch of the Home Office, and the team subsequently moved to the first Anomaly Research Centre. They operated from the building for several weeks before the new version of the second Forest of Dean incursion took place. (Episode 1.6, 2.1)
.jpg){kind=link}
The Anomaly Research Centre building
Episode 2.1[]
After returning from the Forest of Dean, the original timeline version of Nick Cutter entered the ARC for the first time. He was slightly confused, and confronted Oliver Leek, whom he had never met, when the later tried to start a conversation. All of the ARC personnel stopped working to view this display but when Lester questioned whether there was "industrial action" taking place, everyone continued to work.
Episode 2.3[]
After Connor Temple designed and build his Anomaly Detection Device, the ADD was placed in the center of the Operations room and where he unveiled and activated the device, and explained how it worked.
Episode 2.4[]
The Ops room floor was cleared so a forklift could drive in with the corpse of a Future Shark for an autopsy by Cutter, Stephen and Abby.
Leek reveals himself as the traitor before attempting to assassinate Lester. (Episode 2.6)
Episode 2.6[]
Just before Oliver Leek was revealed as a traitor of the Anomaly Research Centre, he placed a Ford Transit van inside the ARC. Attached to the base of the van was a two-minute timer bomb, which would activate if his personal files were accessed . Inside the van, was one of Leek's neurally controlled Future Predator. As the team was off on Nick Cutter's wild goose chase, the creature was released into the ARC where it killed many of the ARC staff and nearly killed James Lester. It was only after Lester freed the Columbian Mammoth from its containment that the Predator was killed.
Later on, the team tried to access Leek files via the ADD but the timer on the bomb started counting down. Fortunately Cutter noticed the red light from the timer and evacuated the ARC, he and Connor Temple planned to defuse the bomb by cutting the wires. Not sure which wire to cut, as they were all red, Cutter disconnected the van's battery in the last second of the timer which disabled the bomb.
Episode 3.3[]
The entire ARC caught on fire from Helen's bomb. (Episode 3.3)
As the ARC team headed out to deal with a new Anomaly, Helen sent a clone of her Husband into the building to disable the perimeter security and open the main gates. She and her army of Cleaner Clones entered and took everyone hostage, then waited for the main team to return. As they did, Helen locked them all in a cupboard with the others, except for Nick who she talked to in the ops room.
She revealed she was attempting to avert a desolate future where humanity was extinct due the a future version of the ARC creating the Future Predators. Helen then ordered her Cutter Clone to detonate a bomb, in the ops room, after she had time to escape. Nick tried to convince his clone not to detonate it but only managed to convince it to give him time to escape. When the bomb exploded, it ignited the building, destroyed the Matrix, damaged the ADD and killed all of Helen's clone army but luckily did not damaged the ARC's structure.
Helen got caught in the ARC as all the staff escaped unharmed. Nick was concerned she had not got out and returned in to find her. He found her unconscious and tried to help her but after a short conversation about the future; she shot him through the chest. As Helen escaped, Connor entered the ARC and brought Nick's body out.
Aftermaths of ARC bombing[]
The fire was eventually extinguished and the damage to the ARC was quickly repaired (Episode 3.4) and rebuild on site with a few improvements such as a new temperature-controlled lab. (Episode 3.5)
Episode 3.5[]
Connor started living in his office, when he moved of of Abby's flat, and he brought his two Diictodon with him. After searching an Anomaly site, some samples of an unknown fungus substance were examined by Connor in the temperature-controlled lab, were Abby was growing some tropical plants. The samples reacted to a catalyst Connor put on them and he put them in a quarantine box. Later, Mark Baker accidentally touched the growing fungus samples, while snooping around the ARC, and the fungus consumed him. Danny and Connor confirmed his death, but the fungus took his body and animated it into a humanoid fungus creature which then attacked the pair.
Jenny and Abby search for fire extinguishers in the frozen ops room. (Episode 3.5)
Using the temperature control settings of the lab, Connor exposed the fungus creature to high temperatures, which made it explode, destroying Abby's plants. The team believed heat would kill the other fungus creature but Connor soon found out that the fungus (now spores) were still alive. He became trapped in the lab with the fungus spores, Connor got Sarah to lower the temperature in the lab, which killed the spores. They call the main team and get them to bring the other fungus creature to the ARC to freeze where Connor set up the Operations room to be cooled to temperatures lower than the North Pole, using the temperature-controlled lab's thermostat. Unfortunately the creature escaped into the ARC upon arrival. and travelled to the ops room, where it attacked Jenny Lewis. After infecting Jenny, both she and the fungus creature froze to death, fortunately, Jenny was revived soon after, but these events lead to her retirement from the ARC.
When everyone had gone home for the night, Lester discovered that Connor was living in the building and offered him temporary living privileges at his own weekday apartment to get him out of the ARC as it breached health and safety and Connor agreed.
Fire and Water[]
The ARC was taken over by Tom Samuels in the absence of Lester, who placed the remaining team (Abby, Sarah and Connor) under house arrest until further notice - that was, until he felt that he could trust them. Samuels later used some unknown technology to open an Anomaly to travel to his prehistoric oil refinery; somewhat surprisingly, he left the gateway open. Because of this, a Postosuchus managed to sneak through, nearly killing Sarah, who dived through the anomaly to relative safety. As it turned out, the prehistoric creature wore a shock-collar and was bought under control by Samuels' soldiers. Samuels himself returned to the present, where he was attacked and carried back through to the past by another Postosuchus.
Episode 3.6[]
Christine Johnson, desiring the Artifact, took control of the ARC, but the main team members escaped with the Artifact. Later, after she had captured the main team and the Artifact, she was revoked of her position because a recording of her insulting the Minister was given to him. James Lester was returned to the head position.
Helen standing off with the ARC team (Episode 3.9)
Episode 3.9[]
Helen Cutter returned to the ARC to obtain the Artifact. She took Christine Johnson hostage and stood off with the ARC team. Lester told everyone to stand down and as Connor gave her the Artifact, she fled the ARC.
Between Series 3 and Series 4[]
A number of missions were sent out from the ARC to find Connor, Abby and Danny after they headed into the future. These ultimately failed and Sarah was killed during the final mission. After this, the ARC was suspended until further notice. (Webisode 1, Episode 4.1)
The new ARC[]
The Anomaly Research Centre's next facility.
After the ARC was revived after its four month suspension, the operation moved to a Prospero Industries building, as the owner; Philip Burton had purchased partial ownership of the ARC organisation. It is unknown what happened to the old facility, but it was most likely put into lockdown or sold off once the team were relocated. The new building was also referred to as the Anomaly Research Centre. (Pre-Series 4, Series 4, Series 5)
Creatures incursions[]
- One Future Shark corpse (Episode 2.4)
- One Future Predator (Episode 2.6)
- One Columbian Mammoth (Episode 2.6)
- Numerous Cleaner Clones (Episode 3.3)
- One Diictodon (Sid) (Episode 3.5)
- Future Fungus spores (Episode 3.5)
- Two Fungus creatures (Episode 3.5)
- One Postosuchus (Fire and Water)
Appearances[]
Canonical[]
- Episode 2.1 (first appearance)
- Episode 2.2
- Episode 2.3
- Shadow of the Jaguar
- The Lost Island
- Episode 2.4
- Episode 2.5
- Episode 2.6
- Episode 2.7
- Extinction Event
- Primeval Evolved Intro
- Episode 3.1
- Primeval Evolved Week 1
- Episode 3.2
- Primeval Evolved Week 2
- Episode 3.3
- Primeval Evolved Week 3
- Episode 3.4
- Primeval Evolved Week 4
- Episode 3.5
- Primeval Evolved Week 5
- Fire and Water
- Episode 3.6
- Primeval Evolved Week 6
- Episode 3.7
- Primeval Evolved Week 7
- Episode 3.8
- Primeval Evolved Week 8
- Episode 3.9 (latest appearance on television)
- Primeval Evolved Week 9 (latest appearance)
- Episode 3.10 (flashback, mentioned)
- Webisode 1 (mentioned)
- Episode 4.1 (flashback, mentioned)
- Episode 4.2 (mentioned)
- Episode 4.3 (mentioned)
Non-canonical[]
Trivia[]
- The making of Primeval Series 2 special Through the Anomaly looks at the ARC set and interviews Paul Cross about how he modified the building.
- The building used to film the ARC exterior was the Duke of Kent Building at the University of Surrey.
- The building used to film the ARC interior was Building 64/63 at Longcross Film Studios[1] in Surrey, England. The building was originally a tank laser testing facility [2] called Climatic Laboratories, Defence Evaluation Research Agency on the old Ministry of Defence site [3][4]
- For Series 2, Production Designer Paul Cross designed the interior building (Director Jamie Payne also had significant input on how the ARC looked, notably the outerim walkway.).[5]:
- The glass wall in the operations room was actually a large exterior window, the outer walkway was added to make the ARC appear to be underground.
- Some walls were knocked out in the hallway to fit the kitchen, lounge and gym.
- The upstairs office and the curved ramp were added.
- In Series 3, new production designer Michael Ralph changed several features of the interior building;
- A large black circle was painted on the Ops room floor along with the ARC logo.
- The curved ramp's wire handrails were changed to bar handrails.
- Red flashing lights were added to the hallway for Anomaly alerts.
- The windows on the doors were tinted blue and framed with silver tread-plate.
- The tops of Lester's office windows were also tinted blue.
- The open entrances to areas like the gym, lounge and kitchen were covered in opaque glass panels.
- Early scenes from Episode 2.3 were the first ever filmed in the ARC.
- The upstairs office roof would leak if it rained during filming of Series 2.
- The ADD screens and toplit desks in the ARC were reused in Oliver Leek's Creature Prison office in Episode 2.7.
References[]
|
Episode 2.1: Castle Cross Shopping Mall • Cretaceous desert • Forest of Dean • Anomaly Research Centre |
Episode 2.5: Hackney • Hackney flats • Hackney worksite • Silurian desert • Anomaly Research Centre • Stephen Hart's flat • Abby Maitland's flat • Restaurant • Lost World Adventure Park |
|
Shadow of the Jaguar: Anomaly Research Centre • Peruvian Jungle |
Extinction Event: Russia • Siberia • Tunguska • Oxford Street • Anomaly Research Centre • Service station • Central Metropolitan University • Bairstow reservoir • Permian wasteland • Spaghetti Junction • K-T event area |