Published in Infinity #44, 2022
After four nail-biting years my series three article teleported into all good newsagents. All the music stuff is absolutely true. The benefits of classical training…
“I left my world to wander in this endless midnight sky, for space is just a starry night where no suns ever rise.” Dayna’s song, from Sarcophagus.
Those 23 words may seem innocuous enough, but to a certain type of fan they are the work of Satan himself. Because they’re sung. That’s right, singing in a serious science fiction show. Never mind that the song lasts for less than a minute, or that it chimes perfectly with the off-kilter feel of the episode. It’s a song in sci-fi and is therefore a very bad thing. Of course, the potential for fan absurdity is almost limitless, as any look at the online reaction to Jodie Whittaker’s first series of Doctor Who will prove. One self-appointed “celebrity fan” (no, me neither) stated that the BBC had ‘raped’ his favourite programme, which is astonishingly wrong on so many levels.
Anyway, back to the BBC’s other sci-fi show. Most of Blake’s Seven’s music was written by Australian composer and conductor Dudley Simpson. In my opinion Dudley’s theme for Blake’s Seven vies with The Tomorow People as his best television work, and consequently one of the best ever theme tunes. The opening’s growling brass and thumping percussion personify the oppressive Federation, whilst the closing theme somehow manages to be both triumphant and melancholy, eminently suitable for a show where the Liberator crew don’t always win. It’s also strikingly similar to the middle section of Music, an endearingly overblown 1976 hit from John Miles. Now I’m in no way suggesting that Dudley was a plagiarist, with the limitations imposed by the Western tuning system this accidental duplication is far more common than you might imagine. For an example try listening to the final movement of Dvorak’s Ninth Symphony without thinking about sharks. And cop show fans will be delighted to hear The Gentle Touch cropping up in Vaughan Williams’ Overture to The Wasps.
Dudley also composed the incidental music for 50 of the 52 episodes, Elizabeth Parker provided Gambit’s score whilst Series One’s Duel used stock music due to director Douglas Camfield refusing to work with Dudley following an unspecified dinner party argument. Dudley’s is exemplary incidental music, subtly supporting the visuals and dialogue where necessary, with his teleport motif being particularly memorable. He died in 2017 aged 95, and television would have been a far duller place without him.
Series Three contains many changes. Both Gareth Thomas (Blake) and Sally Knyvette (Jenna) had declined to return, so their characters go missing following the Andromedan attack. In their place come young weapons expert Dayna Mellanby (Josette Simon) and rogue Federation pilot Del Tarrant, played by the excellent Steven Pacey. There’s a new title sequence, a mix of new and old directors and writers, and yes I’m trying to avoid mentioning that the show is still called Blake’s Seven, despite Blake, well, not being in it any more.
Mathematical matters first, the total of seven has always been questionable. When Cally joins the Liberator in Series One Blake claims that with Zen this makes them a crew of seven, although he neglects to explain why that figure should be significant. When they obtain Orac you could argue that there are still seven in the crew, with Blake’s leader status making him a separate entity, although Avon would doubtless beg to differ. The lack of a titular possessive apostrophe causes difficulties inside and outside of grammar, but is this really a problem? There are other programmes with bigger nomenclatural issues. As we all know, there is no such character as Doctor Who, “Inspector” Morse is actually a Detective Chief Inspector, and as for describing Mrs. Brown’s Boys as a comedy… Anyway,
Blake turns up again at the end of this series (spoiler alert).
Series Three is arguably the best of the show’s run. It contains stories of outstanding quality, with the odd clunker to balance things out. Oh, and a word of warning. I’ll talk about merchandise next time, but if you don’t know how Series Four ends under no circumstances watch the DVD trailer.
Series Three produced by David Maloney. Transmitted January – March 1980.
AFTERMATH
Written by Terry Nation, directed by Vere Lorrimer.
It’s The Tempest with horses. And lasers.
After abandoning ship the Liberator crew are scattered through space, with Avon landing in the worst place in the universe, the planet of bearded men. On horses. But here’s a pleasant surprise, the natives (led by Alan Lake) are actually an interesting bunch, playing Caliban to Hal Mellanby’s Prospero. This episode looks great, with lots of film and some well-choreographed fight scenes. There’s no doubt that Avon is our new lead character, if not audience identification figure. Who fans will be amused to see Richard Franklin playing another army officer, who gets quite brutally minced up. And the cliffhanger is an absolute belter. 6/7.
POWERPLAY
Written by Terry Nation, directed by David Maloney (uncredited).
Always carry your space organ donor card.
With Avon and Dayna imprisoned on the Liberator by a Federation Death Squad we join Vila and Cally as they’re prepared for involuntary organ donation. Servalan’s along for the ride as well, effortlessly taking over the medical ship as part of her plan to restore the fractured Federation. We’re sensibly kept guessing as to Tarrant’s true motives, with only the enmity between him and Michael Sheard’s reliably brutal Klegg suggesting that he might not be all he seems. There’s a lot of fan nonsense (fancy that) talked about Tarrant being a Blake substitute, calling him a Blake “clone” or “the heartless Blake”. This seems to be based entirely on them both having brown curly hair, as Tarrant is a far more interesting and well-rounded character than those descriptions imply. Throughout his two series Stephen Pacey’s performance is never less than outstanding. This is a fine episode, tying up loose ends and establishing the new crew (there’s five or seven of them, depends on your views on computers) with no little flair. Although being by Uncle Terry we do get a “space accident”. 6/7.
VOLCANO
Written by Allan Prior, directed by Desmond McCarthy.
Feeling hot hot hot? No, not really.
Dayna and Tarrant’s first episode as leads is a pretty forgettable affair, with even Michael Gough not getting much of a chance to shine. There are a few nice directorial touches, including an ethereal running scene, but that robot is exactly the sort of thing lazy clip shows use to deride the show. The decision to have Servalan fly around in a ship that looks like a toothy whale is peculiar, to put it mildly. Despite all that it’s not a bad episode as such, just a bit nondescript. 4/7.
DAWN OF THE GODS
Written by James Follett, directed by Desmond McCarthy.
Now there’s a title which promises greatness.
At the start of this episode the crew are playing a sort of Space Monopoly, complete with flashing lights. Whilst it’s nice to see the crew relaxing it does make you wonder what else they’ve got in the Liberator games cupboard. At Christmas does Dayna demand that they play Space Twister? Surely Vila would be the champion of Space Mousetrap? And as for Avon – “Pursuit ships in quadrant Five!” “Hold on Tarrant.” Avon throws the dice. “Yes! Space Yahtzee!” It’s slightly odd to see Orac joining in and getting stroppy when the game is interrupted, especially considering how contemptuous he is of anything the crew normally do. Maybe he’s actually a Space Nintendo who’s been over-promoted. All of which whimsy is a defence mechanism against discussing this episode which is an absolute load of arse. Of the notes I wrote whilst watching, the most printable is “this looks like a schools programme”, and that was not well meant. On the plus side the writers have remembered that Cally is a telepath. On the down side, this translates as “Have Cally taken over by the enemy of the week. Again.”. 2/7.
THE HARVEST OF KAIROS
Written by Ben Steed, directed by Gerald Blake.
Your one-stop shop for sexism and ants.
The two complaints most frequently levelled at this story are that it’s sexist (not unheard of in science fiction) and it contains a giant ant (again, more common than you might imagine). The perceived sexism comes in the interplay between Servalan and muscle-man Jarvik who declares “woman, you’re beautiful” and then forcibly kisses her. In return Servalan refers to this as a “degrading and primitive act” then asks him to do it again. You could argue that this is quite in keeping with Servalan’s character, she frequently uses her sexuality when necessary but is caught off guard when the tables are turned. Either way, the episode’s unlikely to be repeated on the BBC any time soon. The giant ant is actually fine, and let’s be honest, it’s nice to see a monster in Blake’s Seven every now and then. The non-sexual and non-hymenopteran elements of the episode are less interesting, although it’s one of Avon’s funniest outings. 4/7.
CITY AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD
Written by Chris Boucher, directed by Vere Lorrimer.
Vila’s the hero and has space sex.
Like many viewers Vila is my favourite character, helped no end by Michael Keating’s charismatic performance, so it’s a pleasure to have him centre stage for this episode which starts with Tarrant bullying him into teleporting down to Gazarn. Although Tarrant has good reason to be callous – the Liberator will be weaponless without the crystals the natives are offering – it’s uncomfortable viewing, but wholly redeemed by Avon defending Vila and threatening Tarrant. On the aforementioned planet Vila runs into Bayban the Butcher, played delightfully by Colin Baker. Some commentators have complained that Colin is OTT here, obviously believing that a character named ‘Bayban the Butcher’ calls for delicate and subtle underplaying. Vila gets a love story and sleeps with Kerril, yet despite the chance of a happy, rich and peaceful life together returns to the Liberator, claiming that “a thief isn’t what I am, it’s who I am.” In the final scene Tarrant apologises and Vila dismisses him. Lovely stuff. 7/7.
CHILDREN OF AURON
Written by Roger Parkes, directed by Andrew Morgan.
Two Callys for the price of one.
Doubles stories have always been popular in science fiction, irrespective of whether the technology to portray two identical people convincingly existed or not. Here Cally and her twin Zelda are sensibly kept apart for most of the story, avoiding any nightmarish CSO. In fact the model work and effects throughout are impressive, especially the attack on Auron and the effects of Servalan’s virus. The story is also strong, touching on the ethics of cloning and even infanticide. Servalan’s reaction to the death of her embryos shows what a fine actress Jacqueline Pearce was and the whole thing finishes bleakly. Or rather, it should have done. What we actually get is the Liberator clue laughing uproariously, a tonal shift as jarring as an episode of Scooby Doo ending with Shaggy being shot. Despite this, a very fine episode. 6/7.
RUMOURS OF DEATH
Written by Chris Boucher, directed by Fiona Cumming.
Is this the best story ever? Maybe.
Often lauded as Blake’s Seven’s finest episode Rumours of Death really is as good as everyone says. We start with a captured Avon being tortured, which turns out to be a plan to get to the man he blames for his lover’s murder. Chris Boucher’s plot never stands still, adding twists, excitement and much character development. To say that this is an important story for Avon is stating the obvious, but it explains his change from sociopath to psychopath. You can’t help feeling sorry for him, the only person he’s ever loved is exposed as a Federation agent and he ends up shooting her. Enough to make anyone a trifle wary of trusting others. Paul Darrow is outstanding in a brilliant piece of television. 7/7.
SARCOPHAGUS
Written by Tanith Lee, directed by Fiona Cumming.
Dancing, magic and sing-along-a-Dayna.
Written by an acclaimed science fiction author, Sarcophagus is the episode that most divides fan opinion. You can see why, it starts with flaming torches, mysterious rituals and what is to all intents a dance sequence. Later on Vila performs magic tricks to an invisible and appreciative audience. And of course there’s the song. For those craving more traditional plot elements Cally gets possessed. There are also some genuinely nice scenes where she and Avon demonstrate real affection for each other. On balance, Sarcophagus is good but slightly boring. Its biggest sin as far as some fans are concerned is to try to do something different. Although Blake’s Seven lacks the flexibility of Doctor Who it’s pleasing that there is still room for experiments like this. Whether they’re wholly successful is another matter. And the song’s actually quite nice… 4/7.
ULTRAWORLD
Written by Trevor Hoyle, directed by Vere Lorrimer.
When is a giant brain really stupid?
This one starts with Cally’s telepathic powers making her vulnerable to possession, a daring plot device that hasn’t been used since, oh, last week. There is some excellent model work here, including the Liberator being captured and the giant brain which controls Ultraworld. Unfortunately, the rest of the episode consists of the Blue Man Group trying to make Dayna and Tarrant perform in a live sex show. And Vila destroys the bad guys by telling riddles. I am not making this up. 3/7.
MOLOCH
Written by Ben Steed, directed by Vere Lorrimer.
What did they spend the budget on?
Right, we’d better deal with the eponymous villain first. He’s not very good, is he? He probably would have been better as a tiny wizened humanoid because the monocular chicken look really doesn’t work. And despite appearances it’s not a puppet, that’s Deep Roy in there. If you wanted to defend Blake’s Seven against the generally unfair accusations of shaky visual effects, don’t use this episode as evidence. As well as poultry man there’s an establishing painting of a citadel and a very poor body in the laboratory. Elsewhere we get Sabina Franklyn (Jacqui mark two from the wonderful Keep It in the Family) and Servalan’s whale ship makes a reappearance. And as for Davyd Harries as Doran… Imagine an episode of Terry and June where Terry is a misogynistic psychopath. And you’ll be about halfway there. 4/7.
DEATH-WATCH
Written by Chris Boucher, directed by Gerald Blake.
It’s Tarrant vs Tarrant. In a gasworks.
It’s more mixed doubles fun as Tarrant ends up in a duel with his big brother. Chris Boucher was easily the best writer on the series and his dialogue here for the crew is marvellous, just one example being Vila’s “They don’t write poetry like that anymore” in response to a blast of psychobabble from Orac. Although Servalan is up to her old tricks (playing two empires off against each other and still finding the time to kiss Avon) the core of the episode is the duel, excitingly directed by Gerald Blake. The contest environment is chosen by computer, which examines stock footage of a forest and a tropical island before settling on a derelict factory. This location is so familiar from 70s and 80s cop shows that you half expect Bodie and Doyle to join in the climactic shootout. With great dual performances from Steven Pacey this is a very fine episode indeed. 6/7.
TERMINAL
Written by Terry Nation, directed by Mary Ridge.
So why’s it still called Blake’s…Oh.
Terminal was probably envisaged as the final story of Blake’s Seven and as such it doesn’t disappoint. Avon’s psychosis becomes explicit as he single-mindedly follows Blake’s signal, threatens to kill Tarrant and forces the Liberator through a fluid particle mass. This final action damages the ship beyond repair and it’s strangely upsetting to see the Liberator’s organic decay as the story progresses. Vila’s “Zen is dying”, coupled with Zen’s “I have failed you” goes beyond upsetting and becomes genuinely moving, also reminding us of the great vocal talents of Peter Tuddenham. Vila gets to demonstrate his deliberately well-hidden intelligence, being the only crew member who has the sense to grab Orac when the Federation takes over the ship. It’s not a perfect episode, Servalan has been on board the Liberator before yet never asks “was it always this gloopy?”. And the revelation of the Links’ true nature seems superfluous. It’s also a shame that in Uncle Terry’s final script the best he can manage is “space vessel”, which is similar to you or I saying “road car”. Fortunately the series didn’t finish here, Blake’s beardy cameo is slightly unsatisfying and although the fan-fiction potential is high, leaving our heroes stranded on Terminal is something of an anti-climax. But otherwise it’s another superb season closer. Avon’s final smile is fantastic. 7/7.
Next time – a surprise fourth series! I bet it has a happy ending…