Blake-Less 7
Work began in earnest on the third series of Blake’s 7 in February 1979 when Terry Nation was commissioned to write Aftermath with the option to write several more episodes. David Maloney returned as producer and Chris Boucher was back as script editor. The major problem facing the production team was that Blake’s 7 wouldn’t have Blake. Gareth Thomas had gone to the RSC having been concerned about typecasting. He had indicated that he might be willing to continue on the condition that he would be given the chance to direct some episodes but this was against BBC policy. The production team were concerned that the series couldn’t survive the loss of the title character but the show was too popular to discontinue. Fortunately it had been known for some time that Thomas probably wouldn’t be returning for a 3rd series which had enabled Boucher to lead up to Blake’s departure towards the end of Series 2. It was decided that Blake would go missing and become a legendary figure. It was also decided that the series would have a much darker tone which would allow greater character development.
The Captain
As the series’ creator Nation was the obvious choice to write the first episode of the season. He was still a major player on the series and all changes to the format had to be approved by him. In place of Blake, he settled upon the idea of a veteran soldier in his late forties with a fearsome reputation who would provide a serious challenge to Avon. He called him “The Captain” and decided that he would later go on to betray the crew by turning them in to the Federation. Producer David Maloney convinced Nation to make the character a little younger. This was partly because the third series was likely to be the last which would have made it difficult to get an older, established actor to play the part. It had also been decided that Avon would be the central character and it was felt that a younger actor would provide a greater contrast. Chris Boucher was keen to place the emphasis on Avon as he was an interesting character to write for. Boucher had also hinted at Blake’s departure by focusing on Avon’s desire to control the Liberator throughout Series 2 so the switch to Avon as the lead character wasn’t totally “out of the blue”. He also liked the fact that Paul Darrow always stuck to the script unlike other members of the cast. However Darrow had reservations about Avon becoming the focus of the series, “Once the focus changed to Avon, they tried to make him like Blake, which I fought against.” He realised that the popularity of his character was down to the fact that he was an anti-hero and he resisted attempts to make the character more moralistic and idealistic. Eventually Maloney agreed that this would not be a wise move.
Tarrant
Over time “The Captain” developed into Del Tarrant who Nation envisaged as a 35 year old and he took his inspiration from the Spitfire pilots of WW11, “I wanted him to be a daredevil – dangerously daredevil in fact.” The name Tarrant, a corruption of Nation’s own name, had cropped up many times in his work including the character of Jill Tarrant in the Doctor Who story Death to the Daleks and the villain Dev Tarrant in The Way Back, plus many more! The idea of Tarrant being a traitor was dropped but the character would still provide conflict with Avon. Sally Knyvette had also decided to move on as she was frustrated by the lack of character development for Jenna. She had tried to leave after the first series but was not released from her contract. After filming concluded on Series Two, Knyvette went to university to study English & Drama and quit acting for four years. Killing off the characters of Blake and Jenna was never considered and it was decided to simply have the characters go missing which would leave open the possibility of a return at some point in the future. Thomas hadn’t ruled out the possibility of cameo appearances. As Maloney related in an interview with Starburst at the time, “They’re around. The series is wide open in terms of the crew and what happens to them.” In the meantime, Nation would need to provide another new character to replace Jenna.
Dayna
He devised the character of Dayna as a weapons expert and a master of combat. He wanted a character with an edge as Cally had been softened over time and had moved away from her original tough characterisation. Nation later related to TV Zone, “I thought it would be interesting to have a girl who was aggressive…and it was nice to give what were generally masculine attitudes to a woman.” The only physical description he specified was that the character shouldn’t be a brunette so as to provide a contrast to Cally. It was felt that it would be too convenient if Jenna’s replacement was a pilot too so this skill was transferred to Tarrant.
No More Liberator?
Some consideration was given to destroying the Liberator and having the crew transfer to another ship. This was quickly abandoned as it was felt a new ship might not prove to be as popular as the Liberator. The idea was retained to some extent with the crew having to abandon ship at the beginning of the series. With the Federation in disarray it was decided the series would consist of more disconnected adventures but with several running threads throughout. The more flexible format allowed the production team to experiment with different types of story including fantasy based adventures. A main focus would be Servalan’s continued attempts to acquire the Liberator. Nation admired the character of Servalan and was intrigued with the notion of pitting her against Avon. For Aftermath he wrote a scene which featured Servalan trying to win Avon over to her side but his script did not feature the infamous kiss.
The Search For Blake
Another running theme for the third season was going to be the search for Blake which would have concluded with the crew finding his grave halfway through the season. Darrow wasn’t too keen on this idea as he felt that it made no sense for Avon to hand the Liberator back to Blake as he had spent the previous two series trying to get it from him. Maloney agreed as he didn’t want to draw attention to an absent character and if Blake was kept alive then it was a little easier to justify the title Blake’s 7. “He may not have been present but he was still out there in the cosmos and it was still his crew.”
Casting Tarrant
Casting for the new characters proved to be a complicated process. Actors considered for the part of Tarrant included Desmond Adams, Nick Tate, Paul Seed, Duncan Preston, Andrew Ray, Christian Roberts (who had appeared in Breakdown), Chris Brown and Jonathan David. The production team also contacted Steven Pacey’s agent and a meeting was arranged with Chris Boucher in the BBC bar. Boucher was soon convinced that he had found the right actor for Tarrant despite the fact that Pacey didn’t match the character description. Production secretary Judith Smith was also impressed when she met Pacey and she actively encouraged Maloney to cast him. Pacey was a former child actor with experience on stage, radio and television. He was concerned when he learned Tarrant was thirty five as he was only twenty-one and he felt he was wasting his time. He also hated the name Del as he assumed it was short for Derek. On-camera screen tests were conducted in the basement at Broadcasting House where Maloney encouraged Pacey to talk with a deep, gruff voice. Maloney read the part of Vila and Darrow was present to read the part of Avon. There was some concern that he looked a little too much like a younger Gareth Thomas mainly because of his curly hair but Pacey was eventually awarded the role. Unfortunately for Pacey this meant he was stuck with a gruff voice for the next two years!
Casting Dayna
Actresses considered for Dayna included Floella Benjamin, Marina Sirtis, Caroline Langrishe, Brioney Roberts, Joanne Pearce, Debbie Blythe and Kirstie Pooley. David Maloney was keen to have a black actress as it was “all the rage” but he didn’t want an ethnic accent. A young actress called Josette Simon was brought to the attention of the production team having been noticed at camera rehearsals for a children’s TV show called Star Turn Challenge. The entire team were enchanted by Simon as soon as they met her. She too performed a screen test with Paul Darrow. Maloney had to fight to get her as she had only just left drama school and didn’t have an equity card. He had to see the Afro/Asian Committee of Equity to put his case and Simon was eventually given a temporary card once they were convinced no-one else was suitable for the part. Terry Nation was very pleased with the casting even though he hadn’t specified a black actress. Simon was not at all familiar with Blake’s 7 while Pacey had seen a little but hadn’t been too impressed, so they were both shown episodes to give them a feel for the series. They were both welcomed very warmly into the cast by the regulars.
The Returning Cast
Jan Chappell had been happy to return to the series and was pleased with the quality of the scripts. Although she missed Sally Knyvette, she felt that the new characters brought freshness to the series. Michael Keating was also pleased to return and was promised that he would have more to do. He regretted the departure of Thomas and Knyvette, and felt it would have been a wise move to keep David Jackson in the series as Gan as he would have returned for a third series. Jacqueline Pearce was delighted to take a more prominent role and she became actively involved in Servalan’s look. “It was then that the nails appeared, those wonderful red nails. The costume and make up got much more pronounced and I was much more confident.” Servalan would be promoted to President of the Federation and would feature in nine episodes of the series. As a returning star Pearce would also receive a higher billing than the new members of the cast.
The Guest Cast
The part of Dayna’s father, Hal Mellanby, was given to respected actor Cy Grant. He had been the first black face to be seen regularly on British television singing the news on the BBC Tonight programme in the 1950’s. He had also appeared in episodes of Softly,Softly, The Persuaders and he provided the voice of Captain Green in Captain Scarlet. The part of Chel, leader of the Sarrans, was given to Alan Lake, the husband of Diana Dors. He had quite a fearsome reputation and certain members of the production crew were rather weary of him. He had appeared in episodes of Doctor Who (Underworld), The Avengers, The Protectors and The Sweeney. He had also been in the running for the role of Vila. Playing Lauren was Sally Harrison who had appeared in The Professionals, Man About the House and Thriller. Also present on location were former Doctor Who regular Richard Franklin and future Eastenders star Michael Melia playing Federation troopers.
Rehearsals
Costume fittings and rehearsals began on Monday, July 23rd 1979. The costume designer for Series 3 was Dee Robson. She based Dayna’s initial look on the Grecian figure, Diana of the Hunt. She settled on a buccaneer look for Tarrant but for his brief appearance in Aftermath he wore a Federation trooper uniform. Darrow, Keating and Chappell all wore the same outfits from Star One to maintain continuity. Vere Lorrimer was selected to direct the episode and he was the only returning director for Series 3. He was a popular director with cast and crew. At one point during rehearsals he was trying to get a particular reaction from Josette Simon and he suggested she should “pretend you’re back in the jungle – do it like the Zulus.” This resulted in hysterical laughter from Simon who hailed from Leicester.
On Location
Filming took place at Bamburgh in Northumberland on Tuesday, August 7th to Friday 10th. During this time it was confirmed that this would indeed be the final series of Blake’s 7. The first scenes to be filmed were the shots of the horses on the sand with Alan Lake doing all his own riding. Stuntman Stuart Fell also took part in these sequences. As the day progressed filming was complicated by large crowds of onlookers who had gathered to watch proceedings. Lorrimer was forced to position the cameras low down to avoid getting any of the onlookers in shot. He was largely successful but one brief scene did feature a member of the public making an impromptu cameo. Another mishap on location occurred during filming of Jacqueline Pearce’s initial scene. Her outfit was particularly flimsy and became caught on a bramble as she walked out of shot causing the outfit to split revealing Pearce’s bare behind. The actress was completely unfazed by this and remarked “Take a good look boys, I usually charge for this!” More delays were caused by Alan Lake’s inability to operate a prop gun which caused friction between him and FX designer Jim Francis. Cy Grant was not available for this filming period so his exterior scenes were filmed on August 13th on a hillside near Ripon during filming for City at the Edge of the World. These scenes were later edited together with the exterior scenes shot in Bamburgh. The designer for the location scenes was Gerry Scott with Don Taylor handling the studio sessions.
In The Studio
Recording for Aftermath was carried out alongside City at the Edge of the World. Most of the recording took place between 2-3rd October. The scenes in the escape capsule bay on the Liberator were filmed during production of Dawn of the Gods from 28-30th August, as was the sequence of the Liberator flight deck blowing apart which was taped as an insert shot. The space battle which opened the episode consisted of stock footage, primarily from Star One with further material from Duel, Shadow and Hostage.
The Love Scene
Jacqueline Pearce and Paul Darrow discussed in great detail how they should play the scene where Servalan tries to win Avon over to her side. Darrow suggested that they “could have a couple of clinches” which Pearce thought was a great idea. She was also delighted when Darrow suggested throwing Servalan on the floor as long as they included a shot of ‘the tigress at bay’. Vere Lorrimer was initially shocked by their suggestion but he went along with it after some persuasion. It was filmed in one take as Pearce later revealed to Horizon, “We only did it once but I admit freely and unashamedly – it was wonderful!”
Broadcast
A new title sequence was prepared by Doug Burd which featured the Liberator escaping from Pursuit ships. This was necessary as Gareth Thomas had featured in the original sequence. Aftermath was broadcast on 07/08/80 and was watched by 9.5m viewers. Darrow lists the episode among his favourites as it was a ‘romp’. Vere Lorrimer also named it as his favourite. It was also popular with Pearce but she was disappointed that the relationship with Avon wasn’t developed further. Aftermath was repeated on 01/06/81 and released on BBC Video in November 1991. It was released on DVD in June 2005. The DVD included Steven Pacey’s screen test and various outtakes.
Credits
Main Cast
Paul Darrow – Avon
Jan Chappell – Cally
Michael Keating – Vila
Jacqueline Pearce – Servalan
Josette Simon – Dayna
Steven Pacey -Tarrant
Peter Tuddenham (Orac/Zen)
Guest Cast
Cy Grant – Hal Mellanby
Alan Lake – Chel
Sally Harrison – Lauren
Richard Franklin/Michael Mella – Troopers
Crew
Stuart Fell (Stunt Co-Ordinator)
John Harris (Production Assistant)
Sheelagh Rees (Production Unit Manager)
Christine Fawcett (Director’s Assistant)
Riita Lynn (Assistant Floor Manager)
Steve Drewett/Jim Francis (Visual Effects Designers)
A.J. Mitchell (Electronic Effects)
Doug Burd (Graphic Designer)
Peter Chapman/Anthony Mayne (Film Cameramen)
Ian Sansom (Film Recordist)
Sheila S. Tomlinson (Film Editor)
Brian Clemett (Studio Lighting)
Malcolm Johnson (Studio Sound)
Elizabeth Parker (Special Sound)
Dee Robson (Costume Designer)
Sheelagh J. Wells (Make-Up Artist)
Dudley Simpson (Music)
Terry Nation (Series Deviser)
Chris Boucher (Script Editor)
Don Taylor/Gerry Scott (Designers)
and David Maloney (Producer)
