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BLAKE'S 7 was first broadcast by the BBC in the UK on January 2nd, 1978, and ended its run of four series on December 21st, 1981. I remember it vividly, although only nine going on ten years old when it began! These were the days before VCRs too, so it became a ritual every week during the four series. The show regularly boasted almost 10 million viewers. I think it was shown at around 7-15pm, just about prime time TV, pretty impressive for a science fiction series even these days (Channel 4/Babylon 5 scheduling, I say no more).
One of my more vivid memories of the series is the final episode, but not for obvious reasons ! Our TV set chose that very evening to break down, and we ended up with no picture at all, just sound, horrors, and of course no VCR. Try as we might, we couldn't work out what was happening, and it was a very long time later that we finally got to see it !
| TITLE | FIRST BROADCAST | DETAILS |
| The Way Back | 02.01.1978 | Former resistance leader and now brainwashed "model citizen", Roj Blake, is contacted by a new dissident group. When told of his real past he is both shattered and horrified - when the dissidents are massacred, he faces a second staged show trial, and is banished to the penal planet of Cygnus Alpha. Episode notes : introduces Blake, Jenna and Vila |
| Space Fall | 09.01.1978 | En route to Cygnus Alpha on the prison ship London, Blake and some of his fellow convicts are sent on board an abandoned ship - something on board has killed Federation troops and the prisoners are considered expendable. The ship becomes Blake's means of escape, as long as they can overcome the AI defence systems ... Episode notes : introduces Avon and Gan, and the DSV Liberator |
| Cygnus Alpha | 16.01.1978 | Blake, Jenna and Avon head for Cygnus Alpha, to rescue as many as will come with them. They discover a sinister religious cult whose leader has apparently cast the curse of Cygnus on all the prisoners. Blake must challenge the leader, before more innocents are sacrificed to the cult. Episode notes : introduces Zen, the Liberator's computer |
| Time Squad | 23.01.1978 | En route to blow up the Federation communications nerve centre on Saurian Major, the Liberator salvages a projectile that was drifting in space. It is found to contain bodies in suspended animation, but all is not quite as it seems. On the planet, they meet Cally who is found to be the only surviving resistance member. Episode notes : introduces Cally |
| The Web | 30.01.1978 | Unexplained sabotage to some of Liberator's systems is traced to Cally, who is under the telepathic influence of the legendary "Lost" of Auronar, Cally's people. The ship is pulled inexorably to a planet where it becomes entangled in a web-like substance. On the planet, Blake meets with the last of the Lost, and learns that the only way to free themselves from the web is to provide power cells - which the Lost will use to wipe out an entire species that they originally created ... |
| Seek-Locate-Destroy | 06.02.1978 | Blake and his crew blow up the Federation Communications centre and steal the cypher machine, which will allow them to eavesdrop on Federation communications traffic. Supreme Commander Servalan, under pressure to deal with the Blake problem, appoints Space Commander Travis to seek, locate and destroy Blake. Travis is an old foe of Blake's, and Blake believed he had killed him back on Earth. Meanwhile, Cally has been left behind and is captured and used as bait by Travis. Can Blake rescue her in time ? Episode notes : introduces Travis (Stephen Greif) and Servalan (Jacqueline Pearce) |
| Mission to Destiny | 13.02.1978 | A spaceship is found drifting, and the crew drugged - and then the first body is discovered. Whoever is behind the murders is after the precious cargo, and Blake offers to take it to its destination, a farming planet gripped by a plague which is devastating the plantlife. He leaves Avon and Cally behind as insurance on his return, and they eventually discover who in the crew is the traitor ... |
| Duel | 20.02.1978 | The Liberator is low on power reserves, and needs to hide out for several days to recharge. However, Travis has tracked them down, and is on the verge of capturing them when a forcefield from the apparently dead planet below freezes the ships. Travis and Blake are taken down to the surface, where the guardians of a dead race pit them against one another in hand to hand combat - two lessons, the death of an enemy, and the death of a friend. |
| Project Avalon | 27.02.1978 | Travis has hatched what he believes to be a flawless plan, which will net the Liberator intact and destroy its crew. To do this he needs to capture the resistance leader, Avalon. Blake mounts a rescue mission, then is left wondering why it was so easy ... |
| Breakdown | 06.03.1978 | Gan's limiter, a brain implant which prevents him from killing anyone, malfunctions and sends him into a homicidal rage. He is sedated, and his only hope of survival is neuro-surgery, carried out by a brilliant surgeon based on a neutral research station, XK-72. However the journey there is fraught with danger, which is far from over once they arrive and allow the surgeon on board ... |
| Bounty | 13.03.1978 | President Sarkoff, in exile and effectively a prisoner of the Federation, is desperately needed to reunite his world and prevent it falling into civil war. If this happens it gives the Federation an excuse to send in peace-keeping troops, and eventually annex the planet. Blake and Cally persuade him to come with them, but there is a problem back on the Liberator. An apparent distress call answered while Blake was on the planet, has led them into unexpected trouble ... |
| Deliverance | 20.03.1978 | Liberator answers a distress call from a ship crashed on the planet Cephlon, and the crew soon find their own lives endangered. Jenna is captured by savages on the planet, and the ship is hijacked, leaving Blake a desperate race against time. |
| Orac | 27.03.1978 | The crew embark on a life-saving mission to Aristo, where they must prevent Orac, a highly advanced computer created by Ensor, from being captured by the Federation. Unfortunately Servalan and Travis have also located Orac ... Episode notes : introduces Orac, Ensor's computer; Stephen Greif's last episode as Travis |
| TITLE | FIRST BROADCAST | DETAILS |
| Redemption | 09.01.1979 | Orac has predicted the Liberator's total destruction, and then the ship comes under fierce attack from an unknown force. The crew lose all control of the ship, and unless Blake can defeat whoever or whatever is behind the attacks, Orac's prophecy will be fulfilled. Episode notes : Orac now voiced by Peter Tuddenham |
| Shadow | 16.01.1979 | The Liberator reaches Space City, rather a den of iniquity, where Blake seeks the assistance of the Terra Nostra, a criminal group who control the deadly drug Shadow. Blake must find out what the link with the Federation is, and why Orac is telepathically torturing Cally. The key appears to be the planet Zonda ... |
| Weapon | 23.01.1979 | The rebels and the Federation are searching for the stolen prototype of Imipak, a deadly new weapon. Meanwhile Servalan and Travis have a clone of Blake, and are apparently anticipating Liberator's every move. Episode notes: introduces the second actor to play Travis (Brian Croucher) |
| Horizon | 30.01.1979 | Horizon is a mysterious planet, and neither Zen nor Orac can shed any light. It may be the ideal bolt-hole, but the only way to find out for sure is to go down to the surface ... |
| Pressure Point | 06.02.1979 | The ultimate challenge and the ultimate risk - destroy Control, the Federation computer nerve centre. Will the gains outweigh the losses ? Episode notes : Gan's last episode |
| Trial | 13.02.1979 | Blake is questioning his purpose and motives after Gan's death. Meanwhile Travis has been put on trial and court-martialled, engineered by Servalan. |
| Killer | 20.02.1979 | The rebels head for the planet Fosforon, to crack the Federation's new transmission code. En route they discover an ancient spacecraft and a deadly plague, which could threaten the existence of every lifeform in the universe ... |
| Hostage | 27.02.1979 | The Federation is desperate to stop Blake, and has renewed its attacks with a vengeance. A message comes through from fellow fugitive Travis, apparently offering the hand of friendship ... |
| Countdown | 06.03.1979 | The crew locate a Federation Officer, Provine, who knows the location of the secret Central Control. They just have to go down to the planet Albion - but nothing is ever as simple as it seems. |
| Voice from the Past | 13.03.1979 | The ex - Arbiter General, Ven Glynd, has information which could put Servalan away for a very long time. He needs to have Blake's trust and confront the Council with what he knows. Blake believes a new era of peace may be dawning, but Avon is suspicious of the way Blake is acting ... |
| Gambit | 20/03/1979 | Blake believes Docholli knows the location of Star One, and has traced him to Freedom City, a gambler's paradise. Servalan has got there ahead of them though. |
| The Keeper | 27.03.1979 | Still on the trail of Star One's location, the rebels arrive at Goth, where they have been told the keeper of the secret can be found. Blake cannot resist the chance to destroy the lynchpin of the Federation. |
| Star One | 03.04.1979 | With the location of Star One, Blake plots its destruction. Travis, on the other hand, plots something much bigger - the destruction of the entire human race. Episode notes : Jenna's last episode; Brian Croucher's last episode as Travis; Blake's last episode as a regular character |
| TITLE | FIRST BROADCAST | DETAILS |
| Aftermath | 07.01.1980 | Star One has been destroyed and the Federation is in pieces. Avon is stranded on Sarran and is struggling to return to Liberator - however President Servalan has other ideas. Episode notes : introduces Dayna and Tarrant |
| Power Play | 14.01.1980 | Avon has managed to get back to the Liberator, but has to contend with some Federation visitors ... Meanwhile Vila and Cally's safe haven is rapidly becoming lethal. |
| Volcano | 21.01.1980 | The Federation is still in disarray, and Tarrant and Dayna are looking for new recruits on the planet Obsidian, a peaceful world which strangely was untouched during the galactic war. Then Servalan arrives ... |
| Dawn of the Gods | 28.01.1980 | The Liberator is apparently out of control and heading for uncharted space. A black hole suddenly appears on the scanners and the Thaarn reaches out to Cally from her childhood stories. |
| Harvest of Kairos | 04.02.1980 | The Liberator attacks a Federation freighter carrying Kairopan crystals, harvested from the planet Kairos, and the crystals are taken on board. One of Servalan's former subordinates is given a chance to catch the Liberator, and Servalan boards Liberator for the first time. |
| City at the Edge of the World | 11.02.1980 | The crew strike a deal for crystals needed for Liberator's weapons system. In exchange, Vila will help locate a treasure on the planet Keezarn - in doing so he finds a gateway to another world. |
| Children of Auron | 19.02.1980 | An episode in which the crew travel to Cally's homeworld of Auron. Servalan has introduced a plague to its people, and the crew attempt to save them. Servalan uses this plan as bait to get the Liberator, and also to make clones in her image, the only offspring she feels she could trust. |
| Rumours of Death | 25.02.1980 | Avon wants to hunt down the Federation inquisitor, Shrinker, who was responsible for the death of his lover Anna Grant. However, he finds Anna is alive, and working for the Federation - but is this just a recent development ? |
| Sarcophagus | 03.03.1980 | The Liberator finds a drifting ship, and the artifacts on board have a very strange effect on Cally. An aline attempting to avoid death has possessed her, and it is up to Avon to try and break its hold on her. |
| Ultraworld | 10.03.1980 | The rebels reach the planet Ultraworld, and discover that it is a mental reprocessing plant. Vila manages to save the crew by telling riddles to Orac. |
| Moloch | 17.03.1980 | The Liberator almost crashes into an invisible planet, Sardos. Tarrant is teleported onto a ship bound for Sardos, and Servalan shows up, is interested in the matter replication technology developed by the inhabitants of the planet. |
| Death-Watch | 24.03.1980 | The Teal and Vandor systems are at war, and a representative of each is chosen for a battle. Tarrant kills the warrior who was responsible for his brother's death. |
| Terminal | 31.03.1980 | Unbeknowst to the rest of the crew, Avon secretly takes over the ship and flies it through a field
containing enzymes which eat away at the Liberator's hull. He is heading for the artificial planetoid Terminal, where he believes Blake is living - but is it really Blake, and will everyone escape alive ? Episode notes : Cally's last episode; Liberator is destroyed, therefore Zen's last appearance; Blake makes penultimate appearance |
| TITLE | FIRST BROADCAST | DETAILS |
| Rescue | 28.09.1981 | The remaining crew are rescued from Terminal by Dorian, whose youthful appearance hides a dark secret in the caverns below his base. Dorian tries to get Orac to help him build him a teleport system for his ship, Scorpio, and tries to kill the rest of the crew. Episode notes : introduces Soolin, and Slave, the Scorpio's computer |
| Power | 05.10.1981 | The Scorpio is rendered inaccessible by a complex security system, and is stolen by a native of the planet, who attempts to escape. Avon manages to complete a teleport system with Orac's assistance. |
| Traitor | 12.10.1981 | The Federation has a new pacification drug, and the planet Helotrix is one of many that are falling victim. Dayna and Tarrant teleport down to investigate, and we discover that Servalan, deposed of her presidency, is back as Commissioner Sleer, having wiped all records connecting herself with the identity of Servalan. |
| Stardrive | 19.10.1981 | Scorpio's engines are damaged in collison with an asteroid, and the crew search for an ex-Federation scientist, Dr. Plaxton, now working for a terrorist group. Plaxton has developed an experimental stardrive, but can it be installed in time to save everyone ? |
| Animals | 26.10.1981 | Dayna contacts an old friend, Justin, to seek help with synthesizing an antidote to the Federation pacification drug. Servalan learns of Scorpio's visit to Justin's planet, and of his genetic research. |
| Headhunter | 02.11.1981 | The crew rescue a protege of Ensor's (Orac's creator), who turns out to be an android seeking to unite with Orac. |
| Assassin | 09.11.1981 | Servalan sets a trap for the crew, and lures them to an assassin's ship. The question is, just who is the assassin and who the rescued prisoner ? |
| Games | 16.11.1981 | The scientist Belkov has stripped a planet of a valuable crystalline substance and tries to double cross both Servalan and the Scorpio crew in an attempt to escape with the private stash he has collected. He is aided by his computer, an amalgamation of a standard Federation computer and a pleasure planet gaming machine. He has, however, reckoned without Orac. |
| Sand | 23.11.1981 | Servalan decides to personally investigate when a team sent to analyse a planet with an unknown, potentially useful, substance are killed. The crew learn of her intention and follow her there. However the sand of the title may not be as innocuous as it sounds. |
| Gold | 30.11.1981 | The crew plan to steal a shipment of atomically altered gold, en route from the planet Xeroc. The gold is hidden on an ordinary passenger ship - the enterprise turns into a major loss however. |
| Orbit | 07.12.1981 | Avon is offered a powerful weapon, the Tachyon funnel, by the scientist Egrorian. In exchange he wants Orac. However Servalan is behind the deal, and plans to double cross Avon to obtain both the weapon and Orac. While escaping from the planet, Avon and Vila are put into a life threatening situation when the ship is being pulled back down, and they have to lose weight to break orbit. Will Avon sacrifice anything or any*one* ? |
| Warlord | 14.12.1981 | Avon attempts to negotiate an alliance between three warring worlds, to fight against the Federation pacification drug. However the Xenon base is sabotaged by explosives and a deadly virus, and it is a race against time to rescue everyone. Tarrant falls in love with the daughter of the saboteur. Episode notes : Servalan's final appearance |
| Blake | 21.12.1981 | Orac has tracked Blake down to the planet Gauda Prime. The crew travel there, leaving the now destroyed and defunct Xenon base behind. Scorpio is attacked on approach and crash lands on the surface. The crew search for Blake, only to find that he may have sold out to the Federation ... Episode notes : destruction of Scorpio and Slave; apparent death of Blake; the fate of all the characters remains unresolved ... |
Sources
The Blake's 7 FAQ at Lysator, by Sue Clerc
Dates of first broadcast in the UK from the Fabulous Films Blake's 7 videos and the B7 Titles and Airdates Guide
Episode synopses helped along by the B7 Episode Synopsis page at hawks, the Fabulous Films video sleeves, and personal experience !
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Blake's 7 characters and concepts are copyright Terry Nation, programmes are copyright of the BBC.
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Last update April 30th 2002.