In terms of the way it LOOKED, it was a shambles. The set looked like a leftover from "Top of the Pops' in its greatest excess of glamrock. The spaceship appeared to be glued together from bits of old Airfix kits. The costumes consisted of a lot of kitchen accessories - strainers, peelers, etc - stuck on a slightly saggy lycra costume.
But the script! The acting! The ideas! They were truly wondrous. The characters were far from the stereotypes we have become used to. These actors were truly having to earn their money. At least one of the leads was distinctly surly and unpleasant (possibly something to do with him being saddled with the character name Avon, which meant whenever he contacted his base with his wrist radio he had to say "Avon calling"). The characters had motivation, and their passionately held beliefs came them a reason to be there. The script was intelligent, and treated the audience as if they understood the genre. The ideas behind the script were challenging, engaging, and even subversive. This programme truly made you engage your mind.
The programme was Blake's Seven, which became remarkable after the first series in that there were only five of them and none of them were called Blake. And it featured one of the most glorious female villains of all time, Servalan, who ruled the galaxy with a rod of pure titanium while wearing slinky dresses which showed off a figure to die for. (If Madeleine Albright had been able to wear dresses like that, we would never have had all that trouble in Serbia). One of the dresses had a strange frill which made it look as if the ruler of the galaxy was wearing a model of the Sydney Opera House on her shoulder, but we're not complaining right now.
Old - but still lessons to be learned
In short, here was a programme that is nearly 30 years old - and, to be truthful which LOOKED at least that - but which had a script and an honesty which we rarely see today in broadcast entertainment. Check out Paul James' excellent Blake's Seven site for an exhaustive examination of the series.
