Just imagine what would happen if Terry Nation tried to get B7 made today.....
"Terry Nation's original series idea for the cult sci-fi drama was vetoed by the BBC. "Too downbeat, too politically incorrect, the Federation could be seen as a coded attack on the EU". Undeterred Nation submitted a rewrite for the series".
Space Command was the tale of heroic Galactic Peacekeepers Roj Blake and Kerr Avon, who flew round the galaxy bringing peace and goodwill to all sentient lifeforms. They reported to the head of the Federation, Blairvalan whose Space Command Headquarters bore an uncanny resemblance to the Millenium Dome. The two episodes which became classics were "Deliverance" and "The Final Act".
Deliverance: Teleporting to the planet Cephlon, our heroes encountered Meegat, who tells them the sad history of her planet. Touched by her innocence our heroes take their ship "The Conran" back in time to the era of the civil war. There they save Cashell the wise and evacuate the feuding factions, ancestors of Meegats people and the savages, to distant ends of the galaxy, thus obviating the need for any sub-Freudian stock footage of the NASA space programme. Returning to their own time however they realise that their intervention has had a terrible effect. Space Command no longer exists and their ship is boarded by Commander Meegat of the Galactic Eighth Fleet and commandeered to fight in the Galactic war fought by the descendants of the two factions.....
The Final Act: Blake and Avon are exiled to a distant planet where they encounter Blairvalan, not as in their reality a wise leader but an unsuccessful musician with a drink problem. Avon helps Blairvalan through detox. Meanwhile Blake discovers that the change in history was caused by Renegade Space Commander Sandelmon (played by Brian Croucher at his maddest), whose thwarted ambition to become co-presenter with Terry Christian of a cult 80's yoof TV show "The Word, The WORD !!!" has led him to betray the galaxy to the Andromedans. Just as all hell is about to break loose, Avon and Blairvalan hack into Star One and play Blairavan's new song "Love, Peace, Groovy, Yeah". The conflicting factions, Sandelmon and the Andromedans see the error of their ways. In a final heartwarming scene Blake, Avon, The leaders of the two factions, Meegat, Space Commander Sandelmon, The Andromedan Commander, Terry Christian, Carl Gustav Jung and Ben Steed all join Blairvalan round the fireside of his delightful Islington home where they all join in a chorus of Nicole's 1982 Eurovision hit "A little loving".
Nah ! Give me flares, dodgy special effects and snarling any day of the week !
____________________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get your free @yahoo.co.uk address at http://mail.yahoo.co.uk or your free @yahoo.ie address at http://mail.yahoo.ie
Stephen Date wrote:
Just imagine what would happen if Terry Nation tried to get B7 made today.....
Stephen, this is too funny.
"Terry Nation's original series idea for the cult sci-fi drama was vetoed by the BBC. "Too downbeat, too politically incorrect, the Federation could be seen as a coded attack on the EU".
Inspired...
the head of the Federation, Blairvalan
That's a deeply frightening image...
Renegade Space Commander Sandelmon
But that's more frightening...
whose thwarted ambition to become co-presenter with Terry Christian of a cult 80's yoof TV show "The Word, The WORD !!!"
<groan>
In a final heartwarming scene Blake, Avon, The leaders of the two factions, Meegat, Space Commander Sandelmon, The Andromedan Commander, Terry Christian, Carl Gustav Jung and Ben Steed all join Blairvalan round the fireside of his delightful Islington home where they all join in a chorus of Nicole's 1982 Eurovision hit "A little loving".
<Una runs from list screaming>
Una
-
Stephen Date -
Una McCormack