Tony Attwood may be putting out a special edition of 'Afterlife', and perhaps a sequel. I found a link to his site at: http://www.blakes-7.co.uk and on following, it found some interesting information on: http://www.tonyattwood.co.uk/Blakes7.htm

I mailed Tony asking for more information about what was considered 'official', and what was originally planned, and got the very informative reply below.

Interesting that Terry Nation specified that Vila and Avon survive, and wanted a new series based on them. Does Paul Darrow know, I wonder? If they do go ahead with the B7:TNG TV series, which I heard is to be younger crew based around Avon, they really ought to have Vila as well, to satisfy Nation's wishes. And mine! I'd love to see Michael Keating back in the role.

Oh, I do wish they'd made the 5th season, and/or the planned new series!

Nico

-----Original Message----- From: Tony Attwood Sent: Wednesday, 12 December 2001 22:49 To: Nico Mody-Nikoloff Subject: Re: Afterlife

Thanks for the email.

I wrote Afterlife very much with Terry Nation's agreement, after it became clear that the planned 5th season was not going to go ahead because of copyright agreements over other matters involving Terry.

It was agreed that I could write it as I wished providing (and remember I am now working from memory from quite a few years ago)

a) The story line could be adapted into TV, if an agreement suddenly did occur. So the book actually runs as four episodes which just about hang together but which could work as TV in the sense that if you missed one you could make sense of the next.

b) Blake was dead - no funny attempts to bring him back

c) Vila and Avon live on.

The aim of all this was also to leave the door open for a totally different series based on Vila and Avon - and I certainly liked that idea. As Paul once said to me, "it's one man and his dog". It was a jokey comment, but quite right - and it works wonderfully. The two characters needed each other.

Afterlife, with the official Terry Nation and B7 logos was very much official - and Terry and I signed a contract about it.

The plan was then to do a second novel assuming that there was no movement on the TV series. This was "Blake's 7: State of Mind". But that did not happen. I remember saying, "OK guys let's do the next one," but Terry was busy in the states, and his agent said, "I think we should hold because something is happening at the BBC." Then I got the contract for Companions of Doctor Who, and then something else, and gradually the whole plan got lost. Sad, but such is the way of publishing.

Afterlife is now out of print, but I am thinking of doing a special limited edition, and will announce that when I am clear what the film situation is. I have not been in touch with anyone from the film, so I don't know about the rights, but I am told that Paul has bought up the rights to use the format. That doesn't invalidate anything earlier - it just gives him the rights to use B7 format for a film. I am sure the film will have nothing to do with Afterlife, because they will be doing their own thing, with no reference back.

The canon issue is therefore as so often very muddy. In the world of making the series and the books and film no one thinks of canon, only of buying rights and making a profit on the project.

Hope that helps tony

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