The following files are available for FREQ anytime except 4:00 to 7:30 am.
If you don't have access to FREQ I can put files onto floppy for you if you
send a floppy and return postage to me at P.O. Box 523, Moonee Ponds, 3039,
Vic.



b7addres.zip    10786  19-01-94  23:33 b7credit.zip     7470  19-01-94 
23:32 blake_re.zip    51016  19-01-94  23:34



B7addres is an address file, containg addresses for fan magazines, actors
and so forth. I think I'll post the Australian sections in the next
message.



b7credit is a complete set of credits; all the actors identified.



blake_re is a text about Blakes 7, it seems to be either a very
comphrensive review or perhaps a thesis. Just as a sampler from it: (and
all the headings)



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                           BLAKE REVISITED



Third Edition, July 1993.                         Copyright F. Teagle



                              The Story

                              ---------



                                Sources

                                -------



                              The Drama

                              ---------



                  The Federation and it's society

                  -------------------------------



The Federation society depicted in Blake's 7 is far from comfortable and is
often described as a dystopia.  This pessimistic forecast belongs to a 20th
century British trend beginning with H G Wells and typified by Orwell's
"1984" (written in 1948) and Huxley's "Brave New
World", forward projections of Stalinism and the perverted science of
two world wars. The former illustrates the naked violence of the `Big
Brother' state and the latter depicts a drugged and conditioned population
denied the right to grow up by its masters. Both elements are to be found
in the Federation.



With the possible exception of Gan, the main protagonists have never been
married and very few couples appear (Varon and Maja in `The Way



[etc, for another 5 screenfuls]



                           The Characters

                           --------------



                                Cast



GAN           Not the muscleman of conventional drama.  Although normally
gentle and protective (he is several times seen wielding the medical kit),
he is the only member of the crew convicted of a violent crime (he took a
Federation guard apart with his bare hands after the killing of his woman).
 He has been fitted with a brain implant to prevent him from killing again.
 While he can cheerfully throw opponents around in a melee, he is unable to
fire a gun at anybody or kill them with his hands until the implant
malfunctions (Breakdown), when his immense physique makes him very
dangerous.



Presumably a Delta Grade citizen like Vila, Gan is relatively uneducated
but he is far from simple-minded, being naturally good-mannered and
well-spoken. He makes efforts at self-improvement and can be seen using
Orac as a learning machine.  He becomes a useful crewman after Jenna's
training. Gan is usually a firm and comforting support to Blake
("Another one who's willing to let Blake do his thinking for him"
- Avon), but not, in fact, totally uncritical. Transparently honest and
forthright, he is dismayed at Blake's proposal to use the Terra Nostra
crime syndicate for his own ends and protests strongly ("Think what it
is they control;  everything dirty, degrading and cruel on just about every
colonized world.").



Well-liked by the rest of the crew, Gan is difficult to quarrel with, even
Avon doesn't often sharpen his tongue on him. His death is the first major
tragedy of the series.



Casting:   Very Good.  Avoids the "dumb ox" characterisation.





TRAVIS II           The replacement, 2nd series.  The first Travis has been
replaced by a younger man and appears to have been considerably demoted by
the transformation.  During his first appearance (Weapon) he refers to his
visits for retraining to a psychiatric institution which appears to have
altered his personality and undermined his confidence.  The resulting
character, although more overtly vicious than Travis-1, is not so
formidable and frightening.  He projects a more proletarian image,
particularly vocally, and he finds Servalan difficult to cope with.  She
manifests increasing contempt and threatens to sent him to the slave pits
when he is no longer useful.



However, the character grows in stature at subsequent appearances. It is
Servalan's fault that his trap in the fake control centre (Pressure Point)
fails.  She throws him to the wolves in an attempt to cover up her own
failure and he is brought to trial for the massacre of civilians three
years previously.  Travis offers the defence that he acted upon instinct
and an officer's instincts are a result of his training, therefore his
judges are as guilty as he is. Delivered with passion, this argument shakes
them, but they condemn him nevertheless. The watching Servalan comments
that it is a pity he's got to die, since she has nobody half as good left
to replace him and she is not unhappy when he escapes during Blake's
punitive strike at her HQ.



In his remaining episodes, Travis's relationship with Servalan alternates
between unofficial agent and fugitive.  After the failure of his attempt to
capture Liberator for himself (Hostage), Servalan, who has been tipped off
by Avon, finds him defenceless, but allows him to go, on the agreement that
if he delivers Blake to her, she will post him as dead ("There's
no-one as free as a dead man.") Their next joint effort (Voice from
the Past) narrowly fails and Travis flees. He attaches himself to the
runaway Docholee, not so much to locate Star One, as to trap Blake.
Servalan decides to sacrifice him in order to kill Docholee and Blake with
a grenade placed in his artificial arm (Gambit).  Even after this betrayal,
they recombine to track Lurgan's brain print on Goth (The Keeper), but it
is at this point that Travis deserts her, when Servalan rejects his
suggestion that they combine to rule the Federation through Star One. 
Realizing that she will never share power with him, and loathing the whole
human race, he allies himself with the invading Andromedans for the
ultimate revenge (Star One).  This time Blake does not stay Avon's hand and
Travis finally meets his fate.



Casting:   While it is difficult to follow such a strong actor as the
previous incumbent, this performance is better judged on its own merits,
which are considerable, with no reference to its predecessor.



                         Notable Transients

                         ------------------



RAIKER   (Space Fall)         Malevolent first officer of the London. Makes
dishonourable advances to Jenna and blackmails Blake  into surrender by
shooting unarmed prisoners.  Sucked out of the transfer tube when Jenna
closes the airlock and moves Liberator away. Convincingly nasty performance
by Leslie Schofield.



LEYLAN  (Space Fall)         Captain of the London.  Basically fair-minded
but weak enough to agree to give Raiker a free hand in dealing with the
rebels, although he knows the man is capable of savage behaviour.  Glyn
Owen plays a worn and rather demoralised man, ending his career on a prison
ship.



NOVA   (Space Fall)         Friendly convict who helps Blake in his escape
attempt.  His reward is to be trapped and suffocated by "sealing
gel" while crawling along the service duct.  Such an innocent looking
lad (Tom Kelly), how did he earn his passage on the London?



VARGAS   (Cygnus Alpha)         Megalomaniac high priest ruling the penal
colony, deservedly teleported into empty space by Blake when he attempts to
seize the Liberator.  Outrageous performance by Brian Blessed,  who makes
it a rule to enjoy this kind of thing.



KARA  (Cygnus Alpha)          Vargas's beautiful lieutenant. She develops a
soft spot for Gan and saves his life at the expense of her own. Pamela
Salem.



LARAN  (Cygnus Alpha)         Convict squad leader who tries to kill Blake
on his first brief teleport trip.  He is no "believer", more
power is all he wants.  Robert Russell.



                           The Spacecraft

                           --------------



                            The Computers

                            -------------



ZEN           The Liberator's master computer, controller of the battle and
navigation computers, the engines and weaponry, and the life support
system. Zen's responsibility is to the ship itself, rather than the crew,
which enables it to refuse to answer questions and ignore commands if they
conflict with this mandate.



First contact is made with Zen when Jenna places her hand on a sensory pad
during an exploratory session and establishes some sort of telepathic
communication with it.  Zen accepts her as the ship's pilot and opens a
vocal channel to the others in the lofty tones of a senior civil servant. 
Zen's independence is sometimes dangerous, it disrupts the teleport,
marooning Blake and Jenna aboard an alien craft and refuses to admit the
craft to Liberator's hold, although it does not prevent Avon from
performing this task manually (Time Squad). When the crew venture into
forbidden territory (as defined by the ship's original owners) it shuts
down completely, taking all the other computers with it, thus creating a
dangerous systems instability. Avon manages to override it and restore
partial service at a crucial moment.  Given this amount of free will, its
inability to circumvent Cally's sabotage because interference with crew
activities before any damage is actually done is forbidden, is a little
strange.



Casting:         A dispassionate upper-class voice synchronised with
flashing lights ("Your species requires a visual reference
point") gives Zen a remote, austere personality.  Very well done.



                          The Production

                          --------------



COSTUME DESIGN           Standard Federation civilian costume consists

SET DESIGN          "The style is Early Maniac" says Vila,  who has a

STUNTS          As always, stunts are hampered by the need to keep the

MUSIC          The music generally utilises a small ensemble and has

SPECIAL EFFECTS          Cut-price and riddled with mistakes.  Forget

DIALOGUE          The chief glory of the series.  Each character,



                           Final Remarks

                           -------------



More than a decade has gone by since Blake's 7 was shown in Britain.
Viewers still remember it as being quite out of the ordinary and calls for
a rerun are frequently heard.  In the US, Canada and Australia it is
generally running somewhere most of the time.  The amount of comment on the
USENET NEWS and the existence of a mailing list bears testimony to its
undiminished pulling power. The debate about its stark ending rages on,
many alternative explanations of the final shoot-out are offered, along
with scripts for a continuation.  A large fan-fiction industry has sprung
up, which is itself the subject of scholarly enquiry.



A great deal of thought goes into analysing the characters and their
actions. What makes the series particularly unusual, is the way a character
other than hero or villain becomes the pivotal point of the whole drama. 
The brooding and ambivalent Avon struck a chord with vast numbers of
viewers and the amount of network time devoted to this character reflects
this fascination, which was obviously felt by script writers as well.  A
combination of felicitous casting and excellent writing gives this series
an unforgettable flavour.



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I am starting to think that I should post hunks of this from time to time. :+>



Audrey



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