From: sclerc{at}andy.bgsu.edu (Pseu)

BLAKE'S 7

22. "Countdown"
by Terry Nation
directed by Vere Lorrimer

(c) 1979 by the British Broadcasting Corporation.  Series created by
Terry Nation.  This is a partial dialogue transcript for research
purposes and is not for sale under any circumstances.  Format (c) 1993
by Susan Clerc and Micky DuPree.

Dramatis Personae:

Roj Blake --        Gareth Thomas
Jenna Stannis --    Sally Knyvette
Kerr Avon--         Paul Darrow
Cally --        Jan Chappell
Vila Restal --      Michael Keating
Del Grant --        Tom Chadbon
Provine --      Paul Shelley
Cauder --       James Kerry
Ralli --        Lindy Alexander
Selson --       Robert Arnold
Tronos --       Geoffrey Snell
Vetnor --       Sidney Kean
Arrian --       Nigel Gregory

Walk-ons:

Derek Suthern           Peter Caton
Tony Snell              Robert Smythe
Ray Knight              Len Gilbey
Ernie Goodyear          Peter Roy
Toby Byrne

NOTE: _________________ indicates an indecipherable word or phrase.


[Albian. Federation guards in black and rebels in green 
uniforms fight at a building entrance amid explosions, 
gun fire, and smoke]

[Federation control room, Albian. Tronos sits at a console 
to the left of the main door. Selson and Provine stand at 
another console to the right until Selson crosses the room 
to look into the corridor]
TRONOS:     Selson.
SELSON:     Sir.
TRONOS:     [Points to the screen on his console] That's 
        the third staircase, isn't it?
SELSON:     Yes, sir [The console screen displays a metal 
        staircase] They're getting closer every minute, 
        sir.
TRONOS:     I can see that. 
[Selson crosses to Provine at the other console]
PROVINE:    Where are they now?
SELSON:     They're just about [Points to a spot on a grid] 
        here, sir.

[Federation guards running in a corridor, pursued by rebels. 
Explosions, gun fire, smoke, debris, hand to hand combat. One 
guard manages to reach an intercom on the wall]

[Control room. The communicator chimes. Tronos and Selson pick 
up communicators]
TRONOS:     [Into communicator] Control. Mm. Right. [Gives 
        Selson a data card which he takes over to 
        Provine]
SELSON:     The Albians have broken though into the outer 
        gallery, sir. The field commander reports that 
        despite severe losses, our men are putting up 
        a courageous defense.
PROVINE:    Yes, spare me the propaganda, Selson. Can he 
        hold them?
SELSON:     He's concentrating what's left of his force to 
        make a stand at level three, sir.
PROVINE:    If they beat him at level three, there's little 
        margin left.
SELSON:     He'll hold them, sir.
PROVINE:    I'd like a little more reassurance than your 
        blind patriotism, Selson. Put the status report 
        on the computer and run a probability program.
SELSON:     Sir.

[More guards and rebels fighting in corridors amid explosions 
and debris]

[Provine in the corridor outside control room. He hears 
explosions, dirt falls from the ceiling, he returns to control 
room]
PROVINE:    [Enters] They're dropping bombs down the air 
        shafts now.
SELSON:     Computer analysis indicates a ninety-three 
        percent probability that the Albians will 
        overwhelm our defenses and take control
            of the entire complex.
PROVINE:    On the evidence of that projection, we have 
        no alternative. We must activate.
SELSON:     Sir?!
PROVINE:    Tronos, lock the door.
TRONOS:     Sir?
PROVINE:    Lock the door!
SELSON:     Is there nothing else we can do, sir? It means 
        the death of millions. [He brings a box to 
        Provine at the console]
PROVINE:    The Albians have always known the penalty for 
        insurrection. Now they must pay the cost. [He 
        has inserted two tubes into the console]
SELSON:     But sir, there's still a seven percent 
        possibility we can contain the situation. 
        Couldn't we wait a little longer, sir? 
PROVINE:    No! Now, then, Tronos, you know what to do.
TRONOS:     I give you four minutes to reach the launch 
        area, then I activate. I then follow without 
        delay.
PROVINE:    Right. We'll see you at the ship. Four minutes.
[Provine and Selson exit through a door in the wall, opposite 
the door to the corridor, into an escape tunnel]

[Selson and Provine in the escape tunnel]

[Guards and rebels in a corridor]

[Tronos in the control room. Dirt falls from the ceiling]

[Guards in a corridor pursued by rebels]

[Selson and Provine in the escape tunnel. Explosion]
PROVINE:    Selson!
[Selson is down, apparently pinned by falling rock]
SELSON:     It's no good, sir. There's no way through; 
        it's blocked. You must try and get back, 
        sir -- you must try and get back and stop...
        ahhh...[Dies]

[Rebels in the corridor outside the control room, beating 
on the door]

[Scene cuts between the control room and corridor. Tronos 
mouths a countdown as he looks at his watch. He crosses the 
room. In the corridor, a rebel throws a grenade. In the 
control room, the door bursts open, Tronos dives for his gun, 
spins, and is shot]

GRANT:      ____________ 
[Grant, Cauder, and Ralli enter and move around the room. 
Tronos crawls up the console and reaches for a button]
CAUDER:     Del, stop him!
[Tronos activates the device and collapses, presumably dead]
GRANT:      It's started.
[The device ticks and displays a digital countdown -- 999, 
998, 997]
CAUDER:     I always thought they were bluffing. I never 
        thought that when it actually came to it 
        they'd REALLY activate!
GRANT:      You'd better believe it, Cauder.  Believe it 
        and do something fast. [Countdown 994, 993] 
        That thing is ticking away the lives of 
        everybody on this planet. I'd say we have 
        less than an hour.
CAUDER:     Ralli, get Vetnor up here -- I want to know 
        exactly what we're up against. And then put 
        out a general call for anybody who can give 
        help.
RALLI:      Right away.
GRANT:      [Takes Ralli by the hand] And when you've done 
        that, get this place cleaned up, get a casualty 
        report, and get some Federation prisoners for 
        questioning.
RALLI:      And while I'm doing all that, what are you 
        going to do?
GRANT:      [Patting her hand] Worry, that's what I'm going 
        to do -- worry.
RALLI:      You've got good cause [Exits]
GRANT:      Sorry, Cauder. I won you a battle, but I lost 
        you a war.
CAUDER:     Let's get communications started.

[Exterior of Liberator]

[Teleport section. Avon enters. Blake and Vila are standing 
together, Jenna passes by in background]
AVON:       I've got the read-out you wanted on Albian.
BLAKE:      Good.
AVON:       Nothing very special. Temperate climate in the 
        equatorial zone, but both polar regions are 
        uninhabitable. Temperatures remaining close to
            absolute zero.
VILA:       Sounds bracing.
BLAKE:      Population?
AVON:       Approximately six million. It was colonized 
        in the last century of the Old Calendar. At 
        first they resisted political affiliation, but 
        then they joined the Federation, and they
            have remained unswervingly loyal.
VILA:       Then they're not likely to welcome us with open 
        arms.
BLAKE:      I hope we're not going to be there long enough 
        to sample their hospitality. This is a fast hit 
        and run.
AVON:       What are we after?
BLAKE:      A Federation officer called Provine. His service 
        record shows he's served with Central Control. I 
        hope he might be able to tell us quite a lot 
        about where they've moved it to.
CALLY:      [Enters and puts data card on console. Jenna, 
        seated at console, picks it up] There's something 
        coming in from Albian.
BLAKE:      What is it?
CALLY:      Well, it's a very weak signal but as far as I 
        can make out there's been some fighting. The main 
        text is just a general call for technical 
        assistance and it's repeated over and over again.
JENNA:      Could be some sort of uprising.
BLAKE:      [To Jenna] Get a locator fix on the signal.
CALLY:      It's already pinpointed.
BLAKE:      Well done. Alright, Avon, get kitted up. You 
        too, Vila.
VILA:       Good, terrific -- I'm really looking forward 
        to this. Danger, excitement, sudden death -- 
        I can't wait.
BLAKE:      What's the matter with you, don't you ever 
        give up?
JENNA:      That's it, Blake -- navigation plot completed. 
        We're locked into stationary orbit within 
        teleport range of planet Albian.
BLAKE:      [To Vila] Get your gear.

[Exterior of Liberator in orbit]

[Control room]
VETNOR:     [Straightens up from inspecting the device] 
        I don't know, just don't know. Some of the 
        circuitry's fairly basic, that I understand
        ...the rest --
CAUDER:     Oh, come on, Vetnor, there must be something 
        you can do! This is life and death, it must 
        be stopped!
VETNOR:     There is one thing...might just work. Might, 
        I can't be sure. If I'm wrong --
GRANT:      We won't be here to worry, will we?
CAUDER:     Could it detonate?
VETNOR:     I don't know, there's always that risk.
GRANT:      Everything we've done so far has been risk. 
        We're getting very close to nothing to lose. 
        We've got to chance it.
CAUDER:     [To Vetnor] What is it you want to do?
VETNOR:     There's a main rotonoid link. If I cut 
        through its primary impulse vein, it might 
        break the circuit. Then again --
CAUDER:     It might not. We'll chance it.
[Vetnor reaches into the console and drops a tool, Grant and 
Cauder exchange looks. Vetnor pulls out some wires and cuts 
them. There is small explosion and the ticking that marks the 
countdown stops]
CAUDER:     We've stopped it!
[Countdown holds at 722...then starts ticking 721, 720]
GRANT:      It hiccoughed, that's all.
VETNOR:     Sorry. I don't know what else to try.
CAUDER:     That's alright, Vetnor -- you did what you 
        could. We'll think of something else.
[Ralli enters]
GRANT:      We've just taken another step towards 
        oblivion.
CAUDER:     What do you want, Ralli?
RALLI:      We've got some prisoners. You said you 
        wanted to question.
CAUDER:     Yes, I do! Is Space Major Provine amongst 
        them?
RALLI:      Well if he is he hasn't been identified yet. 
        I've got men checking the prisoners' 
        identity papers.
[Provine is listening to them from the escape tunnel]
GRANT:      [O.O.V.] What about the dead -- are you 
        checking them, too?
RALLI:      [O.O.V.] Yes, of course.
CAUDER:     [O.O.V.] Well, I hope for all our sakes' he 
        has survived. If he has, we have to find him 
        -- he's the only one who knows the complete 
        system.
GRANT:      [O.O.V.] How will we know him if we find him?
CAUDER:     [O.O.V.] By his identity papers and his 
        uniform. As far as I know, none of our people 
        have seen him.
GRANT:      Come on, let's get the questioning started.
CAUDER:     Ralli, you go through those files. Find the 
        plans for that thing. 
[Grant and Cauder leave]
RALLI:      Alright, Vetnor.
VETNOR:     I'm sorry I couldn't do the job. It needs 
        tools I haven't got.
RALLI:      Well, you'd better go and help look for 
        prisoners.
VETNOR:     Right. [Leaves]

[In the tunnel, Provine hides his identity card under a rock]

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