Top 5 Blake's 7 crew members

Created by Terry Nation (the man who invented the Daleks), Blake's 7 was the BBC's answer to Star Wars. It was the talk of the playground in 1978 and quickly became the must see programme for boys under twelve. When Blue Peter showed us how to make a Liberator transporter bracelet its similarity to those seen on screen hinted at the budget the show was working with. Despite this the programme grew in popularity thanks mainly to an eclectic cast of characters, not least Servalan the Federation Supreme Commander who provided the lead villain. Servalan was played superbly by Jacqueline Pearce who provided a mixture of fear and sexual tension whilst creating a persona that seemed like a hybrid of Margaret Thatcher and Darth Vader. The crew themselves were a rogues gallery of criminals and freedom fighters who appeared doomed to failure but always found a way to survive.

1. Vila Restal (Michael Keating) - Natural thief and lock cracker with a high sense of self preservation bordering on cowardice.



2. Kerr Avon (Paul Darrow) - Cold hearted pragmatist who retained a dry sense of humour and provided some of the show's wittiest moments when vocally sparring with Vila.



3. Roj Blake (Gareth Thomas) - Idealistic leader of the resistance movement who managed to break free of Federation brain washing to lead the team of rebels with a cause.



4. Cally (Jan Chappell) - Telepathic humanoid alien who began the series as a hardened rebel freedom fighter but became a bit of a mystical hippy.



5. Olag Gan (David Jackson) - Gentle giant who provided the hint of muscle but had a Federation limiter implanted in his brain to prevent him from killing.



The other two members of the original seven were former smuggler Jenna Stannis (Sally Knyvette) and the Liberator's partly telepathic computer Zen (voiced by Peter Tuddenham). Read more about the series at Betty's Guide to Blake's 7