Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Michael Keating, Anthony Howell.

Even amongst a tight band of renegades and misfits there will always be the one outcast who is different enough from the rest to make him a prime target for an introverted and perhaps self-contained lifestyle, even if that person deep down wants to be part of the group that he is associated with.

The second episode of the first series of Big Finish’s Blake’s 7, The Liberator Chronicles, sees the attention shift to Vila, played by Michael Keating. Perhaps the most amiable of all the crew on the Liberator, his natural tendency for cowardice gets in the way of him becoming a true hero in a band of Federation designated outlaws. His likeable character though could be seen at times at playing down the ladder of important story lines that the television series ran in the late 70s and early 80s, with much of the concentration of the action spread around the likes of Avon and Rog Blake. In Nigel Farris’ audio drama Solitary, Michael Keating is afforded that honour of being the star, of carrying a script with just one other actor, the very distinguished Anthony Howell of Foyle’s War fame.

Finding himself in solitary confinement, no memory of who he is or why he is being treated even more like a criminal and outcast than normal, Vila is taken through the events leading up to his incarceration by Blake and the others by a strange man who seems to know Vila and offers him hope and protection. Not all is what it seems though and it brings up the interesting moral dilemma of who has the right to live firmly in to the laps of Blake’s 7’s immense fan base.

Whereas Avon’s solitude, the keen sense of distrust and cautious secretive manner marks him out as one of life’s natural loners, he is still part of Blake’s team, Vila on the other hand is a thief, a man whose actions lead him to a solitary life, keeping his secrets, his desires, perhaps even closer to his chest than Avon could actually ever do himself. These are the secrets that he would never betray, not even to himself.

Anthony Howell is a fine addition to the outstanding actors who made their way into the show in its initial run on television and is one of those fine breed of actors whose vocal ability, the purity of voice, in which makes them have an authority beyond the confines of television. His portrayal of Nyrron, a scientist from Auron who helps Vila discover the terrifying secret of Dulcimer 4,is as near-perfect as you could hope it to be and he plays off Michael Keating’s growing insecurity superbly well.

To have Michael Keating reprise his television role of Vila in full is a godsend to the fans, perhaps the most likeable character on board The Liberator, his story deserves to be told.

Blake’s 7, The Liberator Chronicles Series One is available to purchase from Worlds Apart, Lime Street, Liverpool.

Ian D. Hall