- "They erased areas of your mind, they implanted new ideas. They literally took your mind to pieces and rebuilt it. And when they'd finished, they put you up and you confessed. You said you'd been "misguided." You appealed to everyone to support the Administration, hound up the traitors. Oh, they, they did a good job on you. You were very convincing. And then they took you back and erased even that."
- ―Bran Foster
| "The Way Back" | |
|---|---|
| Series Blake's 7 Season 1, Episode 1 | |
| |
| Air date | January 2nd, 1978 |
| Writers | Terry Nation |
| Director | Michael E. Briant |
| Producers | David Maloney |
| Starring | Gareth Thomas; Sally Knyvette; Michael Keating; Robert Beatty; Robert James; Steven Pacey; Michael Halsey |
| Episode guide | |
| Previous — |
Next "Space Fall" |
"The Way Back" is the first episode of series one of the British science fiction television series Blake's 7. It was directed by Michael E. Briant with a script written by Terry Nation. It first aired on Monday, January 2nd, 1978 on BBC One. In this episode, Roj Blake is a former leader of the resistance against the Federation, but he has been brainwashed to forget his involvement. When a massacre against resistance members takes place, the Federation decides to frame Blake rather than execute him, so as to not make him a martyr to the cause. Blake's friends in the Resistance try to restore his true memories and Blake learns the truth.
Synopsis[]
Cast[]
Principal cast[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Gareth Thomas | Roj Blake |
| Sally Knyvette | Jenna Stannis |
| Michael Keating | Vila Restal |
| Robert Beatty | Bran Foster |
| Robert James | Ven Glynd |
| Steven Pacey | Del Tarrant |
| Michael Halsey | Tel Varon |
Guest starring[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Pippa Steel | Maja Varon |
| Gillian Bailey | Ravella |
| Alan Butler | Dal Richie |
| Margaret John | Arbiter |
| Peter Williams | Doctor Havant |
| Susan Field | Alta Morag |
| Rodney Figaro | Clerk of the court |
| Nigel Lambert | Computer operator |
| Gary McDermott | Guard |
| Alan Crisp | Prisoner |
| Barry Hayes | Citizen/Prisoner |
| Christopher Holmes | Federation trooper |
| Derek Holt | Citizen/prisoner |
| Mort Jackson | Federation trooper |
| Mike Mungarvan | Prisoner |
| Beryl Nesbitt | Screaming woman |
| Peter Roy | Citizen/Prisoner |
| Les Shannon | Federation trooper |
| Sandy Sinclair | Federation trooper |
| Barry Summerford | Federation trooper |
| Derek Suthern | Federation trooper |
| Reg Thomason | Prisoner |
| Reg Turner | Prisoner |
Notes & Trivia[]
- Pilot episode of the series.
- This is the only episode of the series that doesn't feature the character of Kerr Avon (Paul Darrow). Kerr makes his debut appearance in "Space Fall".