"No good living in the past, got to look after the future, right?"
Raven, a 15-year-old Borstal boy, is released on probation to live with Professor Young, an archaeologist immersed in research into Arthurian legend, and his wife, an amateur ornithologist.
The professor is working in deep underground caves whose carved symbols suggest that King Arthur may have used them as a hiding place, and Raven is intrigued by his belief that Arthur was not one man, but a succession of chiefs. But the professor’s research in is peril: the government plans to build a nuclear waste reprocessing plant on the ancient site.
As Raven is drawn into the battle to save the cave system, he begins to understand its mysteries - and the brightly coloured bird that has accompanied him on his journey holds the key to the discovery of his own unique destiny.
Future Quadrophenia star Phil Daniels is Raven, alongside Michael Aldridge and Patsy Rowlands, in this six-part fantasy series, in which occult and supernatural themes are interwoven with environmental concerns. Raven was written by Jeremy Burnham and Trevor Ray, creators of the groundbreaking Children of the Stones, and received a BAFTA nomination for Best Graphics.
ATV 1977, 25 minutes, ITV. Series Directed by Michael Hart, Series Writing credits: Jeremy Burnham & Trevor Ray, Series Produced by Colin Shindler, Series Production Design by John Hickson. Cast: Phil Daniels: Raven, Michael Aldridge: Prof. James Young, Patsy Rowlands: Mrs. Young, Shirley Cheriton: Naomi Grant & James Kerry: Bill Telford.
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I love this series. I had memories of watching it as a kid. A few years back my friend tracked down 2 episodes and was informed that the remainder no longer existed. Resigned to the fact that I'd never see the whole thing again, I bought and devoured the novel, only for Network DVD to suddenly release it on DVD, complete! Bravo, Network DVD!
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