Sky One brings cult series Blake's 7 back to TV

Sky has ordered two one-hour scripts of the drama, which originally aired between 1978 and 1981, and is looking at the possibility of it becoming a series.

The episodes have been commissioned by Elaine Pyke, commissioning editor of drama at Sky One, Two and Three. The show is being developed by Andrew Mark Sewell at Blake 7 Productions, a subsidiary of Blake 7 Media.

Pyke said: "At a time when science fiction shows often discard good story-telling for overblown visual effects -- and following the lead of Doctor Who and Battlestar Galactica -- the time is ripe for a revival of a show that represents the best traditions of the genre, not to mention one of the best-loved and most successful dramas of all time."

'Blake's 7' was created by Terry Nation, who is most famous for inventing the Daleks for 'Doctor Who'.

It follows the tribulations of Roj Blake, the head of a group of rebels who have taken control of the powerful spaceship, the Liberator. They are battling the oppressive regime known as The Federation.

The show was renowned for its dark feel and sombre tone, and for its emphasis on storylines rather than the odd creatures that its characters come across as they travel the universe.

The series is credited as an inspiration for 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and 'Babylon 5', and was voted as the public's favourite television show in a British Film Institute poll.

Recent original dramas to be commissioned by Sky One include Terry Pratchett's 'Going Postal' and 'The Take and the Graft', based on the Martina Cole novel.