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Sapphire & Steel was a British television science-fiction series starring David McCallum as Steel and Joanna Lumley as Sapphire. Produced by ATV, it ran from 1979 to 1982 and was primarily ITV's answer to the BBC's Doctor Who. Most of the episodes were written by P. J. Hammond, who conceived the programme after a stay in a haunted castle.
Background
The programme centred on a pair of interdimensional operatives, the titular Sapphire and Steel. Very little was revealed about their purposes or backgrounds in the course of the series but they appeared to be engaged in ensuring time ran smoothly and nothing untoward happened with the structure of time. In the first serial, it was explained that time is like a corridor, but there were malignant entities on the outside of the corridor trying to get in. Sometimes, it was implied that time itself was the malignant force.
This could happen if there was a break in the corridor, most often caused by the presence of an anachronism, for example a child's nursery rhyme, a doctored photograph that mixed period and contemporary elements, or a house decorated to replicate a 1930s setting. Investigators would assess the situation and then, if intervention was warranted, Operators were assigned to deal with the problem by a mysterious unseen authority, to be assisted by Specialists if necessary.
The stories were generally quite cryptic, raising more questions than answers, and had an eerie air to them. The programme's use of simple but effective staging and minimal special effects actually contributed to the uneasy atmosphere. The ambiguous nature of the programme extended to its main characters. While Sapphire was portrayed as more effable and "human" than the no-nonsense, grim Steel, it was clear that their prime concern was to ensure the safety of time, sometimes over the safety of the humans caught in the incidents they investigated.
It was heavily implied that Sapphire and Steel were not human, given their abilities and manner. Steel, for example, often had gaps in his knowledge of human culture and even Sapphire's grace was tempered with a cool detachment from the humans they interacted with. In Adventure 5, Steel confirmed that they were alien, "in the extraterrestrial sense," but what this qualification means is not clear. The two also referred to being involved in the mystery of the Mary Celeste, and in one case stated they would be waiting for a ship to surface in seventy-five years. This could mean they were either exceptionately long-lived or some kind of time travel was involved.
Sapphire and Steel, who were Operators, were occasionally assisted by other operatives, including Lead and Silver. There were 127 operatives in total, including 12 transuranic elements, which could not be assigned where life existed. Although they were described as elements, the code names included non-elements like Jet, with whom Steel had been involved in the past. Sapphire, in turn, had been involved with Copper, and seemed to be in a relationship with Silver when he helped Steel and her on a case.
Among Sapphire's abilities was the power to manipulate time in small ways as well as divine the age or historical details of an object by touching it. Her most prominent ability was to "take back time," literally rewinding time in a localised area to see or replay the past. She also exhibited an ability to obtain information about people just by being close to them - their ages and backgrounds as well as psychological insights into their personality. Sometimes it appeared that she did not discover this information herself but was receiving the information telepathically from some external source. She could also manipulate people's emotions, and project illusions. When she used her powers, her eyes would usually glow blue.
Steel, on the other hand, could freeze himself to absolute zero which gave him the ability to destroy "ghosts", who were in actuality remnants of time. He also possessed immense strength (in Adventure 3 he tied knots in elevator cables to prevent the elevator from being used) and a degree of invulnerability. He exhibited telekinetic abilities, being able to paralyse people with a look, weld metal with his bare hands or undo deadbolts with a gesture.
The other operatives that appeared also had special powers. Silver, a Specialist who was specified as a Technician, was good with electronics and gadgets, even being able to create small objects out of nothing. Lead, on the other hand, possessed superhuman strength and could act as needed insulation for Steel when he froze himself to extreme temperatures. The operatives could also communicate telepathically with each other, and in one instance Sapphire granted this ability to a human being.
Each adventure would start with Sapphire and Steel simply showing up, seemingly out of nowhere, although often they were already present when the story started. Usually, they would investigate and mingle with various humans, although it was nearly always the location the humans were in which was of the most interest - an old house which dated back to the English Civil War, an abandoned railway station, a 1940s-era motorway café, and so on.
Although the series lasted over a period of four years, only 6 serials consisting of a total of 34 episodes were made, each episode lasting approximately 25 minutes. Eventually, the series ended in 1982, due to the increasing production costs, the sporadic availability of high-profile actors Lumley and McCallum for shooting and finally the reorganization of ATV into the new Central Independent Television.
The last story ended on a cliffhanger. Apparently resentful of the operatives' independence, a higher authority sent entities similar to the operatives but from the past, known as Transient Beings, who set a trap for them in the aforementioned café. The serial concluded with Sapphire and Steel being trapped in the café, floating through space, seemingly for all eternity. The cliffhanger has never been resolved, although Hammond has stated that Sapphire and Steel could be freed from that trap if needed.
Episodes Each episode began with the following prologue: - All irregularities will be handled by the forces controlling each dimension. Transuranic, heavy elements may not be used where there is life. Medium atomic weights are available: Gold, Lead, Copper, Jet, Diamond, Radium, Sapphire, Silver and Steel. Sapphire and Steel have been assigned.
For episode three of Adventure 4 and for all of Adventure 6, Lead's place in the prologue was replaced by Mercury (who was mentioned but never seen). If the series had continued, Mercury would have made an appearance.
The six adventures were as follows:
Season One
- Adventure 1: Escape Through a Crack in Time (6 episodes) which aired in 1979.
- Adventure 2: The Railway Station (8 episodes) which aired in 1979.
Season Two - Adventure 3: The Creature's Revenge (6 episodes) which aired in 1981.
- Adventure 4: The Man Without a Face (4 episodes) which aired in 1981.
Season Three - Adventure 5: Dr McDee Must Die (6 episodes) which aired in 1981.
Season Four - Adventure 6: The Trap (4 episodes) which aired in 1982.
Note: the titles used are unofficial. The British VHS release of the series names them as "Adventure 1" through "6", while the DVD releases replace the word "Adventure" with "Assignment".
Audio plays In late May 2004, Big Finish Productions announced that they had secured the rights to produce a new series of Sapphire & Steel audio adventures for release on CD. However, neither McCallum nor Lumley would be reprising their roles, as McCallum is working in the United States and Lumley declined to play Sapphire again. The characters will be re-cast, with the stories being set sometime before the climactic final adventure of the television series.
The roles of Sapphire and Steel will be voiced by Susannah Harker and David Warner respectively. The character of Gold (voiced by Mark Gatiss), will also appear in the first adventure, The Passenger by Steve Lyons.
External links - The Anorak's Guide to Sapphire & Steel (http://www.anorakzone.com/SapphireandSteel/)
- Big Finish Productions - Sapphire & Steel (http://www.bigfinish.com/sapphireandsteel/index.shtml)
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