Star One 2004

First Michael Keating panel

Michael strode on complete with rambling hat, and said. "Gidday" in an Australian accent. He looked fit, tanned, and healthy as he answered questions from an interviewer.

What was his history on TV? His first appearance was on Doomwatch as a scientist. He was told he had the part on the same day his then wife told him she was pregnant with his daughter. In 1977, Pennant asked him to do Sunmakers for Doctor Who, in which he played a rebel called Gaudry (Aside: and very well too; I've seen it). He was put up for Avon on the strength of that and sent in a picture of himself in glasses to look the part of a geek. However he was asked to audition for Vila, doing the scene in which he steals Blake's watch in the holding cells. Vere Lorrimer confused him with an actor called Charles Keating who was much older and objected to his casting, so he almost lost the job.

Does he like science fiction? He liked Dan Dare comics, but he now prefers reading about history and the English language.

Was Vila just a cowardly thief with a drink problem? He wasn't a coward; he was careful! Michael thinks that the drinking was based on his own during the series which, he added, was nothing to be proud of. There wasn't much input from the cast into the parts—he would like to have been the hero and got the girl!—but generally they were just given the scripts and left to interpret them.

What was the impact of recognition and fame? He was once getting on a bus with his 5-year-old daughter when someone said, "You're on Blake's 7!" Michael said, "No, I'm not," and his daughter said, "Yes you are, yes you are!" Once two girls from Bulgaria recognised him which he thought impressive. His mother was visiting Australia some years ago and turned on the TV only to see her son as Vila. Michael is not in it for the recognition though; he wants only to be part of the play and explore his character as he explores terrain when out walking. He would like to do more film; he's a film buff now and sees lots of foreign films.

Who is his greatest hero? Ralph Richardson in Fallen Hero, a black and white film; he was wonderful in it.

Did Blake's 7 open doors? Michael is not a hustler; he lets things happen and never pushes for work. He misses it when he's not doing it and learning lines which he enjoys. However acting Is no longer the be all and end all it was once. He has a wonderful life outside acting with his rambling and interests in history and language.

The theatre. He would like to play Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman. His most recent play was Proof in Vienna with an American cast except for him; he had to use an American accent. The Austrian audience didn't always get jokes immediately which meant that they had to adjust the timing. He prefers theatre; the advantage over TV is that the play runs from beginning to end with the response of a live audience.

Michael once played Romeo in Belfast which he considers a major factor in the Troubles at the time; it was a disaster. One night he set fire to the stage. He had to stand over Juliet's body with a flaming torch made of cotton wool soaked in lighter fluid, but this particular night they ran out of it and used paraffin. The torch flared up, Michael blew at it, and flaming bits of cotton wool went all over the stage.

He recently did a Doctor Who audio play, playing a humanoid character. He enjoyed it and thought it was very well done.

Questions from the audience.

What is his favourite place for rambling? Surrey and Sussex. At Easter, he was at Offa's Dyke the history of which interested him. He's done a lot of walking in eastern Europe, especially Slovakia and the Czech republic which he loves because accommodation and wine are so cheap.

What was Colin Baker like to work with? He was wonderful, a nice man, absolutely delightful.

Is Vila like a Shakespeare Fool? Yes, probably, and Avon is Richard III and Blake is like King Lear towards the end.

What is his favourite memory of Blake's 7? There are many, but he was hung over a lot of the time, he said ruefully. He loved City at the Edge of the World as he had the most to do in that. It was filmed on Oakley Moor on the day of the Fastnet boat races in which 12 boats went down in the storm; they had to cut the outside scenes because of the wind. Michael always enjoyed location work though.

Where did Terry Nation get the names? He doesn't know, but Terry did like the name Tarrant. He got to know Terry at cons in the US; he was a lovely man.

Was Blake's 7 big in the US? He once did an interview in St Louis and asked what the viewing figures there were. Millions? Thousands? No—it was 450.

Who would play Vila now? Michael had no idea and asked to think about that and get back to the questioner. He did too, in his Sunday session.

There was a rumour he might have been the Doctor. It was only a rumour, but he would love to play him with a monocle.

The Blake's 7 radio plays. Michael was very tactful and said that sadly, the writer Barry Letts was not "au fait with my character. He had Vila eating an apple (sic) when he should have been drinking."

Everyone is so nice. Is there anyone you don't like? "George W Bush!" Michael replied promptly [cheers] and added solemnly, "He's not a Blake's 7 fan."

Who was his favourite writer on Blake's 7? Robert Holmes and Chris Boucher. Robert always wrote well for Avon and Vila; in Gambit, they only get a few scenes but they are so memorable. He also liked Terry Nation's original episodes, though he'd already gone to the US and only wrote brief précis of what he wanted. Often some of the script was hand-written just before filming. Once Michael actually wrote a small scene for Duel. The location shots of Blake and Jenna, filmed earlier, which the rest of the crew was watching on the Liberator, were scratched in one place (Aside: you can see on the DVDs extras that the shots of Jenna are scratched) so the camera had to move off the screen and focus on the crew. Michael wrote a small conversation for Vila and Gan and still wishes he'd been credited for it.

It was this scene:

What car do you drive? Michael doesn't drive or approve of it. He cycles or walks around London which is much more enjoyable since the new traffic laws have made the air so much cleaner. He does ride in his partner Sue's car though which he supposes is cheating. He said he once crashed a BBC van on film and believes the footage is shown at BBC Christmas parties.

Michael announced that he hopes to get married to Sue next year—if, he added deadpan, his mother lets him. [laughter and delighted applause]. Sue, he added, is 53 and he's all of 57.

Congratulations to you both, Michael and Sue!