Raven (1977 TV series)

Background

The series starred Phil Daniels in the title role. The story follows an orphan and former borstal inmate sent on a rehabilitation programme, assisting an archaeology professor in his excavation of a system of caves. The man-made cave system is underneath an ancient stone circle and contains 5th-century rock carvings which may be connected to the legend of King Arthur and Arthurian lore. The professor believes that 'Arthur' may not have been a single individual but an inherited office, emphasising the notion of Arthur and his knights slumbering below the West Country landscape awaiting the call to return to action in a time of peril, more as an idea than a physical reality.

The programme consistently featured the sign of Pluto (referencing Plutonium as a by-product of nuclear reactions), a symbol for Raven's quest. The core of the story is the central sage/apprentice hero relationship between Professor Young and Raven, representing the legend of Merlin and King Arthur, both characters having avian projections: Young as a merlin (a bird which often accompanies Raven throughout the story), and Raven (protected by his namesake bird raven at birth when abandoned by his parents).