The Aphrodite Inheritance (BBC 1979)

The Playthings of the Gods
The Aphrodite Inheritance (BBC 1979)
A BBC Television Production in association with Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation
(8 X 50mins Colour)
Created & Written by Michael J Bird
1 A Death in the Family transmitted BBC1 Wednesday 3 January 1979
   David Collier is called urgently to Cyprus. He is soon involved with the mysterious and
   beautiful Helene who gives him disturbing news.
2 A Lamb to Slaughter transmitted BBC1 Wednesday 10 January 1979
   Collier's attempt to take Helene's evidence to Inspector Dimas is violently interrupted and
   he is unable to persuade the Inspector of the truth of what has happened. Later, a meeting
   with his brother's friend, Eric Morrison, is broken up in a frightening way.
3 Here We Come Gathering transmitted BBC1 Wednesday 17 January 1979
   Collier stumbles on people he is sure can help him convince Inspector Dimas of his
   brother's murder. Later the evidence which Helene first produced mysteriously turns up
   again - and again leads to trouble.
4 A Friend in Need transmitted BBC1 Wednesday 24 January 1979
   After his violent clash with Collier, Morrison soon finds himself in a desperate situation.
   Hellman begins to show his hand - and Collier again meets Helene.
5 Come Into My Parlour transmitted BBC1 Wednesday 31 January 1979
   Collier unwittingly plays into the hands of Hellman. Meantime, from his hiding place,
   Morrison arranges to meet a buyer - but the deal goes sadly awry.
6 Said the Spider to the Fly transmitted BBC1 Wednesday 7 February 1979
   Morrison waits to conclude his deal - but is horrified when the 'buyer' appears. Inspector
   Dimas is intrigued by what he learns from Collier; later he gets startling news from
   Morrison's girlfriend.
7 The Eyes of Love transmitted BBC1 Wednesday 14 February 1979
   Preece is badly shaken by the things Hellman tells him. He realises he still has a long way
   to go to achieve his ends. Collier again meets Helene. Unsuspecting they wander into a
   situation of great danger.
8 To Touch a Rainbow transmitted BBC1 Wednesday 21 February 1979
   Collier goes through a final shattering experience. Later, Inspector Dimas shows him
   something which Collier finds incredible, but which could offer an explanation for all that has
   happened.
(Episode synopses from original Radio Times listings)
David Collier is an Englishman who travels to Cyprus to bury his brother, who died in a road accident. There, he meets the barman Charalambos, who introduces him to the mysterious Helene (the absolutely gorgeous Alexandra Bastedo of The Champions fame), whose name with its three pronounced vowels suggests a true Hellenic beauty. She tell him that his brother was murdered, and gave her a briefcase of £50,000 in Swiss francs to look after, which she shows him. But Helene, Charalambos, and the wine-drinking rifle-armed Basileos, keep disappearing, as does the briefcase, which means that Inspector Dimas, to whom he has informed of his brother's murder, doesn't believe him. Meanwhile, wealthy yacht-owner Eugene Hellman befriends him. He was doing business with Collier's brother, and is interested in the whereabouts of a mysterious 'lost' tomb and its treasures. The various interested parties in the treasure circle around David, not knowing how much or how little he knows, and if so, what is his price? And who are the mysterious trio, especially Helene?
Michael J. Bird (31 October 1928 -11 May 2001) was an English writer who wrote several novels and some non-fiction. During the1960s he had written scripts for several BBC shows. He then created two Mediterranean serials set on Crete, two series of The Lotus Eaters (1972-73), then Who Pays The Ferryman? (1977). Both shows were critical and popular hits, I have them both on DVD and they are excellent. So there was much demand from the BBC for  a third serial. He moved location to Cyprus, and since Paphos on that island is the reputed birthplace of Aphrodite, where she arose from the sea, he came up with a Francis Durbridge type mystery, which British TV viewers would be well familiar with, mixed with Greek mythological elements. Like the first two serials, he concentrated as much on the relationships, but this time there was  mystery plot. After many years, it was officially released as a DVD. The DVD shows its age, there's some minor damage on the film inserts, and the picture is softer than it would have been originally. Though not been digitally restored, the picture quality is much crisper than the old off-air UK Gold VHS  copies we've had to put up with all these years.
The plot is not overly original, it's a well-loved archetype of an innocent abroad (David Collier), murder and a search for a lost treasure, and a beautiful and mysterious femme fatale (Helene). But the mythological aspects add a new freshness, and the plot is very well conceived and paced. As it's an eight part serial rather than a 90 minute film, Bird can spend time on characterisation (the middle section concentrates as much on Morrison and his lover Maria as it does on Collier). Hellman is also nicely handled, hinting at a greater mystery not resolved until the end, and even smaller roles such as Martin Preece and Inspector Dimas are given care and attention. The pacing is  good, one never gets the impression that things are padded out, helped by a cinematic feel where figures in landscapes and action sequences are as important as dialogue. 
Speaking of dialogue, there's a lot of it, much expository as it needs to be in a mystery. But it's well written, and there's quite a few occasions where characters' dialogue hints at things rather then being explicit, important in a mystery where nobody is really sure of the motivations and knowledge of each other. It helps that the acting is uniformly excellent.
Peter McEnery is superb as the innocent abroad, someone who understandably becomes exasperated at the suspicion of the police Inspector and the constant disappearances of Helene and co and the briefcase full of cash. Alexandra Bastedo is Aphrodite, she looks absolutely beautiful here but also slightly statuesque, virginal, untouchable, not in a modern sexual or romantic sense, but a truly Hellenic age-old beauty that could inspire love and devotion. She nicely judges the mysterious side to her character. Is she a femme fatale, or  a crook, or his brother's lover seeking revenge, or something ... other? With a smile and a look she suggests much but, to the annoyance of Collier, explains very little. Needless to say, it's easy to see why any man would fall for her. I was eighteen when I saw this first broadcast, and felt her romantic allure. As Basileos is made for Brian Blessed, who else would you cast than Brian Blessed. His scenes with the wounded Collier, where he expounds on the beauty of women and the powers of wine, is marvellously well written, and superbly delivered. Stefan Gryff, who'd appeared in the previous two series (most notably as the police Captain in The Lotus Eaters), who must owe Bird a lot for casting him in those two major roles, repays that with a mischievous but kindly performance as the harmonica-playing 'barman' Charalambos (Greek for "bringer of joy"), who introduces the abstemious Collier to the joys of alcohol by adding generous amounts of spirits to his tomato juice ("it's the herbs"). 
Among the supporting cast Godfrey James gives the performance of a lifetime as Inspector Dimas, making it all the sadder that he wasn't given such bigger roles before, as normally cast in very small and mostly plebeian roles. His character of the doubting Inspector could have been a cypher, but here he is a warm generous but busy man whose dawning realisation is nicely played. The scenes between him and Collier are a nice study in acting, with dialogue used as a civilised form of fencing. Paul Maxwell gives his usual fine performance as Hellman, he and his two "hounds" being the only characters not to have Greek accents, keeping their American accents, as befits their status as outsiders (they came by yacht). And this was my first introduction to Tony Doyle, who moves from friend to enemy with assured ease.
Of course, the locations help immensely with this story, giving it a sense of holiday underneath the sad funereal motivation for Collier's visit, and adding immensely to the Romanticism (and romantic) angle of the story. According to the excellent Michael J Bird website location shooting on Cyprus took place between 16 September - 19 November 1978. The late autumn shooting might account for why the sky, especially on the shores, looks a little grey and overcast, and why in episode one it's clearly very windy. But there's enough sun and warmth, particularly in the semi-arid interiors. Of course, the interiors are mostly studio shot here in the U.K. but the film used on location seems to be 35mm film stock (not grainy enough for 16mm), which adds to the quality of the whole production.
And the use of film for location shooting also contributes to the cinematic style of shooting, especially episodes 5-8 which were directed by Viktors Ritelis, a very stylish film director. As mentioned before, unlike most contemporary studio-bound TV productions, this is not always a series of talking heads. There are moments of silence, most notably in the scenes where the assorted cast search Collier's apartment at night (nicely done in semi-darkness). There are also scenes where we watch vehicles or figures in a landscape. These never seem to be padding firstly because of the gorgeous location shooting but also the music (more anon). Not many TV shows show characters in long-shot, but this does. There's a wonderful scene in the last episode where Hellman and his hounds meet Collier in an amphitheatre. He is in the foreground and they appear above in the distance (see pictures).
It's one of many great shots, and is one of the reasons for the show's enduring appeal. We are able to watch events unfolding ourselves, without being told what we're watching. Then there's  a great nightmare sequence, reminiscent of the one Ritelis shot in The Lotus Eaters series two. A great bonus.
Then there's the beautiful original score by George Kotsonis. Yes, he uses Greek themes and instrumentation, but not exclusively. He also uses some haunting synthesiser music, and the music is another memorable aspect of the serial. So popular was it that it was released as an album, George Kotsonis ‎– The Original Music From The BBC TV Series "The Aphrodite Inheritance" Including Other Music By George Kotsonis (BBC Records 1979), and a single.
SPOILER ALERT
Don't read this section if you haven't but want to watch it. Come back afterwards and see if you spotted these mythological themes.
At the end Inspector Dimas, taking David Collier to the airport, makes  a short detour to show him some statues of Greek gods and deities. Suddenly, Collier spots who they are. Pan is Charalambos, Dionysus is Basileso, and Helene is, yes you guessed it, Aphrodite. Michael J Bird admits that he put little mythological touches in the serial, and if you spotted them they enriched your enjoyment, and even if you didn't, they all add to the heady brew that is The Aphrodite Inheritance. Let's see if you spotted these.
Ivy abounds in the show, a plant associated with Pan.
Charalambos plays the harmonica, a modern version of the pipes of Pan.
In the nightmare, and at the old Church (and when we see her statue) we see white doves, a bird associated with Aphrodite (in some legends she could turn into one). 
The song Basileos sings and whistles is called the "Dithyramb" and is the ancient "Hymn to Wine" which in Greek mythology was always sung by Dionysus.
In episode 5 Basileos (i.e. Dionysus) suddenly winces with pain, when Morrison asks him what's wrong, he replies "Nothing, it's just my thigh". A curious thing not mentioned elsewhere in the story. This might refer to the myth that Dionysus is called twice-born, as his mother was dying giving birth to him, so Zeus sowed him up in his thigh until maturity, when he birthed Dionysus. See here.
Eugene Hellman is the first to realise the truth about Helene and her companions. Hellman's surname taken literally, as Man of Hell, (with his "hounds of Hell") would be in Greek mythology Hades, Lord of the Underworld. Which might explain his enigmatic statement that he never kills, but is simply a receiver, though he has had many dealings with killers. As Hades he would receive dead killers to his domain.
In the final episode we get a close up on the name of his yacht - the Kore. And we notice him looking at a photograph of a woman (whom we never see in the story). Kore is the Greek name for Persephone.
In his final scene Hellman shivers suggesting the onset of cooler weather. He says "Soon she'll be coming back to me again and I wouldn't want to keep her waiting". In Greek mythology, Persephone was abducted by Hades who tricked her into eating pomegranate seeds, which forced her to return to the underworld for a period each year, originally three months, then the whole winter. She became Hades's wife.
Finally, as Hellman's yacht finally sets sail it spookily disappears into the mist .... when the mist clears we see it has disappeared, not sailed off. 
So, a great Romantic mythological adventure story of treasure, love, murder, new friendships, with a cracking end scene in the tomb, and a lovely 'expository' scene with the statues. And at the end, as Collier settles back into his airplane seat, that briefcase full of money reappears again. With  a rose ... Lovely.
Credits
CAST
David Collier ....................................................................... PETER McENERY
Helen .................................................................................. ALEXANDRA BASTEDO
Charalambos ...................................................................... STEFAN GRYFF
Basileos .............................................................................  BRIAN BLESSED
Hellman .............................................................................. PAUL MAXWELL
Martin Preece ....................................................................  TONY DOYLE
Inspector Dimas ................................................................. GODFREY JAMES
Eric Morrison .....................................................................  WILLIAM WILDE
Maria .................................................................................  CARMEN GOMEZ
Antonis ..............................................................................  KOSTAS DIMITRIOU
Travis ................................................................................   KARL HELD
Olsen ................................................................................   RAY JEWERS
CREW
Production Managers for CBC .......................................... ANDREAS PAPAYIANNIS
                                                                                            IOANNIS KARAOLIS
Production Unit Manager .................................................. GLYN EDWARDS
Production Assistants ........................................................ VICTOR MALLETT
                                                                                            ROBERT H GABRIEL
Film Cameramen .............................................................. PETER CHAPMAN
                                                                                            TERRY DOE
Film Sound ........................................................................ BILL WILD
Film Editor ......................................................................... TARIQ ANWAR
                                                                                             BERNARD ASHBY
Studio Lighting ..................................................................  PETER SMEE
Studio Sound ....................................................................  ALAN FOGG
Costume Designer ............................................................  NICHOLAS ROCKER
Make-up Artist ...................................................................  CHRISTINE BEVERIDGE
Graphic Designer ..............................................................  STEFAN PSTROWSKI
Music Specially Composed By ..........................................  GEORGE KOTSONIS
Designer ............................................................................  JON PUSEY
Producer ............................................................................  ANDREW OSBORN
Director (episodes 1-4) ...................................................... TERENCE WILLIAMS
Director (episodes 5-8) ......................................................  VIKTORS RITELIS

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