The Testament of Arkadia
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Year 1 - Episode 24
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| Belgium (Flemish) |
Testament van Arkadia |
Testament Of Arcadia |
| France/Canada |
Le testament de l'Arcadie |
The Testament Of The Arcadia |
| Italy |
Il testamento degli Arkadi |
The Testament Of The Arkadians |
| Japan |
O, God! May New Peace in Space!
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| Poland |
Testament Arkadii |
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| Portugal |
O Testamento de Arkadia |
The Testament of Arkadia |
| Spain |
El testamento de Arkadia |
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| Sweden |
Testamentet |
The Testament |
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Is it the end for the moon, or the beginning of a new life? In far-off outer space are found the origins of life on Earth itself as the moon's random progress comes to a sudden, inexplicable halt.
- The idea came out of a discussion between writer Byrne and director Tomblin.
- Shooting script 5th February 1975
- Shooting script 25th February 1975 (new draft)
- Filmed 11th February-25th February 1975
- Lisa Harrow is incorrectly credited as "Liza" Harrow.
- Sylvia Anderson recorded a DVD commentary for this episode:
We were trying to be kind of grown up. We were really just getting into our stride, in this episode, episode 24. It's probably a little slower than some of the other episodes, but quite profound. I think Johnny Byrne was taking a very interesting concept, and more to the point, which was my particular hobby horse, we learned about the characters. They were real people out there.
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Library tracks:
- "Appassionata" composed by Paul Bonneau and Serge Lancen (Chappell Recorded Music Library)
- "Picture Of Autumn" composed by Jack Arel and Pierre Dutour (Chappell Recorded Music Library)
- Arkady/Arcadia is a mountainous area of Southern Greece, poetically portrayed as an idyllic pastoral paradise of shepherds and music. In classical mythology it is the realm of Pan, who used to inspire lonely travellers with terror (hence the word "panic").
Sanskrit is the ancient Indic language of the Vedic, the Indo-European people who moved from the Iranian region to North West India about 1500 BC. Vedic Sanskrit is the oldest form and lasted until 200 BC. Classical Sanskrit replaced Vedic Sanskrit and was dominent from about 500 BC to 1000 AD when it split into many modern Indic languages.
Much of the Vedic cultural values have been preserved in the Hindu religion, including the concepts of sacrifice and caste. The Hindu scriptures, the Veda, are in Vedic Sanskrit and date from 1500 BC. Sanskrit had a status similar to Latin in Europe, as a scholarly and scared language; it is still used in Hindu liturgy.
It has a highly inflected and complex grammar, and important similarities to other Indo European languages which made Sir William Jones in the 18th century think it was the root language of all modern languages; his discovery led to the scientific study of languages, called philology in the 19th century (and in Space 1999) but now named linguistics.
In the 20th century it was realised that Sanskrit, like Latin and almost all modern languages, is derived from a proto-Indo European tongue. This language was spoken in Eastern Europe or Western Asia, most probably in Anatolia (modern Turkey), about 7000-6000 years ago. This area and time also saw the birth of agriculture, the first settled towns, and was the source of major migrations and invasions.
Note that some languages are not related to proto-Indo European; Basque, Etruscan, and languages in Africa, the Far East and the Americas.
- If Arkadia is one million light years from Earth, and the planet died 25000 years ago, the Arkadians should still be travelling (unless they, like the Moon, use space and time warps to move faster than light).
- Victor says "Gravity or magnetic forces could affect the speed of an object the size of the Moon". In fact only gravity can.
2 deserters: Luke Ferro, Anna Davis.
- Bergman says there are over 300 people on Alpha. Note by The Metamorph there are just 297.
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Alpha Technology:
- Anna uses a computer translator (a yellow/orange 1970s calculator, the Olivetti Divisumma).
- Koenig uses an unseen limpet transmitter on the Eagle (actually the Moonbuggy according to the script). It transmits on "subspace" frequencies. He uses another hyperspace transmitter in The Taybor.
- The silver jackets were first seen in Black Sun. The orange jackets used by the guards were first used in Dragon's Domain and reappear on Picard in The Metamorph and Maya in One Moment Of Humanity
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Eagle 1 (initial landing party); 2 (unarmed survey); 3 and 5 (pursuit); 4 (Luke and Anna, left on Arkadia)
Arkadia
Aliens:
spirits of the Arkadians.
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Props:
- Koenig and Anna have binoculars that are props from UFO.
- The water analyser that Helena uses in Matter Of Life And Death is held by Anna (just prior to the skeletons turning into Arkadians).
- This episode contradicts The Full Circle where the Alphans regress into Cro Magnon society, circa 40,000 years ago, 15,000 years before humanity was founded by colonists from Arkadia.
- Ferro's voice is dubbed by Oscar nominated dubbing artist Robert Rietty, who also supplied a credited voice in A B Chrysalis.
- Maya also changes into a kendoka (kendo practitioner) in Bringers Of Wonder part 1. The stuntmen were Eddie Stacey (arranger and double for Koenig) and Gerry Crampton as Ferro.
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Note the dumbell rack and Olympic barbells (left)- no plates for the barbells can be seen. In the foreground are fixed weight machines (a lat pull down and a bench press). |
For some reason, only the Alphans are affected by the Moon's rapid
acceleration / deceleration - the furniture and loose objects on the Main Mission
desks do not move at all. Thanks to Marcus.
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The Moon's phases do not agree with the planet; the moon is waning gibbous, the planet is waxing crescent. Possibly Arkadia orbits a double star which
illuminates the lunar farside only (the far side of the planet might be eclipsed
by the Moon) although this is admittedly a rather far-fetched explanation. |
Ferro's Eagle is shown from the exterior with the portside docked to the boarding tube; on the interior set, the starboard is docked. When the Eagle launches it has turned round so the starboard side faces the tube. |
Possibly an error; when Ferro goes to scan the trees he handles his camera. Is he just going to photograph them or does the camera have scanning abilities? |
Barely visible are the two horizontal wires, at the top and bottom of the Moon, which move it across the sky. Thanks to James C.
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- The opening and closing shots panning across the Command Office from the communications post to Koenig writing are the same shot.
- How did Arkadia die? The radiation evidence suggests either a nuclear war, or an accident with nuclear power, or it might be some natural catastrophe (a collision with a comet?).
- In the Phase 6 power cuts, Paul Morrow shuts down the Travel Tubes. The power then stabilises at 50%. When Koenig and the others return in the Eagle immediately after, they use a Travel Tube. Later, Luke and Anna go to the Eagle in a Travel Tube. Obviously some of the power cuts were reversed.
The full text of the Testament Of Arkadia:
I, the guardian, salute you. We are an accused people. We who caused our own destruction have paid the price of ignorance and greed.
To you who seek us out in the ages to come, we salute you. The desolation you find grieves we few who will soon die. Our civilisation gone. Our world, Arkadia, poisoned, dying. We who caused our own destruction.
No need now to tell of that final holocaust when our world flamed in the inferno of a thousand exploding suns. Arkadia is finished, but she, Arkadia, lives on in the bodies, hearts and minds of the few of us who left before the end, taking the seeds of a new beginning. To seek out and begin again in the distant regions of space. Heed now the testament of Arkadia.
Neither past nor future, the future is the past and the testament of Arkadia the link. You who are guided here, make us fertile, help us live again. |
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