Knights Of God

Knights of God is a British science fiction children's television serial, produced by TVS and first broadcast on ITV in 1987. It was written by Richard Cooper, a writer who had previously worked in both children's and adult television drama. Set in the year 2020, it showed a Britain ruled by the Knights of God, a fascist and anti-Christian religious order that came to power during a brutal civil war twenty years previously. It starred George Winter as Gervase Owen Edwards, the Welsh son of a resistance leader (Gareth Thomas), and John Woodvine as the Prior Mordrin, leader of the eponymous cult. Patrick Troughton played Arthur, the apparent leader of the English resistance, and Julian Fellowes played Mordrin's ambitious and ruthless second-in-command, Brother Hugo. In 2020, Britain is ruled by the Knights of God, a fascist religious order – founded by the Prior Mordrin (Woodvine) – that came to power during a brutal civil war that began in 2000, during which the Royal Family were supposedly all slaughtered by Hugo (Fellowes) and the civilian government collapsed leaving the Knights free to step into the power vacuum. Mordrin has renamed the south of England "Anglia", while the north and Scotland – which has only recently been brought under control – he calls "Northumbria." In between is the "Wasteland", the former industrial regions of Lancashire and southern Yorkshire, where the remaining resistance fighters – regarded as terrorists by the Knights – are still at large. For the time being Mordrin sees the Wasteland as a convenient buffer to communications and travel between Anglia and Northumbria. Winchester is temporarily serving as the nation's capital, as most of London was destroyed in the war and reconstruction work is hampered by lack of resources. Gervase Owen Edwards (Winter) has grown up in Wales, which has finally succumbed to the rule of the Knights, although the resistance led by his father, Owen (Thomas), remains active. When most civilians in Wales are interned for not showing sufficient enthusiasm for the end of the war and loyalty to the Knights, Gervase is sent to a "re-education and training camp," initially accompanied by Owen disguised as a Knight, who tells him that it is important that he lives. During the journey, Gervase meets an English girl, Julia Clarke (Parker). Mordrin becomes obsessed with the idea of destroying the leader of all the resistance to him, and when Gervase is identified as Owen's son, Mordrin threatens to execute Julia unless he denounces his father and joins the Knights of God. After he agrees, Mordrin uses mind-altering drugs to place the post-hypnotic suggestion in Gervase's mind that he should seek out and destroy the Prior's "greatest enemy." He is then released, ostensibly to be allowed to find Julia, who has escaped from the camp. Unknown to Gervase, Mordrin needs Julia alive as well, as she is the daughter of Brigadier Clarke, the senior officer in the Coldstream Guards, the last remnant of the British Army, which has been allowed to survive for ceremonial purposes, all other units having been absorbed into the Knights. Meanwhile, Hugo plots to overthrow Mordrin and take power himself, and sends his own agents to intercept and kill Gervase. After Gervase finds Julia, they are ambushed and captured by English resistance fighters led by Colley (Henderson). Gervase is then put on trial for killing one of Colley's men during the ambush, and is found guilty and sentenced to death. Owen threatens to use his own men to free his son, but Arthur – who it is revealed is Mordrin's father (reminiscent of King Arthur and Sir Mordred) – intercedes and publicly banishes Gervase to the Wasteland, while secretly tasking him with finding the one surviving member of the Royal Family – a King to unite the country against the Knights. Mordrin becomes increasingly paranoid, and secretly plans to declare himself King, and even commissions the manufacture of a new crown. Realising the threat Hugo represents, Mordrin has him arrested, but he escapes to London as dissident Knights flock to join him. Gervase and Julia travel to Canterbury, an enclave where the Anglican Church is allowed to survive. Mordrin issues orders for them to be intercepted, but they are "captured" and taken into the city by Brigadier Clarke and his men, disguised as Knights. It is revealed that Gervase himself is the King, and it is only his love for Julia that prevents him from obeying Mordrin's command by killing himself. Hugo's faction attacks Mordrin's headquarters, and the resistance – bolstered by the defecting Coldstream Guards – prepares to finish off whoever is left. Owen slips away, having previously vowed to kill Mordrin for what he did to Gervase, but is shot and injured in the battle between the Knights. Hugo corners Mordrin, but is killed himself, and the Prior escapes with his crown into surrounding forest. As he prepared to place the crown on his own head, Mordrin is shot by the mortally injured Owen, who then himself dies. When the battle is over, Arthur takes the crown from Mordrin's dead hand and presents it to Gervase, telling him to rule wisely.

Director

Richard Cooper