Peter J Hammond -- An Interview

by Rob Stanley

RS:

In her autobiography, Joanna Lumley states that her understanding of Sapphire & Steel was that they were "aliens" - what briefs were she and David given about the nature of their characters?

PJH:

I would not agree with the word ‘alien’, because it has a hostile ring to it. In fact, Sapphire & Steel were never alien to the world as we know it. Their mission was to help it. As far as their adversaries are concerned, I suppose they could be best described as supernatural ‘do-gooders’.

RS:

In 1980, World Books published a Sapphire & Steel annual, which contained several short stories - did you write these and, retrospectively, how happy were you with them?

PJH:

I did not write the stories for the Sapphire & Steel annual but, as with the Look-In magazine, I was sent proofs to read in advance of the publication. My only reservation with the stories was that Sapphire & Steel were able to move back in time. This tended to contradict the premise that had been set in the original TV series, that ‘time’ was only allowed to break into the present day. As both these publications were geared to younger readers, it did not worry me too much.

RS:

How closely did you work with the actual production of the series, and what aspects did you find most rewarding\frustrating?

PJH:

I worked very closely with the production of the series. This in itself was rewarding, plus the fact it was virtually an instantaneous experience because production began the moment the first draft of an episode was delivered. In fact, during the making of the station story (Adventure Two), which was an eight-parter, the first five episodes were in production while I was still writing the last three. In other words, no one, including myself, had any idea what the ending was going to be while the show was being made. A nerve-racking experience but an exciting one, often bringing out the best of all those involved. The only frustrations I felt were those due to the lack of time available to set up some of the fantasy situations. We called them ‘tricks’. Some of the tricks were very time-consuming and used up most of the production time available. And, of course, there was also a story to be told, and acting to be done. I can give you one example. In the final episode of the Mister Shape story (Adventure Four), when Sapphire & Steel were trapped inside a photograph, I wanted their view of the situation from inside the picture, looking out. I think this would have been both effective and frightening, but sadly we ran out of studio time.

RS:

What were the crew like to work with?

PJH:

Because Sapphire & Steel was regarded as something of an innovation at the time of its production, all those working on the show became very involved. I suppose it made a change from all the social realism dramas that had been around for so long. Actors and production crew alike would often come up with ideas whenever a trick was proving difficult. For instance, during the burning of the books in the first story, when the dancing page of poetry refused to be burned, chroma-key failed to produce a satisfying effect after hours of trying. The cameramen then gave up their tea break to experiment with a fishing rod and line. This worked, and was used!

RS:

Joanna mentioned that a further series was initially suggested - how would you have gone about releasing Sapphire & Steel from the trap, had this gone ahead?

PJH:

A further series was thought of, but only in a vague sense. During the writing of Episode Six, I felt that we had gone as far as we could for the time being, and that maybe the series should be rested. Hence the café in nowhere. Of course, this would not necessarily have meant the end for Sapphire & Steel. I believed that their fate was to spend a number of earth years in the trap. This means that they could emerge again whenever the need arises, perhaps being even older.

RS:

If the budget had been larger, what alterations would you have liked to make to the show?

PJH:

I suppose shooting the whole programme on film would have allowed more freedom of movement, yet the very nature of studio production somehow seemed to enhance the menacing, claustrophobic atmosphere of the stories.

RS:

Joanna mentioned that, initially, her powers in action were to have been demonstrated by a throbbing vein in her forehead - were there any other significant ideas for the show that weren’t used?

PJH:

I’m afraid the throbbing vein is a new one on me! Perhaps this stemmed from conversations between Joanna and the producer. Shaun O’Riordan has always had a great gift for inventiveness. He was ideal for the show and was always thinking up new ways of getting messages across on-screen. To my knowledge, there were no ideas left unused.

RS:

What was your favourite story and why?

PJH:

The railway station story (Adventure Two) seemed to be the favourite of most people. I am also very fond of this one. But I think my real favourite is Adventure Four. Old photographs have always fascinated me, and the idea of sepia children climbing in and out of them was exciting to write. I also enjoyed creating Mister Shape, the first ‘identifiable’ adversary that Sapphire & Steel had so far encountered.

RS:

What was your opinion of the Fifth Adventure by Don Houghton and Anthony Read?

PJH:

Through working too hard on the show, I had to take time out for a rest. Therefore Don Houghton and Anthony Read were asked to contribute to the series. While they used a different approach to the Sapphire & Steel saga, by incorporating a 1930’s detective story style, it is not a direction that I would personally have chosen.

RS:

What other powers (if any) would you have liked to see that characters develop?

PJH:

I think the powers shown were enough. By the end of the second series, I believe the viewers were in a position to know exactly what Sapphire & Steel were capable of, and where they could sometimes fail. Perhaps specialist powers from some of their back-up colleagues could have been used to good effect, had we gone for a further series.

RS:

There were occasional implicit romantic scenes between Sapphire & Steel, and Silver comes across as an overt ‘charmer’ - was the basis for this merely a case of operators mimicking human behaviour, or was it a ‘true’ emotional response on their part?

PJH:

I would say it was a true emotional response. While Sapphire & Steel are more than mere mortals, they are still mortal-shaped and, to a degree, mortal-minded.

RS:

In the final Adventure, there is reference to a distinct ‘elemental’ hierarchy - Investigators, Operators and Specialists, Sapphire & Steel being Operators and Lead and Silver being Specialists. What distinctions had you in mind between the three groups?

PJH:

I envisaged Investigators - characters we did not see - doing a recce before the story began. Sapphire & Steel, having been briefed, would then arrive to carry out the operation. They would then be provided with the necessary back-up when and where needed.

RS:

Each of Sapphire & Steel’s assignments took place in the present. There was mention made, however, that they had worked in the past (on the Marie Celeste). Were they, therefore, able to travel through time, or was it merely a case of them having been around for centuries?

PJH:

I think you have the answer in the last two lines of your paragraph. They have been around for centuries.

RS:

In the Fifth Adventure, one of Lord Mulrine’s guests is given ‘First-Level’ telepathic abilities by Sapphire. Was this your concept, or Houghton and Read’s? Bearing in mind the ability to bestow powers in this fashion, could it be possible that Sapphire & Steel were once human themselves?

PJH:

The use of ‘first-level’ telepathic abilities was not my concept. However, I think it was a very good idea on the part of the writers. I don’t think that Sapphire & Steel were ever human in the basic sense. Without attempting to sound religious, I think they would come closer to representing the spirit and the soul.

RS:

Interestingly, the final Adventure’s title sequence differed from the previous five’s - Lead is replaced by Mercury. Was this due to two title sequence voice-over’s being recorded, or were there tentative plans to introduce Mercury as a character?

PJH:

I really cannot answer this question. You are very clever to have noticed the character change in the titles - I hadn’t! I think this must have been a producer’s whim. Mercury, like most of the other characters mentioned could well have made an appearance had the series continued.

RS:

Finally, do you have any particularly interesting or amusing recollections of the series?

PJH:

There were perhaps too many of these to mention. But I still remember, with affection, the head lighting man asking how on earth he was supposed to light complete and utter darkness, as with the séance sequence in Adventure Two; children with sepia clothes and sepia make-up running around the studio restaurant to the surprise of visiting guests; using a whole series of light beams so that one patch of light could be seen descending a flight of stairs; listening to the actress in Adventure One recite every single line of ‘The House That Jack Built’ from memory and without making a single mistake; drinking with the railway station ghosts in the bar; having lunch with ‘people from the past’ and ‘people from the future’. There is talk, here and there, of the series returning. Should the people who run the TV companies have a change of heart, who knows? Perhaps we could one day unlock the door of the café that is in nowhere…