Filming took place in the winter of 1987–8. The production aimed at a surreal rather than a fantasy atmosphere, with an emphasis of only including narrative elements which could occur in real life. Writer John Brown worked an
Arthurian theme into his scripts, with the idea that the story was about what would happen if "Arthur said to Merlin after he'd helped set up the Kingdom, 'Get lost. I don't need you any more.'"with Nick and Magnus as Arthur and Merlin, respectively; images such as a knife thrown into water, and a woman's hand rising from a lake, were likewise based on the legend of
Excalibur. The theme song, "
Saylon Dola", and other incidental music by series composer
Nigel Hess built on the use of
Celtic mythology by incorporating
Welsh-sounding
gibberish. == Releases ==