The Black Seal
Encyclopedia
"The Black Seal" is the final of six episodes of the first series of the BBC One
sitcom Blackadder
(The Black Adder
).
, 29 January 1498, King Richard IV snubs Prince Edmund
, taking away his Duchy and leaving him with the sole dignity of Lord Warden of the Royal Privies, while awarding his brother Harry
with several important titles. Finally reaching his breaking point, Edmund declares that he will take over the kingdom. He fires Percy
and Baldrick
, and begins his quest for glory, aided by a retired Morris dancer.
In a parody of the opening of the film The Magnificent Seven
, Edmund sets forth into England
in search of the six other "Most Evil Men in the Kingdom,":
Edmund plans to ride home and then send for them all through a black-haired messenger. They are to gather in the tavern of the recently deceased old Jasper (slain by Friar Bellows), before heading out to seize the royal courts and thus the kingdom. Edmund suggests they exile the Royal Family for life, however the rest of the band are surprised, and Glastonbury says they should kill them, to which Edmund reluctantly agrees.
After his comrades disperse, Edmund's plan hits a severe setback. The Morris Dancer casts off his disguise to reveal himself as Edmund's childhood rival, Philip of Burgundy, nicknamed "The Hawk" (Patrick Allen
). Philip has just arrived in England after 15 years of exile
in France
, an exile for which Edmund was apparently responsible. As revenge, Philip locks Edmund in a prison cell, to be devoured by snails, which he says will take 15 years to happen. There is another inmate in the cell, Mad Gerald (Rik Mayall
), who has been incarcerated for 20 years and whose best friend is a rat. After 12 months of rambling insanely to a bored Edmund, in late December Gerald shows the Prince a key he had made from his own teeth. Edmund seizes the key, successfully opens the cell door and escapes. Gerald opts not to follow him, instead complaining that Edmund had not closed the door behind him.
The first person Edmund meets after escaping from prison is a man seeking to sell five black homing pigeon
s and one black homing chicken. While the seller's initial asking price is six shilling
s, he generously invites Edmund to beat him up, gag him, tie him to a tree and steal the pigeons, an offer the Prince gratefully accepts. Edmund promptly sends the pigeons to fly to his fellow conspirators. Philip of Burgundy, however, beats the gang to the royal castle, and, when they arrive, promptly persuades them to abandon Edmund and adopt him as their leader after Edmund talks of Philip's bad attributes. Edmund's protestations that Philip is a twisted, ruthless killer who murdered his own family only increases Philip's standing in their eyes. Philip then forces Edmund into a torture
chair, in which he is horribly mutilated. Just then, Percy and Baldrick, disguised as serving wenches, serve the conspirators poisoned wine, killing them. Sean survives, but takes another drink and dies.
As Edmund lies on his deathbed with the entire court mourning over him, his father wakes him up by loudly shouting "EDMUND!" Edmund, surprised that his father had, for the first time, got his name right, mutters "Father, you called me Edmund." Richard answers "Sorry, Edgar" and proposes a toast for his son. Asked by Edmund to call him by his nom de guerre, Richard calls a further toast, to "The Black Dagger". As Percy had unwittingly poisoned the entire batch of wine, the entire royal court dies after drinking the wine. Edmund correctly deduces that the wine was what killed them, but foolishly decides to take a sip to check. Believing the wine is not the killer, as he has not immediately died, he declares himself King of England, only for the wine to kill him moments later.
After the credits, Percy and Baldrick run in to stop the court drinking the wine, only to find it is too late.
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
sitcom Blackadder
Blackadder
Blackadder is the name that encompassed four series of a BBC1 historical sitcom, along with several one-off instalments. All television programme episodes starred Rowan Atkinson as anti-hero Edmund Blackadder and Tony Robinson as Blackadder's dogsbody, Baldrick...
(The Black Adder
The Black Adder
The Black Adder is the first series of the BBC situation comedy Blackadder, written by Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson, directed by Martin Shardlow and produced by John Lloyd...
).
Plot
On Saint Juniper's DaySaint Juniper
Saint Juniper , called "the renowned jester of the Lord," was one of the original followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. Not much is known about Juniper before he joined the friars. In 1210, he was received into the order of the Franciscans by St. Francis himself. "Would to God, my brothers, I...
, 29 January 1498, King Richard IV snubs Prince Edmund
Prince Edmund (Blackadder)
Prince Edmund Plantagenet, Duke of Edinburgh is a fictional character in the first series of the BBC sitcom Blackadder.-Character overview:...
, taking away his Duchy and leaving him with the sole dignity of Lord Warden of the Royal Privies, while awarding his brother Harry
Harry, Prince of Wales (Blackadder)
Prince Henry "Harry" Plantagenet, Earl of March was a fictional character played by Robert East in the popular BBC sitcom Blackadder ....
with several important titles. Finally reaching his breaking point, Edmund declares that he will take over the kingdom. He fires Percy
Lord Percy Percy
Lord Percy Percy is the name given to a pair of related fictional characters, played by Tim McInnerny, in the first two series of the popular British sitcom Blackadder. The Lord Percy of Blackadder II is the descendant of that seen in The Black Adder...
and Baldrick
Baldrick
Baldrick is the name of several fictional characters featured in the long-running BBC historic comedy television series Blackadder. Each one serves as Edmund Blackadder's servant and sidekick and acts as a foil to the lead character...
, and begins his quest for glory, aided by a retired Morris dancer.
In a parody of the opening of the film The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven
The Magnificent Seven is an American Western film directed by John Sturges, and released in 1960. It is a fictional tale of a group of seven American gunmen who are hired to protect a small agricultural village in Mexico from a group of marauding Mexican bandits...
, Edmund sets forth into England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in search of the six other "Most Evil Men in the Kingdom,":
- Sir Wilfred Death (John HallamJohn HallamJohn William Francis Hallam was a Northern Irish character actor.- Career :He appeared in many film and television roles including Nicholas and Alexandra , Murphy's War , The Pallisers , The Mallens , Flash Gordon , Dragonslayer , the BBC television adaptations of Prince Caspian...
), a skilled duellist. - Three-Fingered Pete (Roger SlomanRoger SlomanRoger Sloman is an English actor. Born in the Harlesden district of London, he has performed in dozens of television and film appearances since the late 1970s...
), an archer. - Guy de Glastonbury (Patrick MalahidePatrick MalahidePatrick Malahide is a British actor, who has played many major film and television roles.-Personal life:Malahide, real name Patrick Gerald Duggan, was born in Reading, Berkshire, the son of Irish immigrants, a cook mother and a school secretary father...
), a highwaymanHighwaymanA highwayman was a thief and brigand who preyed on travellers. This type of outlaw, usually, travelled and robbed by horse, as compared to a footpad who traveled and robbed on foot. Mounted robbers were widely considered to be socially superior to footpads...
. - Sean the Irish Bastard (Ron CookRon CookRon Cook is an English actor who has been active in the theatre, film and television since the 1970s. He is from South Shields, Co Durham, England and is a graduate of Rose Bruford College.- Stage appearances :...
), a daggerman who preys on beggars. - Friar Bellows (Paul BrookePaul BrookePaul Brooke is an English actor of film, television, and radio. He is the father of actor Tom Brooke.He and Ernie Fosselius played Malakili the Rancor Keeper in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. He played British Conservative politician Ian Gow in the 2004 BBC series The Alan Clark Diaries...
), who uses his position to deflower peasant girls. - Jack Large (Big MickBig Mick (actor)Mick Walter , often referred to by the stage name Big Mick, is a British actor, noted for his dwarfism. He is known for appearing on television comedies, first appearing as Jack Large in Blackadder...
), a dwarfDwarfismDwarfism is short stature resulting from a medical condition. It is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than 4 feet 10 inches , although this definition is problematic because short stature in itself is not a disorder....
, described as "Unspeakably Violent Jack, the bull-buggering Priest-killer of no fixed abodeNo fixed abodeNo fixed abode or without fixed abode is a legal term generally applied to those who do not have a fixed geographical location as their residence...
."
Edmund plans to ride home and then send for them all through a black-haired messenger. They are to gather in the tavern of the recently deceased old Jasper (slain by Friar Bellows), before heading out to seize the royal courts and thus the kingdom. Edmund suggests they exile the Royal Family for life, however the rest of the band are surprised, and Glastonbury says they should kill them, to which Edmund reluctantly agrees.
After his comrades disperse, Edmund's plan hits a severe setback. The Morris Dancer casts off his disguise to reveal himself as Edmund's childhood rival, Philip of Burgundy, nicknamed "The Hawk" (Patrick Allen
Patrick Allen
John Keith Patrick Allen was a British film, television and voice actor.-Life and career:Allen was born in Nyasaland , where his father was a tobacco farmer. After his parents returned to Britain, he was evacuated to Canada during World War II where he remained to finish his education at McGill...
). Philip has just arrived in England after 15 years of exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, an exile for which Edmund was apparently responsible. As revenge, Philip locks Edmund in a prison cell, to be devoured by snails, which he says will take 15 years to happen. There is another inmate in the cell, Mad Gerald (Rik Mayall
Rik Mayall
Richard Michael "Rik" Mayall is an English comedian, writer, and actor. He is known for his comedy partnership with Ade Edmondson, his over-the-top, energetic portrayal of characters, and as a pioneer of alternative comedy in the early 1980s...
), who has been incarcerated for 20 years and whose best friend is a rat. After 12 months of rambling insanely to a bored Edmund, in late December Gerald shows the Prince a key he had made from his own teeth. Edmund seizes the key, successfully opens the cell door and escapes. Gerald opts not to follow him, instead complaining that Edmund had not closed the door behind him.
The first person Edmund meets after escaping from prison is a man seeking to sell five black homing pigeon
Homing pigeon
The homing pigeon is a variety of domestic pigeon derived from the Rock Pigeon selectively bred to find its way home over extremely long distances. The wild rock pigeon has an innate homing ability, meaning that it will generally return to its own nest and its own mate...
s and one black homing chicken. While the seller's initial asking price is six shilling
Shilling
The shilling is a unit of currency used in some current and former British Commonwealth countries. The word shilling comes from scilling, an accounting term that dates back to Anglo-Saxon times where it was deemed to be the value of a cow in Kent or a sheep elsewhere. The word is thought to derive...
s, he generously invites Edmund to beat him up, gag him, tie him to a tree and steal the pigeons, an offer the Prince gratefully accepts. Edmund promptly sends the pigeons to fly to his fellow conspirators. Philip of Burgundy, however, beats the gang to the royal castle, and, when they arrive, promptly persuades them to abandon Edmund and adopt him as their leader after Edmund talks of Philip's bad attributes. Edmund's protestations that Philip is a twisted, ruthless killer who murdered his own family only increases Philip's standing in their eyes. Philip then forces Edmund into a torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
chair, in which he is horribly mutilated. Just then, Percy and Baldrick, disguised as serving wenches, serve the conspirators poisoned wine, killing them. Sean survives, but takes another drink and dies.
As Edmund lies on his deathbed with the entire court mourning over him, his father wakes him up by loudly shouting "EDMUND!" Edmund, surprised that his father had, for the first time, got his name right, mutters "Father, you called me Edmund." Richard answers "Sorry, Edgar" and proposes a toast for his son. Asked by Edmund to call him by his nom de guerre, Richard calls a further toast, to "The Black Dagger". As Percy had unwittingly poisoned the entire batch of wine, the entire royal court dies after drinking the wine. Edmund correctly deduces that the wine was what killed them, but foolishly decides to take a sip to check. Believing the wine is not the killer, as he has not immediately died, he declares himself King of England, only for the wine to kill him moments later.
After the credits, Percy and Baldrick run in to stop the court drinking the wine, only to find it is too late.
Cast
The important characters are in bold.- Rowan AtkinsonRowan AtkinsonRowan Sebastian Atkinson is a British actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He is most famous for his work on the satirical sketch comedy show Not The Nine O'Clock News, and the sitcoms Blackadder, Mr. Bean and The Thin Blue Line...
as Prince Edmund, Duke of Edinburgh "The Black Adder"Prince Edmund (Blackadder)Prince Edmund Plantagenet, Duke of Edinburgh is a fictional character in the first series of the BBC sitcom Blackadder.-Character overview:...
(however, early in the episode he lost his duchy) - Patrick AllenPatrick AllenJohn Keith Patrick Allen was a British film, television and voice actor.-Life and career:Allen was born in Nyasaland , where his father was a tobacco farmer. After his parents returned to Britain, he was evacuated to Canada during World War II where he remained to finish his education at McGill...
as Philip, Duke of Burgundy "The Hawk" - Paul BrookePaul BrookePaul Brooke is an English actor of film, television, and radio. He is the father of actor Tom Brooke.He and Ernie Fosselius played Malakili the Rancor Keeper in Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. He played British Conservative politician Ian Gow in the 2004 BBC series The Alan Clark Diaries...
as Friar Bellows - Big Mick as Jack Large
- Roger SlomanRoger SlomanRoger Sloman is an English actor. Born in the Harlesden district of London, he has performed in dozens of television and film appearances since the late 1970s...
as Three Fingered Pete - Patrick MalahidePatrick MalahidePatrick Malahide is a British actor, who has played many major film and television roles.-Personal life:Malahide, real name Patrick Gerald Duggan, was born in Reading, Berkshire, the son of Irish immigrants, a cook mother and a school secretary father...
as Guy of Glastonbury - John HallamJohn HallamJohn William Francis Hallam was a Northern Irish character actor.- Career :He appeared in many film and television roles including Nicholas and Alexandra , Murphy's War , The Pallisers , The Mallens , Flash Gordon , Dragonslayer , the BBC television adaptations of Prince Caspian...
as Sir Wilfred Death - Ron CookRon CookRon Cook is an English actor who has been active in the theatre, film and television since the 1970s. He is from South Shields, Co Durham, England and is a graduate of Rose Bruford College.- Stage appearances :...
as Sean, the Irish Bastard - Tony RobinsonTony RobinsonTony Robinson is an English actor, comedian, author, broadcaster and political campaigner. He is best known for playing Baldrick in the BBC television series Blackadder, and for hosting Channel 4 programmes such as Time Team and The Worst Jobs in History. Robinson is a member of the Labour Party...
as Baldrick, Bachelor of the Parish of Chigwell - Tim McInnernyTim McInnernyTim McInnerny is an English actor. He is known for his role as Percy in Blackadder and Blackadder II, and as Captain Darling in Blackadder Goes Forth...
as Percy, Duke of NorthumberlandLord Percy PercyLord Percy Percy is the name given to a pair of related fictional characters, played by Tim McInnerny, in the first two series of the popular British sitcom Blackadder. The Lord Percy of Blackadder II is the descendant of that seen in The Black Adder... - Brian BlessedBrian BlessedBrian Blessed is an English actor, known for his sonorous voice and "hearty, king-sized portrayals".-Early life:The son of William Blessed, a socialist miner, and Hilda Wall, Blessed was born in the town of Goldthorpe, West Riding of Yorkshire, England...
as King Richard IV - Elspet GrayElspet GrayElspeth Jean Gray, Baroness Rix is a Scottish actress, known for her work on British television in the 1970s and '80s...
as Queen Gertrude of FlandersGertrude of FlandersGertrude of Flanders is a fictional character in the popular BBC sitcom Blackadder . She was played by Elspet Gray.In the series, she is the Queen of Flanders in her own right and the wife of King Richard of England and Scotland and mother of Princes Harry and Edmund.In attitude, Gertrude mainly... - Robert EastRobert East (actor)Robert Gwyn East East is an accomplished theatre and tv actor. He also wrote Incident at Tulse Hill, first produced at the Hampstead Theatre in December 1981 under the direction of Harold Pinter....
as Harry, Prince of WalesHarry, Prince of Wales (Blackadder)Prince Henry "Harry" Plantagenet, Earl of March was a fictional character played by Robert East in the popular BBC sitcom Blackadder .... - Rik MayallRik MayallRichard Michael "Rik" Mayall is an English comedian, writer, and actor. He is known for his comedy partnership with Ade Edmondson, his over-the-top, energetic portrayal of characters, and as a pioneer of alternative comedy in the early 1980s...
as Mad Gerald (credited as "Himself") - John CarlisleJohn Carlisle (actor)John Carlisle is a British television and stage actor.John Carlisle had regular roles in Emergency - Ward 10, Scotland Yard on ABC, 1957–1958, and the London Weekend Television series New Scotland Yard as Detective Sergeant Ward.He also appeared in the BBC series The Omega Factor as the morally...
as the Murdered Lord - Bert ParnabyBert ParnabyBert Parnaby was a British actor who was notable for a string of TV and Film roles from the 1960s through the 1980s. His TV roles included performances in Blackadder, By the Sword Divided, Juliet Bravo, Inspector Morse and Last of the Summer Wine. In 1988, he appeared as Father Christmas in the BBC...
as Cain, a Blind Beggar - Roy EvansRoy Evans (actor)Roy Evans is an actor who has appeared in British Television from 1960s onwards appearing in a wide range of productions including Doctor Who , Blake's 7 and Porterhouse Blue .-External links:...
as Abel, a Blind Beggar - Forbes CollinsForbes CollinsForbes Collins is a British actor, best known for his role as King John in the popular comedy Maid Marian and Her Merry Men. He also starred in the episode All About Scoring, Innit? in the critically acclaimed drama, Minder, playing Arklow, as well as appearing in episodes of the first series of...
as the Trusting Father - Des Webb as the Person of Unrestricted Growth
- John Barrard as the Retired Morris Dancer
- Perry BensonPerry BensonPerry Benson is an English character actor best known for his regular roles in British television sitcoms You Rang, M'Lord? , Oh, Doctor Beeching! and Operation Good Guys .-Movie career:...
as the Pigeon Vendor - Gareth Milne as the Stuntman