Sapphire & Steel
TV Show • 1979
ReportSynopsis
Sapphire & Steel is a British television science-fiction fantasy series starring David McCallum as Steel and Joanna Lumley as Sapphire. Produced by ATV, it ran from 1979 to 1982 on the ITV network. The series was created by Peter J. Hammond who conceived the programme under the working title The Time Menders, after a stay in an allegedly haunted castle. Hammond also wrote all the stories except for the fifth, which was co-written by Don Houghton and Anthony Read.
In 2004, Sapphire and Steel returned in a series of audio dramas starring David Warner and Susannah Harker.
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Are animals abused?
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The third story arc includes discussion of cruelty to animals, including stock footage of animals being experimented on and slaughtered.
pedanther
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Animal death (slaughtering for food, live animal experimentation, etc) is a running theme in the third Assignment. No animals die as part of the story but there's evocative stock footage of slaughter yards and the like.
pedanther
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In Assignment 3, Sapphire discovers a family has committed suicide together.
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Does someone attempt suicide?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
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Is there domestic violence?
National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233)
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Does a kid die?
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Off-screen. But Sapphire discovers the bodies of a family who committed suicide together, including the children.
skillwithaquill24
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Are there incestuous relationships?
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Does it have a sad ending?
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Spoilers
In Assignment 6, the show’s finale, Sapphire and Steel lose their fight with the villains. They are trapped and left to float in space for eternity.
In Assignment 6, the show’s finale, Sapphire and Steel lose their fight with the villains. They are trapped and left to float in space for eternity.
skillwithaquill24
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Is there sexual content?
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It’s lightly implied that Ruth could be a sex worker, but that’s the extent of it.
skillwithaquill24
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Is there blood/gore?
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The fifth story arc involves a virus which produces unpleasant skin lesions in its victims.
pedanther
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Is someone burned alive?
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At the end of Assignment 4 part 3. No visual, just screaming and the sound of the fire.
pedanther
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Is there a hanging?
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A woman is threatened with a noose, but she is rescued.
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Is someone gaslighted?
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Sapphire and Steel sometimes use manipulation and gaslighting tactics to convince human characters to help them or do something important.
skillwithaquill24
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Does someone say "I'll kill myself"?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
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Does an LGBT person die?
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None of the characters who die are confirmed as LGBT+.
skillwithaquill24
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Is there gun violence?
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Assignment 5 has characters held at gunpoint, and one character is shot.
The ghost of a soldier talks about having been shot and killed during WWI.
The ghost of a soldier talks about having been shot and killed during WWI.
skillwithaquill24
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Does a parent die?
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A family commits suicide offscreen, including the parents and their children. Sapphire discovers their bodies.
skillwithaquill24
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Does a woman get slapped?
National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233)
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Does the abused become the abuser?
National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233)
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Does someone cheat?
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At the dinner party in Assignment 5, Sapphire and Steel discover multiple instances of infidelity between the guests.
skillwithaquill24
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Does a baby cry?
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In the third story arc there is a couple with a baby, which cries loudly and at length.
pedanther
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Is someone possessed?
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Sapphire is a medium and frequently ends up possessed. Assignment 2 features a seance where this happens several times.
Sapphire and Steel experience ghosts/spirits possessing them and then forcing them to re-live each of their deaths.
Sapphire and Steel experience ghosts/spirits possessing them and then forcing them to re-live each of their deaths.
skillwithaquill24
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Does a plane crash?
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A pilot was killed in a crash and his ghost recounts the event by possessing Steel.
skillwithaquill24
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Are there babies or unborn children?
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There is a baby in the third story arc.
pedanther
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Does someone sacrifice themselves?
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In the second story arc, a character's life is sacrificed to secure victory and the liberty of the other characters. It's ambiguous whether the character is aware of the situation and knowingly assents to being sacrificed.
pedanther
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Are there clowns?
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In the sixth story arc, one character is an entertainer whose outfit is clownlike, though it isn't Full Clown (for instance, he uses makeup to exaggerate his facial features slightly, but not to the extent of blank white skin with a new face drawn over it).
pedanther
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