Sevencyclopaedia - C

CHENGA

Neutral planet with a small population, inferentially in close proximity to Sarran. Settled some 200 years before the Intergalactic War, the population split into two groups: the Primitives tried to live a simple life in the forests, but the Hitechs placed all emphasis on technological development. The Hitechs came to use the Primitives, and others, as a source of organs for transplant surgery. The only Chengans named were Lom, Mall, Zee and Barr. The planet was visited by Vila, Cally and Servalan.

CHENIE

A barmaid in Freedom City, who hid Docholli from Cevedic and arranged for his safe departure from the planet, calling on a debt owed her by the captain of a Trantinian planet hopper. From her bar on the Rink she could see everyone who came to Freedom City and she was thus a good source of information. She appeared to have at least two bouncers. Whether the bars was hers or she worked for an unnamed owner was not specified.

CHESIL

A native of Sardos who, together with Poola, monitored traffic and incoming meteorites around the asteroid. She later joined Doran in looking for Vila, and was killed by Moloch.

CHESKU

A High Councillor, loyal to Servalan after the Intergalactic War. Although married (rather less than happily) to Sula, he had no idea of her true identity. Sula shot him in the back as he tried to escape from her - she needed his clothes as part of her plan to infiltrate Residence One.

CHESS

Chess appeared in several episodes. An abandoned game was found on the Ortega in Mission to Destiny. Carnell carried a computer chess game which he gave to a young officer before going into hiding. Defeating the Klute at Speed Chess on Freedom City offered a prize of one million credits. Avon and Vila produced a chess board when Blake, Jenna and Cally teleported up from Freedom City. Colonel Quute was seen to play chess or a very similar game with the duty tracer on Helotrix. Belkov in Games appeared to play a multi-tiered chess-like game with his Gambit computer, as did Orac in order to ascertain the nature of Gambit's logic. Lastly, Egrorian and Pinder played what seemed to be the same game as Quute and the duty tracer, and Pinder explicitly used the term "checkmate". See also Speed Chess

On the Ortega

CHEVNER

One of the rebels working with Avalon and probably a Subterron. He was the only survivor of the massacre conducted by Travis" mutoids. Initially suspicious of Blake and Jenna, he played a crucial part in their "rescue" of Avalon, shooting at least three troopers with an M16 assault rifle, but was killed by the android Avalon on the Liberator.

CHOPPER

Small spacecraft or aircraft. Keiller described the ship seen leaving the gold mine on Zerok as a chopper. See also SPACE CHOPPER.

CHRISTIANITY

With Islam, it was one of the two religions of late twentieth century Earth referred to in the series.

Explicit references:

• In Deliverance, the star system that was the destination in five hundred years of the rocket Avon launched from Cephlon was called Magdalen Alpha. The system, or perhaps the constellation of which it was part, was either named after St, Mary Magdelene, or someone or something named after her. (See MAGDALEN ALPHA.)

• In Pressure Point, a ruined church was seen by Blake and Gan. The former, when the latter asked what it was, called it a 'Place of religious assembly', later adding, 'The Federation had them all destroyed at the beginning of the New Calendar', suggesting that the Old Calendar might have been the Gregorian one.

• In Gambit, a male visitor to the Big Wheel in Freedom City was dressed as a nun. (See NUN.)

• Judgement Day: In Horizon, Vila called his experience and that of the rest of the crew, when they encountered the planet's barrier, to 'Judgement Day'. (See JUDGEMENT DAY.)

• Holy Writ: In Rumours of Death, when Major Grenlee was told that sealing the perimeter was standard operating procedure in the event of a surveillance malfunction, he replied, 'I don't give a damn if it's Holy Writ'. (See HOLY WRIT.)

CHRONICLE DISCS

Data storage medium consulted by Dayna and Tarrant on Xenon to discover the history of the war between Hommiks and Seska. Nina, then a Seska, was seen reading a battle report until she was interrupted by the arrival of a large axe.

CHRONOMETER

A timepiece originally designed to be accurate in all conditions of a ship's motion, temperature, pressure, and gravity, allowing accurate timekeeping - and therefore accurate navigation - to take place at sea. The first properly accurate Earth chronometers were designed and made by the British clockmaker John Harrison (1693-1776).

In the Blake's 7 universe, it was used to refer to a timepiece worn around the wrist, known to many inhabitants of late twentieth century Earth as a 'wristwatch'. In 'Gold', Keiller advised the passangers of the Space Princess to 'please tune all chronometers to frequency seven for syncronization with Federation Standard Time'.

Chronometers were worn by 17 of the characters in the series - most notably in the first season - in the following episodes:

The Way Back	Blake, Maja, Varon, and Ravella
Space Fall	Blake, Avon, Laylan, and Raiker
Cygnus Alpha	Blake, Avon, and Leylan
Time Squad	Blake, Avon, and Vila
The Web	Blake, Avon, and Vila
Seek-Locate-Destroy	Blake, Avon, and Vila
Mission to Destiny	Blake, Avon, and Vila
Duel	Blake, Avon, and Vila
Project Avalon	Avon
Breakdown	Blake, Avon, and Vila
Bounty	Blake
Deliverance	Blake
Orac	Blake, Avon, and Ensor
Trial	Jenna
Hostage	Ushton
Countdown	Provine and Tronos
Star One	Jenna
Powerplay	Tarrant
Rumours of Death	Anna Grant
Animals	Ardus
Headhunter	Technician 241

In total, chronometers were worn in 21 epsiodes, Space Fall being the one when the largest number of chronometers were worn (4). Blake wore a chronometer the most times during the series, in a total of 12 episodes, followed by Avon in 10 and by Vila in 6. Avon and Vila wore their chronometers on their right wrists; all the other characters wore theirs on their left. Two characters wore different types of chronometers in different episodes: Blake wore a different chronometer from his usual one in 'Orac', while Jenna wore different chronometers in each of the two episodes she was seen wearing one.

Vila in Duel

Of particular interest was the external appearance of the chronometers. Most appeared to be all black in colour, resembling in shape the 'digital' wristwatches of late twentieth-century Earth. Among the exceptions were Blake's, which while mostly black and 'digital', appeared to be partly metalic with a flexible strap, rather than one that needed to be fastened. Two completely metalic-appearing chronometers were shown: Ensor's in 'Orac', which was of a silver metalic appearance, fitted with a buzzer; and Jenna's in 'Star One', with a gold metalic appearance, a slender strap, and a small round face, exactly resembling a late twentieth-century ladies' wristwatch.

Other chronometers shown were, in late twentieth-century terms, more conventional looking. Blake, in 'Orac', wore a chronometer that, while black, had a round face with hands. Overall, external chronometer design in the Blake's 7 universe appeared to be quite achronistic, relying on late twentieth-century wristwatch models.

Also of interest was the lax attitude of the Federation authorities to the wearing of chronometers by prisoners, despite the security risks. Blake's chronometer was taken from him before his trial in 'The Way Back', but restored to him after he was sentenced; he was later seen using it to co-ordinate the attempted takeover of the London in 'Space Fall'. From what was seen in 'Hostage', Ushton was also presumably allowed to bring his chronometer with him to Exbar.

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