[1] Renowned computer expert who, at the age of 18, developed the Tarial Cell, leading to a whole new generation of computers. He also developed other radical new concepts in the field of computer technology. He suffered a massive heart attack whilst on vacation on a frontier planet, and the medical facilities there were unable to give him a new heart. Instead he was fitted with a prosthetic organ, powered by microcells with a life span of 40 years. Shortly afterwards he disappeared, having fled to Aristo.
Before his disappearance he tutored the young Muller, instilling a fanatical work drive that led to the development of the megalomaniac android Muller built on Pharos. Orac called Ensor "a tyrant for self-discipline". Ensor also met Dorian at some time, and Dorian later described him to Avon as "never a gracious man".
On Aristo he designed and built Orac, his ultimate achievement, and attempted to sell it to the Federation for 100 million credits. He accepted Blake and Cally when they arrived on Aristo, and gave them the decontaminant drugs they needed for the other members of the crew suffering from radiation sickness. When Servalan and Travis arrived, Ensor led Blake and Cally out through a secret exit, but died in the tunnels before reaching the surface. Blake left him there.
Ensor lived far underground, where he kept tropical fish and a number of potted plants. He also frequently listened to a recording of a cardinal singing.
Some confusion surrounds the length of Ensor's exile. In Deliverance Ensor's son referred to "thirty years of independence" when talking to Maryatt, and in Rescue Avon told Dorian that Ensor had spent the last twenty years of his life in hiding. Ensor himself mentioned not having left his underground complex for "more than forty years".
[2] Ensor's son, who went with him to Aristo at the age of four and later approached the Federation with his father's offer to sell Orac. Young Ensor journeyed back to Aristo with Space Surgeon Maryatt, but their journey was interrupted when a bomb planted by Servalan forced them to crashland on Cephlon. Ensor, badly injured, was brought aboard, and took Cally hostage to force Blake to take him to Aristo. He died of his injuries on the way.
On reboarding the Liberator after the Intergalactic War, Avon was informed by Zen that Blake was on his way to Epheron in the Loritol system. No further information was given, save that it was home to several primitive life forms.
| One of the possible sources of treatment for Gan's malfunctioning limiter. Although it had the appropriate level of technology, the inhabitants were stated by Jenna to be hostile to humanoid life "and Homo sapiens in particular". It was 200 hours away from the Liberator's position at the time. | |
| Base Commander on Centero, who informed Travis of the molecular shift detector monitoring the communications centre for arrivals by teleport. |  |
The Federation space fleet unit with which Servalan visited the battle zone in the closing stages of the Intergalactic War. The escort group was destroyed in the alien counterattack, leaving Servalan stranded on Sarran.
Once the Liberator was parked in a trial of crew performance, Blake asked Zen to check for any space traffic in the vicinity, requesting "etheric detector beams on maximum".
| A planet, probably in Sector 4, with a thin breathable atmosphere that ran short of oxygen at relatively low altitudes. Vegetation was minimal. Zen specifically mentioned escarpments made of chalk. The Federation had used Exbar as a penal colony for Grade-4 offenders, who were allowed visitors and special privileges: the planet might be regarded as an open prison. Ushton had been sent there for an unspecified crime at some time. As a boy, Blake visited Exbar, presumably to see Ushton, suggesting that Ushton had been there for twenty years or more at the time of Blake's second visit. |  |
 The communications Tower | Inga may have gone to Exbar with Ushton, joined him later, or been born there. The Federation later abandoned Exbar, leaving the prisoners behind, and those that were left looked after themselves, competing for what little food and other resources there were. Travis, when he arrived, took possession of a previously unopenable communications tower which also functioned as an oxygen and power plant. It was also revealed to contain large stocks of food concentrate. Inga said there was enough to feed everyone on the planet, suggesting that total population was relatively low and probably restricted to a fairly small area. |
One of the stars, along with Cynra and Aristo, shown on the star chart on the flight deck as Blake journeyed to meet Ensor.
An adverbal phrase, meaning 'in virtue of one's office', derived from the Latin words ex 'out of' and officio, the ablative of officium 'duty, office'. Used either as a noun or as an adjective, it was used as the latter by Bercol in Trial, when he identified himself as 'Head of the Information Bureau. Ex officio member of the High Council'.
A drug, exact details of which are hard to infer. Keiller noted that it was used in "psychological tests for security", but also apparently taken, probably illegally, by others. Exobriddian was addictive, and withdrawal could be fatal. Dayna was supposed to fake withdrawal symptoms as part of the plan to steal the Earth-bound gold from the Space Princess, but a change of ship's doctor forced her to take the drug for real. Dr Slaten noted that Dayna would not be given drugs on Earth, suggesting that exobriddian was illegal on Earth if not elsewhere. Reference was also made to "exobriddian poisoning", suggesting that exobriddian might have been a withdrawal-related by-product rather than the name of the drug itself.