Bring Back BBC Show "Dark Season"

What do the career of Kate Winslet, the current Doctor Who series, Blakes 7's dominatrix villain Servalan, and children's television have in common? Unless you happened to be a teenager in the UK during the early '90s it's unlikely that you'll know the answer, but what's a blog like this for if not to educate, elucidate and make you petition the BBC for a DVD release of forgotten TV show Dark Season? This six-episode, half-hour children's show from 1991 featured Kate Winslet's first starring role as one of three teenagers investigating unnatural goings-on at their high school. Plus, nefarious forces emanate from a headmistress played by Jacqueline Pierce, source of many fetish fantasies for her role as Blake 7's chief bitch Servalan.

Dark Season was also the first writing credit for Doctor Who producer and showrunner Russell T. Davis. The show was full of Who-esque touches, and Who spin-off The Sarah-Jane Adventures bears more than a small similarity to Dark Season's format and aesthetic. Despite its place in geek history, the show has managed to avoid a Region 1 DVD release for years, but here's hoping that 2008 is the year that its star will once again shine. If nothing else, it's still better than Torchwood.

Dark Season []