IMDB Link: “Who Pays the Ferryman?” The Well (TV Episode 1977) – IMDb
Synopsis: Haldane and Annika encounter a mysterious and secretive man by the name of Bernard Kingsley. He is an Englishman on the run from British justice. Haldane learns of his story and tries to help him but Kingsley doesn’t want to run any more.
The episode starts with Haldane and Annika driving. Behind the opening credits, the viewpoint is of a shallow left hand turn.
In the next shot, we see them negotiating a right-hand bend.
This was actually filmed on the bend after you’d passed the truck in the next scene.
They find Bernard Kingsley injured, lying in the road.
They take him to Neapolis to get seen to by a doctor.
Incidentally, at the bottom of the sign is the word ΚΑΡΔΙΟΛΟΓΟΣ, which is the Greek word for Cardiologist. This house is around the corner from the public gardens in Neapoli.
Google Street View doesn’t cover most roads in Neapolis so it’s difficult to find the following location. But from the background in the following shots, and with confirmation from locals, it looks like the Public Gardens (in the town square next to the church) in Neapoli.
This wider shot matches the public gardens very closesly.
After sitting down to rest, they drive back to Elounda. Katerina Matakis sees her daughter pass by in Haldane’s car.
Checking the buildings, this location looks the closest match. It matches the camera position where the car passes in the next shot.
They pass by the Panagia Church.
They drop Kingsley off at Haldane’s apartment then he drives Annika home. These are of course, the bottom of the steps in the alleyway between Haldane’s apartment on the left (up the stairs) and the taverna on the right.
His car is parked out by the waterfront.
In those days you could drive along the front of the taverna and around to Elounda Square, nowadays the restaurants dominate this space, with their seating taking up much of the front.
At dinner in the taverna, Cooper recognises Kingsley whilst Nikos recommends some tourist attractions.
The next morning, Haldane is working on his boat. Again, this is up near the Despina Taverna.
Kingsley goes to see Apolostolos the mechanic, then meets Haldane at the taverna for a late breakfast. Apostolos is charging 2,000 Drachma for the work.
So let’s do a little calculation to see how much that is in today’s money. For the purposes of determining an approximate exchange rate, let’s say the serial was produced at the end of April 1977. Using this website to determine the exchange rate of Drachma to the pound at the time, then using this website to calculate the inflation rate, we can arrive at an approximate cost of the work that Apostolos did in today’s money.
Exchange rate (April 29 1977) approx 63.92 Δρχ. to £1.
2000 Δρχ. = approx £31.29
£31.29 in 2021 = approx £149
Cooper takes Kingsley’s raki glass to lift prints from, in order to determine whether he is the person he’s looking for.
Katerina Matakis pleads with her daughter to stop seeing Haldane, but does not give her a reason. Hence Annika refuses, and appears bewildered why her mother is so adamant she shouldn’t seeing this Englishman in particular. Matheos has been listening in to the conversation.
Haldane drives Kingsley home, to a place called ‘Meligala’. Although, do a search for this place in Crete and Google won’t return any results. This is an initial long shot of the village.
Note the small mountain in the foreground, and the smaller rounded peak in the distance, especially noticeable that it has a ‘hole’ in the side facing the camera.
They stop in the village next to the drill truck.
Note the distinctive ‘Y’-shaped mountain in the background with small peak.
From the mountain range in the background, it looks as though this is the village of Roussapidia.
In the screenshot above, the ‘Y’-shaped mountain on the opposite side is visible in the Google Street View below. What is also visible is the turn-off that leads from the main mountain road down to the village.
The small mountain to the left of Haldane is adjacent and just to the east of the village.
The arrow points to the village, the small mountain is circled.
The features of the mountain ridges above (two domed peaks, the furthest seemingly has a ‘hole’ in the side) are matched from the view across the valley just above where the village is.
Haldane sees the village and draws out a diagram of a proposed improvement to the guy ropes for the drill. He also finds Sam in bed with Spiros, something that Kingsley is already well aware of.
Haldane is driven back to Elounda by Spiros.
He discusses the situation between Sam, Kingley and Spiros with Annika that evening.
The following morning, Cooper and Major Krasakis visit Haldane to tell him the story of why Kingsley / Neve fled from England, and ask him to tell them where he is. Annika blurts out the name of the village.
Haldane rushes to Meligala to offer Kingsley help to get off the island, but he refuses.
The following scene of the FIAT being driven at high speed was filmed from the turn-off to the dirt track that leads down to the village.
The Police make their way to Meligala to arrest Kingsley.
This was either filmed on the main road just before the turn-off for the village, or from the track that leads to the village itself, both of which overlook the road that the Land Rover is travelling along. From the pinned spot, look east and zoom in, and you will notice the bend and straight road in the two scenes of the Land Rover approaching the village.
The upper arrow is the camera angle of the first shot of the Land Rover going around the bend. The lower arrow is the second shot of the Land Rover driving along. This is just outside the village, which you can see from the Google Maps image above.
He doesn’t want to run any more. He lets himself be taken in by Cooper and the Major.
Kingley (now found out as Duncan Neve), is taken by Cooper to the airport to be returned to stand trial in England.
This is what was the domestic Departures lounge at Heraklion airport. Back in those days, various international flights used to connect through Athens.
Haldane watches as Neve leaves on an Olympic Airways Boeing 720 back to England, departing via Runway 27. The aircraft filmed for this scene is Boeing 720-051B SX-DBN “ΝΕΣTOΣ” (named after the River Nestos in the north-east of Greece).
In the following shot, Haldane and Major Krasakis are actually stood next to the runway. In the 70s, it was easier to get access to such areas.
Haldane returns to Meligala to pass on the message from Kingsley to Sam.
She hears about his possibly early release from prison and this gives her the drive to get the drilling started again, and carry on the great work he did for the village.
This impresses Haldane, and he leaves the village in good hands.
The final long-shot of the village which then becomes the background for the credits.
I’ve tried to match the above to a Google Maps image. Apologies if it looks a bit of a mess – but the buildings are still recognisable. It’ll need an on-site visit to take photos of Neve’s house and others of interest.
From the above shot, it zooms out to show the village on the mountainside. This shot was taken from the bottom of the valley, from which there is no Google Street View in order for me to mimic the shot.
Credits
| Alan Haldane | Jack Hedley |
| Annika Zeferis | Betty Arvaniti |
| Matheos Noukakis | Takis Emmanuel |
| Katerina Matakis | Patience Collier |
| Duncan Neve | Patrick Magee |
| The Major | Stefan Gryff |
| Samantha Ross | Sally Knyvette |
| Elena Vassilakis | Maria Sokali |
| Nikos Vassilakis | Nikos Verlekis |
| Leonard Cooper | Allan Mitchell |
| Mary Cooper | Elizabeth Chambers |
| Production Assistants | Andrew Morgan |
| Michael McDermott | |
| Production Unit Managers | Colin Dudley |
| Petros Raptis | |
| Costume Designer | Tudor George |
| Make Up Artist | Gwen Arthy |
| Studio Lighting | Barry Hill |
| Studio Sound | Ramon Bailey |
| Film Cameraman | Max Samett |
| Film Recordist | Arthur Chesterman |
| Film Editor | Bill Shapter |
| Composer | Yannis Markopoulos |
| Series Creator | Michael J. Bird |
| Designer | Myles Lang |
| Producer | William Slater |
Who Pays The Ferryman? Locations Page 