This miniseries came hot on the heels of 'The Jewel in the Crown', 'A Passage to India' and a fascination with all things Indian.
Ash (played by Ben Cross, best known for 'Chariots of Fire') and Wally (played by Benedict Taylor, who had featured in children's TV series 'Barriers') were the main players in this drama. Ash had been brought up to think of himself as Indian rather than officer class, and so falls in love with the sultry Anjuli (played by Amy Irving, at that time I think Mrs Steven Spielberg).
The other characters are stock faces from the glory days of the British Raj - while big name actors appear in the more adventurous parts (Christopher Lee, Omar Sharif, Rossano Brazzi). Look out for a young Rupert Everett (post-Another Country) in the cast as well.
Bits of the The Far Pavillions will stay in your mind. The futility of war. The ceremony of suttee (the burning of a living widow on her husband's funeral pyre). The forbidden love across castes and classes.
Recently revitalised as a big budget West End musical, The Far Pavillions is well worth your time. Brilliantly cast, scripted, and directed, it was a definite plus point of 1980s British TV.
