http://www.mercypeak.co.nz/story.html?story_white_valliant.inc

Muttonbirds song inspires episode ["Good, Bad, Ugly", Friday September
19, 2003, TV ONE, NZ]

Kiwi band The Muttonbirds have long been lauded by fans and critics
alike for being able to capture the quintessential New Zealand
experience. Now, The Muttonbirds' song "White Valiant" lends itself to
another Kiwi classic - it was the inspiration for the September 19
episode of Mercy Peak.

When Nicky's (Sara Wiseman) car breaks down in the back of beyond, her
biggest worry is getting to Gabrielle's (Claire Waldron) baby-naming
ceremony on time. But when she accepts a lift from sinister Anton
Devcich (Peter Daubé), the stakes are raised and being punctual is far
from her main problem.

Mercy Peak executive producer, co-creator and co-writer Rachel Lang says
tonight's episode became nicknamed "White Valiant", despite being called
"Good, Bad, Ugly".

"I like Don McGlashan's songs a lot. A lot of them are like short films
or short stories with great mood and characters," she says. "'White
Valiant' taps into the great New Zealand hitch-hiking myth, being picked
up by the strange guy who may or may not have bad intentions.

"It stuck in my mind and became the springboard for the Nicky/Anton
story in this episode. As shorthand, we always called the ep 'White
Valiant'. Since we all knew that, the director Simon Bennett suggested
we contact Don and see if we could get permission to use the song on the
soundtrack. So we sent him the script and he agreed."

The resulting episode shows Nicky and Anton's third interaction. The
pair met when Anton's daughter gave birth, and he was trying to organise
an illegal adoption for cash. Since then he has unsettled Nicky by also
claiming knowledge of the mystery dead body under William's (Jeffrey
Thomas) rental property.

"Anton also seems to know too much about Nicky, so she's not inclined to
like him," says Sara Wiseman, who plays Nicky. "But she finds herself
stuck with him. And even though she probably wouldn't admit it, there's
something Nicky finds intriguing about him, because he's larger than
life and his world view is so unique."

Rachel Lang says Anton's character started out as a survivalist and
became a devotee of ancient Sparta, because it fitted with the story
strands: "We wanted a character who was on the edges of society, who
operates as a wild card and nemesis to Nicky and Ken (Tim Balme). He's
extreme and they don't like him - but what he says makes a certain
amount of sense, so Nicky can't just reject him out of hand."

Does Nicky put herself in danger when she accepts a ride from Anton?
Find out pm Mercy Peak - Fridays at 8.30pm on TV ONE.