"Forever Knight" is a Canadian television show that was produced in the early 90's and aired on a number of different channels including CBS, USA and a few local channels in Canada and the US.

The show has a history of cancellations and returns, due to fan activity, throughout its three seasons of airing. Constant conflicts with network rating standards and the extremely low production budget caused the series to struggle for its return after each successful season. Although it was threatened by cancellation every time, a rock-solid hardheaded fan following contributed to its survival for the entire three seasons, until it was finally concluded in 1996. Despite the closing of the show, many of the erstwhile fans stayed loyal to its concept and continued to uphold the premise for years. A continuation of reruns over a few channels in Canada (Showcase, VTV) and the US (SciFi) managed to attract many new fans and with the expansion of the World Wide Web, fans all over the world gathered together to create a cult following for the show that is compared to some of the colossal franchised fandoms.

With little or no support from the owners of the show, and sometimes in the face of their protest due to copyright problems, the fans continued to support the fandom with their labor of love, creating several mailing lists, hundreds of fanpages all over the Internet and running auctions that either contributed to promoting the series or supporting charities that the show's main stars favored. Thousands of stories, based on the premise and in the form of fanfiction were written by the fans throughout the years and many talented published writers dedicated their time and energy to keep the spirit of the series alive. Because of these combined efforts, Forever Knight continued to exist and flourish for years after its cancellation and is still one of the most remarkable fan followings in TV history. For more information on the show's background please visit the Unofficial Forever Knight site at

http://www.loftworks.com/FK/Show_Info/background.html

The show chronicles the life of Nick Knight (Nicholas De Brabant), an 800-year-old vampire whose quest in life is to regain his mortality and become human again. He lives in Toronto and works as a homicide detective trying to catch criminals and repay the human society for the lives he has taken away from it over the centuries. The series contains a multitude of flashbacks that show us glimpses of Nick's past and the story of his conversion from a 13th century crusader to a predatory creature of the night.

In the year 1228, after returning from the crusades and filled with disillusionment as well as questioning his faith and the church, Nicholas De Brabant is singled out by the ravishing vampiress Janette DuCharme and her master Lucien LaCroix in a tevern in Paris. After a passionate night of romance and lust with her, Nicholas is delivered to LaCroix and turned into a vampire. The three of them spend centuries together, hunting the night and colliding with more than their share of historical figures. They share their love and companionship as well as anger, conflicts, and betrayals. During this time we see Nicholas' transformation from tactless killer, to conscience-stricken lost boy, then a vampire who would only feed on the blood of the guilty and finally, a crusader again, this time on his mission to find salvation for his soul and a way to go back to the light. While his vampire family tries to pull him back to his real nature, he finds aid in his quest among some of the mortals with whom he crosses paths.

Running away from his master who has taken a vow to prevent him from achieving his goal at all cost, and in and out of a stormy relationship with his erstwhile flame and sister by blood, the eternally enchanting Janette, Nick takes on a number of professions throughout his long existence, mostly to atone for his past and to become worthy of god's forgiveness again. At long last, he comes to modern day Toronto and starts a life as a homicide detective.

In this new life he meets yet another significant mortal, Dr. Natalie Lambert. Discovering Nick's secret and secretly harboring his love in her heart,she sets out to help him find a cure for his vampirism in hope of a future with him . It is the one thing that keeps them apart and is also considered a medical *condition* by her that can be cured by modern science. In Toronto we also meet Janette again, who owns the nightclub called the Raven, and LaCroix, who is now a radio DJ using Toronto's nightly airwaves to talk to his 'son'. The Raven is a sanctuary for the vampire community and a place to which Nick frequently returns, in spite of his claim of not wanting to be a part of that community or Janette's life anymore. It is also the place where Nick's master lurks from time to time, watching him ever so vigilantly from the shadows and waiting for the right opportunity to step forward with a taunt or a barb that will serve to irritate the younger vampire and keep the flames of enmity glowing hot between them.

The story touches various social and psychological issues as Nick and his partner on the job follow leads and search for clues to uncover the moralizing truth in the end, and as Nick reminisces his past on occasions that somewhat parallel old experiences in his long anguished life. Fait, justice, guilt, morality, penance, paterfamilias, addiction, romance and hope are among the numerous topics that are introduced and examined within the context of the premise. The idea is so rich in subject matter and so entertaining in its concept, no wonder it has provided fuel for the imagination of so many amateur and professional writers for so such a long time. In point of fact, Forever Knight has something for everyone if one takes the time to look past the low budget and the technicalities and into a realm that is as old as the lead character himself.