Series 1 Characters

Samuel is Macky’s father, a successful silversmith. A warm, friendly and wise man, he was born Jewish, but later joined the Friends of Jesus.

Because of the war they’re fighting in Jerusalem, the Romans are suspicious of nearly all the religious groups within their Empire. So Samuel and the Friends of Jesus must exist in secret. When the Romans decide to try and break up the Friends of Jesus, Samuel is forced to make a difficult decision: should he sit back and enjoy the profits of his successful small business, or should he risk everything by working with the rebels, and helping the Friends?

Diana is Macky’s mother – a dressmaker, always elegant and glamorous.

Diana would have been content just to take care of her husband and son – but both Samuel and Macky have chosen a more dangerous path, which, at first, Diana rejects. But soon, Diana’s kindness – and her love for her family – wins out, and she, too, helps the rebel movement.

Leah is 5 years old. She is the sister of Rebecca and is a daughter of Daniel, a brave rebel fighter in Galilee.

Daniel is also a childhood friend of Samuel’s and when his fighting puts the lives of his two children at risk, he sends them to live with Samuel’s family.

Because she is so young, Leah doesn’t always fully understand everything that’s going on around her, but she’s bright and adventurous and funny, too. As a result, she gets into more than her share of trouble, which sometimes puts the family’s rebel connections at risk and even threatens their lives.

It’s hard, however, not to forgive her.

Rebecca is 8 years old and is Leah’s older sister and daughter of Daniel, a brave rebel fighter in Galilee.

When we first meet her in Episode 1 she is looking for Samuel, her father’s friend – but she does not want to be a burden to Samuel’s family.

Soon, with Leah her sister, she will feel an accepted part of Samuel’s family – and her attachment to Macky will also grow… quickly.

Rebecca has a basic understanding of the danger they’re in and so, to a certain extent, she acts as Leah’s substitute mother.

Sollie is Macky’s friend, an average kid in most ways, except that he just happens to be a mechanical genius.

He’s also a bit of a bookworm and can create strange and unique machines out of almost nothing. Whether he needs to frighten the Romans with unearthly noise or sink a massive Roman warship, Sollie always has a solution. The only problem is that he’s reluctant to leave his studies. That’s where Macky comes in, always persuading Sollie to get involved in his adventures.

Nathan and Miriam are Sollie’s adoptive parents. Though they are Jews, they are accepting of the Friends of Jesus, but they soon see that acceptance isn’t enough.

Circumstances force them to take sides and risk everything they have in order to help their friends.

At first, Nathan tries to keep his involvement a secret from Miriam, but soon Miriam too is swept up in the rebel movement, and the whole family eventually pays a heavy price.