Djaq, the girl outlaw, and the Night Watchman.

Above: Lucy Griffiths as the excellent Night Watchman in BBC's Robin Hood (2006)
Above: Was this the inspiration for the Night Watchman? Marian makes her entrance in disguise in "Robin Hood Prince of Thieves".
The BBC's 2006 version of Robin Hood changed the roles of many of Robin Hood characters, and dropped others altogether from the cast. But it did make two interesting innovations. Above: Djaq took over the Saracen outlaw role which had begun in the 1980's, but never as a girl before. The concept of including a female outlaw had been explored before as far back as the 1950s but, if you don't count Maid Marian, never in a permanent way. Djaq, played by Anjali Jay, entered the series having been rescued by Robin Hood's men from being put to work as a slave by the Sheriff of Nottingham. Here she is seen being tortured with acid by the Sheriff of Nottingham.

Above: Still on the theme of equal outlaw rights for the girls, the BBC also gave Maid Marian a secret identity. When Robin of Loxley left for the Crusades, long before he became Robin Hood, it seems Marian was dashing around Nottingham at night fighting for the rights of the poor. The people gave her the name of the Night Watchman, and in this way Lucy Griffiths made an excellent contribution to the annals of Robin Hood.