From TES issue 51 (May 2008)

Series 2. Level 1.
THE SWINGING PENDULUM

This is what you might call a one-shot-wonder, although there was nothing particularly wonderful about it, it has to be said. One of Stuart’s challenges on level one was to run past a huge swinging pendulum, which looked a lot like a wrecker’s ball, in the corridor that usually housed the Hall of Spears. The pendulum was seemingly transparent, as we could see the distorted details of the room through it as it swung back and forth. The challenge was only used for this one single appearance in the programme, although it did feature as the backdrop for the end credits in the same episode.

Upon arriving in the corridor through the left-hand door nearest the camera, it became quite clear what Stuart had to do. The door directly opposite him had the symbol of the Chalice (the object of his quest) emblazoned beneath it, and the swinging pendulum would pause between swings just long enough for Stuart to run directly across the corridor and out through the door. The team succeeded in completing this task with no problems, which was not surprising as, although the task seemed overwhelming at first, it really wasn’t very difficult at all.

Interestingly enough, when Stuart first entered the room, Treguard remarked that ”a new threat guards the Great Corridor of the Catacombs” yet it was painfully clear to anyone with a fragment of Knightmare nouse that this was not, in fact, the Great Corridor of the Catacombs at all! Treguard’s comment that ”we don’t want Stuart mashed” was rather nice, though, and said with great relish by Hugo Myatt. The challenge was never presented to any team other than Stuart’s, which was a shame in a way, as it could have provided some hairy moments. Still, I haven’t lost any sleep about it over the past twenty years, and I don’t intend to start now, I’m sure you’ll be relieved to hear.

Of course, the prospect of a much more nerve-wracking, challenging swinging pendulum room was dangled in front of our noses at the end of the first episode of series 4, as the chamber behind the end credits contained a fiendish challenge that seemed to involve walking along a narrow, jagged path whilst dodging a large pendulum that was swinging with a circular motion at quite a speed. It’s not surprising that this challenge never made it into the show, as it was obviously far too hard, although there did seem to be a safe spot in the middle of the path. Still, it undoubtedly would have been too much for any team to handle.

Difficulty: 3 Despite first appearances, it was a simple bit of timing.
Killer Instinct: 1 No real opportunity, no real hope.
Gore Factor: 10 Undoubtedly it would have been very messy indeed!
Fairness: 8 Likely to unnerve the poor little darlings on level one, but not finish them off.

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Quest 8 of Series 2 featured a Level 1 room with a giant, reflective pendulum. Dungeoneer Stuart was successfully guided across the room to an exit without being hit by the swinging pendulum.
The pendulum room was only seen in Knightmare on that one occasion. Treguard hinted that it was a version of the Great Corridor of the Catacomb, but it was in fact a version of the Hall of Spears from Series 1, as this picture shows.
The Mills of Doom, seen in Series 2 and Series 3, had a moving pendulum in the background.

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