Episode 20, "Tunnel of Fear" now joins "Girl on the Trapeze" and "The Frighteners" as the only complete entries from season 1 to have survived, along with the opening reel of "Hot Snow," first discovered in 2016 and issued on DVD in April 2018. Happily, star Ian Hendry as Dr. David Keel is joined by Patrick Macnee's mysterious Steed on a case involving an injured prison escapee (Anthony Bate, later seen in "The Curious Case of the Countless Clues") seeking answers as to who framed him for the Southend funfair payroll some months back. Ingrid Hafner's Carol Wilson exits 10 minutes in, while it's the only time this season we get to see Douglas Muir's One-Ten, Steed's superior (the other four missing, five more next season), plus the second and final appearance from Steed's puppy Juno, from "Ashes of Ashes" (first of three for Morris Perry). It's unfortunate that the villains are such a colorless and obvious lot, but there are two familiar faces among the onlookers in Steed's harem tent (himself disguised as the new barker), Nicky Henson and Julian Holloway. It's a fairly even split between Keel and Steed; the doctor spends most of his time with the escaped convict trying to reenact the crime when not evading the cops, while Steed's masquerade as harem barker is wholly successful, right down to getting knocked unconscious for his overly flirtatious nature. Here's hoping more hidden nuggets turn up again someday.
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kevinolzak28 April 2018
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Keel and Steed are made aware of a case of espionage by desperate man on the run Harry Black.
Underneath a show of bowler hats and scantily clad lovelies is a cracking story, a very well crafted tale of stolen secrets and espionage. The fairground setting adds to the mystery, and in fairness looks pretty great.
I loved how it played out, it was well paced and intriguing. Each character had a part to play, nobody felt there to make the numbers up.
How wonderful that this rare gem was discovered, how incredible would it be if a few more were found, we can all live in hope.
I'm surprised by how big a part Keel has played in these early episodes, I was really expecting The Steed show, and here it's mainly Keel that drives the story, with Steed naturally playing a vital part.
Anthony Bate plays the man on the run incredibly well, he was a wonderful actor, charismatic, handsome, and versatile, in his later years he was regularly cast as lords and upper class grandeurs, here we see a more down to Earth character, he's excellent.
Class, 8/10. -
profh-12 November 2022Harry Black, convicted for a crime he didn't commit, breaks jail and tries to find evidence to clear himself. Joined by Dr. Keel and John Steed, their investigation focuses on Harry's former place of employment-- an amusement park and a "Ghost Train" attraction in particular. It's really a cross between THE AVENGERS, THE FUGITIVE and SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES-- only, without the supernatural bits. Especially when you see Dr. Keel at one point RUNNING from the cops! (He's a lot more fun to watch than Dr. Richard Kimble.)
Steed becomes interested when his Great Dane "Puppy" clearly likes Harry, and, when he finds the situation ties in with government secrets somehow being broadcast from the area. Sure enough, before it's over, he finds the "Ghost Train" has a back room with high-tech electronic equipment. Steed hilariously poses as a carnival barker running a belly-dancing show, and along the way, they run across Harry's mother, his girlfriend, a hypnotist who uses his skills in criminal ways, and a very jealous boyfriend who doesn't like Steed getting too cozy with his girl.
Steed also contacts his boss "One-Ten" on the phone twice, and apparently in between dropped "Puppy" off with him. Every time I see him, One-Ten reminds me of "Mr. Waverly" from THE MAN FROM UNCLE-- except this was 3 years before Waverly debuted.
While Keel still gets most of the screen-time in this story, it's clear the series was slowly evolving into what it would later become, with Steed at the focus of things, and more outragious espionage plots.
At the climax, Steed threatens the baddies with a very dangerous gimmick-- and after, Keel is shocked to learn Steed WASN'T bluffing!
Anthony Bate is "Harry Black". I thought he looked familiar, I'd also seen him in 3 episodes of THE SAINT, along with a later AVENGERS.
I didn't recognize any of the main baddies, but a couple of other familiar faces turned up briefly. Morris Perry was a police sergeant. I'll always remember him as the incredibly-evil "Captain Dent" in the Jon Pertwee DOCTOR WHO story "Colony In Space". He also played the butler "Barrymore" in the Tom Baker HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES.
Also in the background was Julian Holloway as a member of the crowd. He was in a pile of the later CARRY ON films, and SCREAM AND SCREAM AGAIN, but I'll always remember him most as the obnoxious ex-army drill sergeant "Paterson" in the final Sylvester McCoy DOCTOR WHO story "Survival".
Missing for 55 YEARS, this episode turned up in a private collection in 2016, and was issued on a Region 2 DVD in 2018. Picture & sound were mostly clear, though I had a bit of trouble making out some of the dialogue. Extras include a 1962 interview with Ian Hendry, a 1964 interview with Patrick Macnee, an interview with Big Finish writer John Dorney, who wrote an audio adaptation of the story before the actual episode itself turned up, "reconstructions" of several of the episodes using still photos, the Big Finish audio reconstruction of this episode, and PDFs of the surviving season 1 scripts. They clearly wanted to pack as much as possible into it to make it worth buying on its own. What a thrill to see another episode of the show I had NEVER seen before. Here's hoping it won't be the last one to turn up. -
jamesraeburn20038 October 2021John Steed (played by Patrick Macnee) is investigating leaks of state secrets, which are occurring in the seaside resort of Southend in Essex. When escaped convict Harry Black (played by Anthony Bate) visits Dr Keel's surgery, it looks as though Steed might have a breakthrough in his case. Black works at the funfair which seems to be at the centre of it all. Keel (played by Ian Hendry) finds out that the Ghost Train hides a sinister secret whilst Steed goes undercover as a fairground barker. A spy ring led by Wickram (played by John Salew) are indeed betraying state secrets using the fairground ride as a cover. However, Steed is overpowered and hypnotised yet he still refuses to tell his captors anything. He is left tied and gagged along with Black's girlfriend, Carol (played by Miranda Connell), in the Ghost Train tunnel until the gang get around to disposing of them. Meanwhile, Keel and Black retrace the events leading up to the night when the latter was supposed to have stolen the fairground's takings, for which he was arrested, tried and sent down. The pair find out that he was hypnotised and framed by Wickram's gang. Can the pair rescue Steed and Carol and bring the espionage ring to book?
One of only three complete episodes from season one of this cult TV classic known to have survived. This gem was rediscovered in 2016 and it provides a unique opportunity for us to see the formative years of this show. Unlike the more outlandish fantasy plots we were treated to in the peak years of Diana Rigg and Linda Thorson, this tale of espionage unfolds from a more humble, lifelike setting of a funfair in the traditional English coastal resort of Southend in Essex. To be fair it does manage to convey a reasonably convincing and gritty feel here. Anthony Bate offers an excellent and believably anguished performance as the young fairground worker determined to clear his name and bring those responsible to book. His relationship with his girlfriend (played by Miranda Connell) also adds to the story's power since she got pregnant by another man whilst he was inside. Can he forgive her? Will the pair get back together? Macnee's performance as Steed lays the foundations for the character fans would come to know and love. He drives a Rolls Royce here - albeit, a modern one and not the splendid vintage machines he would drive later on. He is as caddish as ever and sly in the way in which he gets the better of the villains. Here, he bluffs his way out of he and his friends being killed by gunmen with trick cigarettes. Ian Hendry, a sadly underrated actor, offers a fine performance as Steed's doctor sidekick David Keel.