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Eli has to do a stocktake and explains to Stan and Bert that he is an executive. They are labour only for Stan to exclaim that he votes Tory.

As an executive, Eli plans to skive the stocktake by feigning illness. Only for Nellie to overhear his plans that he has cooked up with Stan.

So an angry Nellie gets a doctor to make out that Eli has a terminal illness. Maybe he needs to say his final goodbyes.

Even Lily and Walter make a final visit. At one point the undertaker turns up to take measurements. It all leaves Eli with a worried brow.

The swinging the lead is a common sitcom trope. It is done well here. Nellie makes the most of by roping in others to help her out.

Clive James leaves Tokyo and goes to the ancient capital of Kyoto on the Bullet Train.

For hours he watches the suburbs of Tokyo go past. The place where the workers of Tokyo in their rabbit hutches. Hence why the executives prefer to spend the evening in the bars of Tokyo rather than go back to their tiny accomodation.

Once he arrives in Kyoto. He tries a mud bath, he goes to watch sumo wrestling. He has a traditional Japanese tea and then sings karaoke badly.

We did not get to see much of Kyoto which was a disappointment. Clive's sojourn to Japan was Tokyo or nothing.

In this second part Clive seemed bored but at least he recognised that he was singing My Way badly.

Even Alfred Hitchcock noted that this story has a delectable sting. A rather nifty twisted one.

Mr Crabtree (John Qualen) was fired from his previous job for being too old. Now his wife is ill and she needs surgery.

So a new job offer is a lifeline for Crabtree. He will be working on his own in an office writing reports. It is all very confidential and his employer remains mysterious.

Crabtree does not think much about the reports but it is a lucrative job and will help with the medical bills.

Then one day the employer shows up at the office. The mysterious Mr X (Lorne Greene) has a deadly proposition for Mr Crabtree, a well paid one.

The story is reminiscent of a Sherlock Holmes one and then it goes its own way.

Delia Balmer gives her testimony in court. For the first time in years, she comes face to face with John Patrick Sweeney. He is insistent that he did not viciously attack her that fateful night. Even though there were witnesses.

Despite being found guilty, Sweeney could be paroled in nine years time. This angers Delia setting back her own healing process. Her relationship with David collapses.

Some time later, back in Amsterdam. The Dutch police take an interest in Sweeney for the killing of the American model.

The final episode did well to show Delia Balmer's frustration with the justice system. The incompetence of the police for not always giving her the fuller picture.

Anna Maxwell Martin never shied away from how awkward Delia Balmer could be. Even though she was going through post traumatic stress disorder.

You do wonder if Delia as a nurse should had realised herself that she needed professional help. At times her anger at the world comes across as bitty. You can see why those people who were support workers were glad to see the back of her.

This dark comedy mystery is directed by Ted Kotcheff and is adapted from a novel by Nan and Ivan Lyons.

Rotund gourmand and gastronomy writer Maximillian Vanderveer (Robert Morley) loved food. He craves eating at the top restaurants. He has highlighted some of the best chefs in Europe for a magazine article.

The doctors are about to send his culinary delights crashing down. Vanderveer need to go on a diet or die.

Soon after the great chefs are being murdered in a grizzly manner, in the style they cook their best meals.

Pastry chef Natasha O'Brien (Jacqueline Bisset) realises she could be next. Her name was on Vanderveer's list, the only woman.

While she is preparing for a banquet for the Queen. She gets together with ex husband Robby Ross (George Segal) a fast food entrepreneur to track down the murderer in different parts of Europe.

The movie is a flat affair. The ingredients are an uneasy mix. It takes too long to get going. It is badly paced and never gathers much momentum.

Both Bisset and Morley give spirited performances. The others including Segal flustered to find the right balance.

The first episode of Bewitched see Darrin Stephens (Dick York) having a whirlwind romance with Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery.)

Thyer get married but Samantha has a big secret. Her mother Endora (Agnes Moorehead) is not happy about the marriage. Darrin is a mortal and Samantha is witch who can cast spells.

Darrin is dazed at the news, he tells his friend just who he has married. They just think that is normal for married life, your wife is a witch.

However Darrin comes around to the idea, as long as Samantha does not use her witchcraft.

Easier said than done. They are invited to a dinner party by Sheila an old flame of Darrin. She planned to mock Samantha in front of other guests. Something Samantha does not tolerate for long.

It took a while for the first episode to get going. It burst to life at the dinner party although I did think Darrin was a wimp in not sticking up for Samantha. She should had cast a spell on him to teach Darrin a lesson.

Clive James on TV became a hit in no large part because of Clive's caustic wit on extreme Japanese game shows such as Endurance.

They were something else, even rather sadistic. Viewers tuned in each week just to see how bad or comical things get.

So it was only a matter of time Clive James would go to Japan and on to the set of Takeshi's Castle. One of the game shows he mocked.

This was more than just Clive poking fun at Japanese television. I knew from interviews he gave that he genuinely liked Japan and even spent years trying to learn the language. He said when you are in Tokyo, you sense that you really are somewhere alien where you cannot easily get by with just knowing English.

You get a sense of that as Clive tries to navigate the Japanese subway or just trying to find his hotel. You do sense with a film crew accompanying, a lot of this was set up.

The first of a two part look of Japan. It badly tailed off. The geiko scenes were as boring as Clive felt while he was watching the so called.entertainment.

Hancock is perturbed when he gets hate mail in the post. Someone has got it in it for him. They also seem to know a lot about him.

Tiny little details that only a few people would know. Maybe it is Sid writing these poison pen letters. He is always darting about.

If it is not Sid, then it could be the Bolshie housemaid Mrs Cravatte (Patricia Hayes.) Although she only works one hour a day, so Hancock can boast he has a woman looking after his house.

When more letters arrive, Hancock goes to the police. They investigate and conclude, it is being sent from a letterbox outside his house.

I did like who the eventual culprit was and the cod psychology that went with it. Patricia Hayes was good value as well.

After a choppy first episode. You get to the kernel of the story. Now you also get to the adult Geste brothers.

It also delves into the mystery of Lady Brandon's family heirloom.

The three Geste brothers have returned from university. There is a party thrown and Lady Brandon takes out the Blue Water sapphire to show. It is dazzling.

Suddenly the light goes out and the gem is stolen. Everyone thinks it is a prank. Lady Brandon decides to give the thief a chance to put the jewel back. See seems reluctant to involve the police.

The conclusion of this episode, with one of the brother's walking off ties the story with the beginning of the first episode.

An episode directed by Julia Smith. She was better known as one of the creators of Eastenders. Which explains why several actors from this era of Z cars turned up during the early days of the soap.

Again the episode has a gritty look at families and kids. Young Keith Wallace looks like a feral kid in a rush. It turns out he is running own on his own to his dad.

He was with his mother and sister but his mum sent him packing home. Frank Wallace is the dad and he has custody of both children. Now he is worried what has happened to his daughter. His estranged wife is unstable.

He rushes to the police station but Keith is not so articulate.

Meanwhile PC Quilley and DC Braithwaite investigate a club that is known for dealing with stolen goods. They believe someone might have possession of some stolen transistor radios.

The episode is called Priority as the police have to decide what takes precedent. Stolen goods or the welfare of a child.

You have to hand it to the production team, everything about the episode looked grimy and grim. It very much reflected the year.

June Hubble is in a desperate situation. Sheriff Wilner believes that he has a solid case against her. He has no time for Emily Lane's meddling.

Emily decides to follow the money. Marcus Donovan had money to buy the Christmas tree farm. Where did the money come from. Why is the local bank manager so involved.

Suddenly Emily knows she cannot investigate from the sidelines. She has to ruffle some feathers, ask probing questions.

It does mean she raises attention from the wrong quarters and it is not an irate Sheriff Wilner.

In general this is frothy stuff but it gets dark here and then. Especially with Emily in genuine peril. I am intrigued with her back story.

Abraham Lincoln Jones next client is his father. Thomas Jones (Russ Brown) faces an injunction for his conduct.

A corporation wants to redevelop a lake for leisure activities. Thomas Jones is against it, the area was designated as a wilderness. It is a nature reserve for rare animals and birds.

There are places nearby where people could swim, sunbathe and do waterskiing.

Jones finds out that his father is far from the ideal witness in court. He is argumentative and does not follow the judge's instruction. However he does speak from his heart.

Nowadays a case like this raising environmental issues are two a penny in legal dramas. Back then this would had been regarded as novel.

Although a comedic episode, it showed ecological concerns at a time when it was not the in thing.

Michael Feast, what a smooth operator. He plays Naylor and he is a real nasty guy.

Naylor wants Lomax's money that he stole. He must have hidden it somewhere. So he breaks into Lomax's boat but he's gone to London as his dad is ill.

So Naylor confronts a shocked Andrea, and it's a heated discussion.

It see,s Andrea has moved in with Naylor and knew little about the guy. So Naylor's revelation comes as a shock to her.

Lomax seeks revenge when he finds out that Andrea is in hospital. That does not stop Naylor making a bedsit visit.

A chilling performance from Feast. It is a shame the ending does not match it. It's like the writer cannot make Lomax ruthless enough.

A few threats were never going to stop Naylor, so it all felt clumsy.

Even Hallmark has decided to have a twist in their uninspired and saccharine Christmas movies.77

They have added murder to the ingredients. Death comes to Fletcher's Grove. A nod to Murder she Wrote.

Emily Lane (Sarah Drew) is new to the town, she runs a shop and her only friend is June Hubble the local vet.

When June is arrested for the murder of her fiance Marcus Donovan, at a Christmas tree farm. Emily is certain that she did not do it.

The local cop, Sheriff Sam Wilner thinks he has a cast iron case.

There is too much narration here which gets in the way. Hallmark has added murder mystery, an amateur sleuth with a past and a will they/won't they romance.

An interesting first episode. Watchable but mundane.

A festive episode of The Upper Hand. Charlie seems to be distracted and tired.

It is because Charlie has taken an extra job for Christmas at a pizza parlor. Laura chides Caroline for not paying Charlie enough.

Both wonder why he needs the money. Charlie gives a plausible explanation, he is paying off some back rent his father owes to the landlord. Only for Joanna to later mention his father recently died.

Laura follows Charlie as she is convinced that he has another woman.

A mawkish episode as Charlie learns to let go of his father. It was not very festive and it does not help that the audience never met his father in series one.

The Optimist is a painter and decorator painting the outside of a house. A thief drops off a Mondrian painting in his bag.

The Optimist does not realise how valuable it is. A passing art gallery owner thinks the Optimist has talent and invites him over to paint artwork in his studio.

Well he ends up becoming an art sensation. Mainly because he accidently creates abstracts like when his lunch drops on a canvas.

He meets Mimi (Julie Peasgood) who becomes his inspiration and lover. The Optimist who signs his paintings as Nigel continues his ascend but the pressure of fame gets to him.

Mimi leaves him when she catches him spray painting two women. Then he becomes a laughing stock when he unveils a painting of kittens. It was so cute and normal.

The episode highlights the absurdity of the artworld. The Optimist accidentally creates another masterpiece when he goes off to become a road digger.

Michelangelo Antonioni's Blow-Up is regarded as a classic. Personally I thought it was an awful movie.

The title of this episode implies it is a parody of the movie. The focus on the Brothers sisters brought to my mind the Wachowskis. (Brothers who became sisters.)

Following on from the shooting incident at the photoshoot in the previous episode. The immediate suspects are the strange unorthodox filmmaking sisters.

Their style was encouraged by their college tutor Milton Dudenoff (Griffin Dunne.) The same man who owns the apartments in the Arconia and is thought to be in Portugal.

There is a found footage element to this episode. The sisters and Dudenoff brings other residents of the building together through filmmaking. However I never believed for one moment the sisters as serious suspects.

It was an enjoyable episode but felt like padding again. Martin takes potshots at the vacuous but cynical studio head.

Alfred Hitchcock presents a whodunit with difference. Alexander Penn Arlington (John Williams) is a deceased mystery writer who meets the recording angel.

Arlington learns that he had been murdered but the angel could not tell him who was the culprit.

Arlington simply wants to know. He persuades the angel to relive his final day so he can figure out the murderer.

Only to find out that Arlington was a horrid man. There was simply a queue of people who would want to kill him.

I liked how Arlington was shown to be urbane and charming up there at the beginning. Back on Earth he was a nasty piece of work. He did well with a young wife but no wonder she looked elsewhere.

The episode leaves the whodunit as a grey area but Hitchcock confirms it later.

Poor Bil (Derek Griffiths) fell of a balcony of a community centre frequented by the elderly. Was it an accident or was it murder?

Wicky arrives late and the centre is at full swing. He got into an argument with an elderly couple over his parking permit.

Margaret the manager tells Wicky to get his clean up work done quietly and without disturbing anyone. Otherwise he will be up before the Committee.

These older participants are mean spirited and as Wicky discovers. They find numerous faults with him.

One of them is adamant that Bill was murdered and it could be anyone.

The murder mystery was good. Wicky getting humiliated at each stage was a farce that never quite took off.

From Here to Eternity was a classic novel by James Jones. It is set in an army base in Hawaii , on the weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbour.

It was turned into an Oscar winning movie by Fred Zinnemann in 1953.

The mini series was an attempt to be more faithful to Jones novel, allowing it to me more steamy than the 1950s movie restrained by the Hays code.

The first episode has Karen Holmes (Natalie Wood) the estranged and sex starved wife of the base Captain. She starts a steamy affair with the bull necked First Sergeant Milt Warden (William Devane) who has disdain for the useless Captain Holmes (Roy Thinnes.)

Then there is the troubled Private Robert E Lee Prewitt (Steve Railsback) a promising boxer who has arrived in Hawaii. Captain Holmes knows that Prewitt will be an asset to the boxing team but he refuses to fight after nearly killing a boxer in the ring.

The first episode was more soapy than steamy. The love affair between Holmes and Warden happened so fast, you wonder where was the foreplay. Unless it was in the opening minutes.

The script was woeful at times. Reflecting the era of best selling novels being turned into trashy mini series.

Rachel (Mary Antonini) is a wedding planner with an attitude problem after the death of her mother. She and her two sisters have got together for the holidays with her father at their hometown of Pineview.

It might be that her dad has found a new love. A sign that he is moving on in his life. Rachel seems to be stuck as obnoxious.

So she is ecstatic when a celebrity social influencer asks Rachel to plan her Christmas wedding. Only it brings Rachel together with Logan, her ex boyfriend. He is the influencer's manager and they split as he left Pineview.

Now it seems the old flames are rekindling old times.

The best thing about the movie is the punning title. The worse thing is that it is boring. The songs are dull and the main lead is too much of a curmudgeon.

DI Mackenzie Clarke receives a strange message from Curtis Faleafa. Something about preventing future deaths.

Soon afterwards Curtis collapses and dies after finishing a fun run in Dolphin Cove. It leads DI Clarke to conclude it has to be murder. Something he drank before or during the race poisoned Curtis Faleafa.

Along with his social influencer girlfriend Jade McCready, a cancer survivor. They had developed a range of health supplements and wellness drinks. A $40 million bid was made for the company by an Singaporean outfit.

It seems Curtis was reluctant to sell but it seems he might have made other enemies.

The second episode still has Mackenzie Clarke distant and abrasive with her new police colleagues. The mystery was enjoyable enough with several suspects but I was not surprised who turned out to be the culprit.

Josh Randall is escorting a young kid Joe Sands for armed robbery. The kid has remorse but Josh will get a good bounty for him.

He hears from the stagecoach driver two convicts are on the loose. One of them is Howie Kale (John Larch), Josh has heard of him. The other one is Jesse Cox (Warren Oates) a younger man but just as sadistic as Kale.

Only Josh, his prisoner and the stagecoach driver find themselves taken hostage by Kale. He wants to go across the border into Mexico. Josh figures quickly that Kale and Cox will not leave anyone alive behind.

It is up to Josh with the help of Joe to overpower them.

The baddies are suitable despicable. It could only end in a shootout. Oates. Larch and McQueen standout in the acting stakes.

Drake's Venture was produced by Westward Television. A small regional ITV company as a way of saving their franchise. That aspect failed as they lost it as soon as this was broadcast.

John Thaw stars as Francis Drake. Here portrayed as less heroic. A buccaneering adventurer in the true meaning, which is shorthand for unethical even piracy.

Told in flashback it becomes less about his voyage of circumnavigation. More of a murky expedition on behest of Queen Elizabeth and other investors to raid Spanish ships in South America.

The main part of the drama is Drake falling out with gentleman Thomas Doughty (Paul Darrow) for mutiny. Doughty was a friend of Drake, an investor, a lawyer and also commanded one of the ships.

A paranoid Drake accused Doughty of mutiny and witchcraft. He very much held a kangaroo trial under his authority as a captain.

The production portrays Drake under a dark light. Cynical, self serving and lucky. He managed to plunder successfully and that won him Elizabeth's protection. He cruelly discarded Portuguese navigator Nuno da Silva on the shores of Mexico. Drake wanted to keep part of the voyage secret only to English eyes.

This was a prestige production, there was a full scale replica of the Golden Hind. Although it was clear the ship never ventured far from the English channel or the Cornish coast.

I did think it was less about Drake's adventures, more about the Doughty incident. It was notable that Darrow was rather restraint as Doughty.

Back in the 1970s, American television wanted a variety of cop shows. So you had a scruffy cop, old cop, fat cop, bald cop, cop in a wheelchair. Police Woman, well the title tells you all.

Angie Dickinson is Sergeant Pepper Anderson. A female cop in Los Angeles. Her colleagues look like gritty cops, in fact they look like they grew up in the hood.

There is trouble with a series of bank robberies. Three men, two women with one of them black. It cannot be anyone local. So they must be from out of town.

The clue could be they are from Las Vegas as they could not find the correct television stations at a household where they held a family in terror.

It means the police could finally be one step ahead of the robbers.

Police Woman was not a police procedural. The first episode does not get many marks for accuracy. It is an adventure of the week that needs to be wrapped up in a hour.