I loved The Persuaders as a child, watching the Sunday afternoon re-runs in the early 1970s in my ITV region, and this was always my favorite episode.
The plot is quite simple - Danny suddenly decides to buy a run-down cottage in the middle of nowhere in the English countryside, & soon finds he's in a whole heap of trouble - especially with the less-than-friendly locals.
I love the slightly creepy pre-credits sequence, set in the dead of night, which sets the scene really well in an unsettling way for the story to unfold. There's plenty of opportunities for comedy and hijinks along the way too - and a fair bit of suspense as Danny, Brett and the viewer try to discover the real reason why the cottage is so valuable to the local squire, who won't stop at anything to wrestle it off the resolute Danny.
This story is well-paced and entertaining, and has some good location filming too - including Brett staying in one of my favorite country pubs, The White Horse at Hedgerley (which hasn't changed much to this day!).
Hannah Gordon is good too as the mysterious stranger who seems to be taking an interest in events from afar, and eventually steps in to help. It's an excellent and unpredictable episode, and one I've always thought would have made a great Persuaders feature film - should such a thing have ever happened!
The plot is quite simple - Danny suddenly decides to buy a run-down cottage in the middle of nowhere in the English countryside, & soon finds he's in a whole heap of trouble - especially with the less-than-friendly locals.
I love the slightly creepy pre-credits sequence, set in the dead of night, which sets the scene really well in an unsettling way for the story to unfold. There's plenty of opportunities for comedy and hijinks along the way too - and a fair bit of suspense as Danny, Brett and the viewer try to discover the real reason why the cottage is so valuable to the local squire, who won't stop at anything to wrestle it off the resolute Danny.
This story is well-paced and entertaining, and has some good location filming too - including Brett staying in one of my favorite country pubs, The White Horse at Hedgerley (which hasn't changed much to this day!).
Hannah Gordon is good too as the mysterious stranger who seems to be taking an interest in events from afar, and eventually steps in to help. It's an excellent and unpredictable episode, and one I've always thought would have made a great Persuaders feature film - should such a thing have ever happened!
