It’s been a supremely busy week of mixed fortunes for me, so I haven’t watched very much this week. Partly due to work, tiredness and some plans coming unstuck. It’s okay, you don’t need to feel sorry for me because I’ve watched some great stuff this week, even if it wasn’t mentioned on the list I published in last week’s edition.
The ‘story so far’ can be found near the bottom of this article.
Contains mild spoilers
Saturday 19 September
The New Avengers Three-Handed Game
The New Avengers was rather hit-and-miss over its two seasons from 1976–77. Shot entirely on film, with extensive location work, it feels to me like a stylistic anomaly that sits uncomfortably between the original incarnation of The Avengers (1961–69) and The Professionals. Partly funded by French investors (French interest in the series followed the popularity of a 1975 champagne advertisement featuring Patrick Macnee and Linda Thorson), The New Avengers does its best to be quintessentially English. The result is a lavish production for the 1970s, just as the original The Avengers was lavish for the mid-’60s.
Protecting democracy and confidence in the economy was the main concern of The Avengers, the opposition being a deliberately oblique ‘Other Side’. In this sequel series, the Other Side is explicitly Russian. In a way, the series grew up.
For the first time since the early series of The Avengers, Macnee is joined by another regular male character involved in the action: Gambit. Designed, in story-line terms, to be a foil and love interest for Purdey. Despite the strong motivations of the character (a desire to impress both Steed and Purdey), and an able performance from Gareth Hunt, the character gets very little attention, instead being used as a generic action hero, because Macnee was considered too mature for such a role. Gambit is quite two-dimensional and, because we understand so little about him, his effortless conquests are rather gauche.
Purdey (Joanna Lumley) is far more believable as a character than her predecessors Tara King (Linda Thorson) and Emma Peel (Diana Rigg). She has more in common with Cathy Gale (Honor Blackman). She’s feisty and capable. When the character is alone with Steed, however, she’s like a little-girl-lost. It’s a thoughtful portrayal from Lumley. She never allows her character to become a generic action girl or a damsel in distress.
The first series is by far the stronger of the two, but there are sometimes episodes where John Steed (Patrick Macnee), is sidelined. This is episode 13 in broadcast order, although some databases give it as production number 10.
Although it is a strong ensemble piece, this episode is focused on Steed and his knowledge of three people with photographic memories to transport sections of a secret document, while Juvenator (Stephen Greif in full moustache-twirling mode) attempts to extract the information from their minds: the Three-Handed Game.
Mind control or mind transference were common themes in The Avengers. The slightly stock idea is given a neat twist by placing the slightly sci-fi premise square in the middle of a Cold War drama, leading to some decidedly creepy moments.
Other guest appearances from John Paul, Ronald Leigh-Hunt and Tony Vogel.
Night Movie: Galaxy Quest (1999)
Not only is Movie Night still going strong, it’s also been quite varied (Scent of a Woman, Sherlock Holmes, Planet of the Apes). Interestingly, Movie Night seems to have evolved into the part of the week reserved for things I never got ‘round to watching or re-watching. I remember the movie trailer on TV way back when it was first released and planned to see it. Since then, I’ve missed every opportunity to see the film. Goodness knows how many times it’s been on free TV.
Galaxy Quest stars Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver and Alan Rickman as three stars of an old science-fiction show. When aliens known as Thermians believe the broadcasts to be historical records, Nesmith (Allen) recruits fellow stars of the show DeMarco (Weaver) and Dane (Rickman) to captain a real spaceship to protect the Thermians. The film’s fictional television series is not simply a generic space show: it is an affectionate parody of Star Trek, and its three leads, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley.
Although no specific moments have lodged in my memory, I did laugh out loud several times. Co-stars Tony Shalhoub, Sam Rockwell and Daryl Mitchell.
Sunday 20 September
Secret Service Episode 11 (of 13) School for Spies
Father Unwin infiltrates a gang masquerading as priests. Responsible for a series of military acts of sabotage, things get dicey for Matthew when Unwin’s cover is blown.
I’ve been on the slowest watch-through ever with The Secret Service. It started in 2023. I can’t bear thinking about the day when there are no longer any episodes that are new to me. There are just two more to go. Hopefully, I’ll have forgotten everything about the episodes on the first disc by the time I get around to them again.
Thunderbirds The Perils of Penelope
This time, Lady Penelope is on the trail of a kidnapped scientist, Professor Borender, who has disappeared after developing a process that turns seawater into fuel. Determined to exploit the expert’s work to his advantage, only finds herself in danger at the hands of the ruthless Dr. Godber.
Nicholas Nickleby Episode 4 (of 6)
Uncle Ralph is a vile man, to be sure. I just know he’s planning to marry Nicholas’ sister off to the highest bidder. After attacking one of Kate’s slimiest would-be suitors, Sir Mulberry Hawk (played by Anthony Ainley), Nicholas is in trouble once again. His good friend Smike is also back in the clutches of the villainous Wackford Squeers.
Pat Routledge popped up again to take a few chunks out of the scenery. She seems to be having an absolute ball in this.
Made as part of the BBC Classic Serials strand and broadcast in 1977, the production was directed by Christopher Barry and adapted by Hugh Leonard. Recorded on videotape at BBC Television Centre (London), it isn’t a particularly sumptuous production, but the cast are on form.
Monday 21 September
Probation Officer Episode 3
Back in an evening slot, this episode picked up the story started in the first episode of the series. Melvyn Hayes’s drug-addict character is recuperating at a drug clinic, trying to resist temptation from the outside world. When he finally succumbs, Main is found to have been negligent: too busy attempting to reform a petty career criminal to work on the boy’s case or visit him at the clinic. Richard Vernon makes another, albeit fleeting, appearance.
I’m quite impressed with this extremely vintage series. I don’t think much is known about it, so if you’re interested to read more, I go into slightly more detail in last week’s Retroscopic Weekly Roundup.
Tuesday 22 September
My experience of attempting to watch the 2020 Royal Rumble, as part of my WWE watch-through, epitomises precisely why I detest streaming services. There are two ways I can watch this: free and paid. Both are experiencing server problems. If I’d just got it on DVD, I wouldn’t have got a third of the way through and spent most of the week hoping to find a way to see the rest. The failure continued to depress me, to the point that I didn’t actually want to watch anything. I found a Rumpole of the Bailey book in a local charity shop and got stuck into that instead.
Wednesday 23 September
Doctor Who – The Web of Fear Episodes 1–3 (of 6)
Still pissed off about the Rumble. I’ve seen this Doctor Who story four times since it was upgraded from its long-held status as missing-presumed-gone to ‘absolutely brilliant!’. This is the first time I’m seeing it with the animated reconstruction of episode three (which is still missing from the archives), released back in 2021. I was distinctly unimpressed by the unusual movement of the animation in the clips I saw online, and therefore had no desire to upgrade the DVD already in my collection. I have revised my opinion upon watching the full animated episode. Whilst still not the best animation of a lost episode, it isn’t the worst, either.
Thursday 24 September
Doctor Who – The Web of Fear Episodes 4–6 (of 6)
I’ve paused in my watch-through of The Power Game between series two and three, so it’s quite funny to see the actor who plays John Wylder’s right-hand man, Don Henderson (Jack Watling), under heavy make-up as the aged Professor Travers. It’s also rather sweet to see him acting alongside his daughter (Deborah Watling), who plays the Doctor’s companion, Victoria Waterfield.
This story benefits from being written by two writers (Mervyn Haisman and Henry Lincoln) who had a slightly different take on Doctor Who. This is their second set of six scripts for the show. As in the earlier story, the main threat is the hairy, eight-foot-tall Yeti, robotic foot soldiers of the Great Intelligence. This time, they’ve taken over the London Underground to launch an invasion using a mass of web-like fungus. The Doctor and his friends are trapped in the Underground tunnels, along with an army unit sent to deal with the alien menace.
Though the six-part tale amounts to a lot of chasing around dark tunnels, the alien threat is accompanied by a mystery involving a spy for the Great Intelligence. There are plenty of credible suspects: the Doctor is an obvious possibility, as are the malingering driver Evans, the highly suspect television journalist Harold Chorley, the soldiers and Colonel Lethbridge-Stewart. At the time, the audience would have strongly suspected Lethbridge-Stewart as the wolf in the fold, but modern audiences know the character returns multiple times throughout the series to become one of the show’s best-loved characters. The battle between the army troops and masses of marauding Yeti on the streets of London in episode four is well placed and ensures the claustrophobic tension of the tunnels is sustained throughout six 25-minute instalments.
Friday 20 September
Space Precinct Deadline
Back to Demeter City on the planet Altor for another terrific episode of Retroscopic’s current favourite show. Space Precinct doesn’t have the rich mythology of Star Trek or the cerebral quality of Babylon 5. Unlike Gerry Anderson’s perennial ’60s favourite, Thunderbirds, it doesn’t really have any standout characters, but it is enormous fun. Every episode guarantees explosions, air chases and wisecracks. The effects are interesting, the voice artists distracting in a fun way (“Wait. That character had the voice of Tiger Ninestein from Terrahawks!”), and the stories rip-roaring. And I really like the commanding-officer alien with the Irish accent (played, I think, by Jerome Willis).
The autopsy of a Tarn male found dead in a capsule reveals a host of missing vital organs, removed with surgical precision. Brogan is targeted as the next unwilling donor when he and Haldane go on the trail of ‘organleggers’—killers who murder to sell body parts for profit.
NEXT WEEK:
Though I often deviate, sometimes wildly, from the script, a rough guide to the stuff I expect to watch during the week ahead is below. Become a free subscriber to this Retroscopic Weekly Roundup by Martin Gregory to check how I get on.
Saturday: Danger Man and the Saturday Night Movie (Possibilities include A Few Good Men, Batman and Robin or The Italian Job )
Sunday: Thunderbirds and Nicholas Nickleby (episode 5 of 6)
Monday: The Bill and The Last Place on Earth (episode 4 of 6)
Tuesday: Special Branch and Mr. Big
Wednesday: Ghost Squad and Space Precinct
Thursday: Man at the The Top and Nearest and Dearest
Friday: Red Dwarf (random episode selection), On The Up.
Copyright Martin Gregory 2026
Copyright Martin Gregory 2026
If you like tales with a retro feel and vintage vibes, explore my fiction on Amazon:
Phil’s childhood friend, old Mr. Murray, becomes an early owner of a brand-new video recorder—and everything changes from there.
Suitable for teens, and adults of (almost) all ages, this collection brings together ten different tales of comedy, mystery, and a touch of the uncanny. Preview or buy on Amazon
The Man in Room 17
A newly-researched guide to the first series of Robin Chapman’s classic drama. Available to buy now in paperback and for Kindle. Preview or buy on Amazon
Discover more from No_Script_For_Life
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
