3.07 - Don't Look Behind You

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My personal favourite of all time. Brooding with atmosphere and excellently directed by Peter Hammond. A brooding mix of haunted house and a truly unpleasant villain... Maurice Good proves that the most menacing villains are those who are calm, charming and non-blasé about what his actions.

The villain being called Martin Gurdmann makes me wonder if the script was written with Maurice Good in mind for casting? A truly diabolical mastermind - one of the first to really fit the phrase. The apple-peeling with a cheese knife, all in one long strip, was probably the most tightrope-walking live performance in the series, and to carry off such an intricate speech at the same time was remarkable (albeit flubbing the year - the script says Cathy betrayed him in 1961 which is much more likely than 1953, especially as the Berlin Wall was erected then meaning there would be refugees to exploit).

I wouldn't want The Avengers to head off in this direction permanently as it is very harsh, but very occasional episodes like Take-Over have done this kind of terror well.

I'm glad to see Kenneth Colley (the Young Man) is still with us! He was excellent. All the small cast were.

The radiogram in Cathy's room was great. My mum had one like that. I used to lie underneath it to listen to the Beatles in stereo.

Anyway I gave it 10/10 again in my brain tonight, not least for the astonishing design, direction and Honor's skilled performance Just don't do the terrorising lone women thing too often, Avengers! This isn't Thriller!

It's really strange watching Peter Hammond playing (very well) the affable, bumbling Lieutenant Beamish RN in The Buccaneers at the moment on Talking Pictures. Knowing he had all this visual inventiveness inside him.

very good points that Franky has made...and I mostly concur...one of the strengths of the series, even dating back to the Honor / Cathy, was the exceptional guest stars, or supporting actors / players, that helped bring each episode to life..and over the years, this series has showcased many of them, some truly favorites, not only in this show, but other British series as well....good scripts as well, were essential ..every once in an while, you got one that didn't work..of course, what episode doesn't work, or perhaps was disliked to one fan / viewer, is a favorite to others..good example, Death of a Batman, just doesn't ring my chimes..but it's moot point....finally, the lack of excessive violence-or-dark tones, has really been a godsend, or strong point for the entire run of the show...yet some other series, surf those waters, often with dismal or troubling results..

I always thought the series was a perfect time capsule of tv writing /life in the UK..for the life of the series...' 61 - ' 69 '...