jamiesd

I was wondering if anybody had any of the poorly received feature length films from the late 80's.

Jamiesd

Ian Dickerson

I've got them all--and the Andrew Clarke pilot. They should be out on DVD soon.

Ian

Kinvig

Do you have any idea when they are likely to be released? I know they were heavily criticised at the time and, if I remember correctly, never had a full run on ITV. I'd like to see how they look now, viewed from todays standpoint.

jamiesd

any idea when they are on dvd?

batman

I watched one a while ago. I had recorded it on VHS years ago and had forgotten I had it. It was OK, much better than the Kilmer film, but not as good as the 'classic' series. Dutton wasn't helped by the fact he has very curly hair and comes over as quite boyishly vulnerable at times. I'd like to see the others again too, and I have never seen the Clarke version.

Bats.

IIRC one TV critic nicknamed Dutton The Feint.

"Do you know why fattries are called fattries .... it's because they are big and people make things in them."

Lord Brett

That must have been one of the later ones, as they seem to have straightened his hairat first. Was it the one about computers with Shane Rimmer as guest star?

They made one in Australia with Dutton which was just dire, though he did get to drive a Volvo P1800. The following week even the ITV continuity announcer was forced to comment something along the lines of 'this will be better than last week's episode, honest!'.

batman

It was the one about a stolen necklace and had twin sisters in it. It was all very silly but quite pacy. Dutton was just so miscast, but at least he looked like he was enjoying himself which is more than can be said of Kilmer.

Bats.

"Do you know why fattries are called fattries .... it's because they are big and people make things in them."

Hackett

I remember that episode because it had John Astin in it. He played a Mafia boss or something like that. Big white hat and pinstriped suit. He was complete shite. I've looked up who directed the episode as I thought Astin had. The real director was a gentleman called Dennis Berry. Not a name I'm familiar with and not surprising either as after he directed this crap it appears he went to live and work in France.

batman

John Astin ... that's right. He was so hammy one longed for the subtlety of his performance as Gomez Addams!

Bats.

"Do you know why fattries are called fattries .... it's because they are big and people make things in them."

Hackett

I used to like him in the TV series "I'M DICKENS HE'S FENSTER" when I was a kid. He was also good filling in for Frank Gorshin playing The Riddler a couple of times in Adam West's "BATMAN".

batman

I'd forgotten he played The Riddler .... the ol' Bat-Brain ain't what it was!

Bats.

"Do you know why fattries are called fattries .... it's because they are big and people make things in them."

Hackett

Holy Amnesia Batman!

Ian Dickerson

The one with John Aston and the twins in was called "The Blue Dulac" and stands out a mile because of the appalling dubbing.

I've recently dumped all my VHS copies onto DVD as I'm writing a book about the show (and its ancestors) and it was hard work watching them all again. Shame really, because I can see how, on paper, it must have looked like a winner...and my interviews with many of the folks who worked on it suggest the same thing.

jamiesd

Ian can you give us more info on the Aus version and more info on your planned book?

Jamiesd

Ian Dickerson

I've got a couple of publishers interested in a complete history of the Saint on TV. If you thought the story of the Saint on TV starts with Roger Moore, well this book will show you otherwise. It tells the complete story, from the mid-1940s through to the new show currently in pre-production.

Obviously a fair amount of time will be spent detailing the story behind the Dutton and Clarke versions. I've interviewed many of the producers and writers who worked on the show (including-- it's Christmas so please allow me to name-drop--Dennis Doty, Muir Sutherland, Sue Milliken (produced the Aussie film), John Goldsmith (wrote 2 of'em), Christopher Neame (produced 2 of them), Christine Kavanagh (played the Saint's girlfriend) and many others) and will analyse just what went wrong.

Ian