Episode 74: Cathy Gale Era |
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Production completed: 30 January 1964 Seems a stable is handling more than just horses, and a betting syndicate is handling more than just numbers. Between them they run an assassination service wherein horse jockeys use special binoculars with built-in poison-dart guns to silently dispatch the desired target in public. Steed arrives from the foreign office to keep an eye on a dignitary's prized horse, while Cathy becomes a bookie's assistant.
A good solid episode all around, with a couple of nice twists. Only loses points for being a bit bland—no standout performances and no sense of urgency to the progression of the plot.
Strange that Steed, who is later portrayed as something of a horse expert (see "Silent Dust" for example), should be ignorant of the fact that the "fine" steed he was protecting—which is ultimately offered to him as a gift—is actually a senior citizen. According to Television's Greatest Hits, this was the top-rated episode for this year, and ranked third of all Avengers episodes according to viewer ratings at the time it aired. See what the other top-rated episodes were. This episode premiered on my ninth birthday. Now, that's trivial!
Cathy's prospective employer is blown away (as are we) by her mind-boggling mental capacity as she rattles off an almost too-long string of complex calculations.
Cathy quizzes Steed at the racetrack: "What did you really want me down here for?—I'm a bit rusty on my tic-tac."
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TROJAN HORSE |
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Written by |
Malcolm Hulke |
CAST |
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John Steed |
Patrick Macnee 007 |
# DOPPELGANGERS |
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Basil Dignam |
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T.P. McKenna |
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Derek Newark |
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Arthur Pentelow |
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Geoffrey Whitehead |
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