Dick Turpin Season Two Episodes 10-13

The Godmother 
13/02/82 W Richard Carpenter / D James Allen
“I’ve never met such a bewitching pair of husseys!”

There have been some unlikely disguises Turpin has appropriated but this one takes the biscuit! In an episode that revels in its farcical premise, he ends up dressing up as the sister of Gluttons’ solicitor Gooch. Sophinista Gooch has herself been requisitioned by Sir John to pretend to be his wife during the visit of his fearsome godmother the Duchess of Durham. Turpin is unaware of this of course so when he locks up the Goochs during a raid on their house to obtain documents relating to fraudulent land deals Sir John’s henchmen turn up expecting Sophinista to go with them. Thus by a turn of events that stretches credulity to it’s absolute limit Turpin ends up dressed as the woman on his way to pretend to be Lady Glutton! At this point the hi jinks are a bit wearing but to my surprise once everyone is in place we are in for a frantic perfectly performed pantomime that is actually funny. Thanks to comedic timing par excellence from all concerned and a willingness to indulge in playfulness the story actually works.

Naturally there are some comic actors on hand to see it home. Joan Sims arrives as the Duchess over plastered in make up and looking bewildered. John Bird is a straight faced Gooch while Dorothea Phillips is the straight laced Sophinista. In his most extreme disguise yet Richard O’Sullivan convinces Glutton he is a timid woman whom the latter then spends the time chasing around the house in a very funny sequence that ends with Glutton trapped in a cabinet. Christopher Benjamin is in his element throughout, a most spirited performance that sets up the whole chain of events.  Even Michael Deeks ends up in a dress! Director James Allen’s cameras pick up every reaction shot and expression perfectly. When high farce and slapstick is performed with this sort of commitment and the dialogue mixed with just a little innuendo you can’t help but be entertained.

 

The Secret Folk
20/02/82 W John Kane / D Charles Chrichton
“Who are you who dares intrude on our mysteries?”

A flavour of mysticism filters through this atypical episode in which, being pursued by Spiker, Turpin and Swiftnick split up and the latter ends up rescuing a gypsy girl called Aphrina though from her roving accent she could belong to any nationality! They shelter in a barn and the next day Switfnick is accused of sleeping with her thus shaming her potential husband for which the pool lad has to atone with three challenges. Turpin is also captured and steps in to face the challenges himself. It is an episode of two halves this one; the physicality of the ordeals is shown viscerally. In one sequence Turpin is dangling from a burning rope and has to find a way to swing his way out before it snaps sending him falling onto wooden spikes. Every second of tension is drawn from this in one of the most exciting – if unusual- set pieces the series ever had.

Likewise when it comes to combat between Turpin and Spiker- who has turned up and found neither his authority nor his money hold much truck here- this is shot by Charles Chrichton with an incredible closeness and yet never betrays the choreography that must have gone into the staging of it. The windswept location helps too. So on the surface it’s exciting stuff and a refreshing change from the usual scenarios.

However the portrayal of the Romanys is rather cliched at each turn down to the choosing of cards, talk of ancient powers and mystical forces. Given that a Tarot deck of cards totals 78 there are a huge number of potential tasks that could be dished out yet there is a handy rope assemblage with spikes just available at that moment. When Turpin and Spiker fight they are chained together yet the chain is attached to belts either one of them could easily remove. Also during this conflict everyone walks away and leaves them to it whereas in the first everyone stopped to watch.

The gusting gypsies are a familiar looking group of well -known UK tv actors of the day including Alan Lake, Bernard Kay and Sheila Allen and they all get their best gypsy on. In the key role of Aphrina,Kay Adshead brings a very Latin passion though this only adds to an overall sense of cultural stereotyping. Thrust into all this regulars Richard O’Sullivan, Michael Deeks and David Daker excel as they are by turns baffled, intimidated and threatened by their captors. I dare say an episode like this wouldn’t be made today but as an adventure and without thinking too much about the logic it flies.

 

The King’s Shilling
27/02/82 W Paul Wheeler / D Christopher King
“Life’s just one big game to you isn’t it?”

With Dick away, Swiftnick takes centre stage when he becomes involved in rescuing two lads who’ve been tricked into being recruited into the army by Captain Willard and his posh accomplice Newell. The sister of one of them begs him to rescue her brother so off he goes and does so- pretending to be Turpin- only for the recruiters to come back and nab him instead. It’s a lively enough story albeit with one flaw. Sally seems totally helpless when her brother is taken yet once Swiftnick is snatched she turns into some sort of super -agent, goes undercover and gets herself recruited too in order to rescue him. Why couldn’t she do that for her brother? Also how come writer Paul Wheeler hardly provides her with any lines. Obviously when she is pretending to be a boy the character speaks as little as possible but throughout the episode she is denied the lively dialogue afforded to everyone else. Despite this Jane West makes the most of the role.

The episode is something of a runaround but it does show how Michael Deeks can easily carry a narrative on his own with the right amount of feisty cheek and bravado. Its bookended by Turpin teaching him sword fighting (which you’d think he might have done sooner) skills that Swiftnick brings to bear in the final fight.

 

The Hanging
06/03/82 W Richard Carpenter / D Dennis Abey
“You couldn’t catch Dick Turpin if you had twenty regiments.. and the villain was up to his neck in quicksand.”

Ending the season with a flourish there is a perfect symmetry to this episode which begins with Turpin and Swiftnick rescuing a woman from a gang of masked, heavy breathing thugs. She says she’s a farmer’s wife Mrs Brownlow but it transpires she’s actually a much higher class and meeting none other than Spiker – last seen as a prisoner of those gypsies- for letters revealing an affair she’s been having. Only Spiker takes a locket that is also evidence- and demands payment for that. Meanwhile Sir John has been re-instated as High Sherriff however he is also served warning by the severe Lord Harrington that unless he rids the county of highwayman an “abler man” will be found. Turpin’s attempts to help the lady end up with him being captured by Spiker and his newly recruited masked men and set to hang- unless Swiftnick can rescue him.

Whereas some episodes of the series seem overly contained by the twenty three minutes running time `The Hanging` is a lesson in how to assemble a story that is, to use that old expression, tight but loose. There’s not a wasted moment yet director Dennis Abey still has time to shoot the fight sequences close up and add some visual class where needed- there’s a great shot of Mrs Brownlow sitting on a horse in front of a sullen sky. Richard Carpenter’s writing is exemplary too giving each character real motivation so Turpin is driven by the fact he rather likes Mrs B, she reciprocates but in case we think she’s a bit of a flirt when we find out who her husband is it looks different. Spiker wants to return to his job and amusingly Glutton is initially reluctant repeating that phrase that he wants to employ someone “abler”. Swiftnick after all the mistakes he’s made gets his chance to prove himself this time and seems to do a good job until Glutton sneakily changes the plans. Glutton may be played for laughs yet he’s as deceptive and wily as they come and it’s great to have some new scenes with Christopher Benjamin and David Daker giving fulsome performances. Richard O’Sullivan and Michael Deeks are as splendid as ever- this series was cast so well. There are also strong guest performances from Jennie Linden as Mrs Brownlow and Philip Locke as Lord Harrington

The twist at the end- revealing Mrs B to be Harrington’s wife is excellent as is the fact that it ends up being her plan that frees Turpin at the last minute. By turns humorous and serious the episode hits every beat to perfection and may be the best of the lot.

COMING SOON - DICK TURPIN'S GREATEST ADVENTURE!