MOGUL’S EAGLES ARE FLYING HIGH AGAIN

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32660, 16 July 1971, Page 4

MOGUL’S EAGLES ARE FLYING HIGH AGAIN

It was almost like a family reunion, catching up again on Wednesday night with Geoffrey Keen, Robert Hardy, Philip Latham and Ray Barrett, the men who run Mogul, and who have made “The Troubleshooters” one of the most popular of 8.8. C. television programmes. They have not changed, nor has the strange world in which they live. The mixture, if as before, is still a good one.

Much of the appeal of “The Troubleshooters” has come from its similarities to “The Power Game.” Mogul and its interests make possible all sorts of stories from all sorts of places, but the most telling blows struck are those in the office infighting. There have been some supremely interesting tussles beween Peter Thornton and Alec Stewart and as this series starts Stewart is definitely established as second to the man at the top, Thornton being much more familiar with the leather jacket of the out-of-doors.

And of course Stewart has his eye on Brian Stead’s job; so the internal conflicts and jealousies and intrigues will continue, Willie Izard, the company secretary and noncombatant, being quite the most pleasant personality of the four. Several stories were interwoven into this first of the new programmes, but they were each relevant to the others, and the whole thing came through splendidly, being carried off with the conviction one has come to expect from this programme. The acting is good, the stories are strong, if sometimes complicated and the whole production carries an air of confidence bred of success. This first programme did set a good standard. The

story was about Mogul’s proposal to put a pipe-line through an area occupied by a breeding colony of the rare white pelican; the company’s enormous American rival, Zenith, made sure Mogul was embarrassed by newspaper and television attacks on this intended desecration, because Zenith had ideas of a merger which would, according to the cold and ruthless Harry Mayne (Bernard Hepton) make the new company the biggest the world had ever known.

Stead opposed a merger, Stewart could see that it could bring an even more vast empire he might rule when Stead retired; so they were in conflict again. And the key to the thing was an eccentric, old and failing millionaire, played by Esmond Knight a major stockholder in both company ies, and a man devoted to pelicans. Mogul escaped its difficulties with the pelican colony, and the merger was, apparently, avoided; Stead’s footwork had been more than adequate.' Hollywood has made it quite clear, in “The Young Rebels,” why England lost her American colonies. The stupid British exported all her imbeciles to fight the Americans. They are duped i with ridiculous ease by the somewhat smug young rebels and they cannot even defend themselves properly. They seem to be beaten very easily and very completely; the gallant young Americans are permitted to bear a scratch here and there. And the poor dull-witted English, even in the ordinary fisticuffs which occur quite regularly, simply stand there, hands at sides, waiting, sometimes for seconds, to be hit. It will amuse and entertain some people, but it might have been designed especially to reduce those with affection for the English to purple rage. A lady of our acquaintance is convinced that Bunny Rigold, who runs “Handy Hints” on Wednesday nights,

bears a strong resemblance to Sean Connery as seen as James Bond. Perhaps she has been misled to some extent by Mr Rigold’s bulging biceps; he is clearly a very fit and strong man. This week he fixed a tap and talked about hammers. And again this viewer,, whose interest in handy hints must be exceeded by that of everyone else who saw the show, found him delightful, mainly because of his brisk, confident manner; it seems at times to be a reading from Queen’s Regulations. Mr Rigold is very efficient, and very entertaining. And who knows? Even this viewer might learn something. The Lucille Ball comedy was funnier than it has been for some time, and that is not to suggest it was hilarious. It was interesting to see Vivian Vance back on it again; but only interesting. The evening’s other comedy (there weren’t too many laughs in "Peyton Place”) was “B and B” and this was worth while. It was a thin little story about a French au pair girl and her effect on a British household familiar family problems, handled expertly. The British are very good at this sort of domestic situation. Bernard Braden and Barbara Kelly as the parents vere excellent.—PANDOßA.