Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
Cast: Anthony Howell, Julian Wadham, Lucy Briggs-Owen, Terry Malloy, Rachel Atkins, Emily Woodward, Nicholas Briggs, Derek Carlyle, Anna Lukis, Penelope Rawlins, Richard Hope, Dan Starkey, Cameron Stewart, Francesca Hunt, Martin Hudson.
Who could ever foresee that hairdressing was such a risky business? The shampoo set that could go wrong, the gossip that turns to grudges being held, the heated dryer rigged to give a nasty surprise, arson! All these are par for the course as John Steed and Dr. David Keel return for the second set of classic The Avengers stories to be adapted by John Dorney and Big Finish starting with the tale, Ashes Of Roses.
The first volume of stories introduced new listeners and old fans to the series that was to become one of the classic programmes of its day and one in which nostalgia was to rear it’s tempting head and make you wonder why, with a little tinkering, a small few moments of updating, it could not be bought back to the small screen. There is after all a plethora of writers out there who can easily turn their hand to resurrecting this classic programme but with a 21st Century appeal and not everyone wants to watch selected programmes that is so engrossed in hours of cake making or showcasing people who have had the life time dream of singing on the television for about five minutes.
The skill of paying attention to a long story in many quarters seems to have been lost a little, the quicker something ends the sooner the next five minutes of entertainment can start. Patience, it seems, is a lost art!
For The Avengers in the 1960s like Doctor Who and a whole host of other programmes, patience was at its heart and that is true in the original script for Ashes Of Roses which was written by Peter Lang and Sheilah Ward. The story builds up in the best possible way, the light-hearted appeal of the suave and sophisticated John Steed, played impeccably by Julian Wadham, soon giving way to the absolute danger he has bought Dr Keel’s secretary in to when the department looks closely into the affairs of Jaques Beronne’s Salon after a spate of insurance frauds and arsons.
If there is a disappointment, and it only comes with hindsight, the listener is bought to the attention of the gradual loss of David Keel to the adventures. Whilst the fan would never have wanted to lose out on the likes of Tara King, Emma Peel or Cathy Gale, David Keel was an inspiring man who, if not for a lengthy strike at the time, would perhaps arguably been as important to the show’s charm and influence on the British spy genre that followed. However it should be noted that the character of Carol Wilson, Dr. Keel’s secretary, paved the way for Linda Thorson, Diana Rigg and Honor Blackman to have such an impact on the programme’s history in later years.
Ashes Of Roses sees Lucy Briggs-Owen, as Carol Wilson, come into her own in the series and she is joined by the superb performances of Emily Woodward, Penelope Rawlins and Terry Malloy. It is though in the hands of Julian Wadham in which the story hangs and it is a sturdy rope in which to climb upon.
An enjoyable return of The Avengers from Big Finish, full of cunning and courage, the 60s was surely a time of revolution, even if it remained unfulfilled.
Ashes Of Roses is part of The Avengers: The Lost Episodes Volume 2. The Avengers: The Lost Episodes Volume 2 is available to purchase from Worlds Apart, Liverpool.
Ian D. Hall