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The show: 'The Moonstone' is a BBC period drama that is based on a novel by Wilkie Collins which was published in 1868. It begins in India in 1799, with the Siege of Seringapatam, where Colonel John Herncastle steals a legendary yellow diamond known as the Moonstone. The British soldiers have heard rumours of this diamond, which is sacred to the local Hindu population, but Major Frayne (Colin Baker) dismisses the stories as a myth. However, Herncastle has killed the men who are guarding the stone and intends to return to England with it. One of the dying Hindu men warns that the moonstone will have its vengeance, and promptly dies. The story then moves forward some years, to the home of the Verinders. Herncastle bequeths the Moonstone to his young niece, Rachel Verinder, and her cousin Franklin Blakes delivers it to her on the occasion of her 18th birthday. However, a trio of Hindu men have followed the trail of the Moonstone for many years, and have dedicated their lives to returning the stone to its rightful place in India. When the stone goes missing during the night, suspicion falls on members of the household, guests and the Indians, who had visited the house in the guise of travelling jugglers. Sergeant Cuff is called in to investigate, but the mystery is not solved until one year later. This five-part adaptation of 'The Moonstone' was originally broadcast on BBC1 from 16 January to 13 February 1972. The
verdict: As one would expect from BBC costume dramas of
the time, 'The Moonstone' boasts good production
Video clip: Major Frayne 5.6mb |
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