The
lowdown: 'The Adventures of Robin Hood' is one of many
television series based on the legendary outlaw who
robs from the rich and gives
to the poor. It stars Richard Greene as Robin Hood, who was accompanied
on his many
adventures by Little John,
Friar Tuck and Alan-a-Dale. Maid Marion was played by Bernadette O'Farrell
and Patricia
Driscoll. Alan Wheatley
played Robin's main foe, the Sheriff of Nottingham, who constantly schemed
to bring Robin
and his band of Merry Men
to justice. There are 143 episodes in all, and the series was broadcast
on ITV1 between
26 September 1955 and 12
November 1960.
The
episode: 'The Bandit of Brittany' was the 21st episode
of the second season, and it debuted on 18 February
1957. It follows on from
the previous episode, in which Robin had rescued the young Prince Arthur
from the clutches
the evil Prince John. Arthur
is the rightful heir to the throne, but John's plot to have him killed
and take the throne was
thwarted by Robin and his
men. Robin and Friar Tuck now travel to France, where they are to
deliver Arthur and the
Duchess Constance to the
Chateau Marmont, where they will be safe from John. But they are ambushed
by Jacques
Chapeau, who describes himself
as the French Robin Hood. Chapeau is not as altruistic as Robin, and wants
to hold
the prince ransom in exchange
for the release of his brother, who is being held in a Paris prison and
is to be hung for
a crime he did not commit.
Robin agrees to help Chapeau to release his brother in return for ensuring
Arthur's safety.
The prison is seemingly
impregnable, as a local named Raoul (Patrick Troughton), tells Robin and
his men. But Robin
gets an idea when he notices
Tuck painting candle wax on his hand. The colour of the wax looks like
the black death,
so Robin convinces Raoul
to pretend to be a plague victim. Raoul had been released from the prison
only the previous
day, and the jailer agrees
to let Robin (posing as a doctor) and his men in to treat the prisoners.
Chapeau's brother is
released, but he jail warden
returns and Robin and his men must fight their way to freedom.
Who
connections: This was the fifth of eight appearances by
Patrick Troughton in the series, although he was in the
same role just once. Roger
Delgado was in one episode, titled 'The Minstrel', while the series also
featured John Dearth
(Lupton in Planet of
the Spiders), Joan Sims (Katryca in Trial of a Time Lord), Geoffrey
Bayldon (The Creature from the
Pit), Graham Crowden
(Soldeed in The Horns of Nimon), Jack Watling (Professor Travers
in the two Yeti stories), Kevin
Stoney (Tobias Vaughn in
The Invasion) and Michael Gough (The Celestial Toymaker).
Video
Clips: Raoul
5.7mb
The black death
9.7mb |
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