Oct 15, 2019
Special Branch: Troika (1.1, Thames, 1969)
"Everything's alright dear, I promise you, I'm just giving some, um, some help to the authorities."
"But what about the Jenkinses, they're coming on Thursday!"
"Well, I'll be back in time-"
"I should cancel them if I were you, Mrs. Cowley."
#special branch#Special branch rewatch#troika#1969#Wensley pithey#Derren nesbitt#jennifer wilson#Keith Washington#Morris Perry#David Garth#Roger Rowland#Donald pelmear#Sandra Bryant#Andree Evans#Larry Cross#Gene sandys#Angela Ellis#John wilder#George markstein#Mike vardy#When do you know that you're watching too many shows simultaneously? Nevermind. A rewatch of this has been on the#Cards ever since I finished my rewatch of Callan. The two shows share a lot: not just a general bleakness and quietly dim view of the#Business of security during the cold War but also a number of key crew members and creative types. Producer Reginald Collin in particular#Was one of the main hands on Callan. I'd forgotten just how static and talky these early episodes are but believe me I mean that as a#Compliment. It's my favourite type of old telly and much more satisfying than the sweeney precursor this would morph into by its end.#Nesbitt is a very different kind of protagonist (but then is he the lead? I'm not convinced at this early stage where cuddly old Wensley#Seems to be just as crucial to the show. That... Will change). Where your average hero might be crusading or angry or passionate nesbitt#Seems simply bored by the events. It's a curious choice of performance but he actually pulls it off. Lovely Jen Wilson is lovely of course#And I must thank @thisbluespirit for reminding me she was in this; certainly another contributing factor in my decision to rewatch#As always feel free to block the special branch rewatch tag if this might become tiresome