'The Baron' was a short-lived companion series to 'The Saint'. Based on the books by John Creasey, it cast American actor Steve Forrest as 'John Mannering', an antiques dealer who occasionally doubles as a secret agent. The glamorous Sue Lloyd played his companion 'Cordelia Winfield'.
Douglas Macrae ( Donald Douglas ), a friend of Mannering's, is driving through the Scottish countryside when he suffers a puncture. While changing the tyre, a car load of men pull up, demanding he get out of the way. He says he cannot do so until he has finished the job. He recognises one of the passengers, a thick-set American mobster by the name of Bruno Orcini ( David Bauer ). Bruno orders his henchman Vince Florio ( Michael Coles ) and Dino Rossi ( Paul Maxwell ) to take care of Macrae. They knock him out, and then dump him in his car which they proceed to set alight. Vince had taken a shine to a ring Macrae was carrying, so he pockets it.
Some time later, Mannering and Cordelia arrive, only to find Macrae - also an antiques dealer - dead. The coroner's verdict was that it was accidental. Spotting a man in a pub wearing Macrae's ring, the Baron gives chase. Vince attacks him and then tries to run him over...
Written by Terry Nation, this is an enjoyable yarn about American gangsters holed up north of the border plotting to destroy the British economy with counterfeit money. Why they want to do this is never made clear, perhaps Orcini merely wants revenge on the country that - along with so many others - had him deported. Orcini is known as 'the man outside' because he no longer has a country.
David Bauer played villains in other I.T.C. shows such as 'The Saint' and 'The Champions'. He gave a notable performance as 'The Judge' in the 'Living In Harmony' episode of 'The Prisoner'. Paul Maxwell had appeared in the series before - in the episode 'Epitaph For A Hero'. Michael Coles was in two Hammer pictures - 'Dracula A.D. 1972' and 'The Satanic Rites Of Dracula'. His character - 'Vince' - is pushed around so much by Bruno he snaps at the end and kills him. Jeremy Burnham, cast as 'Philip Tremayne', an upper-class gangster who calls everyone 'sweetie', later wrote some first-rate episodes of the Linda Thorson 'Avengers' series.
I do not know whether this was filmed on location, but the Scottish village certainly looks authentic. If its a fake then its a good one. Most of the cast - such as John Ringham and Harry Littlewood - are English. How could they have left out John Laurie, Gordon Jackson, and Roddy McMillan?
Douglas Macrae ( Donald Douglas ), a friend of Mannering's, is driving through the Scottish countryside when he suffers a puncture. While changing the tyre, a car load of men pull up, demanding he get out of the way. He says he cannot do so until he has finished the job. He recognises one of the passengers, a thick-set American mobster by the name of Bruno Orcini ( David Bauer ). Bruno orders his henchman Vince Florio ( Michael Coles ) and Dino Rossi ( Paul Maxwell ) to take care of Macrae. They knock him out, and then dump him in his car which they proceed to set alight. Vince had taken a shine to a ring Macrae was carrying, so he pockets it.
Some time later, Mannering and Cordelia arrive, only to find Macrae - also an antiques dealer - dead. The coroner's verdict was that it was accidental. Spotting a man in a pub wearing Macrae's ring, the Baron gives chase. Vince attacks him and then tries to run him over...
Written by Terry Nation, this is an enjoyable yarn about American gangsters holed up north of the border plotting to destroy the British economy with counterfeit money. Why they want to do this is never made clear, perhaps Orcini merely wants revenge on the country that - along with so many others - had him deported. Orcini is known as 'the man outside' because he no longer has a country.
David Bauer played villains in other I.T.C. shows such as 'The Saint' and 'The Champions'. He gave a notable performance as 'The Judge' in the 'Living In Harmony' episode of 'The Prisoner'. Paul Maxwell had appeared in the series before - in the episode 'Epitaph For A Hero'. Michael Coles was in two Hammer pictures - 'Dracula A.D. 1972' and 'The Satanic Rites Of Dracula'. His character - 'Vince' - is pushed around so much by Bruno he snaps at the end and kills him. Jeremy Burnham, cast as 'Philip Tremayne', an upper-class gangster who calls everyone 'sweetie', later wrote some first-rate episodes of the Linda Thorson 'Avengers' series.
I do not know whether this was filmed on location, but the Scottish village certainly looks authentic. If its a fake then its a good one. Most of the cast - such as John Ringham and Harry Littlewood - are English. How could they have left out John Laurie, Gordon Jackson, and Roddy McMillan?