The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes (TV Series) The Mysterious Death on the Underground Railway (1973) User Reviews

Very enjoyable mystery.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 7/10 · 30 December 2015]

A young woman Beatrice Hazeldine is audaciously poisoned on a Public train, in front of a witness. Her husband William is called in to identify her, and confirms her identity, an inquest finds that Beatrice had been visited earlier in the day by family friend Mr Errington. Plucky young Journalist Polly Burton decides to take the case on herself and unmask the killer's identity.

Some lovely performances, Judy Geeson is great as Polly, but how great was Richard Beckinsale as Sergeant Richard Frobisher. The interplay between the two is really fun. You will either love or hate John Savident, I find him quite a fun performer, he was certainly bold.

Some lovely scenery, some great costumes, it has some nice features, a few of the stock photos are particularly naff.

The Rivals series varies quite a bit, this is a fine entry into the series. A bit of a plod for some, but if you enjoy a period mystery then this could be right up your alley.

Pretty good, but a couple of quibbles

[jonfrum2000 · 6/10 · 12 December 2012]

The episode is based on a story from The Old Man in the Corner series by Baroness Orczy, who also wrote The Scarlet Pimpernel. If you like period mysteries, it's worth a watch, so I give it a moderate recommendation. However, I do have two quibbles. The first is that in taking the story to television, the writers/director saw fit to eliminate the Old Man character, and replace him with Polly's old uncle, barrister Sir Somethingorother. This allows them to present a trial drama, but subtracts the charm of the Old Man character. It's not so different from doing a Sherlock Holmes story without Holmes. I appreciate that when literature is turned into drama, it may need to be modified, but I don't understand how it is that random television writers and directors think they can tell a story better than authors whose work has stood the test of time.

Second, I'll flirt with a spoiler here. The ending of the story is of the shake-your-head variety. It involves the scene in which the killer is 'caught,' and just makes no sense. I really don't like spoiler reviews, so I won't give details, but the set-up and the outcome are both beyond implausible. And after sitting through the entire episode, which was reasonably well done, considering, such endings are a real disappointment.

For anyone interested in the Old Man in the Corner stories, I highly recommend the BBC radio versions, which can be heard on BBC4 Extra online on a rotating basis. I actually found them better than the stories themselves, which I put down after reading just two or three. Check this link to see if they are available at the current time: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4extra/programmes/genres/drama/current

Fair

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 16 May 2022]

A fair adaptation of a classic short story. Judy Geeson is good value, cast against type as a female sleuth, but the episode loses something towards the end and gets sidetracked in character humour in which Geeson becomes an almost supporting role.

The Mysterious Death on the Underground Railway

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 26 November 2019]

The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes returns for a second series. The sleuthing is done by Baroness Orczy's enthusiastic young newspaper reporter Polly Burton (Judy Geeson) with help from her uncle Sir Arthur Inglewood, a rotund defence barrister who likes to eat sweets and puddings.

The episode opens with a prologue. A young woman Beatrice Hazeldene is poisoned on an underground train, right in front of a witness who was in the carriage. Just before the train set off, someone familiar with the victim had gone on the train and poisoned her.

Polly with her police sergeant friend Richard Frobisher (Richard Beckinsale) quickly come up with a suspect Frank Errington, someone who might had been close with the victim but who might have also had an interest in poisons. The body was identified later by the victim's sister and husband.

This is another production that is studio bound and the director does his best with the limitations. Geeson is very bright and perky as Polly Burton having to put up with constant sexist comments from Frobisher.

Polly realises that the accused has just carelessly laid out too many clues to convict him. It all points to a set up.

This is a busy episode. It starts off with a murder, a macabre bit with a queue of people having a peek at the deceased. It then goes to an inquest before Sir Arthur defends the accused at the Old Bailey.

It has a rather reckless denouement. Sir Arthur hatches a trap for the murderer but Polly has to put herself at risk. Frobisher is not best pleased.

A lot happens here but the identity of the murderer is not difficult to figure out if Errington is innocent.

No danger from this "rival"

[larrydearing · 4/10 · 24 September 2020]

I had hoped for much more. I'm a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes (especially the shows with Jeremy Brett) and Victoriana. Both the story and the presentation are disappointing. The script is predictable & simplistic, and the courtroon scenes are no competition for Perry Mason or even Rumpole of the Bailey. The only competent actor is John Savident as the defense attorney. The rest of the cast is straight out of small town community theater. The production is also weak. Dialogue is often obscured by sound effects and unfortunate placement of mikes. I will watch more episodes because of the era & genre - they are the reason for the four stars. I expect the acting & production will be no better, but I hope the scripts & stories will improve.