An enjoyable well written episode that is watchable over and over again.
Arthur gets involved with a very upper crust diamond dealer and after Terry loses a fight and gets injured employs Mike Read as his temporary replacement .
They later find out the posh criminal has links to drugs with some other very well dressed and up market criminals something Arthur isn't aware of.
The posh diamond dealer is an extremely unpleasant character indeed and we see this from the very earliest scenes.
The actor playing him does a great job displaying narcissistic traits and he most certainly should have been given a good slap by Terry.
Every scene in this one is extremely good and the writing and comedy is of a very high standard.
A great twist to this one even if a little far fetched and some very good scenes between the two main leads showing almost telepathic comic timing by this point.
3 Reviews
All Hands on Deck for this one
ArtVandelayImporterExporter2 July 2023
Shady character hires ArthurDaley for some muscle on a diamond exchange.
George Cole gets plenty of good lines, a good scam, and a funny set piece in a farmer's field.
Dennis Waterman fights are almost always solid gold, but this one - with a busted right hand - is one of the all-time best.
George Layton as Des is starting to become the common thread in some of the best early Minder episodes. His shifty mechanic character was gold, and he's a good running mate for Terry.
But this episode is absolutely stolen by Mike Reid. I'm not British so until I read about him on imdb I didn't realize he was standup comedian. But he's got such a perfect deadpan delivery as a hired-out muscle that I knew he just had to come from comedy. Easily one of the most memorable characters so far in the Minder repertoire.
George Cole gets plenty of good lines, a good scam, and a funny set piece in a farmer's field.
Dennis Waterman fights are almost always solid gold, but this one - with a busted right hand - is one of the all-time best.
George Layton as Des is starting to become the common thread in some of the best early Minder episodes. His shifty mechanic character was gold, and he's a good running mate for Terry.
But this episode is absolutely stolen by Mike Reid. I'm not British so until I read about him on imdb I didn't realize he was standup comedian. But he's got such a perfect deadpan delivery as a hired-out muscle that I knew he just had to come from comedy. Easily one of the most memorable characters so far in the Minder repertoire.
You Need Hands
Prismark1030 April 2020
There is a violent start to this episode. While helping out dodgy mechanic Des, Terry gets involved in a fight and injures his hand.
This leaves Arthur in a lurch. He is involved in transporting some diamonds for a contact and he needs a fit and healthy minder for security purposes.
So Arthur gets a replacement, Vernon (Mike Reid) who is a bon vivant when it comes to food and drink. Arthur is not happy about how much following the good food guide is costing him.
Of course Arthur needs rescuing, his contact is involved in drugs. Terry plotting his revenge on the people who injured him finds a link between them and the people Arthur has got involved in.
Despite the fisticuffs there is again more emphasis on humour in series 3. Mike Reid steals the show as Vernon, even though he initially betrays Arthur by going to the highest bidder. This is when Arthur refuses to get involved in drugs. This chimes with the anti drug stance taken by Terry in the previous episode.
There is a bit of a roll call of stunt men of the era who have a big punch up at various parts of the episode. It is an enjoyable episode although with more than a few convenient coincidences.
This leaves Arthur in a lurch. He is involved in transporting some diamonds for a contact and he needs a fit and healthy minder for security purposes.
So Arthur gets a replacement, Vernon (Mike Reid) who is a bon vivant when it comes to food and drink. Arthur is not happy about how much following the good food guide is costing him.
Of course Arthur needs rescuing, his contact is involved in drugs. Terry plotting his revenge on the people who injured him finds a link between them and the people Arthur has got involved in.
Despite the fisticuffs there is again more emphasis on humour in series 3. Mike Reid steals the show as Vernon, even though he initially betrays Arthur by going to the highest bidder. This is when Arthur refuses to get involved in drugs. This chimes with the anti drug stance taken by Terry in the previous episode.
There is a bit of a roll call of stunt men of the era who have a big punch up at various parts of the episode. It is an enjoyable episode although with more than a few convenient coincidences.
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