The Professionals (TV Series) Lawson's Last Stand (1982) User Reviews

A Bit of a Classic!

[canndyman · 9/10 · 19 September 2020]

This has always been one of my favourite episodes, and is yet another one of the stronger stories from the excellent final season.

After experiencing a nervous breakdown following a disastrous military operation overseas, the once highly-respected Lt-Col Peter Lawson is confined to a countryside military psychiatric hospital to be assessed. However, he unexpectedly escapes by literally walking out - and soon recruits a couple of willing mercenaries to help him with an ambitious and insane scheme - one that could ultimately put the lives of thousands of people at risk.

There's so much to like about this unusual and clever episode, which has many effective and memorable set-pieces. Michael Culver excels as the determined and clinically-deranged Lawson, whom CI5 seriously underestimate - much to their cost.

There's some excellent locations too around Elstree and Battersea Power Station, and the action builds to a tense and nail-biting climax where Cowley has to put complete trust in Bodie and Doyle to hopefully save the day... or else!

This is an action-packed, memorable and exciting story, expertly directed by Ian Sharp, and is highly recommended.

Lawson's Last Stand

[Prismark10 · 5/10 · 28 May 2019]

There is a scene in this episode where eccentric and unstable Lieutenant-Colonel Peter Lawson laments in a pub that no one stands to attention and sings the national anthem anymore.

Putting aside the notion that if anyone ever did do this. It would had been lovely if the people in the pub stood up one by one and sang the national anthem. Lawson would still be there.

Instead Lawson and his two cohorts plan to steal some toxic nerve gas and release it. He leads some daring raids and his demands include Radio 4 playing the national anthem on the hour, every hour forever.

John Hallam and Michael Angelis play Lawson's loyal sidekicks. It does involve Hallam firing rockets indiscriminately in one raid that could injure anyone, even his own men.

A rather bizarre and offbeat episode. This was still an era where some army head honcho still had dreams of being a mercenary that could overthrow a government in some third world country.

There is a daring scene where Bodie and Doyle try to take down Lawson.

Not one of the best

[mike_elston · 4/10 · 3 May 2017]

Normally a fan of The Professionals, I found this episode pretty much a waste of the time I spent watching it. The plot, involving the disturbed Lt-Col Lawson, played by Michael Culver, who goes AWOL from a military hospital after a breakdown on exercises, is more far-fetched than ever, and the characters flat, uninteresting and hard to believe.

Michael Angelis and John Hallam play two ex-soldiers who are recruited by Lawson, apparently accepting his tale of a secret high-profile mission at face value without question. CI5 play an almost peripheral role, always one step behind, despite locating Lawson and his recruits before his plans even get under way and somehow failing to apprehend him. True, Bodie and Doyle play their part in the rather tame climax, in typical derring-do fashion, but there's little other excitement to be had.

Not a keeper, this one.