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feature item © Canal+

feature item © Canal+

epilogue © Canal+

Mr Teddy Bear

Teleplay by Martin Woodhouse
Directed by Richmond Harding

Production Schedule

Episode 33
Production Number : 3506
VTR/ABC/1907 & 1907A
Teddington Studio 2 & 3

Friday 3rd August 1962

* 1907A is the scene where Wayne-Gilley is assassinated while being interviewed, expected duration was 1'30".

Two telecine inserts:

• 12:40-13:00 Cathy drives through the night, followed by Henry
• 14:46-14:48 Having stranded Henry, Cathy drives to the house

Saturday 4th August 1962

Running time

Actual running time with bumpers: 51'44"

The bumpers between the acts are generally 10 seconds from fade in to the "End of Act" bumper to the end of audio before the commercial, a 10 second still without audio, then cut to the next act bumper. This would play with the theme for around 10 seconds. Accordingly, with the episodes being in 3 acts, the running time of the action is approximately a minute less than listed above, minus the opening and closing credits (normally 0'16", with a 2" fade, and anywhere from 0'41" to 1'20", hard cut or 1" fade or mix, respectively).

Transmission

Equipment

Murders

Victim Killer Method Colonel Wayne-Gilley Mr Teddy Bear poison John Steed Mr Teddy Bear nerve gas & blistering agent (or so we think...) Mr Teddy Bear himself & Cathy poison (at gunpoint)

click a name to see the face

Transport

Minutiæ

1. 0:54 - The presenter is briefly out of focus as he approaches the camera.
2. 0:56 - Colonel Vernon Wayne-Gilley's ninth book, Go Anywhere has been released to critical acclaim - "an astringent mixture of hard travel and hard politics". Steed later observes (6:46) that Wayne-Gilley was a double agent for so many countries it's a wonder he hadn't been murdered earlier.
3. 4:14 - Steed says "How could Wayne-Gilley know" instead of "How could the killer know".
4. 5:10 - One Ten estimates the exploding capsule mechanisms to cost £40-50 each, and Steed arrives at a sum of £1200-1500 for 24 of them.
5. 5:30 - 'Mr Teddy Bear' is Olaf Pommeroy, alias Jules Edouard Baer, Edward Speerman - and several other unknown aliases - Dr Howell knows him as Edward 'Teddy' Brewen and plays bridge with him at the Travellers' Club.
   He was probably born in Sardinia and worked with the Resistance in Greece and Italy, specialising in assassination:
   • Herr General Grantz, killed emulating the Führer - went to hit the table with a microphone while addressing population of Talona and was electrocuted with several 1000 volts.
     
   • Herr General Freiber, gassed when opening his safe
     
   • Admiral Mindel, a souvenir hunter who has an American grenade turned into a table lighter; he discovered one night it had turned back into a live grenade.

   After the war, he disappeared for 5 or 6 years, his current price is believed to be £100,000, with a private or public execution, to the taste of the client. (9:52) He likes £20,000 beforehand for expenses, the rest on completion. Only one client has ever welched - and was dropped from a helicopter into exhibition square in Zagreb.

6. 9:00 - Cathy's cover story:
   "Jeff Bridges", Cathy's supposed boss. Height 5'10", weight 170lb, slight Welsh accent. "Slievermann", her Brussels contact who handles payment - import/export, drugs, diamonds, women (actually Detective Sergeant Cook, married with 3 children and living in Steyne).
   Cathy uses her own name and background up to 2 years ago, when she became contact for European syndicate "The Silverfish", trading mostly in watches from Berne, Stuttgart and Turin. Up until 18 months ago she handled cash transactions up to £2,500,000, ending with an arms deal with SLV. She's been in Britain for the last four months to negotiate the murder of John Steed - Why? - it's not her job to know why, she just follows orders. Steed warns her to tell the truth wherever possible, including that she's met him in the last few days, and not to hide a gun in her stocking tops.
7. 12:00 - After Cathy rings 'Bridges' Steed (12:27) makes a 'phone call to HQ, saying Mantel's Holt is a large house slap in the middle of a marsh, 40 minutes drive from Barton. (22:40) The house was leased to Barbett Heinz Associates, a fictitious company, paid by cash in advance.
8. 17:36 - Mr Teddy Bear demands £200,000, in diamonds, for Steed's death because of the nature of the target.
9. 20:00 - the prints on Mr Teddy Bear's cigarette case, stolen by Cathy, are those of an adult chimpanzee.
10. 24:10 - Steed's classified advertisement:
    

    "Big Bear I hear you are looking for me. S."

11. 24:28 - Steed receives an engraved invitation to meet Mr Teddy Bear at Sorenso Imports Ltd. at 12 o'clock the next night.
12. 26:58-27:20 - severe horizontal banding across the picture.
13. 29:40 - Could this be the first time someone - Steed, in this case - is taken off a case because he's become personally involved and his judgement is impaired? Pure television history!
14. 30:51 & 31:12 - Steed's dog, Freckles, merely looks up when Mr Teddy Bear raises his arm when passing her, but she dives for cover when Steed enters the room.
15. 34:12 - Steed quips he once had a passport photo that made him look like he had a perpetual handover, but the photo of him supposedly dead is very good; Cathy is understandably furious.
16. 36:22 - Cathy's heads are examined by Dr Howell, who is interested in one, not sure if it's worthless or priceless.
17. 36:49 - the picture breaks up completely when the director switches to another camera.