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School For Traitors

Teleplay by James Mitchell
Directed by Jonathan Alwyn

Production Schedule

Episode 46
Production Number : 3519
VTR/ABC/2322
Teddington Studio 2

Friday 8th February 1963

Saturday 9th February 1963

Running time

Expected: 51'25" + 2 commercial breaks 2.05
Actual running time with bumpers: 51'47"

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 Davis Higby? revolver Green Higby pushed off roof Roberts Higby overdose of barbiturates

click a name to see the face

Transport

Minutiæ

1. 8:06 - a thread get caught in the transfer plate and stays at the bottom of the screen until 9:48.
2. 8:22 and 47:23 - severe visual distortion
3. 10:47 - Claire tell Roberts that Lynch made out a cheque to £220 but wrote "two hundred and twenty guineas" so no bank would accept it. She fluffed her line, because 200 guineas is £210 - whereas 220 guineas is, of course, £231 : £220 s.220 = £231. The original script confirms this, the line is "two hundred guineas".
   
4. Later on (40:24 /39:00) she gets it right and tells East the cheque is for 200 guineas, which is £210, not £220 as written on the cheque (£200 s.200 d.- = £210).
5. Claire spends most of the episode working on a painting that is clearly tipped up on its side without seeming to notice.
6. Is it just me, or is Claire seriously mutton dressed as lamb?
7. Claire orders Venus to leave the letter from Davis behind the noticeboard at the foot of staircase no. 2 of St. Luke's college at 11pm.
8. 23:50 - "She's got to be sho-taught a lesson".
9. Claire's face cream contained trichloroacetic acid.
10. 28:56 (28:18) - Julie stumbles over her lines and introduces Steed to Roberts with the words: "This is a friend of mine, John Steed.
    [looks at Roberts] John Steed, Jeff -
    [looks at Steed] John Steed, this is Jeff Roberts."
    The other actors are grinning their heads off and Macnee wickedly says, "Jeff Steed this is Jeff? Anyway, marvellous, how do you do? Call me Bert, thank you. how do you do?"
11. 36:30 (35:55) - Melissa Stribling calls Jeff Roberts 'Jack' by mistake.
12. 37:40 - The police tells Shanklin that Roberts died of an overdose of phenobarbital.
13. 46:18 - Just before Higby appears in the hall outside Claire's door, something or someone scoots past at high speed at the bottom of the screen.

The Songs

Venus sings several songs with the Kenny Powell trio.

• The end of "The Varsity Drag" [0:13, 0:19 long]
  • Listen
  • Watch
• the calypso standard "Yellow Bird" accompanied by John Standing [26:33, 0:39 long (26:00, 0:36 long)] (25:48 - John Standing starts strumming guitar) until she is interrupted by Roberts, Ted (Standing) continues to whistle and play the guitar (to 27:26/26:53) until stopped by the Proctor.
  • Listen
  • Watch
• Venus later sings "Put on a Happy Face" [31:51 (31:15), 1:00 long] with the trio.
  • Listen
  • Watch
• The trio also performs:
  • a snippet of "Tea for Two Cha Cha" (from No, No, Nanette) [32:52 (32:16), 0:50 long]
    • Listen
    • Watch
  • and a Powell composition called "Boogie Twist".

Kenny Powell was a mainstream Jazz pianist who worked with the Jack Parnell Orchestra at Ronnie Scott's in London. He was a member of the resident rhythm section at The Hopbine - a pub in Wembley run by the tenorist Tommy Whittle and vocalist Barbara Jay through the 1960s - alongside drummer Dick Brennan and the virtuoso bassist Ron Matthewson. Tubby Hayes used the Hopbine trio when recording an album in 1966. Powell emigrated to Australia in 1972 and was later musical director for Kamahl and arranger for Bob Barnard. He replaced Dave Lee and appeared alongside Dave's rhythm section of Art Morgan and Spike Heatley in this episode after Dave left 'The Avengers' to do other work; Spike and Art followed Dave, and Kenny is supported by Lew Grade's in-house ATV orchestra leader, Jack Parnell and his regular bassist, Lennie Bush - with whom he played at Ronnie Scott's - for Man in the Mirror and A Chorus of Frogs.