prologue © Canal+

feature item © Canal+

feature item © Canal+

epilogue © Canal+

Six Hands Across a Table

Teleplay by Reed R. de Rouen
Directed by Richmond Harding

Production Schedule

Episode 51
Production Number : 3524
VTR/ABC/2508
Teddington Studio 1

Thursday 14th March 1963

Friday 15th March 1963

Running time

Expected: 50'25" + 2 commercial breaks
Actual running time with bumpers: 50'43"

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

VTR INSERTS:

• Scene 3: Reniston's boardroom - pre-titles teaser (00:31-1:52) following the telecine insert of a pan up the "high building" and zoom in to one of the windows (00:19-00:32)
• Scene 23: Brian rests in the draughting room after being struck by the block and tackle (20:49-21:26)
• Scene 42: Draughting Room - Cathy is attacked by an unknown assailant (improvised by the director) (34:42 - 35:27)

Murders

Victim Killer Method Herbert Collier thug? sabotaged car

click a name to see the face

Transport

Minutiæ

1. Reed de Rouen appeared as Jack Dragna in The Removal Men and was script editor for some of Series 1.
2. 4:21, 45:23 and passim - visual interference, which is repeated sporadically for the rest of the episode.
3. 5:18 - Stanley's character says he's "more interested in what is than what was" in response to learning that Cathy is an anthropologist, and clearly mistakes it for archaeologist, but Cathy doesn't disabuse him on it.
4. 8:16 - Reniston moves to the foreground in front of Stanley and Waldner, but the camera remains focused on Stanley until 8:22.
5. 10:15 - Brian is pleased when Steed observes that the propulsion unit of the new ship is no larger than that of a nuclear submarine, despite hauling twenty times the tonnage.
6. 13:13 - Electra syndrome or fluffed line? Waldner, being close and intimate with Cathy when asking her if she'd like to live with him, calls her 'Ros'.
7. 14:46 - the boom microphone is briefly visible when the director switches to the wide shot after Seabrook enters the boardroom.
8. 15:05 - the cameraman completely loses focus for ten seconds when Stanley asks Seasbrook id he has "stoomach trooble". He seems to be focused on Seabrook's left shoulder; when the actors move up stage a bit they spring into focus.
9. 18:41 - a vertical white band appears near the centre of the picture and remains on screen until the end of the first reel (20:40). At 20:35, it moves across, three-quarters toward the right hand side.
10. 20:41 - Act 2 starts with the dramatic crescendo music instead of the usual theme.
11. 22:20 - Philip Madoc stumbles over the phrase "unsatisfactory working conditions".
12. 31:28 - There is a scene where Steed gets into Cathy's car, but the 'car' is so obviously just a couple of seats, a steering wheel and backdrop - i.e. a set and not a car at all - it's meant to be Cathy's MGA, so I've listed it above.
13. 34:42 - the script identifies the assailant as Seabrook, but it's clearly a stand-in (maybe Val Musetti or Alan Chuntz) and the audience never learns it was supposed to be Seabrook. Just as well, as it makes no sense given later developments in the script.
14. 43:17 - Waldner's safe, hidden in the mantelpiece, has the combination: 16 clockwise, back to 2, forward to 33 again.
15. 43:41 - serious visual distortion