Series 3 — Episode 5
Death Of A Batman

Production Schedule

Episode 62
Production Number : 3609

Running time

Expected: 51′25″ excluding commercial breaks
Actual running time with bumpers: 51′34″

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 credits (normally 0′16″ with a 2″ fade) and closing credits (anywhere from 0′41″ to 1′20″, hard cut or 1″ fade or mix).

Transmission

This episode was broadcast in Italy on 12^th August 1965 (9pm, RAI 1) under the title of “Alta finanza”. It was the first episode shown in a limited run of ten episodes from series 2 and 3 that were broadcast on RAI intermittently throughout 1965 and 1966 under the title “Agente speciale”. Initially scheduled weekly on Primo canale, it was quickly pre-empted by other programmes and moved to the more local, but still nationally organised, Secundo canale.

In Australian, this episode was the last of an extended series of 35 episodes from series 2 and 3 combined; in Melbourne The Avengers would return nearly a year later on 10th January 1966 with The Gilded Cage. Sydney had the same break of long seasons, but the gap was shorter, and TheAvnegers returned just over six months later, on 22^nd December 1964, with Dressed to Kill.

TV Times listing

Murders

Click a name to see the face

Continuity and trivia

1. 1:35 — Clarence Wrightson dies at ten to nine.
2. 2:05 — In the photograph of Steed from World War II, he is in the uniform of a Major (or possibly Second Lieutenant) in the Intelligence Corps and wears the ribbons of the Military Cross, Africa Star, Italy Star, and the France and Germany Star.
3. 7:04 — A vertical streak appears on the screen and remains until the end of the episode.
4. 8:27 — Steed is out of focus on the change of shot
5. 12:43 — When Cathy breaks in to photograph the Wrightson’s bedroom, she shuts the door, but it keeps opening again.
6. 16:12 — As the camera tracks in on Teale, it goes slightly out of focus and seems to bump into something on the floor, as the camera jumps briefly.
7. 16:50 — Professor Renter's portrait from The Undertakers, the previously produced episode, is hanging in Lord Teale's office.
8. 19:34 (19:15) - The credits list Phillip Madoc as playing “Van Doren”, but the brochure Gibbs hands Steed reads “Teale & Van Doran”.
   
9. 23:45 — In the florist’s, Steed admonishes a reproduction Venus de Milo, saying “That’s what comes of biting your fingernails.”
10. 27:14 — the shadow of the boom mic appears on the wall behind Teale
11. 34:25 — there's some equipment briefly in the top right corner of the frame in John's mid-shot.
12. 35:09 — John's close-up is initially out of focus.
13. 45:46 — the vision is out focus on the change of shot
14. 46:22 — something scrapes along the concrete floor backstage, causing a piercing shriek
15. 48:13 — the shadow of the boom mic swings over Teale’s head as he asks Steed, “Is that your last word?”
16. 48:59 — you can see the sound man swing his microphone away from Teale on the change of shot.
17. The original script has Andre Morell’s character named Lord Basil de Witt instead of Lord Basil Teale.
18. The original script also had Wrightson’s estate at the extraordinary figure of £480,000, which was revised to a more reasonable - if unattainable - £180,000.
19. Katie the Great Dane returns five episodes later in The Gilded Cage.