[Avengers] "The Curious Case of the Countless Clues". S06-E18

[Ubiquitous]

Teleplay by Philip Levene
Directed by Don Sharp

Two trench-coated detectives investigate a murder scene, Earle (Anthony
Bate) taking the lead and indicating the evidence to Gardiner (Kenneth
Cope). Earle describes the assailant and victim then hurriedly dims the
lights when they hear someone approaching. A man (Reginald Jessup)
enters the apartment and identifies himself to Earle as Reginald
Herbert Dawson. He's startled to learn a murder has been committed in
his apartment; when he asks whose, Earle replies, "Yours". and shoots
him with the revolver, already bagged as evidence. Dawson falls neatly
into the chalked outline on the floor.

Tara's wheelchair-bound after a skiing accident so when Sir Arthur
Doyle calls, it's Steed who attends Doyle (Peter Jones), dressed in
deer-stalker and Victorian tweeds and letting the Holmesian influence
get the better of him, at Dawson's apartment. Dawson was a nobody but
the evidence points to a cabinet minister, Sir William Burgess. Steed
points out the disparities in the evidence but agrees to visit Burgess
so they need not send a bobby round. Burgess (George A. Cooper) is edgy
and declares he had a break-down at the time in question, however some
of his art works are missing from his house. Earle and Gardiner see
Steed leaving the house, Gardiner follows while Earle goes inside to
see what Burgess has been saying. Burgess declares he hasn't said a
word to anyone. Gardiner follows Steed to Tara's flat - Tara spots him
from the window - but is told to move onto Flanders instead. Earle and
Gardiner get into a lift with their target and Gardiner pretends to
trip, stealing Flanders' handkerchief and a button off his coat in the
process. They follow him briefly and Flanders' car breaks down shortly
after they take a different road. They switch cars, getting into a
Bentley like Flanders', which they put false plates on. Earle disguises
himself as Flanders and sets off with a sniper rifle. Meanwhile,
Flanders (Edward de Souza) flags down a tow truck and the mechanic,
Stanley (Tony Selby), tells him it's probably a fuel blockage. Earle
shoots an innocent pensioner called Scott and makes sure he and the
Bentley are seen leaving the scene.

Steed returns to Tara's, buoyed by a garage confirming they'd serviced
a Rolls at the time but is crestfallen when Tara tells him Dawson once
worked for Burgess. Doyle calls and summons him to the scene of Scott's
murder - Flanders is the prime suspect and Steed was once close to
Flanders' sister. Steed pays a visit and is surprised to once more hear
of breakdown and recuse by a tow truck. He departs after carelessly
enquiring further, meeting the sister, Janice (Tracy Reed) in the
driveway. They exchange pleasantries and he departs, watched by Earle
and Gardiner, who realise Steed's appearances are not coincidence.
Earle enters the house and explains the setup to Flanders, they hand
over the crucial evidence of his borrowed hunting rifle in exchange for
the Valdesco painting he'd just acquired. Flanders imperiously sneers
at him and rings the garage, summoning Stanley to the house. Stanley
arrives and reveals himself to be in the pay of Earle and they depart
with the painting. Earle revisits Burgess, wanting another Horsborough
painting but is thrown out. Burgess rings Steed, wanting to make a
confession about Dawson's murder but Doyle gets there first and arrests
him. Earle decides Steed will be next - they'll kill Tara to frame him,
but first to take another picture from Flanders.

Janice overhears Bobby getting angry with the blackmailers while in
town Tara is telling Steed Bobby may have known Scott - it's the same
old story. Janice arrives, breathlessly telling Steed Bobby is being
threatened by two men and they set off. They return just as the
villains are leaving and Steed follows them. They enter a cottage,
jam-packed with art works. Steed slips in while Earle is choosing a
bottle of wine with which to celebrate; he assaults Gardiner and is
about to make him talk when Earle clubs him over the head with the
bottle. They resolve to take care of Steed immediately...

Steed comes to and stumbles out to his car. He hasn't gone very far
when he breaks down, and Earle and Gardiner set off. He tries to start
the car, then notices he has a button missing. He's not surprised when
Stanley's breakdown truck arrives towing a car and takes him by
surprise as he's pretending to fix the Bentley. Steed demands the name
of the victim, threatening him with the hood of the car. when he learns
it, he drives off, stopping at a call box to warn her her life is in
danger just before Earle and Gardiner arrive. She drags herself up the
stairs and bolts the door just in time; peering through the peephole,
she nearly lets Earle in as he's wearing Steed's bowler but checks
again and sees his face. He tries the door but retreats when he finds
the chain in place. Gardiner meanwhile has slipped in the lower door
and the villains gloat over her after she's tossed into an armchair.
They set about establishing the crime scene while Tara watches in
disbelief, Steed tearing through the night to get there. Earle goes to
prepare the corpse but Tara squirts him with the contents of her hot
water bottle, then throws Steed's bowler at him, knocking him down.
Gardiner leaps at her and they parry, she with Steed's umbrella, he
with an alpenstock. she prevails and finally knocks him down with her
paintbox. she somersaults across the room and grabs Steed's revolver
which she shoots Earle with, then fires a few shots at the escaping
Gardiner. He exit at the top of the stairs, only to reappear moments
later flying backwards and crashing through the railing. Steed enters
to find Tara sitting nonchalantly in the armchair, reading a magazine
in the midst of devastation. He slides down her fireman's pole and
squashes his bowler hat.

It's a delicate operation; scissors, tweezers, needle, thread. It's a
success, another first for Britain - the world's first brim graft. To
prove its strength, Tara somersaults across the room with the brim in
her teeth.

--
Dems & the media want Trump to be more like Obama, but then he'd
have to audit liberals & wire tap reporters' phones.