The Champions (TV Series) The Fanatics (1968) User Reviews

A good story, great production values.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 7/10 · 25 April 2023]

A high profile Arab state leader is assassinated in London, the latest in a line of high ranking profiles to be killed, there is seemingly no pattern to the killings, Richard is sent undercover to infiltrate 'The fanatics.'

It took a little while for me to get into this one, I found a few bits of it didn't quite make sense, but as it went on, my enjoyment grew.

In terms of production, they pushed the boat out with this one, we have helicopter sequences, elaborate explosions, it really looks great.

There are a couple of plot holes I think it's fair to say, including an obvious sacrifice of several high ranking military personnel, it felt a little hard to accept that Richard would have been handed over in such a way.

This has one of the best assembled casts you could hope for, Gerald Harper is terrific as the villain of the piece, often a Detective on the side of justice, he played a villain with ease, he was great, Donald Pickering, David Burke and.

7/10.

Richard goes undercover as an assassin

[bensonmum2 · 6/10 · 29 November 2015]

In The Fanatics, a string of assassinations brings Nemesis in to investigate. Richard goes undercover as an assassin, hoping to gain entry into the secretive group behind the killings. Richard discovers the name of the group's next intended target - Tremayne. Can The Champions act quickly enough to save the head of Nemesis?

As my rating would indicate, while I enjoyed The Fanatics, I don't consider it one of the better episodes. It has too many problems that I can't overlook. Still, it's an enjoyable enough experience.

A couple of things I liked: 1. Gerald Harper's Croft makes a perfect leader of the assassins. He's smart enough not get his hands dirty. Unlike those who work for him, he's in it for the money. 2. Richard gets a real chance to shine in The Fanatics. Whether its opening a booby-trapped safe, absorbing extreme punishment, or outsmarting Croft, Richard is the star of this episode. 3. The final showdown with Tremayne's life on the line is exciting. I wasn't sure how it would turn out.

A couple of things I didn't like: 1. For a secretive group like The Fanatics, they're awfully easy to find and infiltrate. And they don't have much in the way of security. Sharron and Craig just walk in after Richard incapacitates the only two people in the building. 2. While the group is called The Fanatics and a big deal is made in the pre- credit sequence, the whole "Fanatic" thing is never explained and just kind of drops. They seem more like your garden variety assassins.

In the end, I'm rating The Fanatics a 6/10.

A decent one

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 17 September 2021]

Another decent one with a lot of suspense. It's a story where one of our heroes goes undercover to infiltrate an assassination group. Julian Glover is one of the guest villains and there's some good imperilled moments to enjoy.

Murder for sale

[ShadeGrenade · 10/10 · 19 July 2012]

The world is rocked to its foundations by a series of well-organised political assassinations. In each case, the assassin died along with his/her target. Tremayne thinks the Fanatics might try to grab the notorious British spy 'Richard Carson' ( one-time 'Dr.Watson' David Burke ) to enlist him to their ranks. Barrett takes Carson's place as he leaves army prison under armed escort. The convoy is attacked by 'Croft' ( Gerald Harper ), leader of the Fanatics. Barrett is taken by helicopter to a remote country house where he is subjected to electrical torture until his identity is established. Then a problem arises - the real Carson shows up...

A suspenseful script by Terry Nation and unfussy direction from John Gilling characterise this episode, along with a fine performance from Harper - best known as 'Adam Adamant' in the B.B.C. series - as the urbane but sinister 'Croft'. He has created a murder-for-hire outfit whose real aim is to give him power as well as money. In his best scene, he pleads gently with Richard to hand over his gun, only to train it on him as he does so. Luckily, it is not loaded, as Richard could tell from the weight of the barrel. The excellent Julian Glover is rather wasted, however, as Croft's second-in-command 'Anderson'. The plot bears a strong resemblance to a 1968 Eurospy movie called 'OSS 177: Double Agent' starring John Gavin. I presume it was coincidental. The ambush on the escort is exciting, as is Richard's attempt to open the safe in Croft's study - he has only thirty seconds to do so before plastic explosive detonates. Inside is all the information needed to put the Fanatics out of business, including the name of their next victim - Tremayne. The venue for the kill? An ante-room in the Houses of Parliament. Luckily, the old fox has come prepared - he is wearing a bullet-proof vest!

There is a major plot hole - Carson finds the Fanatics' headquarters with an ease which makes nonsense of Croft's security procedures.

Spot The Mistake: the 'Richard Carson' character is incorrectly identified as 'Roger' on the closing credits.

A good solid entry into this cult fantasy classic.

[jamesraeburn2003 · 22 October 2018]

Craig Stirling, Sharon Macready and Richard Barrett are assigned to close down an organisation of professional assassins, 'The Fanatics', to whom the objective is of far greater importance than their own lives, who are targeting international VIPs. Barrett takes the place of a military prisoner called Richard Carlson, whom the organisation has its sights on as a potential recruit, to infiltrate them. It succeeds and Barrett manages to persuade their leader, Croft (Gerald Harper), that he is who he claims to be but has to undergo torture and interrogation to do so. But, then the real Carlson overpowers his guards and escapes, which puts Barrett in great danger because he is making his way to Croft's hideout. Craig and Sharon have to locate the hideout in time to save their friend and prevent Croft from assassinating his next target who is their leader Tremayne (Anthony Nichols)...

All in all, a very good solid entry in this cult British fantasy series. Like many other classic series from this era (the 1960's), The Champions hired many interesting actors and directors to make it happen. In this case it is John Gilling, who is best known for his Hammer horror films like The Plague Of The Zombies, but he was a versatile writer-director of wide experience dating back to the late 1940's when he started out as a 'B' picture man - many of which he wrote and directed for this series' producer Monty Berman - before graduating to more ambitious 'A' feature projects like Fury At Smugglers Bay and Idle On Parade. He also did much television including installments of Monty Berman and Robert S Baker's other series like Gideon's Way, The Saint and Department S. He gives this episode a hard-boiled thriller edge and generates some suspense and tension. Most effective are the scenes where the villain (Gerald Harper) subjects Barrett to interrogation by wiring him up to electrodes and passing electricity through his body. There is another mildly hair-raising scene where Barrett has to open a safe in which the combination must be cracked within thirty seconds or it will explode because it is wired up to plastic explosives. In the acting stakes Gerald Harper is standout as the meglomaniac Croft who seeks to hold the people who hire him to ransom in order to be able to gain power. The chemistry between the show's stars, Stuart Damon, Alexandra Bastedo and William Gaunt is still there. In the episode's opening sequence, Stuart Damon's Craig Stirling is dating a young woman who is barbecuing a steak and her bracelet falls off of her wrist and into the boiling hot ring. He both astonishes and impresses her by his 'superhuman' ability where he puts his hand into the flames to retrieve it for her without burning himself.