Broadcast Oct. 14, 1968 (completed Sept. 23), "The Boscombe Valley Mystery" is one of the strongest episodes, with Peter Madden as Bill McCarthy, the foul-tempered father bludgeoned to death in gruesome fashion, and Nick Tate as the son who is arrested as the prime suspect. Also in the cast is John Tate (real-life father of Nick) as the bed-ridden neighbor Turner, an old friend of McCarthy who may hold the key to solving the case. As his fellow performer Christopher Lee would often lament good-naturedly, Peter Cushing's facility to handle props was truly astonishing to see, and of the few entries available this one may be the most rewarding (although "The Sign of Four" allowed him to don a disguise). I would mention his role as Dr. John Rollason in 1957's "The Abominable Snowman" and his second go-round as the Baron in 1958's "The Revenge of Frankenstein" as my favorite examples of 'Props' Cushing (as he was nicknamed) at his best. In the latter film, 'Dr. Victor Stein' is identified by fellow doctor Francis Matthews as he calmly carves up a chicken with all the skill of a professional surgeon; as fine an actor as any other at Hammer Studios, Matthews fails to detract attention away from Cushing's mastery. Whether playing Holmes, Frankenstein, or Van Helsing, he was simply one of the finest actors to grace the screen, and genre buffs are grateful for his dedication to our favorite films.