The Incredible Robert Baldick

The pilot for a series that never took off, this drama by Terry Nation is entitled Never Come Night, an intriguing vehicle for Robert Hardy. He plays a gentleman scientist and philanthropist called upon to solve a series of murders in the cellar of an abbey ruin, to which he travels in his own private train-cum-laboratory. Nigel Kneale's genre work is heavily echoed within the plot, which mingles supernatural elements with science. The supporting cast is excellent, particularly James Cossins as the Vicar, for once given the chance to excel in a role far removed from the creeps and autocrats who made up the bulk of his characters. There are distinguished turns, too, from John Rhys Davies, Julian Holloway and Reginald Marsh.