An Edwardian adventurer, frozen in time in 1902, is revived in the Swinging London of 1966 to fight a new generation of villains.
The celebrated adventurer Adam Adamant (Gerald Harper) is lured into a trap in 1902 by his arch-nemesis, the sinister The Face (Peter Ducrow), and left cryogenically frozen in a block of ice. When workmen discover and revive him sixty-four years later, Adamant finds himself a man out of time. Confounded by the bewildering world of “Swinging London,” he is befriended by the fashionable Georgina Jones (Juliet Harmer), who helps him adjust. With the assistance of his newly-hired, resourceful valet Simms (Jack May), Adamant resumes his life as a gentleman adventurer, applying his formidable skills to the strange new crimes of the 20th century.
This programme was the BBC’s direct answer to the success of ITV’s The Avengers, and the parallels are clear. The series places an anachronistic, impeccably dressed hero alongside a modern, independent female companion, a formula that defined its commercial rival. Produced by Verity Lambert, fresh from her foundational work on Doctor Who, the serial had a strong creative pedigree. While it never fully escaped the shadow of its inspiration, it established its own distinct identity through the force of Gerald Harper’s central performance and its enthusiastic embrace of a pop-art, “Swinging Sixties” aesthetic. Few episodes survive, but the programme’s legacy is secured by its own influence: Adamant’s distinctive frilled shirts and velvet jackets became a direct template for the flamboyant wardrobe of Jon Pertwee’s Third Doctor.
Broadcast: BBC One, 29 Episodes, 23 June 1966 – 25 March 1967
Creators: Donald Cotton, Richard Harris
Producer: Verity Lambert
Script Editor: Tony Williamson
Theme Music: David Lee; performed by Kathy Kirby
Main Cast: Gerald Harper (Adam Adamant), Juliet Harmer (Georgina Jones), Jack May (William E. Simms), Peter Ducrow (The Face)
