In this six-part adventure serial, an incident-prone concert pianist is drawn into a world of international intrigue.
Concert pianist Annabel (Elizabeth Allan) lives a quiet life in London with her flatmate, the young novelist Nyassa (Margaret Tyzack). Her world is upended when Nyassa’s tape recorder captures a conversation in a hotel lounge, suggesting that Annabel’s husband, an RAF pilot believed to have been killed during the war, might still be alive. The clue leads her to Nice on the trail of a hundred million francs. On the plane, she meets the charming but enigmatic Robert Hayward (Hugh Sinclair), a man whose knack for appearing at the centre of Annabel’s subsequent adventures strains coincidence. Over a series of self-contained episodes, she finds danger in Ireland, Prague, Munich, and South Africa, often crossing paths with the reliable Sergeant Murray (Norman Pierce).
A Saturday night thriller serial, The Adventures of Annabel was constructed as a traditional piece of light adventure, but it was built around a surprisingly modern premise. The plot is set in motion not by a mysterious letter or a chance encounter, but by a piece of technology: a tape recorder. This device propels an otherwise ordinary woman out of her comfortable life and into a sequence of international escapades. The serial’s credibility is sustained by a strong cast of guest performers, including Patrick Troughton and Paul Eddington, who ground the increasingly elaborate scenarios. The recurring presence of Hugh Sinclair’s suave stranger provided the necessary romantic mystery, ensuring Annabel was never too far from either peril or a potential protector.
Broadcast: BBC, 6 Episodes, Saturdays, 10 December 1955 – 14 January 1956
Adapted from stories by: Charles Franklin
Writer: Anthony Steven
Producer: Chloe Gibson
Main Cast: Elizabeth Allan (Annabel), Hugh Sinclair (Robert Hayward), Margaret Tyzack (Nyassa), Norman Pierce (Sergeant Murray)
Guest Cast included: Patrick Troughton, Alfred Burke, Edward Mulhare, Paul Eddington, Richard Caldicot
