An American public relations officer solves crime and corruption within a grand London department store.
Bill Pierce (Wayne Morris) is the American Head of Public Relations for a prestigious London department store, a job that requires him to be more of an in-house detective than a simple press officer. Each week, a new crisis threatens the store’s reputation, forcing Pierce to investigate. His cases range from sophisticated shoplifting rings and internal sabotage to blackmail and murder among the staff and clientele. Pierce is assisted by his secretary (Pamela Thomas) and frequently calls on the help of a Scotland Yard Inspector (Robert Raglan), his official police contact.
This series is a notable example of a mid-1950s BBC production designed with an eye on the American market. The casting of American film actor Wayne Morris in the title role was a strategy to ensure transatlantic appeal, a practice more commonly associated with the fledgling ITV network at the time. The programme was made by Trinity Productions, the same independent company behind ITV’s successful police procedural Fabian of the Yard. This shared pedigree created a crime-of-the-week series for the BBC that mirrored the pace and style of its commercial rivals, using the department store setting as a novel backdrop for its conventional detective stories.
Broadcast: BBC, 17 Episodes, 7 May 1956 – 8 November 1956
Production Company: Wick Films / Trinity Productions
Main Cast: Wayne Morris (Bill Pierce), Robert Raglan (Scotland Yard Inspector), Pamela Thomas (Secretary), John Maclaren (Store Doctor), Philip Vickers (Head of Store), George Street (Credit Manager)
