The Adventures of Sir Lancelot

"The Adventures of Sir Lancelot" is one of that stream of 1950s historical drama series that also included 'The Adventures of Robin Hood', 'William Tell', 'Sir Francis Drake' 'The Buccaneers' and 'Ivanhoe'. Probably aimed primarily at boys aged 8 - 14, they were good fun though frequently limited in scope. They embraced a mixture of history with myth and legend, historical accuracy frequently being non-existent although, frankly, this really didn't matter. It was all about the good guys beating the bad guys, British versions of the plethora of US series that centred on cowboys and Indians.

Viewed as products of their time they were all decent enough - I certainly remember enjoying them all, which may not be so surprising when one considers that the principal characters were often played by actors who were already, or later became, well known. Younger generations may well find all of these series far too dull and stagy for their tastes, having been brought up on a diet of loud and flashy imagery, but for those whose introduction to television was in the black and white days of the 1950s, they still have merit.

"The Adventures of Sir Lancelot" wasn't the best, but it's still worth a score of at least 5 and I'll give it 6 out of nostalgia..

OBVIOUSLY DONE ON a less than grand scale, this juvenile series representation of 'Life in Camelot' gave our 1950's television viewing a little break from all of those Westerns. Based on those Mythic , Tales and the Arthurian Legend, the series owns a limb on the same family tree as CAMELOT, Excalibur and Hal Foster's Newspaper Strip of PRINCE VALIANT.

TAKING THE SPOTLIGHT away from Arthur, Guinevere, Merlin and Gallahad and the other boys, Sir Lancelot became the main character (obviously, duh!) and the various stories revolved around his Knoghtly deeds; as well as how a Knight of the Round Table handles the everyday problems that plague all of us.

WE WELL RECALL one episode in which a young, beautiful Princess fell for Lancelot; even though she was betrothed to some other nobleman. The show centers on his efforts to portray himself as an ignorant buffoon; in order to put back on track to marry the other, younger guy.

THE SUPPORTING CAST was at least adequate for representing the employees of the Camelot Castle. Arthur looked regal, Guinevere stately and the other Knights appeared to fill out their rank well. Sir Kay, a portly chap, was used in comic relief. Only Merlin looked in authentic to us; being a skinny white bearded guy in a bath robe and 'dunce cap!'

WE DON'T REMEMBER the name of the actor who portrayed Lance, but we do remember that he was a rather handsome, noble looking sort. Our older sister, Joanne, who was in High School by then, said that he was cute.

WELL, THAT'S GOOD enough for us!

Our family loves Sir Lancelot, and are sorry that there was not a season 2 made. We are pleasantly surprised by the color episodes in the 2nd half of the 1st and only season. My 6-yr old daughter loves these episodes. She takes sword and shield and gets her friends and infants to place the Caledon (Lancelot's horse), Brian (Lancelot's squire), King Arthur and Queen Guinevere. The episodes are fast-paced and open with a scene that usually immediately sets up the story. The story- lines are for the most part good for children. The humor is pleasant. When you watch them in close succession, its easy to pick up on the actors who play multiple people during the series, townspeople, villains, and friends. The theme song is wonderful. The main untenable thing in terms of story lines that stands out as totally untenable, is the fact that the other knights of the round table never want to fight. So, the task always falls to Sir Lancelot.

A bygone era for TV series for sure. If you like these, you will also like Robin Hood, William Tell, and the Buccaneer.

I remember watching this television series as a child. I fell in love with Sir Lancelot (naturally!) and this program encouraged my lifelong interest in King Arthur and his knights of the Round Table.

Since this series there have been numerous versions in film of the story of Arthur and his Queen Guinevere, the castle Camelot and those chivalrous Knights. Strangely enough none are ever the same but they are all based on the original legends of Arthur. This series had a fresh adventure for Sir Lancelot each week - whether it was rescuing damsels in distress or joining his fellow Knights in battle. The acting and the production values were very good for the time - everyone dressed in suitable period outfits. Then Sir Lancelot admired his Queen from a distance - there was never a hint of an affair as this was a children's program! The settings always looked very authentic and for Camelot itself no doubt a real castle was used - there are plenty of them in the UK.

William Russell is usually on quite good form in this series depicting the chivalric challenges facing the eponymous knight at the Camelot court of the legendary King Arthur (not always played by the same actor, which could have been a bit confusing were it not for his crown!). There are thirty of these enjoyable 30-minuters that allow us to sit back and enjoy some adventures for the round table knights as they face foes and woes from within and without. The production is adequate, as is the writing and although the stories have little jeopardy or menace, the actors are having good fun making this and there is plenty of horse-borne action to keep each episode agreeable to watch. There usually features a B-list "guest star" to keep an eye on, and there is always loads of plotting and scheming too. Worth watching in a binge if you can - they pass the time surprisingly easily.