Who Killed Lamb?

The British Thriller series is one of the joys of television that runs in danger of being forgotten. It is brilliantly written and scripted with great performances and no CGI. Every episode has its own cast and characters, and the series gets an A+ for variety; there are even episodes on the supernatural - ghosts, witchcraft and the like.

"Who Killed Lamb?" is a more straightforward who-done-it mystery that will keep you guessing to the end. It is an odd entry in Thriller as it has unique opening & end credits and music and is not included in some DVD collections of the series. On the surface, the victim and his circle of associates, friends, and family seem like ordinary people living ordinary lives, but as the detectives dig into things, there are all sorts of secrets and dirty dealings going on. I liked it! 8/10.

"Who Killed Lamb?" features one of Britain's most popular actors of his time - Stanley Baker.

Once in demand and now on television and lot, he is a strong and hard-nosed police officer on the case of a murdered local businessman who didn't seem to be what he appeared to be after Baker is investigating the victim's background.

The episode features a lot of intrigue and contains a neat twist to the tale.

Very well made on all fronts.

At the time of its broadcast in 1974 this one-off drama was erroneously billed as an episode of the excellent Thriller anthology that had just finished its second series. That association has stuck but this is a quite different production, made by the then Yorkshire Television.

Although this show had the same unusual 65 minute time span (designed to aid US sales) and was shot on video-tape it is very different in style to the suspense and fear of Thriller. This is essentially a detective-drama, not unlike more recent productions like Morse. Indeed like the latter it is set in Oxford. The detective in question here is the commanding Inspector Jamieson. He has been sent from New Scotland Yard to investigate the murder of local businessman Octavius Lamb. Lamb's murder seems inexplicable, as everyone seems to speak so fondly of him. However as Jamieson searches he finds that maybe Lamb was not such a benevolent figure - but who exactly would want to target him?

Like most detective dramas this is a whodunit. Such dramas are often star vehicles and this is certainly no exception with renowned film actor Stanley Baker making a rare and very strong appearance on TV. His character is an interesting one, efficient and forceful without being notably intellectual or eccentric like many other TV 'tecs. It might have been interesting to see how the character would have developed within a series but Baker would probably not have been available for a longer-running production. His presence will certainly be the chief focus for most viewers even if it had been considered. The cast generally is very strong, additionally featuring Peter Sallis, David Swift and John Challis alongside other familiar TV faces.

Flashbacks help to flesh out this story. There is some neat humour but this is fairly conventional entertainment, without any great highs and lows, although on the whole interesting enough. It has now emerged on DVD as an extra on the release of "Thriller" and is worth seeing as comparison with the series "proper" as well as on its own merits.

Having worked my way through the Thriller box set this one felt a little unusual to begin with, but equally as enjoyable as the Thriller episodes. It looks and feels very different, more straight laced then you get with thriller. but an intriguing drama nonetheless. I wonder if they'd tested the water as it were to see if a series was viable from this one episode, a shame it wasn't developed, more mileage could have come from its main characters. The crime is engaging enough, good suspects, a good set of characters, but it's the charisma of Stanley Baker that makes it such a great watch for me, he is so commanding on screen, a hugely talented actor, 'don't call me Sir!' Derek Francis was good, a prolific actor right up until his death, Dennis Lill was good. Barbara Leigh-Hunt I thought was excellent. Wonderful fashions and decor throughout, a time when people wore dinner jackets and donned cravats. A good watch.

WHO KILLED LAMB? Is by no means sub-standard, let alone a bad television production, supposedly intended as pilot for a series that did not materialize, possibly for financial reasons, equally possibly because it did not present any truly new or memorable facets.

The always dependable Stanley Baker delivers fairly credibly in the role of Police Inspector Jamieson, displaying a sharp olfactory sense for smelling out the culprit(s) in the good old varsity town of Oxford. The cast, thoroughly British, proves as professional as the lead, with no standout performances - which no doubt owes to the workmanlike but undistinguished, largely predictable script.

Cinematography is typical 1970s TV.

If you like figuring out whodunnits, have time to waste, and nothing better to waste it on, you will find WHO KILLED LAMB? Suitable. 6/10.