The Avengers Dossier, Page Ten

Here's another look at a supporting player from the classic television series, "The Avengers".

DUDLEY FOSTER
In "The Hour That Never Was", Dudley Foster plays an officer in Steed's old R.A.F. unit who is tied to the mysterious happenings at an airfield that is being decommissioned.

Born in 1924, Foster served in the Royal Air Force during World War II, and turned to professional acting during the post-war years, first on stage and then becoming a fixture on British television from the mid-1950s through the mid-1970s. Historical dramas, mysteries, sci-fi, horror, fantasy, or comedy... Foster appeared in shows of just about any genre. He was mostly cast as policemen, military officers, and other authority figures...not all of whom could be trusted.

Foster's main roles were starring turns on the British television series "Bat Out of Hell" (1966), "A Hundred Years of Humphrey Hastings" (1967), "If It Moves, File It" (1970), and "It's Murder, But Is It Art?" (1972). He also starred as Detective Inspector Dunn during the first season of the long-running police drama "Z-Car" (in 1962). He later returned to play a completely different character in two episodes of series final season in 1971.

During the late 1950s and early 1960s, Foster also regularly appeared in roles big and small on anthology series, such as the "BBC Sunday-Night Play", "ITV Television Playhouse", and "The Edgar Wallace Mystery Theatre". In total, he appeared in over 100 different television series and films, often returning as different characters in different seasons. On "The Avengers", he returned in more two episodes, as two other characters--"Something Nasty in the Nursery' (1967) and "Wish You Were Here" (1968), the latter being a spoof of another British spy series, "The Prisoner".

Foster, despairing at the death of his father, committed suicide in 1973.

The Avengers: The Hour that Never Was

The Hour that Never Was (1965)
Starring: Patrick Macnee, Diana Rigg, Roy Kinnear, and Dudley Foster

Director: Gerry O'Hara

Rating: Nine of Ten Stars

A car accident causes Steed and Mrs. Peel (Macnee and Rigg) to arrive late to a reception and party behind held at an air force base that is being decommissioned. They find the facility completely deserted and all clocks stopped at the exact moment of their car crash.

"The Hour That Never Was" is one of the best episodes of the ones from the 1965/66 season. Between the expansion of John Steed's background with details about his WW2 activities (including the fact that he played fast-and-loose with the rules even then); some great interplay between Steed and Peel that both underscores their easy-going friendship, their skills as agents, and their ability to be ruthless when called for; and a mystery that will keep you guessing as to what has happened to the staff of the airbase--because just as you think you may have figured it out, the mid-episode twist will put you right back to Square One. 

"The Hour That Never Was" also benefits from some creative camera-work that emphasizes the creepiness of the deserted airbase during the first half of the episode, and the disorientation felt by Steed when he suddenly finds the base populated again... except now Peel has gone missing.

This is one of the spookiest episodes of the series, because the mystery keeps turning inside out and then turning again. It's clear that there are clearly some mundane threat at play (a sniper with a rifle kills the only other living human being that Steed and Peel lay eyes on after arriving at the base) the supernatural or weird science threat that appears to have first made everyone on the base vanish and then appears to have distorted time is the far greater danger... and it's one that remains mysterious until the episode reaches its conclusion.

The only weak part of "The House Than Never Was" is the fight between our heroes and the villains at the end. It's a little too goofy, even by "The Avengers" standards. But this is more than made up for the excellent execution of the story and the many little touches that make Steed and Peel seem more three-dimensional and human than they have in any previous episodes. (Steed's joy at the prospect of reuniting with old friends is something every adult ca relate to; and the fact that Peel has a favorite pair of boots she keeps in the car just in case she ends up having to walk are among my favorites. In fact, I think this episode may be the first time I ever had the sense that a female character in a show had what felt like a realistic wardrobe... because it dawned on me that Emma Peel often wore the same hat or shoes or jacket with different pants or blouses instead of either the exact same outfit or a completely different outfit every week. I may think those striped boots or that beanie that looks like a target that she is so fond of are goofy-looking, but I also felt they brought a bit of realism to the glamorous, comic-book universe that Peel and Steed live in.)