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Editorial Reviews
Made by ITC (The Saint, Secret Agent/Danger Man) and based on John Creasey’s jet set character, The Baron was the first British drama series to be completely filmed in color and featured a roll call of high-caliber guest stars including Peter Wyngarde, Peter Bowles, George Baker, Jeremy Brett and Edward Woodward. Collected for the first time, all 30 episodes of The Baron are presented complete and uncut.
Tall, handsome and debonair, John Mannering (Steve Forrest), aka The Baron, is an international art and antiques dealer working with British Intelligence tracking stolen treasures. In a world of danger, greed and intrigue, The Baron – aided by the glamorous Cordelia (Sue Lloyd) – must risk his life on espionage missions to recover priceless works of art and bring criminals to justice.
Bonus Features: Select Commentary Tracks and Audio Introductions with Sue Lloyd, production supervisor Johnny Goodman and more!
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
21 of 21 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
action-packed British adventure/drama with a dashing American lead. . .
February 25, 2010
Format:DVD
The Baron (1966-67), is an entertaining, action-packed series that delivers excitement and thrills, in much the same style as The Saint. The program was produced by Britain's Incorporated Television Company (ITC), whose credits at this time included The Saint, Danger Man, and supermarionation programs like The Thunderbirds, and Fireball XL5. What made The Baron unusual, was that it featured an American actor, Steve Forrest, as its star.
John Mannering, nicknamed `The Baron', was originally a creation of British mystery writer John Creasy. Mannering was British, but for television, ITC changed him to a Texas cattle 'baron', who owned antique shops in London, Paris, and Boston. The series ran for just one season, producing 30 episodes, and was the first ITC production featuring live actors, to be shot in color. Like The Saint, The Baron was also distributed in the US, but because of poor ratings, was not renewed for a second season.
This was unfortunate, as the tall and handsome Forrest clearly demonstrated that an American could perform as a lead in a British action series, with dashing coolness, comparable to Roger Moore. Forrest, is physically a little smaller than Moore, but with fiery blue eyes, a similar wardrobe, and slicked back hair, there is more than a passing resemblance between the two. Forrest has a serious, tough, attitude which differs from the mischievous charm that Roger Moore brought to Simon Templar. The Saint and The Baron, have an extremely similar look, feel, and sound, as Edwin Astley, who provided the music for Danger Man and The Saint, also did the same for The Baron. Long time partners Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman co-created The Baron. Their partnership split, with Baker continuing to work on The Saint, and Berman taking control of The Baron.
Being an antique dealer, proves to be a gateway to thrilling adventure, as Mannering becomes embroiled in a variety of intrigue, with no shortage of mystery, murder, greedy villains, and beautiful women. Mannering mainly moves in the upper echelons of society, and though based in England, also travels to exotic locations. Mannering operates with the help of his associate David Marlowe (Paul Feriss), who is later replaced by Cordelia Winfield (Sue Lloyd, The Ipcress File), a government agent.
Mannering blends in wherever he goes, and has a fair for physical action. His car, a Jensen CV8 Mark II, has the personalized license plate 'BAR1', and is equipped with a car phone, quite an exclusive accessory for 1966. The Baron is a more action oriented program, with a higher level of violence, and use of firearms (many with silencers!), than either The Saint or Danger Man. Dead bodies stack up like cordwood.
The series features some of Britain's best acting talent. Lois Maxwell, Sylvia Syms, Annette Andre, Jane Merrow, Yvonne Furneaux, Bernard Lee, Jeremy Brett, Mike Pratt, Joseph Furst, Anton Diffring, Edward Woodward, Vladek Sheybal, Kenneth J. Warren, Raymond Huntley, Sam Wannamaker, Walter Gotell, David Bauer, and John Orchard, are among the many familiar faces.
The stories usually concern crime, intrigue, or espionage, as John Mannering tangles with crooks, criminals, and agents of foreign governments. The tone of the program changes after Cordelia Winfield replaces David Marlowe as Mannering's sidekick, as her presence helps to soften Mannering's 'all business' attitude. John Mannering isn't one that chases the ladies much, and there is no romance Cordelia. She knows nothing about antiques, but soon becomes a competent aide. On the flip side, as the series progresses, although a government agent, she seems to become less capable physically, and frequently is captured or needs rescuing.
Under the supervision of Terry Nation, the quality of the writing is very good. The action is lively, set in a wide variety of places, and with a very high level of violence. The stories don't repeat themselves, but the series has a few amusing clichés, that seem to be favored by the writers. The biggest, is the ubiquitous use of silencers. Others include cars flying off cliffs, bodies dropping from buildings, corpses falling out of closets, Cordelia's fainting spells, car crashes, and people overhearing conversations at doorways.
Image quality is probably about as good as it gets for an ITC series of this era, although the colors are rather flat. There isn't much dirt or print damage, but there is some softness, strange color shifts (typical for ITC), and most things shot at night look pretty dreadful. Except for long shots, Forrest is rarely doubled, and does most of his own stunts and fights.
The Baron is a tough, solid, action series, that almost always packs a wallop. Steve Forest's performance as an American who never seems out of place, at any level of British society, is impressive and convincing. Unfortunately Forrest is not featured in any of the extras, however Sue Lloyd and others in the production team, provide commentary for three of the episodes. For straight ahead no nonsense action, The Baron is one of ITE's best, and this eight DVD set is definitely recommended to fans of 1960's crime dramas. Steve Forrest would later star in the police drama SWAT (1975).
John Mannering, nicknamed `The Baron', was originally a creation of British mystery writer John Creasy. Mannering was British, but for television, ITC changed him to a Texas cattle 'baron', who owned antique shops in London, Paris, and Boston. The series ran for just one season, producing 30 episodes, and was the first ITC production featuring live actors, to be shot in color. Like The Saint, The Baron was also distributed in the US, but because of poor ratings, was not renewed for a second season.
This was unfortunate, as the tall and handsome Forrest clearly demonstrated that an American could perform as a lead in a British action series, with dashing coolness, comparable to Roger Moore. Forrest, is physically a little smaller than Moore, but with fiery blue eyes, a similar wardrobe, and slicked back hair, there is more than a passing resemblance between the two. Forrest has a serious, tough, attitude which differs from the mischievous charm that Roger Moore brought to Simon Templar. The Saint and The Baron, have an extremely similar look, feel, and sound, as Edwin Astley, who provided the music for Danger Man and The Saint, also did the same for The Baron. Long time partners Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman co-created The Baron. Their partnership split, with Baker continuing to work on The Saint, and Berman taking control of The Baron.
Being an antique dealer, proves to be a gateway to thrilling adventure, as Mannering becomes embroiled in a variety of intrigue, with no shortage of mystery, murder, greedy villains, and beautiful women. Mannering mainly moves in the upper echelons of society, and though based in England, also travels to exotic locations. Mannering operates with the help of his associate David Marlowe (Paul Feriss), who is later replaced by Cordelia Winfield (Sue Lloyd, The Ipcress File), a government agent.
Mannering blends in wherever he goes, and has a fair for physical action. His car, a Jensen CV8 Mark II, has the personalized license plate 'BAR1', and is equipped with a car phone, quite an exclusive accessory for 1966. The Baron is a more action oriented program, with a higher level of violence, and use of firearms (many with silencers!), than either The Saint or Danger Man. Dead bodies stack up like cordwood.
The series features some of Britain's best acting talent. Lois Maxwell, Sylvia Syms, Annette Andre, Jane Merrow, Yvonne Furneaux, Bernard Lee, Jeremy Brett, Mike Pratt, Joseph Furst, Anton Diffring, Edward Woodward, Vladek Sheybal, Kenneth J. Warren, Raymond Huntley, Sam Wannamaker, Walter Gotell, David Bauer, and John Orchard, are among the many familiar faces.
The stories usually concern crime, intrigue, or espionage, as John Mannering tangles with crooks, criminals, and agents of foreign governments. The tone of the program changes after Cordelia Winfield replaces David Marlowe as Mannering's sidekick, as her presence helps to soften Mannering's 'all business' attitude. John Mannering isn't one that chases the ladies much, and there is no romance Cordelia. She knows nothing about antiques, but soon becomes a competent aide. On the flip side, as the series progresses, although a government agent, she seems to become less capable physically, and frequently is captured or needs rescuing.
Under the supervision of Terry Nation, the quality of the writing is very good. The action is lively, set in a wide variety of places, and with a very high level of violence. The stories don't repeat themselves, but the series has a few amusing clichés, that seem to be favored by the writers. The biggest, is the ubiquitous use of silencers. Others include cars flying off cliffs, bodies dropping from buildings, corpses falling out of closets, Cordelia's fainting spells, car crashes, and people overhearing conversations at doorways.
Image quality is probably about as good as it gets for an ITC series of this era, although the colors are rather flat. There isn't much dirt or print damage, but there is some softness, strange color shifts (typical for ITC), and most things shot at night look pretty dreadful. Except for long shots, Forrest is rarely doubled, and does most of his own stunts and fights.
The Baron is a tough, solid, action series, that almost always packs a wallop. Steve Forest's performance as an American who never seems out of place, at any level of British society, is impressive and convincing. Unfortunately Forrest is not featured in any of the extras, however Sue Lloyd and others in the production team, provide commentary for three of the episodes. For straight ahead no nonsense action, The Baron is one of ITE's best, and this eight DVD set is definitely recommended to fans of 1960's crime dramas. Steve Forrest would later star in the police drama SWAT (1975).
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
By The Saint
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I had never heard of this series so I didn't know what to expect when I bought it. I knew it was made by ITC which produced many of my favorite series.
I found the series to be fast-paced and interesting for the most part. The first 10 to 12 episodes are the best but they do tend to drag a little at the end of the series which may be why it only had 1 season.
I believe anyone who liked the Roger Moore "Saint" series from the sixties will also enjoy these.
I found the series to be fast-paced and interesting for the most part. The first 10 to 12 episodes are the best but they do tend to drag a little at the end of the series which may be why it only had 1 season.
I believe anyone who liked the Roger Moore "Saint" series from the sixties will also enjoy these.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
By dr myke
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
i watched this tv series when it came out
years ago and i loved it. today it is dated
and it has been re-done a thousand times -
but these stories stand the test of time.
the cast is great. the stories are very good.
it is a great production and cleverly done....
and the settings are interesting and fun.
i am delighted i foudn it again and am
enjoying it. i cannot believe that it was so
reasonably priced. i will watch it over and over
again ............ and add it with pride to my
library.
years ago and i loved it. today it is dated
and it has been re-done a thousand times -
but these stories stand the test of time.
the cast is great. the stories are very good.
it is a great production and cleverly done....
and the settings are interesting and fun.
i am delighted i foudn it again and am
enjoying it. i cannot believe that it was so
reasonably priced. i will watch it over and over
again ............ and add it with pride to my
library.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
WONDERFUL BARON!
With a background of expensive artifacts and precious trinkets, the Baron swings through action in apprehending all the bad guys who try to beat the system!
Published 1 month ago by Alex Vadivale
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Fine Art of `The Baron' is no Antique Road Show
A couple of years ago I discovered a late night series called `The Baron', a British TV series, based on the book series by John Creasey, and produced by ITC Entertainment. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Peter Karsten
5.0 out of 5 stars
good stuff
This is good stuff. If you liked Secret Agent you'll like this. I found it better than Mannix (not that I don't like Mike Connors). Read more
Published 16 months ago by republic of letters
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Baron
I enjoyed this quite a bit even though it frequently appeared dated with bad cold war accents and even worse impressions of Asians by White actors. Read more
Published on July 7, 2009 by Ira H. Bernstein
2.0 out of 5 stars
one of a string of British spy/adventure shows...and not the best
In the very small subgenre of mystery series revolving around the art world, you can add The Baron ($59. Read more
Published on June 19, 2009 by Michael Giltz
3.0 out of 5 stars
Price?
I do not understand the Amazon price. I prefer Amazon, but bbcamericashop says the list price is $49.98 and is selling it for $42.98 plus $4.95 shipping.
Published on April 6, 2009 by Cecil L. Chesser
