The Saint on TV

Episode 31: The Well-Meaning Mayor

"THE WELL-MEANING MAYOR"

The Saint helps to sort out a local council racket after the death of a
councillor.

There is no love lost between Sam Purdell (LESLIE SANDS) and George Hackett
(NORMAN BIRD). Both are members of the Seatondean Council, with Sam as
Mayor. Hackett loses no opportunity to belittle Purdell, whom he accuses of
using his position to carry out his own rackets and, in particular, of
milking the building boom cow.

Other members of the council put this down to jealousy on Hackett's part.
Even his daughter Molly (MANDY MILLER) is inclined to do so, although her
newspaperman fiance Jack Bryant (NOEL TREVARTHEN) has an open mind on the
matter. It is through knowing Bryant that Simon Templar, the Saint (ROGER
MOORE), gets to know Molly and her father.

Events take a dramatic turn when Hackett's car is run into by a man named
Maxim (DAVID MORELL), who is Clerk of the Works on a new building being
erected by the council. Hackett is accused of being drunk, but the
accusation is an obvious frame-up. Soon afterwards he receives a letter
providing him what he says is conclusive evidence that Purdell is a
racketeer - but he is found dead before he can do anything about it. The
inquest verdict is misadventure, but Molly has her suspicions and the Saint
makes a few investigations which satisfy him that someone on the council is
certainly running a racket.

A showdown with Purdell convinces him that the Mayor is on the level, and
the two of them hatch a scheme to trace the real culprit. It involves the
Saint posing as the representative of a company putting in an electrical
tender for the new building.

The field narrows as one member of the council after another is cleared, and
the climax is reached high up on the girders of the new building, where the
Saint has to fight for his life in a desperate battle not only on his own
behalf but to vindicate the dead Hackett. Quick thinking on the part of
Molly and Jack Bryant bring him the help he needs........

CAST

Starring

ROGER MOORE as SIMON TEMPLAR

With
LESLIE SANDS as SAM PURDELL
MARY KENTON as ALICE PURDELL
NORMAN BIRD as HACKETT
MANDY MILLER as MOLLY

And
NOEL TREVARTHEN as JACK BRYANT
CAMERON HALL as ALDERMAN GREER
KENNETH HENRY as IRONSIDE
DAVID MORELL as MAXIN
ROBERT SANSOM as CORONER
JOHN GILL as DR. YATES

Produced by Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman
Directed by Jeremy Summers
Screenplay by Robert Stewart