The Persuaders!

Did You Know?

• A motion picture was announced in 2005 with Steve Coogan and Ben Stiller, and later with Hugh Grant and George Clooney, but was never completed.
• The John Barry theme tune was used as walk-on music by British 2 tone pioneers The Specials.
• The series' theme song was sampled in the video for the single 'Lavender' by Snoop Dogg.

Premise

Two men who are evenly matched but come from completely different worlds are forced to work together on cases that ordinary law enforcement cannot handle. Danny Wilde, played by Tony Curtis, is a self-made millionaire from the New York City slums who joined the US Navy to escape his tough upbringing, then struck it rich in oil and later gambled away several fortunes on Wall Street. Lord Brett Rupert George Robert Andrew Sinclair, portrayed by Roger Moore, is a titled British aristocrat educated at Harrow and Oxford, a former army officer, ex-racing driver, and horse owner who spends his time on fine food, cocktails, and women. The two are thrown together by retired Judge Fulton, played by Laurence Naismith, on the French Riviera after they trash a hotel bar in a brawl. Arrested and brought before the judge, they are given a choice: ninety days in jail or help him fix cases where the guilty have escaped justice. They grudgingly take the deal and are set free. Over time, a reluctant fondness grows between them, and they keep stumbling into new adventures, sometimes on their own, sometimes at the judge’s request. In eleven episodes, Fulton finds ways to push them into action, whether by offering cash, putting them in danger, or secretly pulling strings from behind the scenes.

Production

The idea for The Persuaders! grew out of a late episode of The Saint, where Roger Moore’s Simon Templar teamed up with a Texas oilman in Monte Carlo. Producers Robert S. Baker and Lew Grade liked the pairing enough to back a new show. Production kicked off without signed contracts between Moore and the producers, and Moore’s behind-the-scenes role as part-owner wasn’t obvious on screen, though Tony Curtis later confirmed that Moore’s company held a significant stake alongside Baker and Grade. Curtis joined because ITC needed an American co-star to sell the series to U.S. networks. Rock Hudson and Glenn Ford both turned down the part, so ITC asked ABC for actor suggestions, which included Curtis. He accepted and arrived in the UK in April 1970 to start location shoots. Filming happened across Europe—France, Spain, Sweden, Italy—and at Pinewood Studios. Twenty-four episodes were made, each costing £100,000. Only one series aired because Moore took the James Bond role. According to Baker, Grade was ready to fund a second season by recasting Moore with Noel Harrison, but Baker argued that the unique chemistry between Moore and Curtis was irreplaceable, so the series ended as it was. Moore handled his own wardrobe, designing Lord Sinclair’s clothes, and each episode credited him with a large signature reading ‘Roger Moore’.

Reception

Despite strong ratings in Britain, where it ranked among the top 20 shows in 1971, Lew Grade hoped the series would succeed in the lucrative American market. It failed to catch on there, airing on ABC on Saturday nights against Mission: Impossible. In a 2007 interview, Curtis blamed the network for not giving it a prime-time slot. After the show was cancelled in 1972, Roger Moore was cast as James Bond in Live and Let Die, launching a seven-film run that ended any possibility of revival. ITC later repackaged eight episodes into four 90-minute TV movies: London Conspiracy, Sporting Chance, Mission: Monte Carlo, and The Switch. A fifth film, The Persuaders, was planned but never finished, though its trailer and opening appear on the 2006 Region 2 DVD set. While the series disappointed in the UK and US, it sold well internationally, especially in continental Europe, allowing ITC to recover most production costs soon after filming. It remains popular in Germany, Denmark, France, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Russia, Hungary, and Italy, with episodes still regularly repeated across Europe.

Home media

The entire series was remastered for DVD release in Europe in 2001. In 2006, a nine-disc DVD special edition boxed set was released in Britain with extra material. In September 2011, a Region B Blu-ray box set containing all remastered episodes was released. In Region 1, A&E Home Video released the series in two volume sets in 2003/2004. Visual Entertainment acquired the rights in Region 1 and re-released all 24 episodes on DVD on 4 November 2014.