'Dangerous Knowledge' by N. J. Crisp is an excitingly mounted 6-part 70s cold-war espionage series electrified by another commanding performance from the charismatic and much loved actor John Gregson, sadly, this was to be his last role, as he died shortly after filming was completed. The unwholesomely gripping narrative unfolds at an engagingly relentless pace, this raven dark paranoid thriller wastes little time pitilessly plunging our beleaguered protagonist Bill Kirby (John Gregson) into a shadow-steeped, increasingly murderous milieu of high stakes deadly duplicity, where, perhaps, nothing is quite as it initially seems!
The entertainment value of this uncommonly immersive, consistently exciting 6-part serial remains undiminished, a testament to the immutability of cast-iron scripting and the exceptionally fine acting of a no less splendid cast, with Ralph Bates exuding glacial menace as a kill-happy assassin, with the underrated Patrick Allen delivering a scintillatingly stern performance as straightedged minister Roger Fane. And I have to say twinkle-eyed John Gregson really was a class act, and he is on delectably dynamic, quick-thinking, fast-drinking form as handy 'insurance Salesman' Bill Kirby who becomes embroiled in a confoundingly circuitous conspiracy wherein too much knowledge can be a VERY bad thing indeed! While some have claimed 'Dangerous Knowledge' to be somewhat old fashioned, I simply feel it to be pleasingly well fashioned! And Christopher Gunning's moody theme is a groovy, pulse-quickening highlight!
