COLLECTION · Series · 1971
The Persuaders!
An English aristocrat and an American millionaire come together to tackle crime.
Source: TMDB
* 7.6 (130)ActionAdventureComedyCrimeUnited Kingdom
Creators
Countries
United Kingdom
Studios
ITV1 · ITC Entertainment
Runtime
49 min/ep
Release
17/09/1971
Score
7.6 / 10 (130)
Where to watch
Buy
Amazon VideoSeasons and episodes
Specials
5 episodes · 1974
Episode 1. Mission: Monte Carlo
1974-02-22 · 49 min
Mission: Monte Carlo is a "movie" comprised of two episodes from the 1971 British/US TV series The Persuaders - which accounts for the presence of Basil Dearden, who died that year. The only element that the two hour-long episodes truly…
Episode 2. The London Conspiracy
1976-02-22 · 49 min
Life is never dull where Lord Brett Sinclair and Danny Wilde are concerned. But who would expect dire danger, hilarious though it may be, to face them in one of Brett's baronial homes? Even more unexpectedly, murder and black magic take…
Episode 3. Sporting Chance
1975-01-01 · 49 min
Life in the fast lane becomes deadly for Wilde and Sinclair when the mob tries to "fix" the sport of high-speed racing. Wilde then finds himself mixed up with lady luck and a network of communist killers.
Episode 4. The Switch
1975-01-03 · 49 min
No synopsis
Episode 5. Interview of Robert S. Baker
1975-01-05 · 49 min
No synopsis
Season 1
24 episodes · 1971
Episode 1. Overture
1971-09-17 · 49 min
A retired judge who regrets those criminals he had to let get away arranges for Brett and Danny to meet, and then gets them arrested so that they have the choice of either helping him out in his fight against crime or staying in jail.…
Episode 2. The Gold Napoleon
1971-09-24 · 49 min
Danny and Brett must discover whether or not Gold Napoleon coins are the originals, or replicas as a coin dealer claims them to be.
Episode 3. Take Seven
1971-10-01 · 49 min
Danny and Brett try to help a girl whose ""long lost brother"" has suddenly appeared, cutting her off from her inheritance.
Episode 4. Greensleeves
1971-10-08 · 49 min
Brett's family mansion seems to have been restored without his knowledge, and taken over by strangers. To find out why, he pretends to be the actor they have hired to impersonate him, and ends up helping the Prime Minister.
Episode 5. Powerswitch
1971-10-15 · 49 min
When the Judge tricks Brett and Danny into identifying a dead woman found floating in the waters of the French Riviera, they end up investigating an international stock swindle.
Episode 6. The Time and the Place
1971-10-22 · 49 min
Danny runs into political intrigue when he discovers the dead body of a reporter, then can't find it until it turns up in a car crash hours later.
Episode 7. Someone Like Me
1971-10-29 · 49 min
After Brett loses seven days, Danny thinks Brett is acting strange but Brett thinks someone is impersonating him. They both can't be right.
Episode 8. Anyone Can Play
1971-11-05 · 49 min
Danny has to go on the run from enemy agents after his gambling winnings at a Brighton casino turn out to be part of a communist plot to pay off spies when they use the right code words.
Episode 9. The Old, the New and the Deadly
1971-11-12 · 49 min
It seems that everyone including a former Nazi wants a German Eagle statuette, and they think that Danny is the one who has it.
Episode 10. Angie... Angie
1971-11-19 · 49 min
An childhood friend of Danny's from the Bronx turns out to be a hit man hired to kill an American labor leader on holiday at the Cannes Film Festival.
Episode 11. Chain of Events
1971-11-26 · 49 min
While out camping at Brett's family estate, Danny gets chained to a brief case which he can't get off that contains a bomb.
Episode 12. That's Me Over There
1971-12-03 · 49 min
In order to catch a war criminal, Danny must impersonate the kidnapped Brett, but how will he explain an English Lord with a Brooklyn accent?
Episode 13. The Long Goodbye
1971-12-10 · 49 min
When Danny and Brett find the decade-old dead body of a scientist in a crashed plane in the Scottish Highlands, several women claiming to be his daughter offer them various inducements to part with the formula they found.
Episode 14. The Man in the Middle
1971-12-17 · 49 min
When Brett's plan to capture a traitorous British spy by pretending to be him results in his own capture, Danny enlists the aid of one of Brett's relatives to rescue him.
Episode 15. Element of Risk
1971-12-24 · 49 min
At a London airport, a gang of crooks who are planning a bullion heist mistake Danny for a criminal mastermind when the man's suitcase accidentally ends up in Danny's luggage cart.
Episode 16. A Home of One's Own
1971-12-31 · 49 min
Danny buys a `handy man's special' cottage in England and discovers that his neighbors are into the occult.
Episode 17. Five Miles to Midnight
1972-01-07 · 49 min
Trying to open a travel business, Danny and Brett encounter a New York hoodlum who needs to be smuggled out of Italy after he killed an Italian gangster.
Episode 18. Nuisance Value
1972-01-14 · 49 min
After Danny is accused of kidnapping his blind date, a rich man's spoiled daughter, Brett and Danny decide to help rescue her from the real kidnappers but have problems keeping her rescued.
Episode 19. The Morning After
1972-01-21 · 49 min
Brett wakes up one morning and discovers that he got married the night before.
Episode 20. Read and Destroy
1972-01-28 · 49 min
Seeking sanctuary with his old friend Brett is a spy who plans to publish his memoirs, which contain the name of every NATO, SEATO, and ANZUS agent.
Episode 21. A Death in the Family
1972-02-04 · 49 min
Brett's relatives are being killed off one by one, so Brett and Danny decide to find the killer before he gets to Brett.
Episode 22. The Ozerov Inheritance
1972-02-11 · 49 min
To retain the family jewels, an elderly Russian duchess must present proof of her marriage into the Russian Royal Family, which she says she can do with the help of a journal kept by one of Brett's uncles.
Episode 23. To the Death, Baby
1972-02-18 · 49 min
Brett and Danny both end up wooing an heiress after they are asked to break up a romance between a her and a gigolo who is courting her.
Episode 24. Someone Waiting
1972-02-25 · 49 min
Brett resumes race car driving, only to become the target of someone who is willing to kill him in order to make him stop.
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User reviews
misubisu
★ 8.0 / 10
## A Sun-Drenched, Champagne-Fuelled Time Capsule: Revisiting The Persuaders!
Before buddy-cop movies dominated the action-comedy landscape, there was a show that perfected the formula with a jet-setting, aristocratic twist. *The Persuaders!*, a 1971 British series that ran for a single, glorious season of 24 episodes, isn't just a television show; it's a mood. It’s the feeling of sun on a sports car's bonnet, the clink of glasses in a Monaco casino, and the effortless chemistry of two of the era's biggest stars at the peak of their charm.
The premise is pure, delightful fantasy. Lord Brett Sinclair (Roger Moore), a polished, witty, and impeccably dressed British aristocrat, and Danny Wilde (Tony Curtis), a self-made, street-smart American millionaire from the Bronx, are two of the world's most successful playboys. A retired English judge, frustrated by the limitations of the law, manipulates them into a partnership. His reasoning? Their shared love for adventure, women, and fast living—and their contrasting backgrounds—make them the perfect duo to persuade justice where the courts cannot.
### The Magic is in the Marriage of Styles
The real genius of *The Persuaders!* lies not in its plots (which are often standard caper fare), but in the electric, bickering-brothers dynamic between Moore and Curtis.
* **Roger Moore as Lord Brett Sinclair:** Fresh from *The Saint* and years away from James Bond, Moore is the epitome of suave, dry wit. His Sinclair is unflappably cool, armed with a raised eyebrow and a droll one-liner for every situation. He’s the man who knows which wine to order and how to dispatch a villain without wrinkling his cuffs.
* **Tony Curtis as Danny Wilde:** Curtis is all New York energy and charm. As Wilde, he’s the brash, resourceful counterpoint to Sinclair's reserve, delivering lines with a classic Curtis-style patter. He’s the guy who might solve a problem with a cheeky grin or a well-thrown punch.
Their constant, good-natured ribbing—about each other's accents, backgrounds, driving skills, and fashion sense—is the engine of the show. It never feels mean-spirited; it feels like the genuine needling of two men who, despite their vast differences, have found a unique and unshakeable friendship.
### A Time Capsule of Glamour
Watching *The Persuaders!* today is a form of time travel. It is a lavish, unapologetic love letter to the glamour of the early 1970s Riviera lifestyle. The production values were astronomical for a television series at the time, and it shows:
* **Locations:** The show is a travelogue of the most beautiful spots in Europe, from the French Riviera and Rome to London and Alpine resorts.
* **Wardrobe:** Tony Curtis's wardrobe, in particular, is a legendary parade of bold prints, leather jackets, and turtlenecks that defines an era of male fashion.
* **Cars:** The opening credits alone, set to the iconic theme by John Barry, feature our heroes racing their respective sports cars (an Aston Martin DBS for Sinclair, a Ferrari Dino 246 GT for Wilde) along the coast. It is pure, automotive wish-fulfilment.
### The Verdict: A Cult Classic for a Reason
**4 out of 5 Stars**
*The Persuaders!* is not a complex, gritty drama. It won't keep you up at night pondering the human condition. What it will do is provide 50 minutes of utterly stylish, witty, and entertaining escapism. It’s the television equivalent of a perfect cocktail: refreshing, bubbly, and leaving you with a smile.
Its cancellation after one season (due to its high cost and not performing as well as expected in the crucial American market) has only added to its legendary, cult-classic status.
**Who will love it?** Fans of classic television, Roger Moore and Tony Curtis, stylish 70s aesthetics, lighthearted action-comedies, and the golden age of the "buddy" genre.
**Who might not?** Viewers seeking deep, serialised storytelling or gritty, realistic action may find it too frivolous or dated.
In the end, *The Persuaders!* succeeds entirely on the strength of its two leads. It is a masterclass in star power and chemistry, a sun-drenched relic from a time when television escapism meant style, charm, and the irresistible fantasy of two millionaire playboys fighting crime for the fun of it. It remains, quite simply, a blast.
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