Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) Logo 'But What a Sweet Little Room'
by Ralph Smart
Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) Cast

Wealthy widow Anne Fenwick is convinced that she has found happiness with 'Bunny', a handsome man called Arthur de Crecy. Bunny takes her to a tranquil country cottage, where Anne is immediately taken with the lounge, declaring "What a sweet little room!" But when she looks out of the window, she sees 'Bunny' in the garden digging a grave; as gas suddenly seeps through the floor, she realises that it is hers… Later, at the offices of Randall and Hopkirk, business is so slow, that, out of boredom, Marty has been reduced to making cups and saucers rattle. Then Julia Fenwick arrives and asks Jeff to find her missing aunt Anne. Jeff discovers that Anne has been attending séances held by Madame Hanska. Posing as Anne's nephew, Jeff attempts to gain information from the medium, but is accused of being a sceptic. Julia is killed in a hit-and-run by de Crecy's servant, Rawlings, who then replaces the driver with a drunk. Madame Hanska seems to be the connection, so Jeff persuades Jean to attend one of her séances under an assumed name, asking to make contact her dead husband, John. Understandably, the medium fails to make contact with 'John'; after the seance Jean is consoled by Mr. Elliot, who asks questions about her fictitious husband. Jean believes him to be harmless, but jealous Marty is unconvinced, and follows Elliot back to his flat, where he witnesses Elliot phoning the details of 'John' to Madame Hanska. At the next séance, Hanska makes contact with 'John', and the message that she 'receives' asks Jean to call on his old friend, Arthur de Crecy, because he is worried about her finances. Jean contacts de Crecy, who offers to look into her finances - until he discovers that she and Jeff are private investigators. Jeff is roughed-up by Rawlings and Elliot, who warn him to stay away from Madame Hanska. At the next seance, Marty appears in front of the fake medium, frightening her so much that she reveals the details of her scam run with de Crecy, and how she is paid commission for sending rich widows to him. Jeff uses this information to force de Crecy to take him to the cottage, but when de Crecy asks Jeff to wait in the lounge while he 'fetches' Anne Fenwick, the detective finds himself trapped with gas seeping into the room. After Marty tells Jeff to light an oil lamp and then hide in a wooden trunk, the ghost topples the lamp and triggers a huge explosion. Hearing the noise, De Crecy stops his grave-digging and dashes back to the cottage, only to be held at gunpoint by Jeff, who forces him to confess all.

Jeff Randall (Mike Pratt), Marty Hopkirk (Kenneth Cope), Jean Hopkirk (Annette Andre), Michael Goodliffe (Arthur deCrecy), Doris Hare (Madame Hanska), Norman Bird (Elliot), Anne De Vigier (Julia Fenwick), Frances Bennett (Anne Fenwick), Raymond Young (Rawlings)

Directed by Cyril Frankel

TX:
UK: 14th December, 1969 @ 7.25pm

Notes:
*Featuring Jeff Randall, the late Marty Hopkirk, and Jean Hopkirk