Ray McAnally Movies

Based on the speculative political novel by Chris Mullin, this British miniseries starred Ray McAnally as Harry Perkins, a third-generation Communist, lifelong steelworker, and a powerful labor leader. Thanks to strong support from the industrial countries, Harry was elected Prime Minister of England, whereupon he set to work putting his left-wing ideals in action. Harry's efforts were compromised by a vast right-wing conspiracy, fomented by a number of important Conservative money men and set in motion by Britain's' MI5 and America's CIA. The winner of four BAFTA awards, including Best Drama Series and Best Actor (Ray McAnally), A Very British Coup aired in three parts over Britain's Channel 4 from June 19 to July 3, 1988. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

TheTV movie Jack the Ripper endeavors to shed new light on one of the most notorious unsolved cases in history. The Ripper, of course, was the London serial killer who, in 1888, killed and disemboweled five prostitutes. Michael Caine stars not as the Ripper but as a Scotland-Yard inspector who is assigned to the case. The trail of evidence leads Caine to some astonishing suspects--including at least one member of the Royal Family. As the public clamors for an arrest in the case of the unsolved evisceration murders of five East End prostitutes, Abberline narrows down his list of suspects: the four most likely to have committed the murders, according to the inspector, are American-actor Richard Mansfield (Armand Assante), Queen Victoria's personal psychic (Ken Bones), a certain Dr. Acland (Richard Morant) and socialist-gadfly Lusk (Michael Gothard). The British government is also pressuring Abberline to produce the killer. Unfortunately, if Abberline were to publicly release all the clues at his disposal, the revelation would probably rock the Empire to its foundations. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this thriller based on a novel by Alistair MacLean, Barry Newman plays John Talbot, an underwater salvage expert who witnesses the murder of his wife and child. After working with the police, Talbot hatches his own scheme to bring the killers to justice; posing as a criminal, he stages the phony murder of a police officer and kidnaps Sarah Ruthven (Suzy Kendall), the heiress to a petroleum fortune. Talbot's false daring attracts the attention of a criminal mastermind who wants to recover the valuables aboard a plane that recently crash-landed in the water; however, Talbot knows that the same man was responsible for his family's death, and he intends to see that he never returns from their exploratory search of the wrecked plane. Watch for Ben Kingsley in a small role, it was his first film, prior to Gandhi in 1982. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

June Wyndham-Davies directs this made-for-TV version of the classic children's novel Pollyanna, written by Eleanor H. Porter. This miniseries was broadcast in six half-hour episodes on the BBC in 1973. Elizabeth Archard plays the overly optimistic orphan Pollyanna who goes to live with her lonely, bitter old Aunt Polly (Elaine Stritch). Despite being paralyzed in an accident, her chipper attitude brightens the lives of everyone she encounters, including an old hermit (Donald Bisset), an orphaned boy (Stephen Galloway), and her doctor (Paul Maxwell). ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

A top-secret government project to broadcast electricity on radio waves is suddenly cancelled. Even so, several people are found burned to death, apparently the results of the aborted project. It's all the handiwork of a disgruntled -- and artificially superpowered -- scientist, whom Steed and Emma hope to neutralize before he can "shock" again. Written by Tony Williamson, "The Positive Negative Man" was originally telecast in England on November 4, 1967, and in America on January 17, 1968. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this mystery, a perceptive art critic is run-down after he discovers a famous painting to be faked. Scotland Yard investigates. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

There is nothing like suspecting your husband of murder to add suspense to a marriage, at least that is the case in this standard whodunit with a compelling plot. George Radcliffe (Gary Cooper) testifies in court against a man suspected of murdering George's business partner, absconding with a lot of cash in the process. Several years later, when his wife, Martha (Deborah Kerr), is confronted by a blackmailer (Eric Portman) who says her husband murdered his partner, she gets suspicious. George did come into a lot of money just at that time. And to make matters worse, life starts to turn very menacing for the confused and frightened Martha. This was Gary Cooper's last feature film. He succumbed to cancer a few months before The Naked Edge was released. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Sea of Sand was distributed in the US in a shortened version, Desert Patrol. John Gregson plays Captain Williams, a martinet mine expert who vows to whip a lackadaisacal patrol into shape. This brings Williams in conflict with patrol leader Captain Cotton (Michael Craig), but also earns him the respect of hard-bitten trooper Brody (Richard Attenborough). The wisdom of Williams' no-nonsense approach is demonstrated when the patrol is besieged by the highly disciplined members of the German Afrika Korps. The film was produced by Robert S. Baker and Monty Berman, best known to American TV viewers as the creative forces behind the weekly series The Saint. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The cast of the British-Irish comedy Professor Tim is well-stocked with members of Dublin's famed Abbey Players. The title character, played by Seamus Kavanaugh, is a likeable old rummy who returns to his hometown after several years' absence. Professor Tim immediately deduces that his sister, married to a wealthy farmer, is none too happy. He also figures out that his niece is on the verge of ruining her life by spurning her recently impoverished boyfriend. In short order, our puckish hero uses a bit o' the blarney to solve everyone's problems. Professor Tim is based on the play of the same name by George Shiel. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This melodrama is set in Ireland and follows bill collector and karate master Taffin as he and other try to keep a soccer field from being destroyed by developers. Soon he finds himself involved in a sticky web of blackmail, political corruption and murder all precipitated by the avarice of a major chemical company. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Scripted by Frederick Forsyth from his own novel, The Fourth Protocol is a fact-based spy thriller. The titular protocol is a secret agreement between America, Britain and Russia to cease smuggling nuclear weapons into their respective countries. This figures into the schemes of several rogue spies, who hope to destroy NATO by embarking on just such a smuggling endeavor. Russian agent Valeri Petrofsky (Pierce Brosnan) is ordered to stage a nuclear accident in England, then arrange the evidence to point to the Americans. British intelligence agent John Preston (Michael Caine) begins wondering why such nuclear-weapon components like lithium are showing up in the unlikeliest places. Ignored by his superiors, who figure that Preston is merely an old-line anti-Commie paranoic, Preston gathers the clues that will enable him to find out who's behind the potential breaking of The Fourth Protocol. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

A man investigates the disappearance of his friend from an East End pub in this low-budget crime drama. The trail starts at a club where male prostitutes are the popular flavor and leads to the uncovering of a shady real estate deal in New York. Martin Landau plays the American real estate developer who makes enemies when he pulls the plug on the deal. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi