Paul Temple Returns (1952)

With Scotland Yard puzzled by a serial killer, and with himself already being warned off by the perpetrating “Marquis”, amateur sleuth “Paul Temple” (John Bentley) and his wife “Steve” (Patricia Dainton) are drafted in by “Sir Graham” (Peter Gawthorne) to help “Insp. Ross” (Ronald Leigh-Hunt) with the investigation. Pretty swiftly, with the body count starting to mount, they begin to become embroiled with the enigmatic Egyptologist “Sir Felix” (Christopher Lee), some ancient papyri and a vial of something mysterious. With no shortage of candidates and events become ever more menacing, the couple have to get their thinking caps on before their heads no longer need them. There’s an amiable degree of chemistry between Bentley and Temple and with a few red herrings straddling their path, the mystery unfolds steadily for just over an hour of rope climbing, dark passages and burning hay bales. I didn’t love the factotum “Sakki” (Dan Jackson) so much - a sort of Mantan Moreland without the mischief or the charm and the ending is all a bit rushed, but it’s a passable afternoon watch for budding criminologists.