THE INTRUDER (1972) – REMASTERED IN HD

The Intruder remains a powerful piece of television, and hopefully, this new release will open it up to old fans and a whole new audience as well.

Network has gathered together four classics of British television series just in time for this year's Halloween season. Come Back Lucy, The Owl Service, Tales of Unease, and this rather unusual but highly intriguing show, The Intruder.  


Based on the children's book of the same name by John Rowe Townsend, The Intruder is one of the most perplexing shows I have ever watched. Utterly devoid of any supernatural elements, it nevertheless is a deeply unsettling and beguiling show that plays with the viewer's mind while skirting around the fringes of genre TV.  


First shown in 1972 by Granda TV, The Intruder's plot is very simple. When Arnold Haithwaite (James Bate), a sixteen-year-old English boy who works as a sandpilot, a job where he guides visitors along a treacherous coastal sand bridge to the small island where he lives, is thrown into turmoil when an overbearing and sinister one-eyed stranger called Sonny (Milton Johns) arrives in the small seaside village of Skirlston, claiming to be the real Arnold Haithwaite. With his life and sense of identity ripped away, Arnold must fight to discover the truth about who he is and who Sonny really is.  


As I said earlier, The Intruder is a perplexing TV show; first off is the casting of Arnold and his teenage friends; despite giving some excellent performances for a TV of this nature, I couldn't help but be slightly thrown by just how old they all looked, especially Arnold, who looked to be in his early thirties. However, once you get past these somewhat odd casting choices, The Intruder delivers a clever, thought-provoking story that looks at how one's self-worth is driven by their identity and place in the world. Almost from the get-go, the viewer is left wondering what the hell is going on when Arnold first encounters Sonny. I sat there watching the screen, thinking, "what the hell". It is a cleverly way to open the series, as it immediately puts the viewer on an uneven keel that is maintained throughout the whole length of the series, right up to the marvellous ending that refuses to give up any answers quickly, and will leave you mulling over the entire series trying to piece together the loose ends.  


The Intruder is best watched in an episodic nature. I watched it all in one sitting, and the middle section flagged a little bit; whether or not this would have been alleviated by watching it over days remains to be seen. However, the somewhat flabby middle section is more than worth it for the spectacular finale set against the backdrop of the mother of all storms that rips batters the island and its residents.  


You can tell that this show is from another era; even though it was billed and shown as a kid's show, there is a massive difference in what we imagine a kid's show would be. In particular, the director or cinematographer lingers far too long on bikini-clad shots of some of the young female cast. A particularly harrowing scene involving "Sonny" and a potential photo shoot felt just slightly creepy for a modern audience. Despite these misgivings, the show just manages to stay on the right side of modern sensibilities, which saves it from being classed as one of those problematic shows of the "good old days". 

And these days, the "hero" of the show would be painted as a simple good guy. Still, The Intruder cleverly plays on this trope by having Arnold come across as a rather petulant child; yes, his life has been thrown upside down. Still, the way he steps all over anyone who wants to help him, and his reactions to his friends and family, all make the viewer keep their distance from him in terms of having any sympathy for him.  


Acting-wise, most of the cast of The Intruder is what you expect from a British production of this era. However, Milton Johns' performance is something to behold. For me, Milton has always been an actor who had this aura of creepiness about him, and in The Intruder, he plays on this to perfection. Despite there being no supernatural or fantastical elements to this story, he exudes a pure fairy tale villain feel to his whole performance. Whenever he is on screen, you are always ever so slightly on edge.  


Of the four releases from Network,  The Intruder is probably the most niche and least remembered, and I certainly don't have any recollection of it. I always wonder if our memories of these sorts of TV shows and those of my generation hold an almost sacred level of reverence that can sometimes blind the critical eye and if those of a younger disposition will get as much enjoyment from them as we do. However, The Intruder remains a powerful piece of television, and hopefully, this new release will open it up to old fans and a whole new audience as well.  ​

The Intruder is on Blu-ray exclusively from networkonair.com 17 October: https://new.networkonair.com/spooky-tales/

THE INTRUDER (1972) – REMASTERED IN HD

Adapted from John Rowe Townsend's award-winning novel and produced by BAFTA winner Peter Plummer, whose credits include the highly acclaimed adaptation of Alan Garner's The Owl Service, this unsettling and atmospheric mystery series won the prestigious Harlequin award at 1973's BAFTAs. Starring James Bate as an isolated teenage boy who undergoes a disturbing loss of identity and Milton Johns as his unlikely nemesis, The Intruder is featured here as a brand-new high definition remaster from original film elements in its original fullscreen aspect ratio.

Arnold Haithwaite pursues his strange and solitary profession on the Cumbrian sands beside the Irish Sea. He is a sand pilot and, like a sea pilot, must know his way about; he must have a strong sense of both locality and identity. This is called into question by another figure that haunts this strange landscape: a sinister intruder who claims to be the real Arnold Haithwaite.

Special Features
- Archive interview with John Rowe Townsend
- Brand-new interview with Simon Fisher Turner
- Commentaries on four episodes by Tim Worthington
- Image Gallery
- Extensive booklet by TV historian Andrew Pixley

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Order link: https://new.networkonair.com/spooky-tales/

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