Orson Welles' Great Mysteries
Overview
Orson Welles’ Great Mysteries is a British television anthology series produced by Anglia Television for the ITV network and broadcast between 1973 and 1974. The series presents standalone adaptations of classic mystery, crime, and supernatural stories drawn from literary sources including Dickens, Conan Doyle, Wilkie Collins, Balzac, Maugham, O. Henry, and others. Each episode is framed by original introductory and closing sequences performed by Orson Welles, who serves as the series’ host and sole recurring on-screen presence. These segments, written and directed by Welles (uncredited), function as stylized narrative framing devices rather than dramatic participation in the stories themselves. The dramatic content of each episode is performed by separate casts and directors, with no continuing characters or serialized narrative, establishing the series as a unified television anthology rather than a collection of standalone films.
Cast
Episodes
Episode 1 · 25m
Captain Rogers
The respectable owner of a quiet inn in 18th century England is blackmailed by a grubby stranger, who knows he is secretly the notorious pirate Captain Rogers.
Sep 1, 1973
Episode 2 · 25m
The Leather Funnel
When a young man discovers a curious funnel made of leather, he has a presentiment that it was once used as an instrument of torture
Sep 8, 1973
Episode 3 · 25m
A Terribly Strange Bed
Charles Faulkner, a young American gambler in Paris, should have left the casino after striking it lucky. Why the devil did he accept to sleep in the casino's guest bed? This was to be the most horrible night he had ever lived.
Sep 15, 1973
Episode 4 · 25m
La Grande Breteche
A Spanish officer, captured by the French during the Peninsular War, is imprisoned at the country house of an elderly aristocrat with a bored young wife - whose lover he becomes, with deadly consequences.
Sep 22, 1973
Episode 5 · 25m
The Dinner Party
Blake is a brilliant accountant, but does he deserve a promotion to the board of directors? It all depends on the suitability of his wife. His bosses attend a small dinner party given by the Blakes to check her out.
Sep 29, 1973
Episode 6 · 25m
Money to Burn
A French girl in London finds herself in the awkward position of owing money to a Soho crime boss. But when she pays him off, he contemptuously sets fire to the money. Why?
Oct 6, 1973
Episode 7 · 25m
In the Confessional
An old tramp takes refuge in a church, and, concealed within the confessional, overhears things of great interest.
Oct 13, 1973
Episode 8 · 25m
Unseen Alibi
Dean Stockwell stars as the victim of an elaborately staged murder frame centering around a lover's rendezvous.
Oct 20, 1973
Episode 9 · 25m
Battle of Wits
At the end of the semester, college professor Richard Lumsden is getting ready for vacation - and retirement. However he is interrupted by an angry parent of a student, blaming him for his son's suicide after he was expelled for stealing.
Oct 27, 1973
Episode 10 · 25m
A Point of Law
A lawyer cannot stop a middle-aged spinster from making a fool of herself with a young fortune-hunter, but he can stop the fellow from getting his hands on her money.
Nov 3, 1973
Episode 11 · 25m
The Monkey's Paw
An old army sergeant, back in England after long service in India, shows some old friends a strange possession he's acquired - a monkey's paw which can make wishes come true.
Nov 10, 1973
Episode 12
The Ingenious Reporter
Reporter Harry Langley pretends to be the murderer of unidentified women to boost sales with a special report from prison. But once arrested, the authorities seem to be convinced that he is indeed the killer.
Nov 17, 1973
Episode 13
Death of an Old-Fashioned Girl
Four people are investigated after the death of a woman who ruined an artist's life and drove his wife to leave him.
Nov 24, 1973
Episode 14
For Sale - Silence
Businessman Pennington is bribed by a Mr. Briggs due to an extramarital affair. But it seems that Briggs has underestimated his opponent and the tables might be turning.
Dec 1, 1973
Episode 15
The Inspiration Of Mr. Budd
How did Mr. Budd become a top-class West End hairdresser after such humble origins in a suburban barbershop? Well, one day, a stranger came in for a shave and a haircut.
Dec 8, 1973
Episode 16
An Affair of Honour
India: After secret plans for the defence of a harbour are secretly copied, British General Sanderson tasks officers Bruce and Rolfe with convincing the apparent traitor Fanshaw to "save his honour" by committing suicide.
Dec 15, 1973
Episode 17
Farewell to the Faulkners
The masquerade is over when a murdered man turns up alive in the guise of his wife.
Dec 22, 1973
Episode 18
The Power of Fear
A handyman, finding that a number of middle-aged housewives require him for rather more than his professional services, turns to blackmail.
Dec 29, 1973
Episode 19
Where There's a Will
A letter opened in error provides rather dangerous knowledge concerning a murder case.
Jan 5, 1974
Episode 20
A Time to Remember
Zigorin, a top Russian spy, has defected to the West. But is he really Zigorin or an impostor?
Jan 12, 1974
Episode 21
Ice Storm
An "Ice Storm" traps a woman with a potential thief masquerading as one of three experts invited to view a collection of valuable manuscripts.
Jan 19, 1974
Episode 22
Come Into My Parlour
Two beautiful women chat pleasantly over their martinis in a luxurious flat in Naples. But all is not what it seems - one is plotting an evil revenge on the other.
Jan 26, 1974
Episode 23
Compliments of the Season
A penniless man tries to claim a reward from a millionaire at Christmas, and finds it's not as easy as he thought it would be.
Feb 2, 1974
Episode 24
Under Suspicion
A pianist on an international tour is forced to spy for the secret police to avoid being detained.
Feb 9, 1974
Episode 25
Trial for Murder
During a murder trial in 19th-century England, one of the jurors begins to have mysterious hallucinations - has he seen a ghost?
Feb 16, 1974
Episode 26
The Furnished Room
A young man's month-long search for a missing girl ends in a haunted room of a boarding house.
Feb 23, 1974