25 January (1961-01-25)– 22 March 1961 (1961-03-22)
Jango is a British police comedy series produced in 1961 by Associated Rediffusion for ITV. It starred Robert Urquhart in the lead role of Jango Smith, with Moira Redmond as Dee Smith, his wife.[1] The show also featured performances by Peter Sallis and Brian Wilde. The show's writer was Albert Henry Webb and its director was Cyril Coke.[2]
The series Jango developed from single play Murder Stamp. The play Murder Stamp was an episode shown on ITV Television Playhouse in 1960 and so the TV series Jango is meant to be based on the play Murder Stamp but as an eight-episode series. The series is a lighthearted crime series about an off-beat criminologist named Jango Smith.[3]
Episode status
The show had eight episodes.[4] All of them were believed to be lost, until the mid-1990s when a kinescope of one episode was discovered. The only episode that has survived in the seventh episode titled Treacle on Three Fingers.
Series run (1961)
"A Little of What She Fancied" (25 January 1961)
"Mind the Doors, Please" (1 February 1961)
"The Bumbling Burglar" (8 February 1961)
"The Itching Fingers of Lady Ffolkes" (15 February 1961)
The Stage and Television Today criticised the show, writing, "The half-hour needs a dose of good comedy writing to make it work, because at present it is just feeble. A pity that delightful Moira Redmond cannot be featured in a programme of her own. She has an obvious feeling for a piquant comedy role, but cannot really make out with the present material."[2]
DVD release
TV Brain/Kaleidoscope has released the one surviving episode of the series on DVD from their online DVD shopping website.[6]
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