Thriller In the Steps of a Dead Man (1973–1976) HD online

"In The Steps Of A Dead Man" surely ranks as the one of the finest pieces of television that I have ever seen. It is the centerpiece of the superb third series of Thriller, a programme that made a very strong impression on me when I caught some repeats almost 25 years ago.

We are introduced to an average middle class couple named George and Betty Cornfield, played expertly by Richard Vernon and Faith Brook, who have recently lost their son Tommy on active service. As they attempt to cope with overwhelming grief (particularly on George's part) a ray of sunshine emerges in the form of Martin Fuller who claims to be Tommy's best friend. However, as is the nature of Thriller, all is not what it seems and the scene is set for an extraordinary tale of deception.

The storyline unfolds at a steady pace as Martin slowly ingratiates himself into the Cornfield's hearts as a kind of replacement son. He also manages to win Tommy's fiancée, Sheila's affections but from the outset is met with suspicion from her friend Grace. The tension builds steadily throughout with a sharp twist in the narrative over the last 15 minutes.

Unmissable.

In the steps of a Dead Man is without any doubt on of the best episodes of Thriller. This third series has been outstanding, the standard incredible, even Sister Mary had its good points, but this one ranks up with Coffin for the Bride. It's smart, sinister, intelligent, and just down right nasty.

There is always something particularly malevolent about someone taking advantage of grief, and here Martin takes full advantage of Tommy's poor parents, right up until the end. Martin's manipulations are subtle, you keep asking yourself 'Is this guy too good to be true?'

That ending was fantastic, one we've seen in more recent times in Inside No.9 and Agatha Christie's Ordeal by Innocence, very sinister.

Brilliantly acted, Richard Vernon, Faith Brook and Richard Vernon are all excellent. Very nice production values.

A gripping drama, with a sting in the tail.

A middle class couple are trying to cope with the insurmountable grief that comes when their son, Tommy, is killed in active service. A shadow looms into view behind the door (a taste of foreboding to come). It is Martin Fuller (John Nolan), a cheery (too cheery?) soldier, best friend to Tommy (so he says). So starts "In the Steps of a Dead Man" - a really smashing episode from Thriller's season 3 (much better than the previous episode "Death to Sister Mary"). You think you know how everything is going to turn out (this "I'm a friend of your dead son and I even know where the bathroom is" kind of plot has been done so often) - but you don't quite.

George Cornfield (Richard Vernon, he was the doddering, kindly Major in "The Duchess of Duke Street") is taking his son's death hard - so when Martin appears, even though George doesn't realise it, his mind is pushed to the edge of reason. He takes Marty to his heart, in his mind Martin has replaced Tommy - even to the extent of putting Tommy's photos and memorabilia in the attic. George, his wife Betty and Tommy's girl Sheila (Denise Buckley) are in a trance - only outsider, Grace Worth, is not so sure.

Sheila starts to have doubts as well, when she finds Tommy's service diary and sees a lot of references to "M" - a very disturbed man, who starts fights, has stolen Tommy's watch and is definitely not his best friend. She questions Marty about it, he has started romancing her - Big Mistake!! And to make matters worse, the military police have been around, asking questions about Marty Fuller. Another Big Mistake - Sheila cannot be allowed to thwart Marty's plans!! The one blot on an otherwise perfect episode - Marty's murder of Sheila doesn't tie in with his obsession to have the perfect family - father, mother and adoring girlfriend!!!

Not to give anything away - but you will never guess the outcome of this superb episode. Wait, I'll give you a clue - George is an avid inventor and finds he has finally found a way for Marty to really become a member of the Cornfield family. Skye Aubrey was the obligatory American cast member. She plays Grace Worth, who by the episode's end has all the cards in her favour.

Highly, Highly Recommended.

Tommy Cornfield is a soldier killed on active service . A few months later a young soldier turns up at the doorstep on Tommy's grieving parents . The soldier introduces himself as Marty Fuller , Tommy's best friend from the army . Delighted to meet the young man the Cornfields treat Marty as a honoured guest but is Marty all he seems and does he have a sinister motive for meeting the Cornfields'

This is a simple straightforward crime thriller of " mysterious stranger turns up at elderly couples home " and might have been a slightly above average reworking of the theme but seems to constantly sabotage the premise . Take for example the opening scene where George Cornfield shows off his new video monitor invention thing to his wife Betty and just happen to stop upon a news report of Tommy being killed in action . What a contrived coincidence and let's not forget that that in 1974 24 hour news rolling channels wouldn't exist in Britain and even if it did it wouldn't be broadcasting soldiers being killed in action as it happened . I actually thought this implausible magic invention might be tied in to he plot but really doesn't go anywhere except to illustrate George is a fairly clever inventor . I also noticed the story structure suffers from a bit of padding - something THRILLER often suffers from as a whole - where the story climax would have worked much better with the story stopping on a close up of George's sweat filled face but the ending continues for yet another ten minutes where once again the audience are spoken down to . As it stands a potentially slightly above average story ends up becoming slightly less than average and would have probably worked as a TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED episode which isn't really a compliment