Sailor of Fortune

Before there was The Adventures of Aggie, there was Sailor of Fortune. Produced by the Canadian company Mid Ocean Films but filmed at Elstree Studios in the UK, the two series shared remarkably similar origins. Both had a seafaring backdrop, both were produced by Dublin-born Michael Sadlier with associate producer Ted Holliday, and they were filmed as successive productions, with Sailor of Fortune in 1955 followed by Aggie in 1956. Ironically, although Aggie was made later, it reached ITV screens first in August 1956, with Sailor of Fortune debuting a few weeks afterwards in September.

Where Aggie took a light-hearted sitcom approach, Sailor of Fortune promised viewers a much tougher central character. That role belonged to Grant Mitchell, better known as Mitch, the owner-skipper of the vessel "Shipwreck". Played by Canadian actor Lorne Greene several years before Bonanza turned him into an international household name, Mitch earned his living carrying whatever cargo proved profitable – and, in his own estimation, "not too illegal." A little harmless smuggling didn't trouble his conscience, but trouble always seemed to find him and his crew regardless.

Alongside Mitch are Alphonso, the Italian inventor-turned-engineer played by Rupert Davies, and Irish deckhand Sean, played by Jack MacGowran. Operating around Mediterranean and Middle Eastern ports, the crew stumble into danger in bustling bazaars, suspicious dockside cafés and remote settlements, with each week's adventure specially written (mostly) by Scottish writer Lindsay Galloway.

Although only a short compilation clip survives online and complete episode synopses are scarce, the available summaries – preserved thanks to the website CTVA – paint an appealing picture of the series' globe-trotting adventures. In one story, "The Golden Head of Kafre," Mitch risks his life in Algiers while trying to recover a priceless Egyptian artefact stolen from a museum after a substantial reward is offered. Another tale begins with the murder of a courier carrying secret documents at Paris's Gare de Lyon, pulling Mitch into a web of international espionage. Elsewhere, he ventures nearly 400 miles into the African interior in search of a missing man, only to find himself confronting the powerful Sheik El Kadir in a journey that could easily end in death.

The supporting cast is another reason the series attracts attention today. Among those appearing are Willoughby Goddard, Lois Maxwell, Michael Goodliffe, George Pravda, Ewen Solon, Lisa Daniely and Eric Pohlmann. Particularly fascinating with hindsight are appearances by actors who were only just beginning the careers that would later make them internationally famous. Sean Connery appears as Achmed in episode 17, The Crescent and the Star, several years before becoming James Bond, while Christopher Lee plays Yusif in episode nine, long before his decades as one of cinema's most recognisable screen presences. Looking back, Sailor of Fortune provides an intriguing snapshot of several major careers in their formative years.

Jack MacGowran was the seasoned Irish sailor Sean, despite admitting in a 1956 interview that real-life seafaring held little appeal for him. "I've never had more than I need to do with the water," he joked. "Not since I was seasick lobster-fishing off the Kerry Coast." He also revealed an unexpected sporting past, having once been Ireland's high jump champion before deciding to retire from competition when everyone else kept clearing ever greater heights. "When other record-breakers started sneaking higher and higher from that six-foot mark I decided to stick with the spectators."

Each instalment (there were 26) ran for 30 minutes, but despite its Anglo-Canadian pedigree the series never achieved a full ITV network run in 1956. Granada Television, which co-produced the series, appears to have been its principal broadcaster, although it was also shown by Associated-Rediffusion in London, with Tyne Tees Television eventually screening it in 1958 and 1960 respectively.

The series also marks an interesting point in the careers of its leading actors. Rupert Davies would soon become, for many viewers, the definitive television incarnation of Inspector Maigret. Lorne Greene, meanwhile, was on the verge of becoming one of television's best-known stars.

Born Lyon Himan Green in Ottawa on 12 February 1915, Greene originally intended to become a chemical engineer before theatre drew him in. After graduating from Queen's University, he studied acting in New York before returning to Canada in 1939 to work for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. As principal newsreader on CBC National News during the Second World War, his rich, resonant delivery earned him the affectionate title "The Voice of Canada," although the sombre nature of wartime broadcasts also led some listeners to dub him "The Voice of Doom."

Following the war, Greene left the CBC after the corporation insisted staff announcers surrender a significant proportion of outside earnings. After running his Academy of Radio Arts until 1952, he moved to the United States, where he appeared in two Broadway productions during 1953 – The Prescott Proposals and The Dark Is Light Enough. Television and film work soon followed, including the title role in a live television adaptation of Othello in 1953 and his Hollywood debut as Saint Peter in The Silver Chalice the following year.

Sailor of Fortune arrived just before Greene's career accelerated dramatically. He appeared as the prosecutor in the film Peyton Place, but it was his casting as Ben "Pa" Cartwright in Bonanza in 1959 that transformed him into a genuine international star. As the patriarch of television's first hour-long Western filmed in colour, Greene remained with the series throughout its 14-year run. He later headlined the short-lived detective drama Griff in 1973 before returning to another memorable patriarchal role as Commander Adama in Battlestar Galactica and Galactica 1980. During the 1980s he devoted much of his time to environmental causes, hosting and narrating Lorne Greene's New Wilderness, promoting wildlife conservation and environmental awareness. He died on 11 September 1987 at the age of 72 from complications of pneumonia following ulcer surgery.

With so little of Sailor of Fortune currently available to view, it isn't really possible to make a fair judgement on the series itself. What does survive, however, offers a tantalising glimpse of an ambitious adventure series packed with exotic locations, espionage, smugglers and treasure hunts, while its cast list has become an unexpectedly fascinating time capsule. Seeing Lorne Greene before Bonanza, Sean Connery years before Bond, Christopher Lee at the beginning of his remarkable screen career, and Rupert Davies on the eve of becoming television's definitive Maigret gives the series a significance that extends well beyond the adventures of the Shipwreck and her crew.