Summer's Lease (1989 Martyn Friend)

Written by John Mortimer and based on his own 1988 novel, from Shakespeare 'And summer's lease has all too short a date' ('Sonnets'). Aging lothario John Gielgud and daughter Susan Fleetwood become intrigued by location of their elusive tenant in 'Chiantishire' where they are renting for the summer (adulterous husband is Michael Pennington).

Everyone seems slightly suspicious and / or sinister (and with many good reasons): Rosemary Leach, Veronica Lazar, Leslie Phillips, Gabrielle Anwar, Annette Crosbie etc. It's intriguing and quite funny and certainly different.

'It's all in the painting' I mused to myself the last time we watched this on 13 November 2011 - it's a Pierro della Francesca. Now I'm not quite sure what I meant, unless all the figures in it represent the sinister company of fraudsters and the flagellant is the missing Kettering.

The Sienna palio is given rather too much coverage Shot by Remi Adefarasin and edited by Gabrielle's dad Tariq.