The Flashing Blade

Hats off to the guys at The Little Gems website for their diligent research and for reviving my memories of the children's Saturday morning television show, The Flashing Blade and one of my all-time heroes, Francois de Recci. Okay, it was crap, the story-lines were appalling and the dubbing was so out of sync as to be laughable, but it had me glued to the tv set in the early '70s. Robert Etcheverry played the lead part of Francois de Recci (pictured) and his piss-taking, swashbuckling adventures were simply great fun. Only twelve episodes came to UK screens and even my dislike for the French waned as he and his side-kick, the gormless Guillot, kicked the arse of their Spanish enemies, set in the castle of Casal in 1630. The theme tune stuck too and Little Gems have not only printed the words but also captured some great photos from the series. To cap it all, they also have some information on The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, with the lead played by Robert Hoffman, and the haunting music, which I sought out a few years back and now have a cd in my possession. Ah, they don't make them like that anymore. Link: Little Gems.