The Cheaters is a 1960–1962 British television drama series produced by The Danzigers. The stories revolved around John Hunter, insurance claims investigator for the American Eastern Insurance company. It aired on ITV for two seasons with a total of 39 episodes.
Directors of episodes included Max Varnel, John Moxey, Godfrey Grayson, Bill Lewthwaite and Frank Marshall.
Contents
Recurring cast
John Ireland as John Hunter
Robert Ayres as Walter Allen
Ann Hanslip as Walter Allen's secretary
Valentine Dyall as Inspector Kellogg of Scotland Yard
Reginald Marsh as Inspector Martin
Colin Tapley as Inspector
Episodes
Flash in the Sky
For the Price of Two
Green for Danger
The Hair of the Dog
A Question of Murder
The Rocker
The Safe Way
The Authentic McCoy
Diamond Studded Malaria
Intent to Defraud
Mighty Warrior
Single or Double Indemnity
Back of Beyond
The Fine Print
A Hood from Canada
Killian's Cut
Libel
The Man with the Ticking Head
Slope of Death
The Bite
A Case of Larceny
Lamb to the Slaughter
The Legacy
Legs – 50,000 Each
Washday S.O.S.
The Weasel
Time to Kill
Murder Fugue
Obituary for a Champion
Fire!
The Man Who Wouldn't Be Paid
The Schemers
The Hands of Adrian
Affairs of the Heart
A Tale of Two Ships
The Dashing Major
Knight of the Road
Case of George Peterson
Carnival Case
Reception
In a contemporary review of the episode "Obituary for a Champion", Variety wrote: "The Cheaters is a gumshoe half-hour in the familiar penny-pinching production and penny-dreadful dramatic style familiar to the Danziger Bros overseas operation (in this case, England). In the New York preem on WNEW-TV, lead John Ireland, an insurance investigator, tracked the killer of a boxing champ. Woodenly he skulked through a static round of claptrap interiors, encountering a deadly roster of meller stereotypes – the hirsuted promoter (who done it); the alcoholic housekeeper; the punchy pug; the gimmick girl, etc. A John Roeburt script and storyline, as stiff and archaic as a celluloid collar, precluded any meaningful dramatics."
According to BFI Screenonline, "in missing a perfect opportunity to exploit the tough-cynical characteristics of the leading player, the 39 episodes moved with painful lethargy towards their predictable conclusions, with the most notable feature of this largely static series being John Ireland's carefully sustained somnambulistic performance."