CBS Studio One, 23 March 1948
Although the adaptation of Buchan's
classic novel was credited to Vincent McConnor, the real authors of this Studio One version were Alfred Hitchcock
and Alma Reville, who together had been responsible for the classic black-and-white British film version from 1935.
In a fifty-eight minute running
time, Robert J. Landry's production followed the Hitchcock and Reville plot almost to the letter, with the action moving swiftly
from London to Scotland, from Scotland back down to London, and finishing on a train back to Scotland. Most of the main
characters were there, from the evil Professor (Everett Sloane) to Mr. Memory Man, and the two protagonists Hannay (Glenn
Ford) and the girl (Cathleen Cordell).
A production like this works very well on radio, with an inventive sonic score creating suspense
and excitement - gun-shots, slamming doors, the roar of a train entering a station. The plot is pure hokum, full of
unlikely coincidences and chance meetings; but Landry's production concentrated on the relationships between the characters,
especially the love-hate affair between the protagonists. The atmospheric music - provided by a live orchestra - seemed
suitably scary.
While some of the Scottish accents were a little off-key, to say the least, the production as a whole proved extremely
entertaining, and stands the test of time after six decades.
