The Ravelled Thread (1979– ) User Reviews

Sunday evening fayre from the 1970s

[trimmerb1234 · 6/10 · 10 February 2017]

This was the era of good family viewing where historic costume dramas could be full of action but light on controversy. Set in 1846,it is agreeable to look at, with good costumes, interiors and attractive South Coast historic exteriors. Although it has spills it is short on thrills. And conspicuously lacks Poldarks great casting of feisty Angharad Rees and Robin Ellis. The late great Jack Wilde has a rather peripheral role rather than being featured. Also the outline of the story - Britains involvement in the American Civil War - doesn't deliver anything like the interest it promises.

It remains however what it always was: agreeable family Sunday early evening entertainment from a time when Bergerac was adult viewing. A 6.5 out of 10

Intriguing, low budget children's historical TV series

[Leofwine_draca · 6/10 · 23 May 2017]

THE RAVELLED THREAD is a fun little children's TV series made by Southern Television and first shown back in 1980. It's a historical costume adventure in which an innocent man is accused of a crime he didn't commit and sent to prison, leading his daughter to enlist a gang of vagabonds to help clear his name. Later the story features a conspiracy angle and even features some background material involving the American Civil War, which is different.

The low budget of this production is apparent in the woodland war sequences which feature repetitive shots of 20 or so soldiers trudging through the leaf litter, but otherwise this is far more original and intriguing than you might expect. Sure, some of the acting is a bit shrill and over the top (from one of the girls in particular) but there are familiar character actors present including John Junkin, Robert James, and Jack Wild playing yet another variant of the Artful Dodger.