Raffles — Season 1, Episode 12: The Gift of the Emperor
Comedy, Crime • 60 min • 1 season, 13 episodes • ★ 8.3/10
Episode synopsis
Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany is seeking to embarrass the British Government by using Herr Von Heumann, one of his agents, to hand back a priceless black pearl, which had once been a gift from Queen Victoria to her daughter, to the tribal leader from whence it originally came in the South Pacific, an area dominated by the British. Raffles is naturally infuriated at the behaviour of the Kaiser, but he is also very interested in acquiring the pearl for his own use. He wants to be able to spend the season playing the tables at Monte Carlo with Bunny with the proceeds of the sale of it. He feels very much put on the spot when he is approached by the British Government who want him to steal the pearl for them. This conflict of interests makes Raffles play his cards very close to his chest as he endeavours to successfully acquire the pearl for himself. Raffles and Bunny both end up joining the hunting set at a house party where Herr Von Heumann is also a guest.
About Raffles
Raffles was a 1977 television adaptation of the A. J. Raffles stories by Ernest William Hornung. The series was produced by Yorkshire Television and written by Philip Mackie. The episodes were largely faithful adaptations of the stories in the books, though occasionally two stories would be merged to create one. In Victorian-era London, gentleman thief A. J. Raffles, a renowned cricketer, and his friend, the eager but naive Bunny Manders, test their skills in relieving the wealthy of their valuables whilst avoiding detection, especially from the persistent Inspector Mackenzie.