Noel Purcell

Noel Purcell

Patrick Joseph Noel Purcell (23 December 1900 – 3 March 1985) was a distinguished Irish actor on stage, screen, and television. He appeared in the 1956 film Moby Dick and the 1962 film Mutiny on the Bounty. Patrick Joseph Noel Purcell was the son of Dublin auctioneer Pierce Purcell and his second wife Catherine (née Hoban), an antique dealer. He was born at 11a, Lower Mercer Street, one of two houses owned by his mother's family. Purcell was educated at Synge Street CBS. He lost the tip of his right index finger while making cigarette vending machines, and was also missing his entire left index finger due to a different accident while he was an apprentice carpenter, a feature which he exploited for dramatic effect in the film Mutiny on the Bounty (1962). Purcell began his show business career at the age of 12 in Dublin's Gaiety Theatre. Later, he toured Ireland in a vaudeville act with Jimmy O'Dea. Stage-trained in the classics in Dublin, Purcell moved into films in 1934. He appeared in Captain Boycott (1947) and as the elderly sailor whose death marooned the lovers-to-be in the first sound film version of The Blue Lagoon (1949). He played a member of Captain Ahab's crew in Moby Dick (1956), Dan O'Flaherty in episode one, The Majesty of the Law, of The Rising of the Moon (1957), a gamekeeper in The List of Adrian Messenger (1963), and a barman in The Mackintosh Man (1973); the last two films were directed by John Huston. In 1955, he was an off-and-on regular on the British filmed TV series The Buccaneers (released to American TV in 1956). He narrated a Hibernian documentary, Seven Wonders of Ireland (1959). In 1962, he portrayed the lusty William McCoy in Lewis Milestone's Mutiny on the Bounty. He played a taciturn Irish in-law to Lebanese American entertainer Danny Thomas's character Danny Williams in a 1963 episode of The Danny Thomas Show. In 1971, he played the caring rabbi in the children's musical drama Flight of the Doves. He was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1958 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews at the BBC Television Theatre. Purcell also gained some recognition as a singer. Shortly after the Second World War, songwriter Leo Maguire composed "The Dublin Saunter" for him. He performed the song live for many years and later recorded it for the Glenside label. However, the recording was not a hit. As Purcell recalled many years later, "I don't think one person in the world bought it." However, over time it became one of the most favorite songs about Dublin, receiving countless air plays on radio programs. In his later years, Purcell was asked by RTÉ journalist Colm Connolly whether he had received many royalties down the years. Purcell replied: "Not a penny. I recorded it as a favor for a pal, Leo Maguire, who'd written it. No contract or anything, so I never got a fee or any payments." In 1981 (on YouTube it's 1974) he recorded a spoken word version of Pete St. John's "Dublin in the Rare Old Times". In June 1984, Purcell was given the Freedom of the City of Dublin. Nine months later, he died in his native city at the age of 84. On 7 July 1941, Purcell married former child actress Eileen Marmion. They had four sons.

  • Title: Noel Purcell
  • Popularity: 4.12
  • Known For: Acting
  • Birthday: 1900-12-23
  • Place of Birth: Dublin, Ireland
  • Homepage:
  • Also Known As: Ноэль Пёрселл, Patrick Joseph Noel Purcell
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Noel Purcell Movies

  • 1960
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    The Millionairess

    The Millionairess

    5.4 1960 HD

    When her father dies, Epifania Parerga, an Italian in London, becomes the world's richest woman. She feels incomplete without a husband and falls in...

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  • 1954
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    Svengali

    Svengali

    5.9 1954 HD

    A man hypnotizes a young woman into being an opera singer.

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  • 1962
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    Mutiny on the Bounty

    Mutiny on the Bounty

    7 1962 HD

    The Bounty leaves Portsmouth in 1787. Its destination: to sail to Tahiti and load bread-fruit. Captain Bligh will do anything to get there as fast as...

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  • 1952
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    The Crimson Pirate

    The Crimson Pirate

    6.9 1952 HD

    Burt Lancaster plays a pirate with a taste for intrigue and acrobatics who involves himself in the goings on of a revolution in the Caribbean in the...

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  • 1956
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    Lust for Life

    Lust for Life

    7.1 1956 HD

    An intense and imaginative artist, revered Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh possesses undeniable talent, but he is plagued by mental problems and...

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  • 1955
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    Doctor at Sea

    Doctor at Sea

    5.3 1955 HD

    The second of the seven "Doctor" films, based on Richard Gordon's novels and released between 1954 and 1970. A bachelor doctor goes to sea to escape...

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  • 1971
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    Flight of the Doves

    Flight of the Doves

    5.8 1971 HD

    While fleeing across the Irish countryside, two orphans are pursued by their villainous uncle, a master of disguises.

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  • 1958
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    Merry Andrew

    Merry Andrew

    6 1958 HD

    When eccentric English teacher Andrew Larabee needs a raise in order for his fiancée to marry him, his interest in archaeology leads him to...

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  • 1967
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    The Violent Enemy

    The Violent Enemy

    5.5 1967 HD

    During the troubles in Ireland an IRA bomb plot is hatched to blow up a British power station. Sean Rogan (Tom Bell) is an IRA bomb expert and...

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  • 1960
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    Man in the Moon

    Man in the Moon

    6.4 1960 HD

    William is an unsuccessful guinea pig for a medical group interested in researching the common cold. He is soon fired and offered a job by the nearby...

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  • 1960
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    No Kidding

    No Kidding

    6 1960 HD

    A young couple, David and Catherine Robinson, has to turn their large country house into a money-making proposition. Their solution is to invite the...

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  • 1959
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    Ferry to Hong Kong

    Ferry to Hong Kong

    5.5 1959 HD

    Mark Conrad, a habitual drunk and troublemaker with a shady past, is expelled by Hong Kong police after one too many bar fights. He's sent to Macao...

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  • 1960
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    Watch Your Stern

    Watch Your Stern

    5.7 1960 HD

    When the details of a secret torpedo are destroyed by an incompetent seaman, the crew of the ship rally round, when the Admiral needs the plans to...

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  • 1953
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    Grand National Night

    Grand National Night

    8.1 1953 HD

    The story of a husband's implication in his wife's death, his stupid disposal of her body and the police enquiry which almost embroils him in a...

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  • 1959
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    Tommy the Toreador

    Tommy the Toreador

    3.5 1959 HD

    Tommy is a happy sailor, travelling the world, singing his favourite songs. When he visits Spain, he gets mistaken for a famous bullfighter. Tommy...

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  • 1951
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    Appointment with Venus

    Appointment with Venus

    5.1 1951 HD

    At the outbreak of WWII the British realise they can't prevent the invasion of the Channel Islands. However, someone realises that a prize cow is on...

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  • 1963
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    The Iron Maiden

    The Iron Maiden

    6.5 1963 HD

    The film follows Jack Hopkins, an aircraft designer with a passion for traction engines. His boss is eager to sell a new supersonic jet plane that...

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  • 1954
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    The Seekers

    The Seekers

    5.7 1954 HD

    A western set in New Zealand during the 1820s following a group of British pioneers seeking a new life Down Under.

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  • 1938
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    Ireland's Border Line

    Ireland's Border Line

    1 1938 HD

    Billy Brannigan, a mechanic, has some difficulties and problems when he gets mixed up with the police looking for a jewel thief. An identical...

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  • 1958
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    Rockets Galore

    Rockets Galore

    6 1958 HD

    The inhabitants of Todday are content to live their lives in peace and quiet, until, that is, the government decides their little corner of the world...

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  • 1954
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    Mad About Men

    Mad About Men

    6.1 1954 HD

    Flirtatious mermaid Miranda swaps places with a schoolteacher who has gone on holiday. All is well until she falls in love with a human.

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  • 1962
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    Three Spare Wives

    Three Spare Wives

    1 1962 HD

    A man inherits a harem of three wives from his late uncle, which he brings home to his real wife in England. British comedy from 1962.

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  • 1952
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    Father's Doing Fine

    Father's Doing Fine

    6.3 1952 HD

    Lady Buckering, an English widow, has four daughters; Doreen, married to Dougall and about to give birth at home, and Gerda, Bicky and Catherine. The...

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  • 1957
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    The Rising of the Moon

    The Rising of the Moon

    6.9 1957 HD

    Three vignettes of old Irish country life, based on a series of short stories. In "The Majesty of the Law," a police officer must arrest an...

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  • 1949
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    The Blue Lagoon

    The Blue Lagoon

    6 1949 HD

    In the Victorian period, two British children survive a shipwreck in the South Pacific. After days afloat, they are marooned on a lush tropical...

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  • 1947
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    Captain Boycott

    Captain Boycott

    6.5 1947 HD

    Based on real events, this historical drama is set in 19th-century Ireland, when poverty-stricken tenants dispossessed by greedy landowner Capt....

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  • 1959
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    Shake Hands with the Devil

    Shake Hands with the Devil

    6.5 1959 HD

    In 1921 Dublin, the IRA battles the "Black & Tans," special British forces given to harsh measures. Irish-American medical student Kerry O'Shea...

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  • 1969
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    Sinful Davey

    Sinful Davey

    5.5 1969 HD

    A young man, convinced of his paternity, aims to emulate his notorious father by committing daring crimes. However, his childhood friend is equally...

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  • 1965
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    Lord Jim

    Lord Jim

    6.8 1965 HD

    After being discredited as a coward, a 19th century seaman lives for only one purpose: to redeem himself. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in...

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  • 1956
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    Jacqueline

    Jacqueline

    6 1956 HD

    Jacqueline is the daughter of Belfast shipyard worker Mike McNeil. The worker's worth is compromised by his crippling fear of heights. Dismissed from...

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  • 1958
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    The Key

    The Key

    6 1958 HD

    In wartime England, circa 1941, poorly-armed tugs are sent into "U-Boat Alley" to rescue damaged Allied ships. An American named David Ross arrives...

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  • 1961
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    Double Bunk

    Double Bunk

    5.7 1961 HD

    When newly weds Jack and Peggy face eviction, they are tricked into buying a run down houseboat. After rebuilding the engine, they take their friends...

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  • 1966
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    Arrivederci, Baby!

    Arrivederci, Baby!

    5.9 1966 HD

    Nick tries to kill his wife to get her money, but when learning of this, she plans the same for him!

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  • 1951
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    Talk of a Million

    Talk of a Million

    1 1951 HD

    A family reduced to imminent poverty by the father's disinclination to work; an American lawyer looking for the heir to half a million pounds; the...

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  • 1963
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    Nurse on Wheels

    Nurse on Wheels

    5.7 1963 HD

    Quietly competent young Joanna moves with her scatterbrain mother to a country village to take up her first job as District Nurse. She soon overcomes...

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  • 1966
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    Doctor in Clover

    Doctor in Clover

    6 1966 HD

    Doctor in Clover is another 'Doctor' movie, but this time Leslie Phillips is the main doctor in the story, looking for love and romance from the...

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  • 1963
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    The Running Man

    The Running Man

    6.6 1963 HD

    An Englishman with a grudge against an insurance company for a disallowed claim fakes his own death and escapes to Spain, but is soon pursued by an...

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  • 1954
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    Doctor in the House

    Doctor in the House

    6.3 1954 HD

    The first of the seven "Doctor" films, based on Richard Gordon's novels and released between 1954 and 1970. Simon Sparrow is a newly arrived medical...

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  • 1957
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    Doctor at Large

    Doctor at Large

    5.6 1957 HD

    Losing out to Dr. Bingham (Michael Medwin) in a competition for house surgeon when he offends a member of the board, young Dr. Simon Sparrow (Dirk...

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  • 1963
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    The List of Adrian Messenger

    The List of Adrian Messenger

    6.6 1963 HD

    Adrian Messenger, a famous writer, asks his friend Anthony Gethryn, a former British agent, to help him investigate the whereabouts of the people who...

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  • 1969
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    Where's Jack?

    Where's Jack?

    7.2 1969 HD

    Based on the adventures of Jack Sheppard, the thief and jail-breaker who became a folk hero in 1720s London.

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  • 1970
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    The McKenzie Break

    The McKenzie Break

    6 1970 HD

    A German U-Boat commander plans a daring escape from a PoW camp in Scotland.

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  • 1953
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    Decameron Nights

    Decameron Nights

    5 1953 HD

    Italian poet Boccaccio (Louis Jourdan) hides in the court of Fiammetta (Joan Fontaine) and tells three tales of love and lust.

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  • 1963
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    The Ceremony

    The Ceremony

    5.1 1963 HD

    A man has an affair with his condemned brother's girlfriend while plotting his escape in Tangier.

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  • 1961
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    Johnny Nobody

    Johnny Nobody

    6.5 1961 HD

    When the atheistic ranting of Irish-American author James Mulcahy upsets the inhabitants of the Irish village to which he has retired, a mob...

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  • 1951
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    Encore

    Encore

    6.2 1951 HD

    Encore is a 1951 anthology film composed of adaptations of three short stories by W. Somerset Maugham: "The Ant and the Grasshopper", directed by...

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  • 1958
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    Rooney

    Rooney

    5.5 1958 HD

    The life of James Ignatius Rooney, a Dublin rubbish collector during the week and a Gaelic sportsman at the weekends.

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  • 1952
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    The Pickwick Papers

    The Pickwick Papers

    6.6 1952 HD

    The Pickwick Club sends Mr. Pickwick and a group of friends to travel across England and to report back on the interesting things they find...

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  • 1956
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    Moby Dick

    Moby Dick

    7 1956 HD

    In 1841, young Ishmael signs up for service aboard the Pequod, a whaler sailing out of New Bedford. The ship is under the command of Captain Ahab, a...

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  • 1949
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    Saints and Sinners

    Saints and Sinners

    6 1949 HD

    What happens to the saints and sinners of a small Irish village on the day the world is supposed to end.

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  • 1960
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    Make Mine Mink

    Make Mine Mink

    7.1 1960 HD

    In a mansion block in Knightsbridge, a gang of middle-aged biddies decide to brighten up "the dullness of the tea time of life" by staging a series...

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  • 1973
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    The MacKintosh Man

    The MacKintosh Man

    6.1 1973 HD

    A member of British Intelligence assumes a fictitious criminal identity and allows himself to be caught, imprisoned, and freed in order to infiltrate...

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  • 1951
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    No Resting Place

    No Resting Place

    1 1951 HD

    The brilliant British documentary filmmaker Paul Rotha made his feature-film debut with 1950's No Resting Place. Filmed on location in Ireland, the...

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  • 1947
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    Odd Man Out

    Odd Man Out

    7.3 1947 HD

    Belfast police conduct a door-to-door manhunt for an IRA gunman wounded in a daring robbery.

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  • 1961
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    The Avengers

    The Avengers

    7.7 1961 HD

    The Avengers is a British television series created in the 1960s. It initially focused on Dr. David Keel and his assistant John Steed. Hendry left...

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  • 1962
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    The Saint

    The Saint

    7.3 1962 HD

    Simon Templar is The Saint, a handsome, sophisticated, debonair, modern-day Robin Hood who recovers ill-gotten wealth and redistributes it to those...

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  • 1983
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    The Irish R.M.

    The Irish R.M.

    5.2 1983 HD

    The Irish R.M. refers to a series of books by the Anglo-Irish novelists Somerville and Ross, and the television comedy-drama series based on them....

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  • 1956
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    The Buccaneers

    The Buccaneers

    6 1956 HD

    The adventures of privateer Captain Dan Tempest and his crew of former pirates as they make their way across the seven seas in The Sultana.

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  • 1970
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    Never Say Die

    Never Say Die

    1 1970 HD

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  • 1962
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    The Saint

    The Saint

    7.3 1962 HD

    Simon Templar is The Saint, a handsome, sophisticated, debonair, modern-day Robin Hood who recovers ill-gotten wealth and redistributes it to those...

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  • 1971
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    The Onedin Line

    The Onedin Line

    6.8 1971 HD

    The Onedin Line is a BBC television drama series which ran from 1971 to 1980. The series was created by Cyril Abraham. The series is set in...

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