The Adventures Of Robin Hood - The Complete Series 1 [1955] [DVD]

First, the black and white images have been beautifully translated to DVD. The picture quality is excellent, and if the theme tune sounds monotonous after a while, you can't complain about the technical quality of the product. In fact, it's quite exciting to see it so well presented when you're memories are of grainy pictures on a small screen. You get the first 39 episodes on five discs (there were 143 episodes made in all). Thirty-nine episodes … and no frills, no extras, just 39 episodes each 23-25 minutes long.

But what of the show? Nostalgia quickly gives way to sheer enjoyment. Oh, the acting is a bit cardboard in places … in fact, in a lot of places … and the fight scenes are a bit, well, amateur dramatics (but watch out for a bit of energy and passion in "The Highlander" episode). And did I mention that the acting is a bit "Thunderbirds" in places? But, that apart, and all that included, it's brilliant. A couple of quick introductory episodes set the scene and set up the Robin Hood legend, and suddenly Richard Greene fills the role and the tights.

It's very gentle, very middle class, very 50's, the accents very, well, BBC - despite its ITV provenance. It is dated and you accept that from the word go. The stories just sweep you up into the fantasy and you enjoy the drama, the excitement, the comedy, and the occasional slapstick. By episode three you're enraptured. Leo McKern appears as different characters. Leslie Phillips appears as different characters. Various members of the cast keep turning up in different roles. They even change Little John for a few episodes (as if you wouldn't notice that). But you suspend your disbelief and sit back and enjoy an entertaining series.

It's not great drama. It's not great acting. But it is great entertainment. There's an innocence to it. You appreciate why you enjoyed it as a child, but suddenly there's a charm and timeless enrapture which reaches down the years and grabs you as a grumpy old man. Men, of course, never grow up, so Robin Hood fills much of the fantasy image - he's rough, tough, can fight anyone, women love him, but he's just thoroughly decent and so nice and he's on the side of good. Strong in him is the force!

This is not a series for intellectual analysis. It's a series for a comfortable armchair … and kick off the slippers. Imagine the feel of the forest floor beneath your feet and let yourself run away with a highly entertaining fantasy. It can't compete with the glitz and special effects of the contemporary world, but it doesn't have to. It's a remarkably relaxing and enjoyable experience, a tonic after a stressful day, or an excuse to lock yourself away for a weekend and just feel all the tensions and anxieties drain from your system as you watch good triumph over evil. Magnificent!