77%
I was fortunate to see this series on its original UK broadcast. I had chosen to watch the series based on the two lead actors. At the time I recalled Joanna Lumley from her time as Purdey in The New Avengers and David McCallum as Dr Daniel Weston from The Invisible Man. The stunning opening scene with all the clocks stopping had me hooked and I watched all but the final episode of this story (I was dragged off to a family function on the night that Episode 6 was broadcast - and I was very annoyed when I sat down to watch the next episode to find that it was a completely new story!)

This is not a show for audiences who like simple plots and special effects. Almost like a stage play, the show focuses on creating a menace from simple objects. The basic premise of this first story is of two children all alone in a large house in some remote rural location. Nursery rhymes take on sinister depth in this story, as the entities use them to gain control of a wall, then a room, then a corridor...can it be stopped and at what cost?

When the series was finally released on video in the early 90s it proved to be as good as I remembered. The DVD releases offer little more than the original VHS releases and, for some reason, Carlton have chosen to release the first story of Season 2 in the same set as the entire first season! All 6 episodes of Assignment One are on the first disc of the three which comprise the set. There is no option to play all the episodes. When you reach the end of an episode you are returned to the menu and must select the next one.

As first stories go, this is a good place to start and if you are able to get past the low budget trappings and focus on the story then you will be suitably rewarded with an outstanding TV series, albeit a short-lived one.