Despite some of the other reviews on this site, I had a ball with DAGGER OF THE MIND. I always enjoy the Columbo episodes that take the detective out of his Californian home ground and allow him to explore a little further; I've previously seen him both in Mexico and on a cruise ship, but this story takes him his furthest yet - to London itself, at least a Hollywood version of London that few British viewers will recognise.
And it's a real hoot. There's more comedy in this episode than in most of the others. Columbo runs around like the typical bumbling American tourist and has to take snapshots of everything. All of the British characters act in the exceedingly old fashioned way, owning country houses with butlers and driving 1930s-era sports cars. However, I wasn't upset by any of this stuff, I found it quite amusing.
The murder itself is a good one that well utilises a theatrical backdrop. Richard Basehart can be accused of hamming it up something dreadful as the Macbeth actor caught up in a vicious crime, but it's the lovely Honor Blackman who really shines here as his accomplice and Lady Macbeth of the piece. I fully believe she's the loveliest murderess seen in a Columbo story, and the episode benefits hugely as a result. Watch out for some fun at a waxworks, a droll Wilfrid Hyde-White in one of his most developed supporting turns, a typically ingenious climax (isn't that illegal?), and DIAL M FOR MURDER actor John Williams as the victim.
