• Air date: 05 Apr '81 17 episodes
      Tales of the Unexpected is a British television series which aired between 1979 and 1988. Each episode told a story, often with sinister and wryly comedic undertones, with an unexpected twist ending. Early episodes were based on short stories by Roald Dahl collected in the books Tales of the Unexpected, Kiss Kiss and Someone Like You. The series was made by Anglia Television for ITV with interior scenes recorded at their Norwich studios whilst location filming mainly occurred across East Anglia. The theme music for the series was written by composer Ron Grainer. Although similar in theme and title, the show is not related to the American anthology television series, Quinn Martin's Tales of the Unexpected, which ran for one season in 1977.
  • List of Episodes (17)
    • 1. Would you Believe it?

      05 Apr '81
      Two archeologists working in Jordan, Tanner and Miller, find in the desert sand a statue of a woman in a strange posture. Driving through a rainstorm, and using an open truck, they try to smuggle their find over the border into Israel, only to discover on arrival that it has completely disappeared. They could have been in a lot of trouble...
    • 2. Vicious Circle

      12 Apr '81
      An old lady catches Rex Tobin, a young burglar who was planning to rob her, and makes friends with him... but what is she really up to?
    • 3. The Boy Who Talked with Animals

      19 Apr '81
      David, a nine-year-old boy, talks his father into getting him a giant turtle. And there is more to David's desire for this unusual pet than meets the eye. Then Sam Jenner, a rugged American, gets drawn into David's holiday adventure in Jamaica.
    • 4. The Best of Everything

      26 Apr '81
      Arthur is a junior clerk in a city metal broker's office and he's desperately in love with the boss's daughter, Ann Horton. Arthur can't see how he's going to catch Ann's eye, but his smarter friend Charlie knows how to manage these things, and (in return for sharing Arthur's flat and borrowing his money) Charlie helps Arthur out. But then Charlie doesn't want to pay back what he owes...
    • 5. A Woman's Help

      03 May '81
      Arthur is an elegant playboy, but he is dependent on his very rich, ailing, and demanding wife, Elizabeth. The day comes when the hen-pecked Arthur's lover wants a promise of marriage, and Arthur decides he wants his wife dead, so long as he gets her money. But there is something Arthur doesn't know about Elizabeth...
    • 6. Shatterproof

      10 May '81
      Property tycoon Gerry Williams is married to the beautiful but unhappy Ellen, and somewhere the marriage has gone terribly wrong. Then an assassin is hired to kill Gerry, and he makes the mistake of getting too friendly with his target...
    • 7. The Sound Machine

      17 May '81
      A botanist called Klausner invents a machine which can translate the conversations of trees and plants... and what he hears gives him a nasty shock.
    • 8. Never Speak Ill of the Dead

      24 May '81
      David Rankin is a country doctor with a flighty young wife. Irene's affairs with other men were the talk of the town before she was married - and they still are. No one knows for sure if the gossip has reached the doctor. And then no one knows where Irene has gone... Sim and Bob accuse Dr Rankin of killing his wife and burying her in the cellar - but they have made a big mistake.
    • 9. The Best Policy

      31 May '81
      Harry Flock has had a temporary promotion as acting manager of a branch bank. Harry is honest and meticulous to a fault, but he is in danger of losing his job when head office gets anonymous complaints about alleged embezzlements. Harry's accounts are immaculate. In fact, they seem too good to be true...
    • 10. The Last Bottle in the World

      07 Jun '81
      Kyros buys the last bottle of a superb 1864 claret - an anniverary present for his beautiful but unfaithful wife. He pays a tremendous price, and plans a dinner party - but Kyros is planning to use the wine for more than just drinking...
    • 11. Kindly Dig Your Grave

      14 Jun '81
      Madame Lagrue runs a smart but commercial art gallery in Montmartre, Paris, getting rich at the expense of struggling artists. Then one of her victims falls in love with Fatima, an artist's model, and Madame Lagrue is up against someone even more cunning than she is.
    • 12. Completely Foolproof

      21 Jun '81
      The very rich Joe Brisson is a self-made man with a number of enemies - including Lisa, his elegant but dangerously dissatisfied wife.
    • 13. There's One Born Every Minute

      05 Jun '81
      Arthur and Margaret Pearson are a quiet middle-aged couple. Arthur is dull, but double-dealing, and when his wife Margaret inherits £50,000 he reluctantly agrees to gamble the money on a dubious and highly speculative property deal.As a result, the Pearsons' lives (and their relationship) begin to change significantly.
    • 14. Bosom Friends

      12 Jun '81
      Nell and Emma were best friends at school, but after a reunion weekend they find things more difficult. Emma, who is retired and poor, asks Nell to rent her a spare room in her house. Nell agrees and Emma moves in, but she quickly proves to be completely penniless and seems willing to drag Nell down to poverty, too...
    • 15. A Glowing Future

      19 Jul '81
      Betsy's long term live-in lover, Jack, is planning to get married - but not to her. He has a new girlfriend half-way across the world, in Australia.Betsy is even more enraged when Jack starts to pack up their shared belongings for shipping to his new home. As the paintings come off the walls, Betsy decides to give the bride a present - she has just the thing in mind.
    • 16. The Way to Do it

      26 Jul '81
      Young Roger Carson has a dreary life and suffers from the domineering ways of his rich Aunt May. By way of escape, he takes up gambling - and swiftly falls for Suzie, a beautiful casino hostess. The boss of the casino sees Roger as a chicken ripe for plucking, and gets Suzie to encourage him. Soon, Roger is losing more than his income...
    • 17. Hijack

      26 Dec '81
      Captain Waterhouse has to deal with a man on board his airliner who seizes Milly, a stewardess, takes her and a bottle of nitroglycerine into a tiny lavatory, and demands one million dollars in ransom money, plus a parachute for himself. The hijacker believes both have been delivered to him, and he jumps out... However, the story is not over yet...