Before Roger Moore played James Bond, he made Simon Templar a familiar figure on television. In the British series The Saint, broadcast from 1962 to 1969, Templar travels into mysteries and disputes that respectable authorities cannot always settle. He is quick with a joke, difficult to intimidate and willing to bend rules when he thinks somebody has been wronged. The result is an adventure series built around one question: what will this unusually confident outsider do when a situation turns dangerous?

Who is Simon Templar?

Templar comes from the stories of Leslie Charteris, but Moore’s performance gives the television version a distinct ease. He can enter a room as though he belongs there, listen for the detail others have missed and leave just before the consequences catch up. His nickname suggests virtue, yet he is not a model of formal obedience. He follows a personal code and often prefers a bold intervention to waiting for an institution to act.

That blend of charm and independence lets the series move between crime story, thriller and light comedy. Templar may help someone who has been deceived, expose a scheme or find himself suspected of a crime. The cases change; his refusal to be pushed into someone else’s account of events remains the constant.

Adventure without a fixed headquarters

Unlike a workplace drama, The Saint can begin almost anywhere. A journey, a chance encounter or an invitation brings Templar into another person’s trouble. That mobility gives the programme its sense of possibility. One week the problem may be an art theft; another may involve a political exile, a suspicious death or a remote house with a secret. ITV’s episode listings show how readily the show shifted location and kind of mystery.

The changing setting also keeps Templar slightly apart from ordinary obligations. He is neither a police officer assigned a case nor a government agent following orders. He chooses whether to become involved. That choice makes his confidence appealing, but it can also put him in situations where his certainty is tested.

Roger Moore’s style

Moore makes danger look manageable without removing it from the story. His light touch gives Templar room to be amused by villains’ elaborate plans, while a sudden change in pace reminds the viewer that the adventure has real stakes. His timing is essential: a raised eyebrow or a carefully delivered line can tell us that Templar has understood more than he is willing to reveal.

This manner later became associated with Moore’s Bond, but The Saint deserves to be seen on its own terms. Television gives Templar repeated opportunities to meet new people and solve smaller, self-contained problems. The character’s appeal depends less on spectacular equipment than on how he handles conversation, uncertainty and a well-timed risk.

Justice, manners and the limits of the fantasy

The series often imagines a world where an intelligent, well-connected individual can spot a wrong and put it right. That is part of its fantasy. It also reveals the assumptions of its era about class, gender, travel and who gets to act as a hero. Modern viewers may find some portrayals dated. Watching with that context need not dull the pleasure of the mysteries; it makes clearer what kind of television adventure the series was offering.

The most satisfying episodes give Templar a worthy obstacle rather than merely a target for his wit. He must work out whom to trust, what somebody is hiding and whether the apparent victim is telling the whole story. When the answer is not obvious at once, his charm becomes a tool of inquiry instead of a guarantee of success.

Where to start

Choose an episode that begins with a simple request for help and watch how quickly it expands into a larger puzzle. “The Queen’s Ransom” shows the international-adventure side of the later series; “The House on Dragon’s Rock” offers a more unsettling mystery. The episodes generally stand alone, so there is no need to master a long backstory. Start with Templar in trouble and let his way of getting out of it explain why the series lasted through the decade.

Sources: ITV: The Saint series guide; ITV press centre: Simon Templar and the later series; BFI: Roger Moore’s television career.