What set the series apart from other notable entries in the genre being produced at the time was the approach taken to the subject matter by series devisers Richard Harris & Dennis Spooner. In the character of McGill the viewers are presented with a hero much closer to the tarnished knight image of Raymond Chandler's classic Phillip Marlowe, than we are to the slick, almost cartoon sophistication of James Bond or Roger Moore's urban Simon Templar.

McGill is world-weary, cynical and possessed of a hair-trigger temper which often leads to sudden unexpected shocking outbursts of violence. There's no colourful megalomaniacs attempting to take over the world in the shadowy by-ways and seedy London drinking clubs he frequents, just flawed human beings whose greed, jealousy, and hate provide him with the $300-600 per week (plus expenses) needed for a reasonably comfortable survival in the world's most swinging city.

Excellent writing, no-frills direction and a top drawer string of guest stars made Man in a Suitcase powerful entertainment, equal - if not superior - to many of the more glossy, light-weight offerings of the time, added to which it also benefited from one of the best remembered and catchy theme tunes to be composed by the talented Ron Grainer.

Man in a Suitcase, now available on DVD and a recently repeated run on UK digital television proves that this is a series which, years later, still stands up to repeated viewing.