An intriguing opening with a shadowy military figure making a night raid to steal mushrooms. The use they might be put to becomes obvious very soon, when we find Cathy acting as 'social director' to an Emir and his entourage in a London hotel; the Emir's right-hand man, Mellor (Robert 'Lesterson' James) has imposed strict controls over the preparation of his food.
Down in the kitchens Steed is undercover as a chef. Although he acts the part well, I can't believe it would be so easy to fool other top chefs just by throwing the names of a few hotels about. Luckily his fellow cooks are too busy insulting each other in broad children's-TV style: it's quite funny nonetheless, David 'Fedorin' Nettheim (who was also one of the doctors in The Schizoid Man) and Gordon 'The Herbs' Rollings do make it work.
Ken Parry, who I think was the royal chamberlain in that episode of The Young Ones where the king is 'bored shitless with interesting things', is also amusing as the rather camp head chef. Nettheim's character refers to him as a 'cream puff' which I think is the most blatant reference to gayness I've come across in 60s TV.
Although there's some counter-suggestion that the Emir's doctor (Paul 'the German general in the film of Dad's Army' Dawkins) has non-food-related poisoning plans of his own, we're soon shown what happened to the stolen mushrooms and how they find their way into the cooking. And the mystery is all in the logistics, there isn't much scope for doubt about who's actually behind the plan.
There's not much subtlety to this, but the comic bits, however obvious, were a lot of fun. Even the obligatory 'foreign chef isn't really foreign' gag and the komedy ending. (I liked the way there were three place settings at the table there, indicating that Steed, Cathy and the remaining chef are all going to have a meal together in the kitchens).
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