This is adapted from two of the Baroness Orczy's books as we head to an 18th century Paris where the terror is in full swing and the newly empowered citizenry are beheading aristocrats left, right and centre. Even Louis XVI and his Queen Marie Antoinette have been spliced. There is one hope for those imprisoned, though, and that comes in the form of an enigmatic rescuer. "The Scarlet Pimpernel" is proving the bane of the lives of Robespierre (Richard Morant) and his government, so he details his national security chief Chauvelin (Ian McKellen) to discover his identity and make sure he goes under the blade, too. Chauvelin reckons the best way to do this is to head to London, just as his actress girlfriend "Marguerite" (Jane Seymour) finds herself increasingly disillusioned with the tactics of the revolutionaries and fond of the foppish Englishman "Sir Percy" (Anthony Andrews). Initially resentful of her change of allegiance, he begins to appreciate that her connection with the wealthiest man in the land - who counted the Prince Regent (Julian Fellowes) as a friend - could prove invaluable as he seeks his new nemesis. The situation becomes all the more desperate and dangerous when the safety of the imprisoned eight-year-old Dauphin becomes a cause of concern, and so with both the "Pimpernel" and the remaining French royalists trying to get him out of the dreaded Temple prison, th…

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