Rockliffe | |
---|---|
Also known as | Rockliffe's Babies Rockliffe's Folly |
Genre | Police procedural |
Created by | Richard O'Keeffe |
Written by | Richard O'Keefe Don Webb |
Directed by | David Attwood |
Starring | Ian Hogg Bill Champion John Blakely Brett Fancy Joe McGann Martyn Ellis Susanna Shelling Alphonsia Emmanuel Brian Croucher James Aubrey Ian Brimble Aaron Harris Carole Nimmons Craig Nightingale |
Theme music composer | Joe Campbell Paul Hart |
Country of origin | United Kingdom |
Original language | English |
No. of series | 3 |
No. of episodes | 25 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Producers | Leonard Lewis Ron Craddock |
Production locations | Kensal Rise Wessex |
Editor | Nigel Cattle |
Camera setup | Paul Harding |
Running time | 50 minutes |
Production company | BBC Studios |
Original release | |
Network | BBC1 |
Release | 9 January 1987 – 14 December 1988 |
Rockliffe is a British television police procedural drama series, produced by the BBC, which ran for three series between 9 January 1987 and 14 December 1988. Rockliffe was devised by Richard O'Keeffe, and produced by Leonard Lewis. The first two series, entitled Rockliffe's Babies, starred Ian Hogg as Alan Rockliffe, a detective sergeant assigned to train a team of inexperienced plain-clothed Crime Squad PCs in inner-city London, which include Steve Hood (Brett Fancy), Gerry O'Dowd (Joe McGann), David Adams (Bill Champion), Janice Hargreaves (Alphonsia Emmanuel), Paul Georgiou (Martyn Ellis), Keith Chitty (John Blakely) and Karen Walsh (Susanna Shelling). [1] The series featured writing contributions from Richard O`Keeffe, Don Webb, Charlie Humphreys and Nick Perry, and was directed by Derek Lister, Keith Washington, Clive Fleury and David Attwood.
The third series, entitled Rockliffe's Folly, [2] followed Rockliffe through his relocation to Wessex Police, dealing with rural crimes as part of a new team of investigators. The seven episode third series proved to be the last, with many citing a change in the programme's formula for the heavy decline in viewing figures. Many viewers stated that the success of the two Babies series came not from Rockliffe himself, but from the popular ensemble cast. [3] Most of the location filming featured in the first two series took place around the Kensal Rise area of West London. Notably, the police station interiors were at Canalot Studios, Kensal Road. A paperback novel was released as a tie-in to the first series on 11 December 1986, four weeks before the broadcast of the first episode. [4] After many years of remaining unreleased, the first two series have been earmarked for release on DVD by Network distributing on 8 May 2017. [5]
# | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date (UK) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Sirens" | David Attwood | Richard O'Keeffe | 9 January 1987 | |
A hooded prowler, an armed robbery, a mugging on the notorious Dragon Estate – it's a busy week for the young PCs. But O'Dowd is in dead trouble. Will the oil-rich Sonia Souhami come to his rescue? | |||||
2 | "Sweet and Sour Revenge" | Derek Lister | Richard O'Keeffe | 16 January 1987 | |
A murder has been committed and Rockliffe has been given the name of a suspect. The name revives old and bitter memories. But is it fifteen years too late to do any good? | |||||
3 | "It's All Happening" | Jeremy Ancock | Charlie Humphreys | 23 January 1987 | |
Rockliffe complains about the work load. There are drug dealers, rapists, muggers, murderers, thieves and con-men around. What can turn up next? Joseph Maxwell, that's what. | |||||
4 | "A Bad Few Days" | David Attwood | Brian Thompson | 30 January 1987 | |
There is a tricky case of race relations for Rockliffe and his officers when a black teenager with a mental age of six goes missing. | |||||
5 | "In the Bag" | Derek Lister | Don Webb | 6 February 1987 | |
Why has the habitually lazy Paul Georgiou activated himself and acquired an informant? | |||||
6 | "Ghetto-Blasters" | Jeremy Ancock | Richard O'Keeffe | 13 February 1987 | |
There's a tense situation in the black community. A man has died in police custody as a result of using a deadly drug. Rockliffe and Flight think they know who the dealer is, but if they act will there be worse trouble? | |||||
7 | "Up the Down Escalator" | David Attwood | Nick Perry | 20 February 1987 | |
What arises for Rockliffe and the crime squad as a result of hunger pangs? | |||||
8 | "Extra Curricular" | Derek Lister | Don Webb | 27 February 1987 | |
Rockliffe is surprised to learn that some members of his squad find him unapproachable. Doesn't he always come to their aid when they need him? And that's just what he has to do when Adams goes out on a limb. |
# | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date (UK) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Go for It" | Leonard Lewis | Richard O'Keeffe | 8 January 1988 | |
It's Dorset wedding bells for Keith Chitty and best man Gerry O'Dowd decides to enter into the swing of things. Gerry's taking no chances and neither is Rockliffe. When their paths cross back in town they both get more than they bargained for. | |||||
2 | "A Trip to the Zoo" | Clive Fleury | Richard O'Keeffe | 15 January 1988 | |
Members of Rockliffe's crime squad make hasty character assessments. Wayne is an animal, Chris is a charmer. Both judgments have to be revised on closer inspection. | |||||
3 | "In Too Deep" | Keith Washington | Don Webb | 22 January 1988 | |
Why are the officers of Church Street police station tuning in to a local radio station? And why does Rockliffe allow himself to be involved in a situation which causes so much disapproval from on high? | |||||
4 | "Looking After Your Own" | David Attwood | Brian Thompson | 29 January 1988 | |
It's not a crime to photograph police activity, but when it happens during an investigation into serious assaults on women, Rockliffe is suspicious. What he discovers puts him into the most disagreeable situation of his career. | |||||
5 | "Easy Meat" | Clive Fleury | Don Webb | 12 February 1988 | |
Rockliffe's team is in hospital. They are watching for someone who is frightening the nurses. But when a nurse is hurt in their full view, they realise they have a different and more urgent situation on their hands. | |||||
6 | "A Very Diplomatic Incident" | Keith Washington | Terry Hodgkinson | 19 February 1988 | |
It is a night of routine surveillance for the Crime Squad. All is quiet, but not for long. Rockliffe and his team soon find themselves in areas of enquiry that are foreign to them and where there are choices to be made between public justice and private revenge. | |||||
7 | "Top Man" | David Attwood | Nick Perry | 26 February 1988 | |
Acting on information received seems more important to Rockliffe than taking notice of a memo from the Chief Superintendent. Embarrassment results, except for Georgiou, who volunteers for a very risky adventure. | |||||
8 | "Black Arrow" | Clive Fleury | Don Webb | 4 March 1988 | |
The two married members of Rockliffe's team have a dinner engagement, but the demands of duty put paid to their plans. An entirely different night out on the town is arranged for them – spiced with an element of risk. | |||||
9 | "Hearts and Flowers" | Diarmuid Lawrence | Richard O'Keeffe | 11 March 1988 | |
Rockliffe thinks WPC Walsh is too preoccupied with the problems of a homeless family. But he is not entirely impartial himself when it comes to associating with an attractive titled woman who seems to be unattached. | |||||
10 | "The One That Got Away" | Leonard Lewis | Richard O'Keeffe | 18 March 1988 | |
Before Rockliffe and his team can start to look for three villains who got away they must find out who they were. It's a challenge that exercises all their ingenuity and certain members of the team have other things on their minds: three of them have selection boards for the Detective Training School. |
# | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date (UK) | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "The Greenhorn" | Diarmuid Lawrence | Susannah Hagan | 2 November 1988 | |
Rockliffe has swapped his fraught, round-the-clock job at the Met for the rural beat of Wessex. But when he nearly runs over a distraught woman, Rockliffe finds that leafy lanes hold their own peril. | |||||
2 | "Moving Targets" | Ken Hannam | Stephen Gallagher | 9 November 1988 | |
Two young boys, reported missing from a council home, have been seen on Rockliffe's Patch. Can he catch up with them before they are caught in a real disaster? | |||||
3 | "Witch Hunt" | Keith Godman | Vincent O'Connell | 16 November 1988 | |
When a young girl in trouble reminds Rockliffe of his daughter Kathleen, Rockliffe decides it is definitely time to sort out his homelife and job. | |||||
4 | "Lie of the Land" | Eric Davidson | John McNeil | 23 November 1988 | |
An elusive green van is linked to a series of burglaries, but there's something fishy about the theft which attractive Miss Dawson is reporting. And can those lovey-dovey newlyweds really be genuine? | |||||
5 | "On the Big Wheel" | Tristan de Vere Cole | Richard O'Keeffe | 30 November 1988 | |
Rockliffe has to contend with a name from his past. | |||||
6 | "The Blind Man" | Ron Craddock | John Foster | 7 December 1988 | |
An anonymous phone call warns Rockliffe that a blind farm owner is about to be murdered, and then his daughter wants to meet the new girlfriend. | |||||
7 | "Nine-Tenths of the Law" | Alan Wareing | Susannah Hagan | 14 December 1988 | |
Someone is buying a lot of land on Rockliffe's patch. but business is definitely not proceeding as usual. |
Prime Suspect is a British police procedural television series devised by Lynda La Plante. It stars Helen Mirren as Jane Tennison, one of the first female Detective Chief Inspectors in Greater London's Metropolitan Police Service, who rises to the rank of Detective Superintendent while confronting institutionalised sexism within the police force.
Thomas Giles Robinson is a British singer, bassist, radio presenter and long-time LGBT rights activist, best known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson Band. He later peaked at No. 6 in the UK Singles Chart with his solo single "War Baby".
Fellside Recordings is a British independent record label, formed by Paul Adams and Linda Adams in 1976 in Workington, Cumbria, and still run by them.
Lionel Charles Jeffries was an English actor, director, and screenwriter. He appeared primarily in films and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his role in The Spy with a Cold Nose.
Juliet Bravo is a British television police procedural drama series, first broadcast on 30 August 1980, that ran for six series and a total of 88 episodes on BBC1. The theme of the series concerned a female police inspector who took over control of a police station in the fictional town of Hartley in Lancashire. The lead role of Inspector Jean Darblay was played by Stephanie Turner in series 1 to 3, but in series 4 to 6 she was replaced by Anna Carteret for the role of Inspector Kate Longton. Carteret remained with the series until its conclusion in 1985.
Alexander Ian Hogg is an English actor.
The fifth season of the American drama/adventure television series Highlander began airing 23 September 1996 and finished on 19 May 1997. The series continues to follow the adventures of Duncan MacLeod, a 400-year-old Immortal who, just as the Immortals of the movies, can only die if he is beheaded. MacLeod is involved in the Game, an ongoing battle during which all Immortals have to behead each other until only one is left.
From the ITV police drama's first screening in 1983, the history of The Bill includes a variety of major plotlines and changes to the programme's format.
The Bill is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, Woodentop, broadcast on 16 August 1983. ITV were so impressed with the drama that a full series was commissioned. The title originates from "Old Bill", a slang term for the police and show creator Geoff McQueen's original title for the series.
The 1970–71 Ashes series was the 45th edition of the long-standing cricket rivalry between England and Australia. Starting on 27 November 1970, the two sides ended up playing seven Tests; six were originally scheduled, but one extra Test was added to compensate for the abandoned Third Test.
The New Year Honours 1988 were appointments by most of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and honorary ones to citizens of other countries. They were announced on 31 December 1987 to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 1988 in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Mauritius, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Gibraltar.
The New Year Honours 1986 were appointments by most of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries, and honorary ones to citizens of other countries. They were announced on 30 December 1985 to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 1986 in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Mauritius, Fiji, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, and Saint Christopher and Nevis.
The Hanging Gale is a four-episode television serial which first aired on RTÉ One and BBC1 in 1995. The series was a British–Irish co-production, made by Little Bird Films for BBC Northern Ireland in association with Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), with support from the Irish Film Board.
Alphonsia Emmanuel is a British actress known for her appearances in House of Cards, Under Suspicion (1991), Peter's Friends (1992) and Still Crazy (1998), among other films. She was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre.
The 2003 New Year Honours in New Zealand were appointments by Elizabeth II in her right as Queen of New Zealand, on the advice of the New Zealand government, to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders, and to celebrate the passing of 2002 and the beginning of 2003. They were announced on 31 December 2002.
The following are the appointments to various Canadian Honours of 2015. Usually, they are announced as part of the New Year and Canada Day celebrations and are published within the Canada Gazette during year. This follows the custom set out within the United Kingdom which publishes its appoints of various British Honours for New Year's and for monarch's official birthday. However, instead of the midyear appointments announced on Victoria Day, the official birthday of the Canadian Monarch, this custom has been transferred with the celebration of Canadian Confederation and the creation of the Order of Canada.
The 2000 Queen's Birthday Honours in New Zealand, celebrating the official birthday of Queen Elizabeth II, were appointments made by the Queen in her right as Queen of New Zealand, on the advice of the New Zealand government, to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders. They also incorporated gallantry awards, and a special honours list recognising military operational and other service in East Timor. They were announced on 5 June 2000.