The
lowdown: 'Juliet Bravo' is a British crime drama which
centred on a female police inspector in charge of the police station
in the town of Hartley,
Lancashire. A total of 88 episodes were broadcast on BBC1 from 30 August
1980 to 31 December 1985.
The series initially starred
Stephanie Turner as Inspector Jean Darblay, who left after three seasons
and was replaced by Anna
Carteret as Inspector Kate
Longton for the last three seasons. The Hartley police investigate many
different crimes, ranging from
armed robbery, blackmail,
hostage situations and counterfeiting, but Darblay and Longton also had
to deal with the challenges
of being the station's only
female police officer, including the initial skepticism and sexist attitudes
of their male colleagues. The
show was rather slow-paced
compared with police dramas of today, but the lack of violence and swearing
made it good family
viewing, and the theme tune
is still very memorable.
The
episode: 'The Inspection' is the 10 episode of the sixth
season, and was broadcast on 9 November 1985. Hartley station is
due for its annual inspection
by the Chief Constable, so Inspector Longton gets her team to clean up
their work areas and ensure
that everything is in its
place (and objectionable material such as girly magazines are put in the
trash). The Chief Constable is
preceded by a visit by Superintendent
Austin (Nicholas Courtney), accompanied by Inspector Roger Beavers, who
had worked at
Hartley station six years
earlier and now has a chip on his shoulder. The Chief Constable arrives
and informs Longton that some
of the older police stations
in the region may be closed, and Hartley is among the ones that will be
reviewed. He invites Longton
to attend an interview for
a chief inspector's post at headquarters, heading the Juvenile Board. Meanwhile,
the work of the Hartley
police continues; an elderly
resident of a local nursing home has wandered off, and is later found dead
in the river, while a young
girl gets trapped on the
second floor of a derelict building while looking for her cat. This episode
was directed by Graeme Harper,
who has the distinction
of being the only person to direct episodes of both the old and new series
of Doctor Who.
Who
connections: Many actors who are
associated with Doctor Who appeared in 'Juliet Bravo' over its six-year
run. Colin Baker
featured
in 'The
Intruder', the 12th episode of series three. Other Who actors to appear
in the show include Mark Strickson, David
Daker
(The Time Warrior and Nightmare of Eden), Geoffrey Bayldon (Creature from
the Pit), Bernard Horsfall (Planet of the Daleks
and
The Deadly Assassin, amongst others), Simon Rouse (Kinda) and David Collings
(Revenge of the Cybermen, Robots of Death
and
Mawdryn Undead). The series featured many other well-known British actors,
including Kevin Whatley (Inspector Morse).
Video
clip: Superintendent
Austin 8.6mb |
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