Target (UK TV series)

Synopsis

Target was set in Southampton, as the 13th Regional Crime Squad. The series was originally developed under the title Hackett, by producer Graham Williams but he was asked to swap roles with the outgoing producer of Doctor Who, Philip Hinchcliffe, who retitled the show Target.

It starred Patrick Mower as Det. Supt. Steve Hackett, Brendan Price as Det. Sgt. Frank Bonney, Vivien Heilbron as Det. Sgt. Louise Colbert and Philip Madoc as Det. Chief Supt. Tate. Seventeen fifty-minute episodes were produced, over two series. The theme music was by Dudley Simpson.

Initial Reaction

At the time, the show was criticized for its level of violence. The BBC's Director General, Alasdair Milne, reportedly received 5,000 letters of complaint from Mary Whitehouse's League of Light. Its release also coincided with the publication of the Belson Report (Television violence and the adolescent boy). The first series was curtailed and the second series toned down the level of violence.

Cancellation

A third series was mooted, with Robert Banks Stewart taking over as producer. He spent two weeks in the producer's chair, during which he planned to change the supporting cast, reduce the violence and steer the show further away from The Sweeney. Banks Stewart wanted James Bolam as the new lead but Bolam preferred to do one final series of When the Boat Comes In first. Banks Stewart then claims he was asked by Graeme McDonald, the BBC's Head of Series and Serials, whether he would prefer to scrap Target altogether and produce a new series. He devised the private eye drama, Shoestring.

However, Patrick Mower offered a view which was slightly different: he wanted to terminate his commitment anyway. With reference to the rather unfortunate fate of Professionals lead, Lewis Collins, he emphasized in the late 1990s that he did not like to be identified with one particular role and, for this reason, he had made it his policy never to appear in a series for more than two years.

Some of the episode were written by David Wickes, who also wrote scripts for The Professionals and his production company, David Wickes Productions, produced The New Professionals, in 1999.

Cars

Like The Sweeney, the cars used were Fords, mostly Cortinas and Granadas. However, Hackett's personal car, seen in several episodes, is a 1969 Mercury Cougar.

Official Releases

In 1983, the BBC tried to relaunch the series on the then-soaring video market, releasing the pilot, Shipment, on VHS tape. However, no further releases were forthcoming.

The first series was last aired on TV on the now-defunct British Satellite Broadcasting cable channel, Galaxy, in 1990. The second series has not been aired since 1978. There have long been calls for the series to be aired again, especially as programmes such as The Sweeney and The Professionals have had many repeats.

All seventeen episodes survive in C1 format (16 mm film), in the BBC archives. Some sources, such as Halliwell/Purser, claim that there were twenty-two episodes but this is simply a mistake.

Novels

Two Target novels were published. It seems that writers, Michael Feeney Callan and Simon Masters, were asked to turn their scripts into novels, so that the BBC could put them on the market.