Rare Poster Mower & Price (Target) Size 24 1/2 by 37 1/2 inches

Description

Rare Poster Mower & Price (Target)
Target
was a
police
drama series, which ran from 1977–78, on
BBC1
. The series was the BBC's response to
ITV
's successful series,
The Sweeney
, but received criticism for its levels of violence and lasted for just two seasons.
Synopsis
[
edit
]
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 criticised for its level of violence. The BBC's Director of Programmes,
Alasdair Milne
, reportedly received 5,000 letters of complaint from
Mary Whitehouse
's League of Light.
[1]
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
[
edit
]
A third series was mooted, with
Robert Banks Stewart
taking over as producer. He spent two weeks in the producer's role, 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.
Different reasons have been given for the cancellation of
Target
. According to Philip Hinchcliffe's account on the DVD commentary for
Doctor Who
serial
The Seeds of Doom
, the series was ultimately cancelled because Alasdair Milne didn't like it.
[2]
Banks Stewart claimed he was asked by
Graeme MacDonald
, the BBC's Head of Series and Serials, whether he would prefer to scrap
Target
altogether and produce a new series.
[3]
He then 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.
[4]
Some of the episodes 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
[
edit
]
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
.
_gsrx_vers_836 (GS 7.0.14 (836))