Callan (TV series) on:  
[Wikipedia]  
[Google]  
[Amazon]
''Callan'' is a British
action
Action may refer to:
* Action (narrative), a literary mode
* Action fiction, a type of genre fiction
* Action game, a genre of video game
Film
* Action film, a genre of film
* ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford
* ''Action'' (1980 fil ...
-
drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
spy
Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
television series created by
James Mitchell, first airing between 1967 and 1972. It starred
Edward Woodward
Edward Albert Arthur Woodward, OBE (1 June 1930 – 16 November 2009) was an English actor and singer. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he began his career on stage. Throughout his career, he appeared in productions ...
as David Callan, an agent of a state secret service dealing with internal security threats to the United Kingdom. Though portrayed as having responsibilities similar to those of the real-life
MI5
The Security Service, also known as MI5 ( Military Intelligence, Section 5), is the United Kingdom's domestic counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), G ...
, Callan's fictional "Section" has ''carte blanche'' to use the most ruthless of methods. In the storylines interrogation is by means of torture, while
extrajudicial killing
An extrajudicial killing (also known as extrajudicial execution or extralegal killing) is the deliberate killing of a person without the lawful authority granted by a judicial proceeding. It typically refers to government authorities, whethe ...
s are so routine they have a colour-coded filing system. With the possible exception of ''
La Femme Nikita'', no TV series has ever presented a Western government agency in so sinister a light as ''Callan''. Despite being an assassin who stays in the socially isolating job because it is the only thing he is good at, Callan is a sympathetic character by comparison to his sadistic upper-class colleagues and implacable superiors. The downbeat cover for the Section's headquarters was the scrap metal business of "Charlie Hunter" (a possible reference to
the Richardson Gang
The Richardson Gang was an English crime gang based in South London, England in the 1960s. Also known as the "Torture Gang", they had a reputation as some of London's most sadistic gangsters. Their alleged specialities included pulling teeth o ...
). Produced by
ABC Weekend TV
ABC Weekend TV was the popular name of the British broadcaster ABC Television Limited, which provided the weekend service in the Midlands and Northern England regions of the Independent Television (ITV) network from 1956 to 1968. It was one ...
and
Thames Television
Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992.
Thames Television broa ...
, the programme proved extremely popular; as well as four series between 1967 and 1972, followed by
a feature-length film in 1974 and a TV film in 1981.
Characters
* David Callan (Series 1–4) – his name is a pseudonym as when meeting with an old acquaintance he remarks (in the episode 'Where Else Could I Go?') that he knew him by a different name during their military service together. He often uses the alias David Tucker who is officially in the scrap metal business but is also a qualified bookkeeper which he uses both to support himself when not working for The Section and occasionally in undercover work. He was born in London, an only child whose parents were both killed towards the end of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
in a V2 rocket attack. He served as a
National Service
National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939.
The ...
man in the British Army during the
Malayan Emergency with the
Green Howards
The Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own Yorkshire Regiment), frequently known as the Yorkshire Regiment until the 1920s, was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, in the King's Division. Raised in 1688, it served under vario ...
, attained the rank of
corporal
Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non ...
and saved his company commander's life, winning a medal but twice being demoted for fighting with a sergeant and arguing with an officer. Afterwards, he became a bank robber but was caught, served two years in
Wormwood Scrubs
Wormwood Scrubs, known locally as The Scrubs (or simply Scrubs), is an open space in Old Oak Common located in the north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London. It is the largest open space in the borough, ...
prison and was subsequently recruited by The Section. He served in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
and in
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
where he became romantically involved with a woman who was shot and killed in his arms by an enemy agent. He is a
crack shot
Crack frequently refers to:
* Crack, a fracture in a body
* Crack, a fracture (geology) in a rock
* Crack, short for crack cocaine
Crack may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''Cracks'' (film), a 2009 independent thriller
* C ...
, normally preferring a snub-nosed Nagouchi .357 Magnum revolver and a karate expert, demonstrating the ability to kill an opponent with his bare hands using only three blows. He is a skilled burglar and safe-cracker although not as good as Lonely whose expert help he regularly requires. He speaks fluent Russian. He drinks whisky with Hunter and keeps gin and light ale at his flat. He is appalled by his work for The Section although he seems to accept it as a necessary evil of the
Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, feeling that not only has he no choice but that it is what he is genuinely good at. His social life largely consists of military history and collecting militaria, spending his free time with other collectors and enthusiasts, his speciality the Napoleonic period. When distraught, he gets drunk with Lonely and confesses to witnessing another soldier ruthlessly shooting down the enemy in an ambush during the Malayan War, vowing to become just like him in order to survive.
* Lonely (Series 1–4) – his real name is never revealed. (In Series 2, Episode 13, one character addresses Lonely as 'Mr Bellamy'. When visiting him in jail, Callan calls Lonely 'Arthur'. However, given his nature, they may not be his real names.) He is a small-time thief, former forger and burglar and has been since childhood. He has an aunt who is his 'fence' and runs a snack bar in a market along with her statuesque son called Wellington and an unnamed friend who is a blind beggar. Lonely earns his nickname due to bouts of extreme body odour which is psychosomatic and occurs when he is frightened, which is often when in Callan's presence. He is an expert at surveillance and burglary and is Callan's link to criminal resources such as an underworld doctor ('The Groper') and black-market weapons (although he personally dislikes guns intensely). He takes various straight jobs throughout the series, such as a bathroom attendant at a strip club, but The Section eventually arranges a career for him as a
black cab
A hackney or hackney carriage (also called a cab, black cab, hack or London taxi) is a carriage or car for hire. A hackney of a more expensive or high class was called a remise. A symbol of London and Britain, the black taxi is a common s ...
driver, both in their service and to support himself (and keep out of trouble) between assignments. He and Callan met in Wormwood Scrubs prison where Callan defended the vulnerable Lonely from other more violent criminals. Although they seem to genuinely care for one another, Lonely always refers to him as 'Mr Callan' and is perpetually afraid of him. Callan never actually tells Lonely the nature of his work although it is hinted at that Lonely suspects him to be more than just an everyday gangster, notably when he aids Callan in helping a
KGB
The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
agent escape from prison. He likes his tea 'interfered with' (meaning laced with whisky) and enjoys gambling.
* Hunter (Series 1–4) – head of the Section. Five different men, including Callan himself, have served in the position over the course of the series. Although their personalities differ, they share several traits, such as callousness and a tendency for secretiveness and manipulation. Despite their ruthlessness, they tend to tread carefully around Callan, knowing that if they push him too far, he will retaliate with not-inconsiderable force.
* Liz (Series 1–4) – secretary of the various Hunters. It is revealed that she was a survivor of a Nazi massacre in Poland as a child and was adopted by a British intelligence officer, which eventually led her into being recruited by The Section. She and Callan seem fond of one another but their relationship appears to be wholly professional.
* Toby Meres (Series 1–2, 4) – an upper class agent who attended
Eton school
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...
followed by
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
and then the
Brigade of Guards
The Brigade of Guards was an administrative formation of the British Army from 1856 to 1968. It was commanded by the Major-General commanding the Brigade of Guards and was responsible for administering the guards regiments.
After the Second Wor ...
, recruited by The Section after being forced to leave the army because he caused the death of one of his men. He wears distinctive blue glasses, uses a .38 Special and spent a year attached to the
CIA
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
as The Section's Washington representative. He has an adversarial relationship with Callan but respects his abilities and works effectively in a team with him.
* Dr Snell (Series 2–4) – a sinister and seemingly emotionless doctor who works for The Section. As well as standard medical care, he is involved in the psychological evaluation of Section personnel, the mental torture of Section prisoners and even
brainwash
Brainwashing (also known as mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education) is the concept that the human mind can be altered or controlled by certain psychological techniques. Brainwashin ...
ing a criminal so that he forgets witnessing Callan kill one of his henchmen.
* James Cross (Series 3–4) – a replacement agent for Toby Meres (who had been posted to the US) and Callan's rival within The Section. He is ambitious and extremely ruthless, bordering on the sadistic. He drives a white Jaguar, drinks whisky, smokes cigarettes and uses a snub-nosed .38 calibre revolver. He has a casual affair with Hunter's secretary, Liz, and later kills the Nazi war criminal who tried to murder her by throwing him out of a window, although Callan opines this was purely to save his own career (possibly as a ruse to prompt Liz into ending their destructive relationship). Whilst Callan is on friendly terms with the other members of The Section, he and Cross share a mutual antipathy that borders on hatred, Cross even disagreeing with Hunter's decision to trade a captured KGB agent in return for rescuing an imprisoned Callan from behind the
Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was the political boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. The term symbolizes the efforts by the Soviet Union (USSR) to block itself and its s ...
.
* Bishop (Series 3–4) – a civil servant, and Hunter's superior.
Series overview
The series pilot episode aired in February 1967, in an ''
Armchair Theatre
''Armchair Theatre'' is a British television drama anthology series of single plays that ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by ABC Weekend TV. Its successor Thames Television took over from mid-1968.
The Canad ...
'' play entitled ''A Magnum for Schneider'' by
James Mitchell. Mitchell was later responsible for creating ''
When the Boat Comes In
''When the Boat Comes In'' is a British television period drama produced by the BBC between 1976 and 1981. The series stars James Bolam as Jack Ford, a First World War veteran who returns to his poverty-stricken (fictional) town of Gallowshiel ...
'' (1976–81) for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
. The haunted character of Callan caught the public's imagination to such an extent that a six-episode series was commissioned and broadcast, later in the same year. A further series of 16 followed, though with both ABC and Associated Rediffusion (broadcasters in the London region) going through the process of merging, by the time the second series was broadcast in 1969 it was attributed to
Thames Television
Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992.
Thames Television broa ...
(the result of the merger).
Overall, the series was successful in the television ratings, running between 1967 and 1972. The closing episode of the 1969 series saw a severely under-pressure Callan get shot, with a clever publicity campaign following to ensure that viewers cared whether the character lived (he did) or died. The last two series were in colour and proved as popular as ever. A cinema film simply entitled ''Callan'' followed in 1974, directed by
Don Sharp
Donald Herman Sharp (19 April 192114 December 2011) was an Australian film director.
His best known films were made for Hammer in the 1960s, and included ''The Kiss of the Vampire'' (1963) and ''Rasputin, the Mad Monk'' (1966). In 1965 he dire ...
. Callan was last seen in the 1981 feature-length television story made by
ATV, entitled ''Wet Job''. Though less satisfactory than the preceding series, it was a chance for viewers to see the main characters of Callan and Lonely one more time.
Colour-coded files
The Section used a series of colour-coded files to indicate targets of different priorities (with much relevance for the title of the novel "Red File for Callan");
Episodes
The original TV play was screened in 1967 as part of ITV's ''
Armchair Theatre
''Armchair Theatre'' is a British television drama anthology series of single plays that ran on the ITV network from 1956 to 1974. It was originally produced by ABC Weekend TV. Its successor Thames Television took over from mid-1968.
The Canad ...
'' series. This was followed by a first series of six episodes, a second series of fifteen episodes, a third series of nine episodes and a fourth series of thirteen episodes (in all, 22 black-and-white and 22 colour episodes). These were supplemented by a
1974 colour film re-working of the pilot, ''A Magnum for Schneider'', .and a 1981 feature-length TV movie, ''Wet Job''.
Pilot – ''A Magnum for Schneider'' (1967)
Callan has been retired from an anonymous government agency known as "The Section", run by Colonel Hunter (the name "Hunter" is used as a code name for the current Section Chief, similar to the
C of SIS). The Section removes those who pose a danger to the public, by means of either persuasion, blackmail, extortion or death. David Callan had been the Section's top operative, but had become too curious about his targets and the rationale for their removal. The Section considered him vulnerable, volatile and dangerous, so had laid him off to a dead-end book-keeping job with an ungrateful employer.
The pilot was novelised by its scriptwriter,
James Mitchell, who went on to write most of the TV series episodes. The book was published under the title ''Red File For Callan'' in the US, and as ''A Magnum for Schneider'' in the UK, the storyline being based around Callan's love for model soldier war games, an interest shared by his target, Schneider, a Hampstead-based arms dealer.
The pilot, filmed in black-and-white, was later remade in colour as a feature film in 1974, two years after the television series ended.
Series 1 : 6 episodes (1967)
ABC commissioned a first series of six episodes in 1967. In the first episode Callan rejoins the section in an unofficial capacity. The series was characterised by Callan's stand-offish, barely-respectful relationship with his boss, Hunter, who schemed to retain Callan on his side, and would play him off in little divide-and-rule scenarios with or against his fellow agents. This was in an effort to maintain his control, although it wasn't always apparent that these ploys worked. Callan's underworld contact, Lonely (
Russell Hunter
Adam Russell Hunter (18 February 1925 – 26 February 2004) was a Scottish television, stage and film actor. He played Lonely in the TV thriller series ''Callan'', starring Edward Woodward, and shop steward Harry in the Yorkshire Television si ...
), developed into an unofficial
sidekick
A sidekick is a slang expression for a close companion or colleague (not necessarily in fiction) who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to the one they accompany.
Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, ...
, whose shadowing qualities outshone his sense of personal hygiene, something Meres in particular took joy in pointing out. Lonely remained ignorant of Callan's real work and believed him to be something of a gangland villain.
Series 2 : 15 episodes (1969)
By 1969, ABC Weekend Television had, due to an enforced merger with Rediffusion, become Thames Television. A second series of fifteen episodes, which had already been completed by ABC, was therefore transmitted under the name of the new company. This run ended with "Death of a Hunter", in which the Section chief meets his demise, and Callan is shot – perhaps fatally. It had not been decided whether the show would return for a third series, so this device was used to leave open either the possibility of more stories in the future, or a way of winding-up the show. Two endings were taped, in which Callan either lived or died. In the end, Thames decided to bring the programme back in 1970, this time in colour, for a series consisting of a further nine episodes.
Series 3 : 9 episodes (1970)
The third series, the first in colour, saw Callan still recovering from having been shot and struggling to come to terms with his situation. Interviews with Snell (the Section's doctor) and poor shooting range results portrayed Callan as a barely-functioning human being, whose future with the Section looks to be in serious doubt. If Callan is to be of any use to Hunter, something has to spark him into life. In league with Meres' younger, brasher, edgier and unpredictable replacement, James Cross (played by
Patrick Mower
Patrick Mower (born Patrick Archibald Shaw; 12 September 1938) is an English actor who has portrayed the role of Rodney Blackstock in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'' since 2000. As well as portraying Rodney, Mower has appeared in various film ...
), the new Hunter concocts a scenario whereby Callan's energies are incited into real emotions that can be turned against the enemy. The remaining eight episodes see the revitalised yet ever-more world-weary assassin cover more ground, including one episode where love comes unexpectedly into his life, and which has the (expected) unexpected ending.
Series 4 : 13 episodes (1972)
The final set of thirteen episodes was broadcast in 1972. This saw Callan develop further than before. An unsuccessful mission results in Callan being interrogated in a Russian prison but he is exchanged by the Soviets for one of their agents. Now he is known to them, he has become a liability. What to do with The Section's top agent is solved by promoting him to the position of Hunter – a post he dislikes as much or even more than actually serving under a Hunter. However, this move by his masters has motives, and he is eventually relieved of his duties after an incident in which he re-enters the fray as an agent, which was against the rules. He is replaced as Hunter by his predecessor. The final three episodes form a trilogy based around the defecting Soviet agent Richmond (played by
T. P. McKenna), which was sub-titled ''The Richmond Files''.
Reunion TV Movie : ''Wet Job'' (1981)
The 1981 feature-length television story ''Wet Job'', written by Mitchell and produced by
ATV (without the original theme music or logo), rounded off the saga with a positive ending to the story of Callan and Lonely. Callan has become the proprietor of a military memorabilia shop when he is recruited by the new Hunter for one more job. Alas, he has to do this alone: Lonely has become a dapper gent, engaged to be married, and with enough self-confidence to defy Callan's request for help. In the end, Callan completes the task, survives, and even ends up with a girlfriend.
Documentary : ''This Man Alone'' (2015)
A Callan documentary entitled ''This Man Alone'' was released on DVD in November 2015. Narrated by Edward Woodward's son
Peter Woodward
Peter Woodward (born 24 January 1956) is a British actor, stuntman and screenwriter. He is probably best known for his role as Galen in the ''Babylon 5'' spin-offs '' Babylon 5: A Call to Arms'', ''Crusade'' and '' Babylon 5: The Lost Tales''. ...
, it includes contributions from Peter Mitchell, Reginald Collin, Mike Vardy, and James Goddard. Additionally the DVD includes a new transfer of ''A Magnum for Schneider'' and ''The Good Ones Are All Dead'', a music-themed TV special ''The Edward Woodward Hour'', and a documentary on James Mitchell, ''A World of My Own''.
In other media
Film – ''Callan'' (1974)
The cinema film was an expanded re-working of James Mitchell's original 1967 TV pilot episode, ''A Magnum for Schneider''. Taking much of its new material from Mitchell's own novelisation of that teleplay, it was based more on the novel than on the original television script. For legal reasons, no mention is made of the pilot teleplay or the TV series. The film's credits mention only the novel as its source, identifying it by the title under which it had been published by Simon & Schuster in the United States in 1969, ''Red File for Callan'', so as to avoid any reference to the title of the ABC television pilot.
In 1974, Dell reissued the novel in paperback, as ''Red File for Callan''. Despite coinciding with the film's release this edition gave no hint of being a tie-in.
In the film, Callan's boss Hunter is played by
Eric Porter
Eric Richard Porter (8 April 192815 May 1995) was an English actor of stage, film and television.
Early life
Porter was born in Shepherd's Bush, London, to bus conductor Richard John Porter and Phoebe Elizabeth (née Spall). His parents ho ...
, and Meres too is re-cast, this time played by
Peter Egan
Peter Joseph Egan (born 28 September 1946) is a British actor and animal rights activist.
He is known for his television roles, including Hogarth in ''Big Breadwinner Hog'', the future George IV of the United Kingdom in ''Prince Regent'' (1979 ...
(known at the time as a trendy gangster, from the controversial TV series ''
Big Breadwinner Hog'', but now better known for
sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...
s such as the BBC's ''
Ever Decreasing Circles
''Ever Decreasing Circles'' is a British sitcom which ran on BBC1 between 1984 and 1989, consisting of four series and one feature-length special. It was written by John Esmonde and Bob Larbey, and it reunited them with Richard Briers, who ha ...
''). The only recurring actors from the TV series were Edward Woodward as Callan, Russell Hunter as Lonely, and
Clifford Rose
John Clifford Rose (24 October 1929 – 6 November 2021) was a British actor.
Life and career
Rose was born in Herefordshire. He was educated at the King's School, Worcester, and King's College London, before appearing in rep and began his ass ...
as Dr Snell (who appears in five of the television episodes from series two, three and four, although, in the film, reflecting the screenplay's 1967 origin, it's stated that Callan has never met Snell before).
Novels
*''A Magnum for Schneider'' by James Mitchell – also published as ''Red File for Callan'' and ''Callan'' – (1969),
*''Russian Roulette'' (1973) by James Mitchell,
*''Death and Bright Water'' (1974) by James Mitchell,
*''Smear Job'' (1975) by James Mitchell,
*''Bonfire Night'' (2002) by James Mitchell,
Short story collections
There are two short story collections
*''Callan Uncovered'' (2014) all by James Mitchell. Features 25 short stories (24 were written for the ''Sunday Express'', and 1 for the ''TV Times''), as well as a story treatment and the full script of an unfilmed episode, "Goodbye Mary Lee".
*''Callan Uncovered 2'' (2015) all by James Mitchell. Features 15 short stories (all were written for the ''Sunday Express''), as well as the full script of a 'lost' episode, "Goodness Burns Too Bright".
Big Finish audio series
On 7 December 2017,
Big Finish Productions
Big Finish Productions is a British company that produces books and audio plays (released straight to compact disc and for download in MP3 and m4b format) based, primarily, on cult science fiction properties. These include ''Doctor Who'', the ...
announced plans to release two box sets of Callan audio adventures based on the Sunday Express Short Stories written by James Mitchell. The tales have been adapted by Peter Mitchell, the series creator's son, and star
Ben Miles in the title role, with
Frank Skinner as ''Lonely'',
Nicholas Briggs
Nicholas Briggs (born 29 September 1961) is an English actor, writer, director, sound designer and composer. He is associated with the BBC science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'' and its spin-offs, particularly as the voice of the Dal ...
as ''Hunter'' and
Jane Slavin
Jane Slavin (born 11 March 1970) is an English actress and novelist. Slavin was the winner of the 1989 BBC Radio Drama Carleton Hobbs Award. She has appeared on television in ''Lewis'', '' Doctors'' as Gayle Buckley, ''Peak Practice'', ''Alway ...
as ''Liz''. Volume One released July 2018. On 29 July 2020, Big Finish announced that the second volume would release in September 2020.
''Callan: Volume 1''
''Callan: Volume 2''
Awards and nominations
The following is a table listing the awards and nominations received by ''Callan''
Music
The series' theme tune, "Girl in the Dark" (also known as "This Man Alone"), was a library piece credited to
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
composer
Jan Stoeckart
Jan Stoeckart (3 November 1927 – 13 January 2017) was a Dutch composer, conductor, trombonist and former radio producer, who often worked under various pseudonyms such as Willy Faust, Peter Milray, Julius Steffaro and Jack Trombey. In the UK ...
(under the penname "Jack Trombey", one of several aliases he used), issued by
De Wolfe Music
De Wolfe Limited (previously known as Music de Wolfe, often referred to as De Wolfe Music) is a British music production company, recognised as the originator of what has become known as library music. De Wolfe Music was established by Meyer de Wo ...
.
However, an edition of ''
Billboard'' newspaper dated 15 November 1975 reported on the conclusion of a seven-year copyright case brought in 1968 by Mood Music (a subsidiary of the Sparta-Florida Music Group), who claimed that ''Girl in the Dark'' was "sufficiently similar" to an Italian song, ''Sogno Nostalgico'', as to be an infringement of copyright. That song was claimed to have been composed in 1963, with records of it released in Italy in 1964 which were made available from Mood Music's library in 1965. But Mood proved oddly reluctant to push the case to a trial.
The accuracy of their claim may be judged from the fact that Mood also claimed, incorrectly, that ''Sogno Nostalgico'' was used as the theme for the British television series ''
The Rat Catchers
''The Rat Catchers'' is a 1960s British television drama series made by Rediffusion and broadcast on ITV. The series was not networked, playing on different days of the week in London from other regions. It is about a top secret British Intel ...
'', a piece of music which has always been credited to UK composer Johnny Pearson.
De Wolfe maintained that ''Girl in the Dark'', the work of Dutch composer Jan Stoeckart in 1960, had been submitted to other people before the copyright was assigned to them in 1966 (i.e., including a period before ''Sogno Nostalgico'' had been composed). A settlement was reached in 1975 once it became clear – from the 1974 feature film – that ''Callan'' was no longer using the piece, so that royalties had dried up. Copyright in it was vested by agreement in Mood Music in 1975, together with future royalties (but ''Callan'' never used it again), with De Wolfe retaining the majority of the royalties earned up to that point.
Due to the ongoing legal action, the 1974 feature film conspicuously did not use the composition ''Girl in the Dark'', and the terms of the settlement of the case in 1975 led to its also not being used in ATV's 1981 reunion TV movie.
Incidental music was not a feature of the ''Callan'' television series, except in "A Magnum for Schneider" where "Girl in the Dark" was repeatedly played in scenes in which Callan set to work.
DVD releases
''Callan'' in the archives
The ''Armchair Theatre'' play from 1967 exists as a 16mm film recording of the original 405-line black-and-white television broadcast.
The 21 episodes of series 1 and 2 were recorded on black-and-white videotape, with filmed inserts; but several of these episodes have been lost or wiped. The surviving episodes from Series 1 still exist as 405-line tapes, and those episodes featured on the 2015 DVD ''A Man Alone'' had proper electronic conversions to 625-line video, but the episodes have previously had poor quality optical conversions by merely pointing a 625-line electronic camera at a monitor displaying the original 405-line recording. The surviving Series 2 episodes also exist on 405-line videotapes, but for DVD these were electronically (as opposed to optically) converted. In the case of "The Worst Soldier I Ever Saw", Network's DVD cover blurb states that the episode only survives as an unedited studio block, which had to be edited into its proper sequence for the DVD release.
All of the colour episodes exist, and the 1970 series was released on DVD in the UK in 2001. The episodes were edited to remove captions which would have led into the commercial breaks in the original transmission. This resulted in some awkward visual and audio jump cuts. The subsequent British DVD releases all retain the commercial break captions. The 1974 feature film was released on DVD separately.
Both the 1970 and 1972 series have had Region 4 DVD releases by Umbrella Entertainment. The 1972 series DVD also includes the feature film.
The separate DVD release of the 1974 feature film includes an interview, recorded in 2000, with Edward Woodward.
Region 1
Acorn Media released ''Callan - Set 1'' on 7 July 2009 which includes all 9 episodes from series 3. On 26 January 2010, ''Callan - Set 2'' was released featuring all 13 episodes from series 4. It has not been decided whether further series will be released to DVD in Region 1.
Region 2
Clear Vision Video released three DVDs subtitled "Series 1 Parts 1 – 3 of 3", also available in a box titled ''Callan – The Complete Series One'', in 2001. In fact these DVDs comprise the nine episodes of Series 3 aired in 1970, the first colour series, although the back covers incorrectly claim that "This edition comes from the first series that was ever shown on Thames Television". (ABC had aired the complete first series before changing its name in the 1968 ITV franchise round; then, renamed Thames, it had shown the second series in 1969.)
Prism Leisure
Prism Leisure Corporation Plc was a distribution and publishing company that primarily focused on reissues and compilations, often at low prices. The company was located in Enfield, Middlesex, United Kingdom,
History
The company was founded in ...
released the cinema film as ''Callan – The Movie'' on Region 0 PAL in 2001. The DVD also includes an interview with Edward Woodward.
Network released ''Callan – The Monochrome Years'' in a
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
edition on 22 February 2010. This four DVD set includes the ''Armchair Theatre'' pilot play, 'A Magnum For Schnieder', plus the surviving 2 episodes of the first series (out of the original 6), and the surviving 9 episodes of the second series (out of the original 15). Network also released ''Callan – The Colour Years'' in 2010. ''Callan – Wet Job'' was then released by Network in 2011. Network were due to release the complete series, containing all the surviving episodes, ''The Definitive Collection'', the following year, but this did not happen and eventually, in 2015, the special features announced for the set began to be released individually.
This suggests that the collection has been abandoned.
Region 4
Umbrella Entertainment released the third and fourth series on DVD in Australia in 2007.
References
External links
British Film Institute Screen OnlineCallan information on Digital Tapestries*
*
*
*
{{Armchair Theatre
1967 British television series debuts
1972 British television series endings
1960s British drama television series
1970s British drama television series
English-language television shows
Espionage television series
ITV television dramas
Television shows produced by ABC Weekend TV
Television shows produced by Thames Television
Black-and-white British television shows
Spy drama television films
Television shows shot at Teddington Studios