''Running Scared'' is a six-part British

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

children's drama series, transmitted between 15 January and 19 February 1986, that was based on the Bernard Ashley novel of the same name. The series, primarily set in

Forest Gate Forest Gate is a district in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England. It is located northeast of Charing Cross. The area's name relates to its position adjacent to Wanstead Flats, the southernmost part of Epping Forest. The town ...

, focuses on a teenage girl, Paula Prescott (Julia Millbank), whose life is put at risk when she uncovers evidence that could put a local criminal gang leader Charlie Elkin (

Christopher Ellison Christopher Michael Ellison (born 16 December 1946 in St Pancras, London) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as DCI Frank Burnside in the ITV police series ''The Bill'' and short-lived spin-off series '' Burnside''. Education A ...

) behind bars. The series was filmed in and around Green Lane in

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Forest ...

;

Queen's Market Queen's Market, also known as Queen's Road Market, and Green Street Market, is a historic street market in the London Borough of Newham. It lies adjacent to Green Street and Upton Park tube station. The street market originated in Green St ...

in Upton Park; First Avenue in Manor Park; and The Greyhound

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

in Warley,

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

. The

Woolwich Ferry The Woolwich Ferry is a free vehicle and pedestrian ferry across the River Thames in East London, connecting Woolwich on the south bank with North Woolwich on the north. It is licensed and financed by London River Services, the maritime arm of ...

also features in a key scene. The series was notable for its use of the

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. In 1978, at the age of 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single "Wuthering Heights (song), Wuthering Heights", ...

single ''

Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God) "Running Up That Hill", titled "Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)" on some releases, is a song by the British singer and songwriter Kate Bush. It was released in the United Kingdom as the lead single from Bush's album ''Hounds of Love'' on ...

'' being used as the main title theme, and part of the original video being re-imagined for use within the programme's title sequence. Another notable track used for the series was "Chemistry" by

Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...

and

Jon Hassell Jon Hassell (March 22, 1937 – June 26, 2021) was an American trumpet player and composer. He was best known for developing the concept of "Fourth World" music, which describes a "unified primitive/futurist sound" combining elements of various w ...

from their 1980 collaboration '' Fourth World, Vol. 1: Possible Musics''. Creator Ashley used the story to highlight the ever-growing

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

community in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, which had been rarely touched upon in mainstream television up to this point. A TV-tie in version of the novel was issued a week prior to broadcast on 9 January 1986. A digitally remastered version of the series was released on DVD in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in 2014.

Cast

* Julia Millbank as Paula Prescott *

as Charlie Elkin *

Hetty Baynes Henrietta Sara Louise Baynes (born 16 August 1956) is an English film, television and theatre actress. She began her career in ballet by training from the age of 10 at the Royal Ballet School and made her professional debut, at the age of 12, i ...

as Leila *

James Cosmo James Ronald Gordon Copeland , known professionally as James Cosmo (b. 1947), is a Scottish film and television actor known for his appearances in films including '' Highlander'', ''Braveheart'', ''Trainspotting'', ''Jagame Thandhiram'', ''Tro ...

as Detective Inspector McNeill * Amarjit Dhillon as Narinder Sidhu *

Renu Setna Renu Setna is a British actor. His roles on television include the shopkeeper Mr. Kittel in ''In Sickness and in Health''. and Only Fools and Horses as Mr. Ram Career Setna began his acting career after winning a scholarship to RADA in 1960. ...

as Pratap Singh Sidhu * Rani Singh as Kamal Kaur Sidhu *

Desmond McNamara Desmond McNamara (1938–2022) was an English actor on the stage, radio, television and film. McNamara was born in 1938 in Hackney, London, to Arthur and Winifred McNamara. He took on National Service in the RAF before becoming a printer. In 1961 ...

as Mick Prescott * Maureen Sweeney as Dolly Prescott *

Tony Caunter Anthony Patrick Caunter (born 22 September 1937) is a Retired British actor best known for his role as Jack Shepherd in the Yorkshire TV sitcom '' Queenie's Castle'' and also his portrayal of Roy Evans in ''EastEnders'' from 1994 to 2003. The ...

as Frank Butler * Alan Ford as Ron Martin * Alan Talbot as Fred Barratt * Simon Adams as Brian Butler * Jason Norman as Tommy * Damon Doyle as Scott * Anthony Gorry as Dean Prescott * Fred Bryant as Sam "Grandad" Prescott

Episodes

References

External links

* BBC children's television shows 1980s British children's television series 1986 British television series debuts 1986 British television series endings Television shows set in London English-language television shows {{UK-kids-tv-prog-stub