''Saracen'' is a 1989 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 ...

drama series. Made for

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

by Central Television, it starred Christian Burgess and Patrick James Clarke in the title roles. 13 episodes were made which were shown throughout the autumn of 1989.

Series history

The series was created by Ted Childs and Chris Kelly. In the pilot episode, the action concentrated on SAS Major David Barber (played by Stephen Hattersley) who resigns his commission after being forced to undertake a badly-planned hostage rescue. He was Headhunted by elite private security company ''Saracen Systems'' and is partnered up with an Australian ex-Army sergeant Jack Carne (John Walton). Saracen Systems, operated at home and abroad, usually Africa, but could only carry

firearm A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

s when on foreign missions. This was a glossy, expensive film production, perhaps intended to bring back the success of previous ITV action drama like '' The Professionals''.

Main cast

*Christian Burgess as David Barber *Patrick James Clarke as Tom Duffy * Michael Byrne as Colonel Patrick Ansell * John Bennett as Nugent *

Ingrid Lacey Ingrid Marcella Lacey (born 6 November 1958) is a British actress. She is known for her role as Julia in Series 2 of '' London's Burning'', Helen Cooper in the Channel 4 sitcom '' Drop the Dead Donkey'' (1993–98). Her film appearances include '' ...

as Alice

DVD release

Network released the full 13-part series on DVD as a 4-disc set on 7 June 2010.

References

External links

Series review with photos and video at The Medium is Not Enough

BFI.org
* https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133315/ ITV television dramas 1989 British television series debuts 1989 British television series endings 1980s British drama television series British action television series Television series by ITV Studios English-language television shows Television shows produced by Central Independent Television {{UK-tv-prog-stub