Police Rescue
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| Police Rescue | |
|---|---|
 From the opening titles Series 1-5. |
|
| Genre | Drama/Action |
| Running time | approx 0:60 |
| Starring | Gary Sweet, Sonia Todd, Marshall Napier, Steve Bastoni, Tim McKenzie, Peter Browne, John Clayton, Steve Bisley, Tammy MacIntosh, Jeremy Callaghan, Belinda Cotterill, Frankie J Holden, Leah Purcell, Salvatore Coco. |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| Original channel | ABC |
| Original run | 1991–1996 |
| No. of episodes | 61, plus a 90 Minute Pilot |
Police Rescue is an Australian television series which aired on ABC between 1991 and 1996.
Apart from the 61 Episodes, there was a 90 Minute Pilot Episode (Screened orginally in 1989) as well as a feature film in 1994, starring Zoe Carides
The series dealt with the New South Wales Police Rescue Squad based in Sydney and their work attending to various incidents from road accidents to train crashes. The show very well recieved for the first four Seasons, however a decline in ratings by the commencement of the 1996 Season saw the cancellation of the show, following an almost epitaph in the final 3 episodes.
This show was shown in the United Kingdom and aired on the BBC.
Contents |
[edit] Major Cast
- Sergeant Steve 'Mickey' McClintock - (Gary Sweet) (Series 1-5)
- Constable/Sergeant Georgia Rattray - (Sonia Todd) (Series 1-5)
- Constable Yiannis 'Angel' Angelopoulos - (Steve Bastoni) (Series 1-5)
- Senior Sergeant Peter 'Ridgy' Ridgeway - (Tim McKenzie) (Series 1)
- Inspector Bill Adams - (John Clayton) (Series 1-5)
- Sergeant Fred 'Frog' Catteau - (Marshall Napier) (Series 1-2)
- Constable Trevor 'Sootie' Coledale - (Peter Browne) (Series 1)
- Constable Percy 'Ptomaine' Warren - (Doug Scroope) (Series 1-3)
- Senior Sergeant Kevin 'Nipper' Harris - (Steve Bisley) (Series 2-4)
- Sharyn Elliott - (Belinda Cotterill) (Series 2-3 & 5)
- Constable Kathy Orland - (Tammy MacIntosh) (Series 2-4)
- Constable Brian Morley - (Jeremy Callaghan) (Series 2-4)
- Senior Sergeant Glenn 'Spider' Webb - (Frankie J. Holden) (Series 4-5)
- Anastasia Skouras - (Ada Nicodemou) (Series 4)
- Constable Joe Cardillo - (Salvatore Coco) (Series 5)
- Constable Tracy Davis - (Leah Purcell) (Series 5)
- Constable Lorrie 'Flash' Gordon (Zoe Carides) (1994 Feature Film)
[edit] Recurring Minor Cast
- Bronwyn Catteau (Deborah Kennedy) (Series 1)
- Des McClintock (Kerry Armstrong) (Series 1)
- Helena Angelopoulos (Gia Carides) (Series 2-3)
- David Goldberg (Lani John Tupu) (Series 2)
- Constable Lohmeier (Daniel Rigney) (Series 3
[edit] Series 1 (1990/1991)
For the first 13 episodes, Police Rescue sustained the same cast as the 1989 Pilot, with the addition of Constable Yiannis 'Angel' Angelopoulos, who would stay with the show for the duration. This Season also allowed the character of Constable Percy 'Ptomaine' Warren to have a most active role, especially in the episodes LPG and The Cosmic Lightbeam. For the subsequent Seasons, 'Ptomaine' had realtively minor roles. In addition, this series was the only one to portray Sergeant Steve 'Mickey' McClintock's wife, Des, played by Kerry Armstrong. The episodes are as follows:
- Mates
- Angel After Hours
- LPG
- The Cosmic Lightbeam
- Mad Dog
- Saturday Night
- Reunion With Snake
- Raid
- One for Dad
- Hostage
- Up a Tree
- Saving The Princess
- By the Book
[edit] Series 2 (1992)
The character of Sergeant Fred 'Frog' Catteau departed the show following the episode Judgement Day. The following episode, Stakeout, saw the intorduction of Constable Brian Morley. Special guest stars in this Season included Russell Crowe in The Right Stuff and Rebecca Cartwright in Reasons to Live. Although not explicitly explained, Georgia Rattray achieved promotion in this series from 1st Class Constable to Senior Constable to replace the position (in the squad) of Constable Trevor 'Sootie' Coledale (Series 1). It was also not explained in the show why Constable Trevor 'Sootie' Coledale and Senior Sergeant Peter 'Ridgy' Ridgeway had departed. The commencement of the 2nd Series had Senior Sergeant Kevin 'Nipper' Harris replacing 'Ridgy', with 'Nipper' remaining with the show until half way through Series 4. This was also the case for the new characters of Constable Kathy Orland and Constable Brian Morley. The episodes of Series 2 are as follows:
- The Right Stuff
- Off the Track
- The Hard Way
- The Big Canary
- Judgement Day
- Stakeout
- Sugar
- With a Vengeance
- Reasons to Live
- From This Day Forward
- Angel's Devils
- The Real Meaning
- Heartbeat
[edit] Series 3 (1993)
This Series saw the continutation of the cast from the end of Series 2. In addition, there was an increase of guest stars; some of which were relatively unknown at the orgiinal time of broadcast. Stars included Cate Blanchett in The Loaded Boy, Jeffrey Walker in Rush Hour, Frankie J Holden in Good Buddy and Martin Sacks in Prodigal Daughter. This Series also saw the depature of 'Angel's' on-screen wife, Helena (Gia Carides), in On a Roll. This Series also showed the pinnacle of 'Mickey' and Georgia's relationship. Episodes of Series 3 include:
- Lifeline
- Wild Goose Chase
- On a Roll
- Prodigal Daughter
- The Loaded Boy
- Good Buddy
- Rush Hour
- Speeding
- Lift Sixteen
- Whirlwind
- Cold Snap
- Double Illusion
- The Last to Know
[edit] Series 4 (1994/1995)
The character 'Nipper' departed from the series following the episode Wrong Side of the Road with no on-screen explanation. The position was filled by Senior Sergeant Glenn 'Spider' Webb, a replacement which has often been described as the 'beginning of the end' of Police Rescue. Sharon, the Squad receptionist, was also temporarily replaced without explanation by Anastasia Skouras (Ada Nicodemou), who seemed to play an almost identical role to Sharon. This was also the final Series for characters Cathy and Brian, with a highly dramatic departure at the end of the episode Wild Card. Special guests included Judith McGrath in Wrong Side of the Road and Miranda Otto in On the Outer. The Episodes for Series 4 are as follows:
- On the Outer
- Conduct Endangering Life
- Wrong Side of the Road
- Something's Got to Give
- Guardian Angel
- Double Jeopardy
- Crossing the Line
- Damage Control
- Public Mischief
- Breaking Strain
- The Sharp End
- Rescue Me
- Wild Card
[edit] Series 5 (1995/1996)
The final Series to date had only 9 episodes, in comparison to the 13 of the previous 4 Series. With brand new cast members to fill the roles of the two junior squad members, the Series began to take a brand new direction, adopting almost a soap opera style of show . The final 3 episodes acted as an epitaph for the major cast members, with the final episode acting as the final word of Police Rescue. The episodes of this Season include:
- The Ultimate
- Nobby's Place
- The Getting of Wisdom
- The River
- The Ship
- Flash the Descent
- The Holliman Kid
- Tomorrow Never Knows
- The Only Constant
[edit] Subsequent Release
In 1993, ABC Television released selected episodes from Series 1 and Series 2. Series 3-5 are yet to be officialy released. However, in 1997 following the broadcast of Series 5, Police Rescue was played again up to Series 3. Series 1 & 2 was played again in 2000 in a midday timeslot before the final cancellation.
Series 3 enjoyed syndication on Australia's Hallmark Channel throughout the first half of 2006.
In early November 2006, Warner announced the release of complete Series 1. In Australia (region 4), it was released on the 25th of November 2006. It is unknown when (or if) the orginal 90 minute Pilot episode will be released on DVD.
[edit] References
- Police Rescue at Internet Movie Database
- [www.warnervision.com.au]
- [1]
