Police Rescue

infobox television
show_name = Police Rescue


caption = From the opening titles Series 1-5.
format = Drama/Action
runtime = approx 50 mins
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 = Australia
network = ABC
first_aired = 1989
last_aired = 1996
num_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 originally 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 was very well received 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, in Ireland on RTE and in France on TF1 (titled Sydney Police).

Major Cast

*Sergeant Steve 'Mickey' McClintock - (Gary Sweet) (Pilot-1996)
*Constable/Sergeant Georgia Rattray - (Sonia Todd) (Pilot-1996)
*Constable Yiannis 'Angel' Angelopoulos - (Steve Bastoni) (1990-1996)
*Senior Sergeant Peter 'Ridgy' Ridgeway - (Tim McKenzie) (Pilot-1990)
*Inspector Bill Adams - (John Clayton) (Pilot-1996)
*Sergeant Fred 'Frog' Catteau - (Marshall Napier) (Pilot-1992)
*Constable Trevor 'Sootie' Coledale - (Peter Browne) (Pilot-1990)
*Constable Percy 'Ptomaine' Warren - (Doug Scroope) (pilot-1993)
*Senior Sergeant Kevin 'Nipper' Harris - (Steve Bisley) (1992-1995)
*Sharyn Elliott - (Belinda Cotterill) (1992-1994, 1996)
*Constable Kathy Orland - (Tammy MacIntosh) (1992-1995)
*Constable Brian Morley - (Jeremy Callaghan) (1992-1995)
*Senior Sergeant Glenn 'Spider' Webb - (Frankie J. Holden) (1994-1996)
*Anastasia Skouras - (Ada Nicodemou) (1994-1995)
*Constable Joe Cardillo - (Salvatore Coco) (1995-1996)
*Constable Tracy Davis - (Leah Purcell) (1995-1996)
*Constable Lorrie 'Flash' Gordon (Zoe Carides) (1994 Feature Film)

Recurring Minor Cast

*Bronwyn Catteau (Deborah Kennedy) (Series 1-2)
*Des McClintock (Kerry Armstrong) (Series 1)
*Maria Mellick (Debbie Byrne) (Series 1-2)
*Tony Fuller (NARC Detective) (Harold Hopkins) (Series 1-2)
*Helena Angelopoulos (Gia Carides) (Series 2-3)
*David Goldberg (Lani John Tupu) (Series 2)
*Constable Lohmeier (Daniel Rigney) (Series 3)

Pilot/Telemovie (1989)

In mid-1989, Southern Star Productions broadcast the Pilot episode of "Police Rescue" via the Australian Broadcasting Commission. The 90 minute telemovie established the background of the protagonist of the series, Sergeant "Mickey" McClintock. Several issues were raised in the pilot, such as women's discrimination, sexism, and street violence. The plot evolved around the entrance of the first woman member to the "Police Rescue Squad", Constable Georgia Rattray and then the search for a missing boy in Sydney's sewer system.

The telemovie was well received and spawned the series of "Police Rescue", which carried on shortly after the pilot.

eries 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 relatively 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"

eries 2 (1992)

The character of Sergeant Fred 'Frog' Catteau departed the show following the episode "Judgement Day". The following episode, "Stakeout", saw the introduction 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"

eries 3 (1993)

This Series saw the continuation 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 original 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". Viewers also saw the last of Angel's wife in "On a Roll", despite her mentioning later on in the Series. 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"

eries 4 (1994/1995)

The character 'Nipper' departed from the series following the episode "Wrong Side of the Road" in order to spend more time with his family and take over on his sister's farm. 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 Kathy 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" as well as Miranda Otto and Delta Goodrem 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"

eries 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 new direction, adopting an almost 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"

Home Video Releases

In 1993, ABC Television released selected episodes from Series 1 and Series 2 on VHS format. The 1989 Pilot episode was released the previous year.

In early November 2006, [http://www.warnervision.com.au WarnerVision] announced the release of complete Series 1. In Australia it was released on the 24th of November 2006. The 4 disc "collector's box set" included all 13 episodes from Season 1, including the 90 minute Pilot episode as bonus material. Series 2 and 3 were released on 9th April 2007. They contain episodes 14 to 39, devoid of any bonus features or extras. Series 4 and 5 were released in a two part DVD set on 9th July 2007.

References

* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098896/ Police Rescue] at Internet Movie Database
* [http://www.warnervision.com.au/ WarnerVision]
* [http://www.epguides.com/PoliceRescue/guide.shtml]

External links

* [http://colsearch.nfsa.afc.gov.au/nfsa/search/display/display.w3p;adv=yes;group=;groupequals=;holdingType=;page=0;parentid=;query=310506;querytype=;rec=0;resCount=10 Police Rescue at the National Film and Sound Archive]