Sergeant Cork is a British detective television series which first aired between 1963 and 1968 on ITV. It was a police procedural show that followed the efforts of two police officers and their battle against crime in Victorian London. In all 66 hour-long episodes were aired during the five-year run, although the last episode was not broadcast until January 1968, 16 months after the others.[2] Journalist Tom Sutcliffe has credited it as a first example of the use of the Victorian-era policeman in a television crime series.[3]
| Sergeant Cork | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Detective Period drama |
| Created by | Ted Willis |
| Starring | John Barrie William Gaunt Charles Morgan Freddie Fowler Edward Ogden Arnold Diamond John Richmond Barry Raymond Peter Sallis Donald Morley[1] |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 6 |
| No. of episodes | 66 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Jack Williams |
| Running time | 50 minutes |
| Production company | ATV |
| Original release | |
| Network | ITV |
| Release | 1963 – 1968 |
A 1969 review in The Age opined that rather than suspense, the strengths of the series were its "[e]xcellent period settings and wonderfully thick pea-soupers" which "add up to splendid evocative stuff", as well as the performance of star John Barrie.[4]
At no time during the whole series is Sergeant Cork's first name given.
Cast
edit- John Barrie as Sergeant Cork
- William Gaunt as Robert 'Bob' Marriott
- Charles Morgan as Superintendent Charlie Rodway
- Freddie Fowler as Chalky White
- Edward Ogden as Sergeant Gardner
- Arnold Diamond as Detective Joseph Bird
- John Richmond as Superintendent Billy Nelson
- Barry Raymond as PC Evans
- A. J. Brown as Assistant Commissioner John Thor
- Joyce Carey as Mrs Maud Marriott
Notable guest stars included Carmen Silvera, Alan Haines and Peter Sallis.
DVD Releases
editNetwork has released the entire series on Region 2, PAL DVD in the UK. The second series was an exclusive two-disc set on their website which has since been re-released on 3 September 2012. The third set was also a four disc set and is available through the Network website. Series 4 became available from both the Network website and other retailers on 6 August 2012.[5] Series 5 was released on 19 November 2012, and Series 6 on 18 March 2013.
References
edit- ^ "Sergeant Cork (1963-1968)".
- ^ "Sergeant Cork". IMDb. 9 June 1963.
- ^ Thomas Sutcliffe, "New idea for a cop show? No, it's been nicked", The Independent, 17 April 1995.
- ^ "Crime fizz", The Age TV Radio Guide, 16–22 May 1969, p. 3.
- ^ http://www.networkdvd.net/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=cork&x=0&y=0
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