Callan (TV series)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Callan | |
|---|---|
 Callan DVD Cover. |
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| Genre | Action adventure |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Creator(s) | James Mitchell |
| Starring | Edward Woodward Russell Hunter Anthony Valentine |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original channel | ITV |
| Original run | 1967–1972 |
| No. of episodes | 44 |
| IMDb profile | |
Callan was the title of a British action-adventure television series that aired on ITV broadcasters over four seasons spread out between 1967 and 1972.
The series starred British actor Edward Woodward as David Callan, a reluctant professional killer for a shadowy branch of the British Government's intelligence services known as 'the Section'. We first saw Callan in an edition of ABC television's celebrated Armchair Theatre strand in February 1967, which was entitled A Magnum for Schneider, based upon the novel A Red File for Callan by James Mitchell, creator of the equally popular "When The Boat Comes In" in the 1970's. Callan mostly despises his work, but is far too useful to be allowed to retire.The Section is run by the calculating Colonel Hunter, who refers to Callan as "a dead shot, with the cold nerve to kill".
Indeed, this first outing has Callan 'invited' back to the Section for what should be one last job as a favour to Hunter. Schneider's nefarious activities are known to the authorities but he is too clever to be caught by normal methods. The Section puts enemies of the British government out of action by whatever means possible, from energetic persuasion to blackmail and even death itself - and Schneider must be stopped. So Hunter wants him eliminated but Callan must do this without help from the Section, yet with assistance from the eager-to-please Toby Meres, Hunter is in reality setting Callan up to be framed for the murder.
Callan's problem is that he must know what his intended victim has done to deserve the final punishment and in Schneider's case discovers an extremely profitable sideline of large-scale gun-running. Satisfied, Callan determines his plan and calls on Lonely, a petty crook who needs a bath more than most, something which is more apparent when scared. He is unsure of Callan's true identity and motives but being dead-scared of him provides the goods - a Noguchi Magnum plus rounds, a weapon favoured by Schneider for his sideline activities.
Actor Russell Hunter played the recurring character Lonely.
The series pilot episode aired as an episode of the anthology series Armchair Theatre in February 1967 and was entitled A Magnum for Schneider, based upon the novel A Red File for Callan by James Mitchell. A six-episode season followed later that year, followed by a second season in 1969. Production switched to color beginning with the 1970 season. A last set of episodes was broadcast in 1972.
In 1974, Woodward reprised the role in the film Callan, which was a remake of the pilot episode, A Magnum for Schneider. He played the part for the last time in the 1981 television film made by ATV, Wet Job which while not quite up to the standard of the series was nevertheless a very welcome final appearance for the character.
In the 1980s, Woodward would go on to star in the American series, The Equalizer, playing a conscience-stricken former secret agent who becomes a protector of people in need, yet finds himself being called back into service by his former employers from time to time. There are many noted similarities between this series and Callan to the point where it is speculated that Robert McCall (Woodward's Equalizer character) may in fact be David Callan.
The series finally saw a general video and DVD release in 2001, though oddly it started with the official third series (the first Thames series in colour) being labelled as "Series One" for no apparent reason. But that was it, nothing more apart from the movie has been seen since except perhaps on satellite.
The original first two series (or seasons) were filmed in black and white and it is now generally accepted that several episodes from these seasons have been lost. Several episodes do still exist and are available in a bootleg format, usually from internet auction sites.
The appeal of the deadly secret service agents have been recyled over the years but the haunted character of David Callan endures in the mind of those who saw him arguing with his superiors and wrestling with his conscience; yet he continually saw off young upstarts of his profession with his in-built ability to kill coldly and efficiently with the best of them.
