Special Squad (Australian TV series)
Special Squad is an Australian television series made by Crawford Productions for Network Ten in 1984.
| Special Squad | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Crime drama |
| Starring | Alan Cassell Anthony Hawkins John Diedrich |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 43 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Hector Crawford, C.B.E. Ian Crawford Terry Stapleton |
| Producers | Raymond Menmuir Ross Jennings |
| Production company | Crawford Productions |
| Release | |
| Original network | Network Ten |
| Original release | 1984 |
Overview
The series focused on an elite division of the Victoria Police, which handled crimes either too sensitive or specialist for regular squads. The Special Squad was headed by Det. Insp. Don Anderson (Alan Cassell), with his main operatives being Det. Snr. Sgt. Greg Smith (Anthony Hawkins), and Det. Sgt. Joel Davis (John Diedrich).
Special Squad was seen by many as an Australian answer to the British series The Professionals both for its focus on action and violence, and the fact that both series were produced by Raymond Menmuir. However, in reality the characters and plotlines were less developed than the British series.
The series lasted for 43 episodes in total.
Cast
- Alan Cassell as Det. Insp. Don Anderson
- Anthony Hawkins as Det. Snr. Sgt. Greg Smith
- John Diedrich as Det. Sgt. Joel Davis
Guest stars
Episode list
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Trojan Horses" | TBD | TBD | |
| 2 | 2 | "The Expert" | Arch Nicholson | John Upton | |
| 3 | 3 | "Code of Silence" | TBD | Vince Moran | 1984 |
| 4 | 4 | "Easy Street" | TBD | TBD | |
| 5 | 5 | "Counterfeit Lady" | Patrick Edgeworth | Arch Nicholson | |
| 6 | 6 | "The Long Secret" | Unknown | Shane Brennan | 22 July 1984 |
| 7 | 7 | "The Second Mr Swift" | TBD | TBD | |
| 8 | 8 | "The Wurzburg Link" | TBD | TBD | |
| 9 | 9 | "Same Time Friday" | Chris Langman | David Wilks and Gerry O'Hara | |
| 10 | 10 | "Duel" | Arch Nicholson | Luis Bayonas | |
| 11 | 11 | "The Set Up" | Paul Moloney | John Upton | |
| 12 | 12 | "The Golden Run" | Ranald Graham | Catherine Millar | |
| 13 | 13 | "Jacko" | Arch Nicholson | Luis Bayonas | |
| 14 | 14 | "Slow Attack" | Paul Maloney | Philip Dalkin | |
| 15 | 15 | "Country Girl" | Arch Nicholson | Cliff Green | |
| 16 | 16 | "War" | Catherine Millar | Everett De Roche and Vince Moran | |
| 17 | 17 | "Wild Man" | Paul Moloney | Ranald Graham | |
| 18 | 18 | "The Chen Legacy" | Chris Langman | Shane Brennan | |
| 19 | 19 | "Child Of Fortune" | Tim Burstall | Ranald Graham | |
| 20 | 20 | "Business As Usual" | Mark Joffe | Shane Brennan and Kris Steele | |
| 21 | 21 | "A Wild Oat" | Brian Trenchard-Smith | Leon Saunders | |
| 22 | 22 | "Mates" | Rob Stewart | Luis Bayonas | |
| 23 | 23 | "Big Bad World" | Howard Rubie | Cliff Green | |
| 24 | 24 | "Early Birds" | Rob Stewart | Michael Harvey | |
| 25 | 25 | "The Bribe" | TBD | TBD | |
| 26 | 26 | "Farewell to a Comrade" | Michael Caulfield | Shane Brennan | |
| 27 | 27 | "In The Cause Of Justice" | TBD | TBD | |
| 28 | 28 | "Hot Streets" | TBD | Michael Aitkens | |
| 29 | 29 | "Killer" | TBD | TBD | |
| 30 | 30 | "The Patchwork" | TBD | David Phillips | |
| 31 | 31 | "Brothers" | TBD | TBD | |
| 32 | 32 | "Until Death" | Rod Hardy | Vince Moran | |
| 33 | 33 | "Ghosts" | TBD | Vince Gil | |
| 34 | 34 | "The Haley Inheritance" | Colin Budds | Shane Brennan | |
| 35 | 35 | "Suzie's War" | Dan Burstall | Luis Bayonas | |
| 36 | 36 | "Return Of The Cat" | John Power | John Upton | |
| 37 | 37 | "Pigs" | Ken Cameron | Shane Brennan | |
| 38 | 38 | "Mombasa" | TBD | TBD | |
| 39 | 39 | "The Haunting" | Tim Burstall | Luis Bayonas | |
| 40 | 40 | "Rotten Apple" | TBD | TBD | |
| 41 | 41 | "Mad Mountain Mumma" | TBD | TBD | |
| 42 | 42 | "Life After Teddy" | Collin Budds | Shane Brennan | |
| 43 | 43 | "Gone For The Doctor" | TBD | TBD |
Home media
In January 2023 Crawford Productions announced that the series would be released on DVD in March 2023.
In March 2023 Crawfords announced on their official facebook that the release would be delayed because of issues with some of the original master tapes. It is now likely the release will be April or May 2023.
| Title | Format | Ep # | Discs | Region 4 (Australia) | Special Features | Distributors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special Squad (Complete Series) | DVD | 43 | 07 | 2023 | None | Crawford Productions |
External links
- Crawford Productions
- Special Squad at IMDb