#the bill podcast

[georgefairbrother]

Leading TV historian and author, Oliver Crocker, pictured here with Jon Iles (DC Mike Dashwood in 194 episodes of The Bill from 1984), has over the past few years been compiling an incredibly detailed oral history of the The Bill from those who actually made it, including its stars, supporting talent and behind the scenes artists and technicians. The ITV (Thames) police drama ran for nearly 2500 episodes, from its pilot, Woodentop, in 1983 to its final episode in 2010. At its peak, it was watched by 18 million viewers in the UK. Jon Iles was the very first interviewee for the podcast series, and set things off to a very high standard.

In over 100 podcast episodes, Oliver has interviewed many of the major stars of the programme across its entire run, including Trudie Goodwin and Mark Wingett (above), Chris Ellison (DI Frank Burnside), Graham Cole (PC Tony Stamp), Eric Richard (Sgt Bob Cryer), Barbara Thorn (Insp Christine Frazer), Larry Dann (Sgt Alec Peters), Seeta Indrani (WPC Norika Datta); from some of the originals including Robert Hudson (Yorkie), Nula Conwell (Viv Martella), Colin Blumenau (Taffy) and Ashley Gunstock (PC Robin Frank), to stars of the later era including Todd Carty and Beth Cordingly. And many luminaries in between, from uniform and CID, too numerous to mention.

One or two have remained elusive - Jeff Stewart (Reg Hollis) has thus far declined, perhaps understandably as his departure from the series was deeply and personally traumatic. John Salthouse (DI Roy Galloway) declined the podcast but was very friendly and helpful with information for Oliver's first of two books on the series, Witness Statements: Making The Bill Series 1-3. (Witness Statements II is now also out).

The interviews are fascinating as pretty much all the participants have been breathtakingly honest; about producers and their behaviour and often brutal decision-making, and about the rollercoaster life of an actor even in a successful series. It's not always as much fun as it looks. Having said that, it was a happy cast which made a big effort to make guest stars and extras welcome, and it's interesting to note that the older, more experienced actors, playing CID and uniformed supervisors, tended to mentor the younger actors in the same way their real-life counterparts took care of junior officers.

Tony Scannell (DS Ted Roach) had agreed to be interviewed but sadly passed away before the recording date.

The Bill Podcast is on all the major platforms, and according to Listen Notes is in the top 1.5% of podcasts globally.

@robbielewis thought you might be interested in this one.

[the-aj-archives]

Has someone done this yet?

[dec4podcast]

A couple of podcast recommendations;

Letter from Helvetica is a scripted audio series written by and starring Andrew Mackintosh and also starring Natalie Roles. Between them, these two hugely talented artists were in over 500 episodes of the legendary ITV police drama, The Bill. The producer is Oliver Crocker, one of Britain’s leading authors, podcasters and publishers on classic British television.

"…The series follows the adventures of Abigail Wesley, a talented young botanist who is spending a year on the ever-so-slightly-made-up island of Burbango in the island nation of Vanuatu in the South Pacific, and her Uncle John, an acerbic retired Lieutenant Colonel who lives in the not-quite-real village of Helvetica in Cornwall…"

You can also now catch Natalie Roles hosting The Bill Podcast which has over 100 episodes in the catalogue, including cast and crew interviews, tributes and reunions. The Bill Podcast has been played over 350 000 times and is in the top 1.5 % of podcasts globally.

[m0drar]

They're talking about their boyfriends btw

[undeadenn]

Middle aged men and their yellow, incorporeal besties/boyfriends/tormentors

[cranchymanchy]

Found an old WIP and decided to rework it

[starsh0ck]

michael distortion x bill cipher

[izz6334]

ive made a list as to different occasions i wear my eye earrings for

[justbearsart]

omega daddies

[beeponline]

Michael the distortion and bill cipher cause I think it would be neat if they met

Also:

The sillies

[g-pistachio]

Seeing fanarts lately is a game of “is this Bill cypher or John doe malevolent”

[zil-street]

Bill’s just trying to give John some pointers on possession.

[samglyph]

I can’t be the only member of the unhealthily obsessed with gravity falls as a kid to unhealthily obsessed with malevolent as an adult pipeline

[nightlilly0110]

On a scale of Gravity Falls to Malevolent, how well are you dealing with the yellow inter-dimensional demon possessing you- oh wait that’s bad. That’s really bad. Post cancelled, everyone, they’re dealing with The Horrors.

[knittinganarchist]

Look its not not canon considering TMA ended so ambiguously... I just think there's room for the 14 fears to be silly little guys.

Would Bill and the Eye get along? No. Would Bill and the Spiral get along? Deffo.

[thekapster5]

Gravity falls revival and my malevolent obsesion had to make something