Hazell (TV series)

*Hazell*
Hazell
Genre	Drama
Starring	Nicholas Ball; Roddy McMillan; Desmond McNamara; Peter Bourke
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	2
No. of episodes	22
Production
Running time	60 minutes
Production company	Thames Television
Original release
Network	ITV
Release	16 January 1978 –; 5 July 1979

Hazell is a British television series that ran from 1978–1979, about a fictional private detective named James Hazell.

Overview

James Hazell was a cockney private detective character created by journalist and novelist Gordon Williams and footballer Terry Venables, who wrote under the joint pseudonym of P.B.Yuill.^[1] The first book, Hazell Plays Solomon, appeared in 1974.^[2]

"Hazell Plays Solomon" was also the first episode of the TV series.^[3] The wise-cracking private detective was played by Nicholas Ball.^[4] Hazell was a smart parody of earlier film-noir detectives such as Philip Marlowe or Sam Spade, the casting of Ball in the title role made for a younger TV Hazell than the Hazell in the books.^[1]

A Thames Television Network Production, Hazell ran for 22 one-hour-long episodes (50 minutes without adverts).^[1] Its theme music was composed by Andy Mackay; the end credits incorporated the theme music with added lyrics, written by Judy Forrest and sung by Maggie Bell.^[5] An academic work, Hazell: The Making of a TV Series by Manuel Alvarado and Edward Buscombe (BFI Publishing) appeared in March 1978.^[6]

Cast

The main and most frequent cast members were:

Nicholas Ball as James 'Jim' Hazell
Roddy McMillan as Detective Inspector 'Choc' Minty
Desmond McNamara as Cousin Tel
Peter Bourke as Graham Morris
Barbara Young as Dot Wilmington (Series 1 only)
Maggie Riley as Maureen (Series 1 only)

Episodes (by series)

Series 1
- 1. "Hazell Plays Solomon" (16 January 1978)
- 2. "Hazell Pays a Debt" (23 January 1978)
- 3. "Hazell and the Walking Blur" (30 January 1978)
- 4. "Hazell Settles the Accounts" (6 February 1978)
- 5. "Hazell Meets the First Eleven" (13 February 1978)
- 6. "Hazell and the Rubber-Heel Brigade" (20 February 1978)
- 7. "Hazell Goes to the Dogs" (27 February 1978)
- 8. "Hazell and the Weekend Man" (6 March 1978)
- 9. "Hazell Works for Nothing" (13 March 1978)
- 10. "Hazell and the Maltese Vulture" (20 March 1978)
Series 2
- 1. "Hazell and the Baker Street Sleuth" (19 April 1979)
- 2. "Hazell and the Deptford Virgin" (26 April 1979)
- 3. "Hazell Bangs the Drum" (3 May 1979)
- 4. "Hazell Gets the Boot" (10 May 1979)
- 5. "Hazell Gets the Bird" (17 May 1979)
- 6. "Hazell and the Big Sleep" (24 May 1979)
- 7.(*) "Hazell and the Suffolk Ghost" (31 May 1979)
- 8. "Hazell and Hyde" (7 June 1979)
- 9. "Hazell and the Happy Couple" (14 June 1979)
- 10. "Hazell Gets the Part" (21 June 1979)
- 11. "Hazell and the Greasy Gunners" (28 June 1979)
- 12.(*) "Hazell and the Public Enemy" (5 July 1979)

(*) = Although broadcast as listed, continuity involving the destruction of Hazell's original Triumph Stag car and its replacement with a Jaguar Mark 2, indicates that episode 7 should have been twelfth, and episode 12 should have been ninth (after "Hazell and the Happy Couple", when the Stag is attacked by an angry client).