Strangers
Strangers is a 1978–82 ITV police procedural created and principally written by Murray Smith, based on characters created by Kenneth Royce in his novel series and subsequent 1977–78 television adaptation The XYY Man. Don Henderson and Dennis Blanch reprise their roles, respectively, of Detective Sergeant (DS) George Bulman and Detective Constable (DC) Derek Willis. A group of police officers are brought together from across the country to the north of England. There, the fact that they're not well-known gives them the advantage to infiltrate where a more familiar local detective could not. Despite being based around a comparatively small team of detectives, a regular feature in its early years is that few episodes feature the entire team, with most using just two or three regulars in any major role.
Seasons
1. The Paradise Set
Air Date: 1978-06-05
Day one: While Willis investigates a jewel robbery. Bulman and Doran track villains who are systematically beating up nightclub hostesses. The two enquiries lead in one direction and the team ultimately find themselves working together on the same problem.
2. Duty Roster
Air Date: 1978-06-12
Bulman and Willis find themselves investigating the theft of a postman's mailbag. A straightforward case? Not when their enquiries point to something fishy afoot.
3. Silver Lining
Air Date: 1978-06-19
Assigned to investigate a betting racket, Bulman takes a job in a betting shop, while Doran finds employment as a professional gambler. It isn't long before the detectives discover a link to the horse-racing world.
4. Accidental Death
Air Date: 1978-06-26
As Doran goes undercover as a journalist, Willis helps out at a coroner's office. It's all part of an investigation to find out whether the death of a newsman was accident or murder.
5. Briscoe
Air Date: 1978-07-03
Is a uniformed police sergeant, suspected of being crooked, really guilty? Bulman poses as a copper on the beat to find out what has led the sergeant to be suspected of being 'dirty' — but finds that an ordinary policeman's lot is not a happy one.
6. Right and Wrong
Air Date: 1978-07-10
Convinced that a local politician is taking bribes, but frustrated that his enquires have brought no results. Singer assigns Willis and Doran to pose as newlyweds and move into the house opposite.
7. Paying Guests
Air Date: 1978-07-17
When a petty crook finds a hoard of hot money and begins receiving unwanted attention from the thieves, Bulman finds himself moving in with the man's family to protect him.
1. The Wheeler Dealers
Air Date: 1979-01-09
Bulman, Willis and Doran are undercover at the docks trying to identify the ringleaders in a series of bicycle thefts. Back at the office, Rainbow is displeased with their methods. After an accident on the quay, Bulman starts to get romantic ideas about the lady doctor.
2. Call of the Wild
Air Date: 1979-01-16
When Bulman successfully infiltrates a gang of villains, it isn't long before he finds himself on the run from the police — and desperately in need of the assistance of his undercover colleagues.
3. Clever Dick
Air Date: 1979-01-23
When counterfeit Deutschmarks flood Germany and the officers try to establish a connection in England, they find themselves facing violent and ruthless opposition from a murderous gang.
4. Friends in High Places
Air Date: 1979-01-30
When a successful businessman begins receiving blackmail threats, the squad expect a straightforward case. However, they discover far more than they bargained for and learn that people in high places prove to be bad losers.
5. Marriages, Deaths and Births
Air Date: 1979-02-06
Bulman's dedication to duty is so inense that he tries to arrest Carmos, a psychopathic killer, during his wedding, The squad must use all their ingenuity to extricate him from the villain's clutches — Bulman is wounded and in danger of dying.
1. Retribution
Air Date: 1980-10-14
Bulman and Willis join the new inter-city detective squad and are involved in tracking down a gang of sophisticated villains running an arms-for-sale racket out of London.
2. You Can't Win 'Em All
Air Date: 1980-10-21
Bulman and Willis are assigned to a case involving the widespread fraud of major banks.
3. Armed and Dangerous
Air Date: 1980-10-28
A routine escort job turns dangerous for Bulman and Willis when they're assigned to bring a villain to London for questioning, and two inter-city detectives are murdered.
4. Racing Certainty
Air Date: 1980-11-04
Bulman and Willis find themselves going undercover to track down a gang hedging their bets by ensuring that the odds are in their favour during a racehorse meeting at Newmarket.
5. Clowns Don't Cry
Air Date: 1980-11-11
One of Bulman's criminal contacts is beaten up for no apparent reason. The trail leads Bulman and Willis into the world of counter-espionage, and a circus that chooses the towns in which it plays.
6. Tom Thumb and Other Stories
Air Date: 1980-11-18
Bulman disguises himself as a tramp hoping to catch the smugglers' 'Tom Thumb' who works Liverpool docklands. He soon discovers that with a fortune at stake the organisation behind the ring will stop at nothing to protect their interests.
7. No Orchids for Missing Blandisch
Air Date: 1980-11-25
Bulman gets a tip-off from an informer about a hired killer. With Willis and Bennett, he tries to find the connection between the killer and two arms dealers.
1. The Moscow Subway Murders
Air Date: 1981-09-25
Now promoted to Detective Chief Inspector, Bulman, frustrated with the office-bound nature of the job, is soon challenged by an intriguing murder case.
2. The Loneliness of the Long Distance Copper
Air Date: 1981-10-02
A convict makes a daring prison break but leaves a trail to ensure his recapture is handled by the inter-city squad. He has an old score to settle with supervisor Lambie.
3. A Dear Green Place
Air Date: 1981-10-09
A routine assignment — escorting a prisoner from Glasgow to London — turns into something altogether different when the woman escapes and her escorts on a merry cross-country chase.
4. Stand and Deliver
Air Date: 1981-10-16
The squad investigates a series of armed robberies committed by a gang of modern-day highwaymen.
5. The Flowers of Edinburgh
Air Date: 1981-10-23
Bulman and Willis arrest a man carrying an incriminating roll of film. This triggers off an enquiry which takes them to Edinburgh, where they tangle with a gang specialising in political blackmail.
6. Soldiers of Misfortune
Air Date: 1981-10-30
The squad investigates a murder and a series of knee-cappings committed by rival groups of mercenaries.
1. A Much Underestimated Man
Air Date: 1982-09-08
Bulman and Willis are assigned to trail an experienced hitman and discover the identity of his next target. But if the man gives them the slip and manages to make his next hit, who will carry the can?
2. A Swift and Evil Rozzer
Air Date: 1982-09-15
When a group of prominent businessmen decide to choose crime as a short cut to riches, the Inner City Squad are on their trail when they kidnap a prominent politician.
3. The Tender Trap
Air Date: 1982-09-22
Bulman and Willis set out to investigate corruption in a local government but ultimately are caught breaking and entering. Meanwhile, Bennett meets a jazz musician whose twin brother is behind the corruption, and Willis falls for local policewoman Sgt Jill Tender.
4. The Lost Chord
Air Date: 1982-09-29
A number of extremist politicians die in mysterious circumstances. The squad investigates the academic world of Cambridge and the upper reaches of the law.
5. A Free Weekend in the Country
Air Date: 1982-10-06
The squad participatr in a weekend seminar on urban terrorism. A hotel full of policemen should be a safe place, but a senior female officer is murdered by a crooked fellow officer.
6. Charlie's Brother's Birthday (Part 1)
Air Date: 1982-10-13
When coffins are stolen but no one informs the police, the squad go undercover in a jazz club to expose an international smuggling ring.
7. With These Gloves You Can Pass Through Mirrors (Part 2)
Air Date: 1982-10-20
Peter Mollett — aka the Sandman — acts as an agent smuggling stolen art treasures, often in coffins. A rival gang hope to cash in on his lucrative trade, but the squad are also interested.
Select an episode to start watching
Rating
7.0/10
Release Date
1978-06-05
Episodes
32 (5 seasons)
Status
Ended
Cast
Videos
Production Companies
Granada Television