"Matlock Police" (1971) TV series 1971-1976

Creators:

Ian Jones
Terry Stapleton
(more)

Seasons:

1 | unknown

Release Date:

25 February 1971 (Australia)

Genre:

Drama

Plot Keywords:

Police

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Vic Gordon	...	Sgt. Bert Kennedy / ... (228 episodes, 1971-1976)
Paul Cronin	...	Sen. Const. Gary Hogan (228 episodes, 1971-1976)
Michael Pate	...	Det. Sgt. Vic Maddern / ... (192 episodes, 1971-1975)
Tom Richards	...	Sen. Det. Steve York / ... (131 episodes, 1972-1976)
Grigor Taylor	...	Sen. Det. Alan Curtis (99 episodes, 1971-1973)

Series Directed by
Ian Crawford		(41 episodes, 1971-1973)
George Miller		(24 episodes, 1971-1976)
Darryl Sheen		(24 episodes, 1972-1975)
Gary Conway		(22 episodes, 1971-1972)
Ian Bennett		(21 episodes, 1971-1974)
Graeme Arthur		(14 episodes, 1974-1976)
Rod Hardy		(13 episodes, 1974-1976)
Simon Wincer		(12 episodes, 1971-1975)
John Barningham		(6 episodes, 1975-1976)
Paul Eddy		(5 episodes, 1971)
Edward Ogden		(5 episodes, 1971)
Colin Eggleston		(4 episodes, 1973-1974)
David Lee		(3 episodes, 1971)
Paul Jansen		(3 episodes, 1972)
Ian Jones		(2 episodes, 1971)
Kevin James Dobson		(2 episodes, 1974-1975)
David Stevens		(2 episodes, 1975)

Series Writing credits
Ian Jones		(228 episodes, 1971-1976)
Terry Stapleton		(228 episodes, 1971-1976)
Keith Hetherington		(18 episodes, 1972-1976)
Patrick Edgeworth		(16 episodes, 1972-1974)
Everett De Roche		(15 episodes, 1972-1976)
Tom Hegarty		(14 episodes, 1971-1975)
Douglas Tainsh		(13 episodes, 1971-1976)
Graeme Koetsveld		(13 episodes, 1974-1976)
Peter A. Kinloch		(12 episodes, 1973-1976)
Sonia Borg		(11 episodes, 1971-1975)
Don Battye		(7 episodes, 1971-1973)
Gwenda Marsh		(7 episodes, 1974-1976)
Cliff Green		(6 episodes, 1971-1972)
Vincent Moran		(6 episodes, 1975)
José Luis Bayonas		(5 episodes, 1972)
Max Simms		(4 episodes, 1971)
David Boutland		(4 episodes, 1972-1976)
Phil Freedman		(4 episodes, 1972-1976)
Barry Hill		(4 episodes, 1973)
Keith Thompson		(4 episodes, 1975-1976)
George Mallaby		(3 episodes, 1971-1973)
Cul Cullen		(3 episodes, 1974-1975)
Robert Caswell		(3 episodes, 1975-1976)
Hamish Keith		(3 episodes, 1975)
George Miller		(2 episodes, 1974-1975)
Denise Morgan		(2 episodes, 1976)

Series Produced by
Colin Eggleston	....	executive producer (7 episodes, 1974)
Ian Bennett	....	producer (5 episodes, 1971)
Edward Ogden	....	producer (5 episodes, 1971)
Paul Eddy	....	producer (4 episodes, 1971)
Henry Crawford	....	producer (2 episodes, 1974-1976)
Ian Jones	....	executive producer (2 episodes, 1975-1976)

Series Film Editing by
June Harman		(1 episode, 1974)
Kevin James Dobson		(unknown episodes)
Philip East		(unknown episodes)

Series Casting by
Loretta Healey		(1 episode, 1974)

Series Production Design by
Bradley Ross		(1 episode, 1974)

Series Makeup Department
Vivien Mepham	....	film make-up (1 episode, 1974)
Randal Worth	....	(wigs & hairstyles (1 episode, 1974)

Series Production Management
Simon Sempill	....	production manager (1 episode, 1974)

Series Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Darryl Sheen	....	assistant director (3 episodes, 1971)
Simon Wincer	....	assistant director (2 episodes, 1971)

Series Art Department
Dennis Wright	....	props: film (1 episode, 1974)

Series Sound Department
Philip Adams	....	dubbing (1 episode, 1974)
Paul Clark	....	location recordist (1 episode, 1974)
David Harrison	....	dubbing (1 episode, 1974)
Gary Hayes	....	audio (1 episode, 1974)

Series Stunts
Carol Cranston	....	stunt double: Jan / stunts (2 episodes, 1971-1972)

Series Camera and Electrical Department
Fred Argent	....	film electrix (1 episode, 1974)
Stuart Valentine	....	lighting (1 episode, 1974)
Barry M. Wilson	....	film cameraman (1 episode, 1974)

Series Costume and Wardrobe Department
Heather McLaren	....	wardrobe (1 episode, 1974)

Series Music Department
David Lloyd	....	music editor (1 episode, 1974)
Jack Trombey	....	composer: stock music (unknown episodes)

Series Other crew
Graham Foreman	....	script editor (6 episodes, 1971)
Lyn Ogilvy	....	script editor (3 episodes, 1974)
Barbara Burleigh	....	continuity (unknown episodes)

Production Companies

• Crawford Productions
• Network Ten

Runtime:

50 min (220 episodes)

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Filming Locations:

Channel 10 Studios, Nunawading, Victoria, Australia

Company:

Crawford Productions

Movie Connections:

Spin off "Solo One" (1975)

One of Australia's best television classics

I recall back in the early 1970's when this show was screened late at night, we all waited anxiously to watch. This was a police drama set in a Australian country town called "Matlock" and had a blend of great Australian artists, which was the rural analogy of the other great Australian classic police drama series "Homicide" in terms of quality. These two television series would have to be amongst Australia's best television series ever presented. Even by today's standards these two series would rank very highly, when compared to the blandness that most modern television series offer. These two series displayed what great results could be achieved with a limited budget and a well planned goal.

Artists such as Michael Pate (who also starred in earlier American movies), Grigor Taylor and Paul Cronin (later recognised in another Australian classic series " The Sullivans") displayed a great performance in their collaboration as police officers. Grigor Taylor would always remind me of the Australian David McCallum. I am very surprised that he did not progress to become a more popular icon of Australian television, or abroad. He was one of my favourite Australian artists, without overlooking any of the others. I enjoyed all the episodes that I was fortunate to watch as they were simple, straight forward and exciting. What I found unique about this police drama was that at the end of the episodes, when the criminals were caught, you could hear an audio narrated conclusion of their fates and their convictions, which I have never seen in any other police drama to my knowledge. The musical score was also great and like that of "Homicide", it alone enticed you to want to watch. Sadly, I only saw one repeat of this series and enjoyed it as much as I did the first time. Australian television series at it's very best