Danger UXB 

Brian Ash is a young lieutenant who is assigned to a UXB unit in the early days of World War II. UXB (UneXploded Bomb) is the signal that an aerial bomb has not exploded. Ash's job is to ... See full summary »

Creators:

John Hawkesworth, John Whitney

Stars:

Anthony Andrews, Maurice Roëves, George Innes

Cast

Series cast summary:
Anthony Andrews	...	Brian Ash 13 episodes, 1979
Maurice Roëves	...	Sergeant James 13 episodes, 1979
George Innes	...	Sapper Wilkins / ... 13 episodes, 1979
Gordon Kane	...	Sapper Mulley 13 episodes, 1979
Robert Pugh	...	Sapper Powell 12 episodes, 1979
Ken Kitson	...	Corporal Horrocks 11 episodes, 1979
Jeremy Sinden	...	Ivor Rodgers / ... 10 episodes, 1979
Judy Geeson	...	Susan 9 episodes, 1979
Kenneth Cranham	...	Sapper Salt / ... 9 episodes, 1979
Osmund Bullock	...	Lieutenant Pringle / ... 7 episodes, 1979
Deborah Watling	...	Norma 7 episodes, 1979
Peter Cartwright	...	Major Luckhurst 7 episodes, 1979
Iain Cuthbertson	...	Doctor Gillespie 6 episodes, 1979
Marjie Lawrence	...	Mrs. Baker 6 episodes, 1979
Royston Tickner	...	Lieutenant Leckie / ... 6 episodes, 1979

Storyline

Brian Ash is a young lieutenant who is assigned to a UXB unit in the early days of World War II. UXB (UneXploded Bomb) is the signal that an aerial bomb has not exploded. Ash's job is to deactivate German bombs, some of which have fuses specifically designed to kill him.

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Plot Keywords:

bomb | london air raid | bomb squad | army life | 

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Genres:

Action | Drama | History | Thriller | War

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 January 1981 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bombletarna

Company Credits

Production Co:

Euston Films, Thames Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min (13 episodes)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Most location filming was done in the Streatham, Tooting and Clapham areas of London. At the time of filming, in 1978, some old pre WW2 houses were in the process of being pulled down to make way for modern housing so there was a bit of a rush on to film in these older areas before they were gone for good. Some use of Surrey countryside was made for a few shots and scenes (filmed on the outskirts of Guildford which back then still had quite a bit of farm land surrounding it).

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Connections

Featured in Verity Lambert: Drama Queen (2008)

User Reviews

Realistic & human and will keep you on the edge of your seat

This is an outstanding story of a British EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) Detachment during World War II. The ordnance depicted along with the fusing used was actually used by the Germans during WWII. The methods used in the show are the actual (in some cases, trial and error) procedures used to defeat the ordnance during WWII.

The RSP (render safe procedures) used today for foreign ordnance is usually classified. The main reason for this is so the enemy doesn't know that you can defeat his weapons. The British, during WWII, initially published that they defeated certain German ordnance and the RSP used as a morale booster for the citizens. The Germans, reading these accounts, then designed some of the fuses with booby traps specifically designed to kill the British EOD soldiers while they were working on the UXBs if they followed the published procedures.

During WWII, the US Army EOD was modeled after the British detachments. Initially, the US turned to the British for training and help in getting our own EOD units established.

One of my greatest joys from this series was the fact that I had taped it the first time I watched and then got to watch it over again with a close friend. The significance of this was: 1) I was US Army EOD, and 2) the close friend was a British EOD tech who had been awarded the George's Medal for his EOD work in Northern Ireland. To show what a tight knit group EOD personnel are - we still stay in touch with one another via the Internet after 26 years (we watched the show together in 1983).