Frontiers is an ITV television crime drama series was produced by Carlton Television, broadcast between 7 May and 25 June 1996.[1] The series, created by acclaimed writer Stephen Poliakoff, focuses on the rivalry between two rival police chiefs of the Special Crime Squad and their respective teams of officers.[2] Co-written with Sam Donovan and Sandy Welch, only a single series of six episodes was broadcast, as despite a high-profile cast, including Kevin McNally, Clare Holman, Hywel Bennett and Philip Glenister,[3] the series failed to impact audiences and was quickly axed.[4] Amelia Bullmore, Fay Ripley and singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor also appeared in the series.[5]
| Frontiers | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Crime drama |
| Created by | Stephen Poliakoff |
| Written by | Sam Donovan Sandy Welch |
| Directed by | Michael Whyte Andrew Piddington |
| Starring | Kevin McNally Peter Howitt Simon Kunz Clare Holman Hywel Bennett David Sibley Philip Glenister Amelia Bullmore Fay Ripley |
| Composer | Steve Parr |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Therese Pickard |
| Producer | Stewart Richards |
| Editor | Graham Walker |
| Camera setup | Gary Parnham |
| Running time | 50 minutes |
| Production company | Carlton Television |
| Distributor | ITV Studios |
| Release | |
| Original network | ITV |
| Picture format | 4:3 |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Original release | 7 May (1996-05-07) – 25 June 1996 (1996-06-25) |
Thomas Sutcliffe of The Independent said of the series; "Stephen Poliakoff is noted as a Special Adviser to Frontiers. Stephen Poliakoff, the respected playwright, that is. This is inexplicable, unless they have simply ignored his advice, because Frontiers is the apotheosis of the Angry Shouting Copper show, a mail-order catalogue for every exhausted cliché of the genre – from the lazily rotating extractor fan which casts such a gothic light, to the stand-up rows in gloomy corridors. "Screw up on my territory again, and I'll make sure you're not in charge of a whelk stall before I'm finished with you."[6]
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | British air date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Two Teenagers Kidnapped" | Andrew Piddington | Sandy Welch & Stephen Poliakoff[7] | 7 May 1996 (1996-05-07) |
| 2 | "Casual Bank Robbers" | Andrew Piddington | Sandy Welch & Stephen Poliakoff | 14 May 1996 (1996-05-14) |
| 3 | "Overseas Politicians" | Michael Whyte | Sandy Welch & Stephen Poliakoff | 21 May 1996 (1996-05-21) |
| 4 | "Date Rape" | Michael Whyte | Sandy Welch & Stephen Poliakoff | 28 May 1996 (1996-05-28) |
| 5 | "Cheerleader Murder" | Michael Whyte | Sandy Welch & Stephen Poliakoff | 4 June 1996 (1996-06-04) |
| 6 | "Palmer is Found Murdered" | Michael Whyte | Sandy Welch & Stephen Poliakoff | 25 June 1996 (1996-06-25) |
Films and TV series directed by Stephen Poliakoff | |
|---|---|
|