Backup (TV series)

Backup
GenrePolice procedural
Created byNigel McCrery
Written byRoy Mitchell
Directed by
  • Jan Sargent
  • Bob Blagden
  • Douglas Mackinnon
Starring
ComposerJohn Lunn
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series2
No. of episodes14
Production
Executive producers
ProducerHilary Salmon
Cinematography
  • Steve Saunderson
  • Peter Fearon
EditorJohn Rosser
Running time50 minutes
Production companyBBC Pebble Mill
Original release
NetworkBBC1
Release7 September 1995 (1995-09-07) –
2 July 1997 (1997-07-02)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

Backup is a British television police procedural crime drama series, devised by Nigel McCrery and Roy Mitchell, that ran for a total of fourteen episodes across two series on BBC One between September 7, 1995, and July 2, 1997.[1] Focusing on the work of a police Operational Support Unit, similar to the Territorial Support Group, the series follows the operations of the nine officers of Charlie Van, an OSU of the West Midlands Police.[2]

Both series were filmed at Pebble Mill Studios,[3] and saw the likes of Martin Troakes, Christopher John Hall and Nick Miles among the main cast.[4] A then-unknown Matthew Rhys starred in the second series as PC Steve 'Hiccup' Higson, his first televisual role. Initial press releases for the series stated, "When things get too much for the officers on the front line, they call for Backup, the Operational Support Unit (OSU)."[5]

Notably, the series has never been released on DVD, and aside from a single repeat run on UK Gold in the late 1990s, has yet to be further repeated on British television.

  1. ^ "Search - BBC Programme Index".
  2. ^ "Carnaby Films - TV - Backup". Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  3. ^ "Backup – What Was Pebble Mill?".
  4. ^ "BBC One - Backup, Series 2, Touched, Matthew Rhys - Before he was famous".
  5. ^ "Backup". Archived from the original on 7 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.