''Crossbow'' is a 1987 historical drama

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

that aired on

CBN Cable Network The American cable and satellite television network that is now known as Freeform was originally launched as the CBN Satellite Service on April 29, 1977, and has gone through several different owners (and six different name changes) during its hi ...

. The series was produced by Steven North and Richard Schlesinger for Robert Halmi Inc., in co-production with French television network FR3, and filmed entirely on location in France. ''Crossbow'' follows the adventures of

William Tell William Tell (german: Wilhelm Tell, ; french: Guillaume Tell; it, Guglielmo Tell; rm, Guglielm Tell) is a folk hero of Switzerland. According to the legend, Tell was an expert mountain climber and marksman with a crossbow who assassinated Albr ...

(

Will Lyman William Lyman (born May 20, 1948) is an American voice-over artist, actor, and musician. Being known for his polished, resonant voice, Lyman has narrated the PBS series '' Frontline'' since its second season in 1984 and played William Tell in t ...

) and takes place in the 14th-century in Switzerland.Howard Maxford, ''Hammer Complete : The Films, The Personnel, The Company''. Jefferson, North Carolina : McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2019 (p. 632) William Tell and his son Matthew are imprisoned by the tyrannical Gessler ( Jeremy Clyde). As

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

( Landburgher in the original story) of

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, Gessler plans to stop the Swiss uprising. Having split the apple on his son's head with his crossbow, much to Gessler's chagrin, there is no stopping William Tell's legendary strength and skill.

Characters

Main

, played by

* Governor Hermann Gessler, played by Jeremy Clyde * Blade, played by

Melinda Mullins Melinda Mullins (born April 20, 1958) is an American film, television and theatre actress. Early life and education She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in the Romance languages from Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, i ...

* Roland, played by

Valentine Pelka Valentine Pelka (born 23 February 1956) is an English actor who has starred in film and on television. Biography Pelka was born in Dewsbury, West Riding of Yorkshire, to a Polish civil engineer father and an Irish actress mother, and attende ...

* Matthew Tell, played by David Barry Gray * Katrina Tell, played by

Anne Lonnberg Anne Lonnberg (born 17 February 1948) is an American actress and singer of Swedish descent. Life and career Lonnberg was born in Berkeley, California to a Swedish father. She began her acting career in 1965, starring mostly in Greek films. S ...

* Tyroll, played by Hans Meyer * Horst, played by

Nick Brimble Nicholas Brimble (born 22 July 1944) is an English actor whose long career has spanned theatre, television, film, and voice work. Early life Brimble was born in Bristol. His father was a schoolteacher who was also a keen amateur actor, an activ ...

* Conrad, played by

John Otway John Otway (born 2 October 1952) is an English singer-songwriter who has built a cult audience through extensive touring. Biography 1970s and 1980s Otway was born in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. Although his first single, "Gypsy"/"Misty Mounta ...

* Arris, played by

Robert Addie Robert Alastair Addie (10 February 1960 – 20 November 2003) was an English film and theatre actor, who came to prominence playing the role of Sir Guy of Gisbourne in the 1980s British television drama series ''Robin of Sherwood''. Early life ...

* Stefan, played by

Conrad Phillips Conrad Philip Havord (13 April 1925 – 13 January 2016), known professionally as Conrad Phillips, was an English television and film actor. He is best known for playing William Tell in the adventure series ''The Adventures of William Tell'' ( ...

* Weevil, played by Bernard Spiegel * Ambrose, played by

Bertie Cortez Bertie may refer to: People *Bertie (given name) *Bertie (nickname) *Bertie (surname) Places * Bertie County, North Carolina * Bertie Township, subsequently amalgamated into Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada Other uses * ''Bertie'' (TV series), a 200 ...

Guest appearances

* Eleanor, played by

Dana Barron Dana Barron is an American actress who is best known for her role as the original Audrey Griswold in the 1983 film ''National Lampoon's Vacation'' which she reprised in 2003's '' National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation 2: Cousin Eddie's Island Adv ...

* The Emperor, played by

Guy Rolfe Guy Rolfe (born Edwin Arthur Rolfe, 27 December 1911 – 19 October 2003) was a British actor. Career Rolfe was born in Kilburn, London. Before turning to acting at the age of 24 he was a professional boxer and racing driver, making his stage ...

* Prince Ignatius, played by

Johnny Crawford John Ernest Crawford (March 26, 1946 – April 29, 2021) was an American actor, singer, and musician. He first performed before a national audience as a Mouseketeer. At age 12, Crawford rose to prominence playing Mark McCain in the series ' ...

* Gaston, played by

Brian Blessed Brian Blessed (; born 9 October 1936) is an English actor, presenter, writer and mountaineer. Blessed is known for portraying PC "Fancy" Smith in ''Z-Cars'', Augustus in the 1976 BBC television production of '' I, Claudius'', King Richard I ...

* Princess, played by Valerie Steffen * Captain of the Guard, played by Steve Buscemi * François Arconciel, played by

Roger Daltrey Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is a co-founder and the lead singer of the rock band The Who. Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include " My Generation", " Pinball Wizard", " Won't Get Fooled ...

* Sara Guidotti, played by

Sarah Michelle Gellar Sarah Michelle Prinze ( ; born April 14, 1977) is an American actress. After being spotted at the age of four in New York City, she made her screen acting debut in the television film ''An Invasion of Privacy'' (1983). A leading role on the te ...

* Vogel " The Alchemist", played by

David Warner David or Dave Warner may refer to: Sports * Dave Warner (strongman) (born 1969), Northern Ireland strongman competitor * David Bruce Warner (born 1970), South African alpine skier * David Warner (cricketer) (born 1986), Australian cricketer Oth ...

* Stefan, William Tell's mentor, played by

(Philips had previously played the title role in ''

The Adventures of William Tell ''The Adventures of William Tell'' is a British swashbuckler adventure series, first broadcast on the ITV network in 1958, and produced by ITC Entertainment. In the United States, the episodes aired on the syndicated NTA Film Network in 1958 ...

'')

Media

A television film, ''Crossbow: The Movie'', edited from combined episodes of the series, was released on DVD in 2005, under the title ''The Adventures of William Tell''. The complete series was later released in 2018 on six DVD discs. An action-adventure game titled ''Crossbow: the Legend of William Tell'', based on the series, was released in 1989 for the Amiga and the Atari ST.

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

released several issues of a tie-in

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

, with the characters of Tell and Gessler drawn to the likenesses of

and Jeremy Clyde. An illustrated storybook and a novelization were released as well. The musical score for the series was composed by Stanisław Syrewicz, and used an arrangement of the ''

William Tell Overture The ''William Tell'' Overture is the overture to the opera '' William Tell'' (original French title ''Guillaume Tell''), whose music was composed by Gioachino Rossini. ''William Tell'' premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini's 39 operas, a ...

'' by

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards ...

in one of the tracks. A limited printing of the score was released in 1989 on CD and on LP record.

Episodes

Season 1 (1987–88)

Season 2 (1988–89)

Season 3 (1989)

References

External links

* * *
Crossbow – William Tell
' fansite {{William Tell American action adventure television series Cultural depictions of William Tell 1987 American television series debuts 1989 American television series endings Television series set in the 14th century Television shows set in Switzerland