''Prospects'' is a British television comedy-drama series written by

Alan Janes Alan Janes (born 16 May 1951) is an English writer and producer who has worked in TV, film, radio and theatre. His musical ''Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story'' (widely credited with being the first of the so-called 'jukebox musicals'),ran for over ...

and originally released on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

in 1986. Created by

Euston Films Euston Films is a British film and television production company. It was originally a subsidiary company of Thames Television, and operated from 1971 to 1994, producing various series for Thames, which were screened nationally on the ITV network ...

, who had a pedigree of producing successful, gritty dramas such as '' The Sweeney'' and ''

Minder A minder is the person assigned to guide or escort a visitor, or to provide protection to somebody, or to otherwise assist or take care of something, i.e. a person who " minds". Government-appointed persons to accompany foreign visitors are of ...

'', it followed the exploits of two East End 'geezer' characters, Jimmy 'Pincy' Pince and Billy 'Bill' Pearson, played by

Gary Olsen Gary Olsen (born Gary Kenneth Grant; 3 November 1957 – 12 September 2000) was an English actor. He played Ben in the BBC television sitcom ''2point4 Children''. Biography Olsen was born in London and lived with an aunt and uncle after b ...

and Brian Bovell, respectively, and depicts their trials and tribulations of making a living in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Isle of Dogs The Isle of Dogs is a large peninsula bounded on three sides by a large meander in the River Thames in East London, England, which includes the Cubitt Town, Millwall and Canary Wharf districts. The area was historically part of the Manor, Ha ...

. Comprising 12 episodes, ''Prospects'' was delivered with a comic slant and dealt with many of the major issues affecting British society at the height of the "

Thatcherite Thatcherism is a form of British conservative ideology named after Conservative Party leader Margaret Thatcher that relates to not just her political platform and particular policies but also her personal character and general style of manag ...

" '80s including unemployment, crime, poverty, regeneration, social change, and racism. The shows featured many actors, such as well-known actors like Ken Jones who played 'Horrible Ives' in ''Porridge,'' and some unknown actors who went on to find fame elsewhere. These include

Billy Hartman Billy Hartman (born 1957) is a Scottish actor, well known for playing the part of Terry Woods on ITV's ''Emmerdale'' from 1995 until his character was killed off in 2011 after 16 years. Career Together with ''Emmerdale'' co-stars Steve Ha ...

'Terry Woods' in ''Emmerdale''. ''Prospects'' gained a cult following and rating-wise it performed well above expectations for Channel 4. At that time Channel 4 received a large subsidy from the rival commercial network ITV in exchange for the right to sell airtime; this gave ITV significant input into the management of the station. The success of ''Prospects'' and the fact that it was produced by a subsidiary of the ITV network's largest station

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a franchise holder for a region of the British ITV television network serving London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until the night of 31 December 1992. Thames Television broa ...

meant it was moved to a 9 pm

prime-time Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...

repeat slot on ITV in the Spring/Summer of 1987. This fuelled rumours that the network wanted to develop ''Prospects'' into a long-running comedy-drama series. However, ITV declined the opportunity to develop it beyond the original first 12-episode series.

Cast

as Pincy *Brian Bovell as Billy *

Peter Lovstrom Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

as Mickey Smith * Chrissie Cotterill as Mona *

Ben Howard Benjamin John Howard (born 24 April 1987) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and composer. His self-released debut EP ''Games in the Dark'' (2008) was followed by two more EPs, '' These Waters'' (2009) and '' Old Pine'' (2010). Signed t ...

as Halforth * Mike Savage as Del *

Treva Etienne Treva Etienne is an English actor and filmmaker. Etienne guest starred in the ''BBC drama'' '' Death In Paradise'', the CBS spinoff '' Criminal Minds Beyond Borders'', and the CW fantasy/horror ''Supernatural''. He has a leading role in the indie ...

as Horace *

Eddie Tagoe Eddie Tagoe is a Ghanaian actor and reflexologist, probably best-known for his film career in the late 1970s and 1980s. Early life The son of Ghanaian Chieftain Asafoatshe Ayah Tagoe, Eddie Tagoe travelled to London to study reflexology prior ...

as Stretch *

Nigel Davenport Arthur Nigel Davenport (23 May 1928 – 25 October 2013) was an English stage, television and film actor, best known as the Duke of Norfolk and Lord Birkenhead in the Academy Award-winning films '' A Man for All Seasons'' and '' Chariots of F ...

as The Governor *

John Benfield Jonathan Edmund Fulford "John" Turner (9 November 1951 – 16 June 2020), better known by his stage name John Benfield, was a British character actor. Biography Benfield appeared in 75 television episodes or films starting in 1981 with small p ...

as Kev *

Peter Bayliss Peter Bayliss (27 June 1922 – 29 July 2002) was an English actor. Bayliss was born in Kingston upon Thames and trained at the Italia Conti Academy and the John Gielgud Company. More than six feet tall, with a voice to match, he supplemente ...

as Mr Frobisher * Eve Bland as Maude *

John Forgeham John Henry George Forgeham (14 May 1941 – 10 March 2017) was an English actor known for his television work, notably the role of businessman Frank Laslett in the ITV series ''Footballers' Wives''. Born in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, For ...

as Jock *

as Mr Innes *

John Hallam John William Francis Hallam (28 October 1941 – 14 November 2006) was a British character actor, who frequently played hard men or military types. Early life John Hallam was born, the son of a superintendent at London Docklands, in 19 ...

as Tubby Rawlinson *

Tony Haygarth George Anthony Haygarth (4 February 1945 – 10 March 2017) was an English television, film and theatre actor. Life and career After leaving Marlborough College, Liverpool, Haygarth worked unsuccessfully in 1963 as a lifeguard in Torquay, and a ...

as Alf *

Bernard Hepton Francis Bernard Heptonstall (19 October 1925 – 27 July 2018) better known by the stage name Bernard Hepton, was an English theatre director and actor. Best known for his stage work and television roles in teleplays and series, he also appeare ...

as Hymie Peters *

Hazel O'Connor Hazel Thereasa O'Connor (born 16 May 1954) is a British singer-songwriter and actress. She became famous in the early 1980s with hit singles " Eighth Day", " D-Days" and " Will You?" She also starred in the 1980 film '' Breaking Glass''. Care ...

as Bev Reid *

Malcolm Tierney Malcolm Tierney (25 February 1938 – 18 February 2013) was an English actor who appeared in many film and television roles. Early life Tierney's father, Ernest, was a boilermaker and trained draughtsman, from Warrington, who worked at Blackpoo ...

as Ralph Finchley * Kate Williams as Bess * Ken Jones as Mr Lambert *

Glen Murphy Glen Murphy (born 6 April 1957) is a British actor and producer, best known as Firefighter George Green between 1988 and 2002 on the television drama '' London's Burning''. Career Murphy was the only actor to remain throughout the entire r ...

as Ron *

Ken Campbell Kenneth Victor Campbell (10 December 1941 – 31 August 2008) was an English actor, writer and director known for his work in experimental theatre. He has been called "a one-man dynamo of British theatre". Campbell achieved notoriety in the 1 ...

as George * Paul Mari as Slimey Keith

Episodes

The 12 episodes of Prospects followed Billy and Pincy's exploits as follows: * Episode 1 The P to S Day - Billy and Pincy set up a dating agency and burglar alarm company but as always, they seem to spend their time getting out of scrapes. * Episode 2 Partners in Brine - Pincy has big dreams of setting up a marina and theme park in the Isle of Dogs - not bad when your only collateral is your weekly 'dole' cheque. * Episode 3 Uncle Harry's System - Pincy, despite Billy's cynicism, believes he's discovered a guaranteed greyhound betting system. However, they end up in very hot water both with 'Uncle Harry's' system and losing £500 they were minding for local villain 'Stretch'. * Episode 4 Dirty Weekend - Billy, Pincy and their girlfriends embark on an ill-fated camping holiday. * Episode 5 Rodent Engineers - Billy and Pincy set up a pest control business and claim to eliminate an epidemic of 'hyper mice' that have infested the Isle of Dogs. * Episode 6 Standing on Your Own One Foot - Billy and Pincy move to a new flat. However, it proves an unhappy move after they have a run-in with the area's racist local councillor and his cronies. * Episode 7 Subterranean Pig Sick Blues - Pincy thinks he can pull off the 'perfect' bank robbery, whilst also launching a scam involving dirty magazines. However, things don't quite go as planned. * Episode 8 Frying Tonight - Billy and Pincy get a job at their local chip shop. However, things spiral out of control when they give marriage guidance advice to the owner George. * Episode 9 Four Men in a Boat - Billy and Pincy get hired to work as waiters on a wedding boat. * Episode 10 Follow the Yellow Brick Lane - Billy falls in love with Bev (Hazel O'Connor) a headstrong singer dreaming of becoming a pop star. * Episode 11 Running all the Way Part One - A police 'fit up' sees Billy and Pincy get sent to prison for a crime they didn't commit, disliking the prison life, they escape! * Episode 12 Running all the Way Part Two - Billy and Pincy find life hard on the run and start work for 'Tubby' a local gangster who has a feud with 'Stretch' another gangster who was last seen in episode 3. They realize that serving time in prison may have been idea than a choosing a life on the run.

DVD release

All 12 episodes were given an official Region 2,

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

release by Network in March 2013.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Prospects (Tv Series) Channel 4 original programming 1980s British comedy-drama television series 1986 British television series debuts 1986 British television series endings Television shows set in London