''Crossbow'' is a 1987

historical drama A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents history, historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction s ...

action Action may refer to: * Action (philosophy), something which is done by a person * Action principles the heart of fundamental physics * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video gam ...

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 spo ...

television series that aired on CBN Cable Network. The series was produced by Steven North and Richard Schlesinger for Robert Halmi Inc., in co-production with French television network FR3. It was filmed entirely on location in France.

Premise

Set in 14th-century Switzerland, Crossbow follows the adventures of

William Tell William Tell (, ; ; ; ) is a legendary folk hero of Switzerland. He is known for shooting an apple off his son's head. According to the legend, Tell was an expert mountain climber and marksman with a crossbow who assassinated Albrecht Gessler, ...

(played by

Will Lyman William Lyman (born May 20, 1948) is an American actor. Known for his polished, resonant voice, he has narrated the PBS series '' Frontline'' since its second season in 1984. He played William Tell in the action/adventure television series ''Cr ...

), a legendary folk hero and expert marksman. The story begins with Tell and his son, Matthew, imprisoned by the tyrannical Governor Hermann Gessler (played by

Jeremy Clyde Michael Jeremy Thomas Clyde (born 22 March 1941) is an English actor and musician. During the 1960s, he was one-half of the folk duo Chad & Jeremy (with Chad Stuart). Their first song was the 1963 hit " Yesterday’s Gone". The duo became mor ...

), who seeks to suppress a Swiss uprising against Austrian rule. When Tell is forced to shoot an apple off his son’s head with a crossbow—a feat he successfully accomplishes—he becomes a symbol of resistance. Using his exceptional skills, Tell escapes captivity and leads a rebellion against Gessler’s oppressive regime, encountering both allies and formidable adversaries along the way.

Cast and Characters

Main Characters

, played by

* Governor Hermann Gessler, played by

* Blade, played by

Melinda Mullins Melinda Mullins (born April 20, 1958) is an American former 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 ...

* 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 engineer father (Tadeusz Pelka) and an Irish actress (Alma Her ...

* Matthew Tell, played by David Barry Gray * Katrina Tell, played by Anne Lonnberg * 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 acti ...

* Conrad, played by

John Otway John Otway (born 2 October 1952) is an English guitarist and singer-songwriter who has built a cult audience through extensive touring. Biography Early life Otway was born in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. From the age of nine all he ever wanted ...

* 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 Gisburne 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'' (1 ...

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

Bertie Cortez Bertie may refer to: People and fictional characters *Bertie (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Bertie (nickname), a list of people * Bertie (surname), a list of people Places * Bertie County, North Carolina * Bertie Townsh ...

Guest stars

* Eleanor, played by

Dana Barron Dana Barron (born April 22, 1966) 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: Cou ...

* The Emperor, played by

Guy Rolfe Guy Rolfe (born Edwin Arthur Rolfe, 27 December 1911 – 19 October 2003) was a British character actor. He was best known for portraying villains. Early life Born in Kilburn, London, Edwin Arthur "Guy" Rolfe was descended from Thomas Rolfe, ...

* Prince Ignatius, played by

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

* Gaston, played by

Brian Blessed Brian Blessed ( ; born 9 October 1936) is an English actor. He is known for his distinctive bushy beard, booming voice, and exuberant personality and performances. He portrayed PC "Fancy" Smith in ''Z-Cars''; Augustus in the 1976 BBC television ...

* Princess, played by Valerie Steffen * Captain of the Guard, played by

Steve Buscemi Steven Vincent Buscemi (,As stated in interviews by Buscemi himself. It is not uncommon for people to pronounce his name or instead. ; born December 13, 1957) is an American actor. He is known for his work as an acclaimed character actor. Mul ...

* François Arconciel, played by

Roger Daltrey Sir Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is the co-founder and lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Who, known for his powerful voice and charismatic stage presence. His stage persona ear ...

* Sara Guidotti, played by

Sarah Michelle Gellar Sarah Michelle Prinze ( ; born April 14, 1977) is an American actress. After being spotted by a talent agent as a young child, she made her film debut at age six in the television film ''An Invasion of Privacy'' (1983). She had her first lead ...

* Vogel " The Alchemist", played by David Warner * 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 ...

'') Howard Maxford, ''Hammer Complete : The Films, The Personnel, The Company''. Jefferson, North Carolina : McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, 2019 (p. 632) * Pamenta, played by Imogen Annesley

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 An action-adventure game is a video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres. Definition An action adventure game can be defined as a game with a mix of elements from an action ...

titled ''Crossbow: the Legend of William Tell'', based on the series, was released in 1989 for the

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers produced by Commodore International, Commodore from 1985 until the company's bankruptcy in 1994, with production by others afterward. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16-b ...

and the

Atari ST Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the company's Atari 8-bit computers, 8-bit computers. The initial model, the Atari 520ST, had limited release in April–June 1985, and was widely available i ...

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is a New York City–based comic book publishing, publisher, a property of the Walt Disney Company since December 31, 2009, and a subsidiary of Disney Publishing Worldwide since March 2023. Marvel was founded in 1939 by Martin G ...

released several issues of a tie-in

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

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

and

. An illustrated storybook and a

novelization A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book, or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent ...

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''), composed by Gioachino Rossini. ''William Tell'' premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini's 39 operas, after which he w ...

'' by

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. He gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote man ...

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 The Family Channel (American TV network, founded 1990) original programming 1980s American drama television series 1987 American television series debuts 1989 American television series endings Television series set in the 14th century Television shows set in Switzerland