You think you know The Professionals? You may well believe that. Ever since it crashed on to our screens in December 1977 it has been almost ever-present in our televisual lives – either on air or via some home video format where it has sold in droves.
No matter when or how you saw it, Bodie and Doyle sit alongside Regan and Carter at the pinnacle of the gritty street drama of the time – drama which required a certain and unique film production approach to achieve and which, in turn, broke new ground for the shows that followed years and decades later. Ask director Martin Campbell. Oh, and, as part of our treatment of the show, we are.
So why have Network taken the reins of such an over-exposed series all these years later when, even as this is written, it is being shown on satellite? Quite simply, the pictures you are watching now and, in fact, those which you have always seen, are, in essence, revamps of the pictures first seen in 1978. It is one of the last filmed series that has never been through any kind of credible restoration process from its original film elements, so we are rising to that challenge and giving fans something truly different whilst introducing the series to a new generation.
We have already commissioned a host of new special features for these releases, including production notes, previously unseen material and a thorough history of the series with contributions from those who made it what it is.
The highlight of these new releases, though, is the restoration work currently underway. With unprecedented access to the original film materials the entire series is undergoing a transformation from the gritty (here in an entirely negative sense), smudgy and scratchy images that everyone has always seen on tv, video or disc into something in High Definition that looks like it was filmed last week; a Professionals fit for the 21st century. If you don’t believe what is achievable, take a look at this and the more detailed comparison frame grabs below:
Independent British distributors NetworkDVD have detailed their upcoming Blu-ray release of The Professionals: MkI, one of the most successful action thriller series ever made. The release will be available for purchase in the United Kingdom on March 31.
The Professionals is regularly re-run on television and has been released numerous times on DVD but it has never been digitally restored in High Definition - until now! Featuring brand new transfers from the original film elements, The Professionals is presented here at a previously unseen level of quality - it really has never looked this good. The Professionals: MkI contains the first thirteen episodes from 1977/78, in their original production order.
Special Features: Brand new, transfers and restorations from the original negatives Brand-new, exclusive book written by archive television historian Andrew Pixley, fully detailing the history and production of the first thirteen episodes All episodes feature original Assault Course titles (and Cowley narration on the first three episodes) All episodes are presented in their original production order Brand-new Dolby 5.1 mixes along with original as-broadcast mono and music-only tracks Without Walls: 1996 Channel 4 documentary on The Professionals HD image galleries including shots of Anthony Andrews as Bodie Raw title sequence, original ad bumper and series two titles demo Additional footage from Everest Was Also Conquered and Look After Annie PDF material Number of Discs 4 Sound 5.1 / Mono / English Subtitles English Region ABC Time 650 mins + extras
Pretty tempted. I've got the DVDs and have watched them all. The clean-up looks impressive. Watched an episode yesterday evening on TV. Bodyguard Bodie sees his assassin counterpart. They recognise each other and both smile before shooting. Classic.
In addition to the standard BluRay and DVD releases announced today ‘The Professionals – Mk1' will also be available as a numbered limited edition deluxe box set. It will feature different artwork throughout all the physical assets including the outer box, Andrew Pixley’s exhaustive history of the first thirteen episodes and the disc on-bodies.
A highlight is a separate art gallery book which features 200 mostly unpublished stills from the the first filming block. Reproduced on high quality 200g gloss art paper these images are not available anywhere else including the stills gallery featured on the discs and they will not be licensed for use externally.
There will be just 2500 sets available worldwide and each set is numbered. This stunning piece of Professionals merchandise will be available exclusively from networkonair from June and further details including how to pre-order will be available soon. Register your interest and get the latest news on this release!
The Professionals is a great western with Lee Marvin and Burt Lancaster. Never heard of this TV series.
The Professionals is a British crime-action television drama series produced by Avengers Mk1 Productions and London Weekend Television that aired on the ITV network from 1977 to 1983. In all, 57 episodes were produced, filmed between 1977 and 1981. It starred Martin Shaw, Lewis Collins and Gordon Jackson as agents of the fictional "CI5" (Criminal Intelligence 5 like the real life MI5).
The Professionals was created by Brian Clemens, who had been one of the driving forces behind The Avengers. The show was to have been originally called The A-Squad before it was decided to call it The Professionals. Clemens and Albert Fennell were executive producers, with business partner Laurie Johnson providing the theme music. Sidney Hayers produced the first series in 1977, and Raymond Menmuir the remainder.
"Anarchy, acts of terror, crimes against the public. To combat it I've got special men - experts from the army, the police, from every service - these are The Professionals."
One of the most successful action thriller series ever made, The Professionals is regularly re-run on television and has been released numerous times on DVD but it has never been digitally restored in High Definition - until now! Featuring brand new transfers from the original film elements, The Professionals is presented here at a previously unseen level of quality - it really has never looked this good. This set contains all thirteen episodes that comprise the second series, produced in 1978 and 1979.
FEATURES ON THIS NEW EDITION: [] Brand new, High Definition transfers and restorations from the original negatives [] Brand-new, exclusive book written by archive television historian Andrew Pixley, fully detailing the history and production of series two [] All episodes are presented in their original production order [] Brand-new Dolby 5.1 mixes along with original as-broadcast mono and music-only tracks [] Series Two Ad Bumper [] Extensive HD image galleries [] PDF material [] English HOH subtitles [] More TBC!!!
"Anarchy, acts of terror, crimes against the public. To combat it I've got special men - experts from the army, the police, from every service - these are The Professionals."
One of the most successful action thriller series ever made, The Professionals is regularly re-run on television and has been released numerous times on DVD but it has never been digitally restored in High Definition - until now! Featuring brand new transfers from the original film elements, The Professionals is presented here at a previously unseen level of quality - it really has never looked this good. This set contains all thirteen episodes that comprise the second series, produced in 1978 and 1979.
FEATURES ON THIS NEW EDITION: [] Brand new, High Definition transfers and restorations from the original negatives [] Brand-new, exclusive book written by archive television historian Andrew Pixley, fully detailing the history and production of series two [] All episodes are presented in their original production order [] Brand-new Dolby 5.1 mixes along with original as-broadcast mono and music-only tracks [] Series Two Ad Bumper [] Extensive HD image galleries [] PDF material [] English HOH subtitles [] More TBC!!!
British distributors Network have revealed that they are planning to bring to Blu-ray The Professionals: MkIII. The four-disc set will feature all episodes that comprise the third series, which have been recently restored. The release will be available for purchase on March 30, 2015.
Great news about Mark III - I'm enjoying re-discovering this awesome show, which was one of my favorites growing up. The chemistry between the two leads (and The Cow) is just superbly crafted and the action is quite possibly the best of any TV show (helped significantly by the the fact that it is clearly Lewis Collins and Martin Shaw doing a lot of the stunts, especially the driving).
The show's really haven't dated at all and remain cracking entertainment.
The Professionals was one of those rare occasions of being able to catch lightning in a jar with superb acting, quality scripts, likeable characters and stunningly choreographed action set pieces. Great, great show.
Bodie and Doyle need little by way of introduction, but if the series had at all escaped you since its debut in 1977 their boss George Cowley, head of CI5, couldn't put it more succinctly than his opening gambit: "anarchy, acts of terror, crimes against the public. To combat it I've got special men – experts from the army, the police, from every service. These are The Professionals".
Featuring the perfect ensemble cast of Martin Shaw, Gordon Jackson (completely against type here) and the much-missed Lewis Collins, the series ran for 57 action-packed episodes and made an immediate impact on British and then international audiences which has sustained 35 years. But the series has never looked this good. Painstakingly restored from the camera-original negatives the series could have been made yesterday. No matter how many times you have seen The Professionals, this is a new experience, like seeing it for the first time.
Content and Special Features: •Brand-new, High Definition restorations of all 13 episodes in series three from the camera-original negatives • Brand-new 5.1 tracks from original sound elements • Remastered original as-broadcast mono tracks • Remastered music-only tracks featuring Laurie Johnson's original scores • HD photo galleries featuring hundreds of rare and previously unseen images • Exclusive book of programme notes authored by TV historian Andrew Pixley, which documents the complete production history for the 13 episodes in series three •All episodes are presented in their original production order • PDF material featuring scripts and memorabilia • English HOH subtitles
Long-awaited, long-overdue: The Professionals as you have never seen them before.
Bodie and Doyle need little by way of introduction, but if the series had at all escaped you since its debut in 1977 their boss George Cowley, head of CI5, couldn’t put it more succinctly than his opening gambit: "anarchy, acts of terror, crimes against the public. To combat it I’ve got special men – experts from the army, the police, from every service. These are The Professionals".
Featuring the perfect ensemble cast of Martin Shaw, Gordon Jackson (completely against type here) and the much-missed Lewis Collins, the series ran for 57 action-packed episodes and made an immediate impact on British and then international audiences which has sustained 35 years. But the series has never looked this good. Painstakingly restored from the camera-original negatives the series could have been made yesterday. No matter how many times you have seen The Professionals, this is a new experience, like seeing it for the first time.
FEATURES ON THIS NEW EDITION [] Brand-new, High Definition restorations of all 18 episodes in series four and five from the camera-original negatives [] Brand-new 5.1 tracks from original sound elements [] Remastered original as-broadcast mono tracks [] Remastered music-only tracks featuring Laurie Johnson’s original scores [] HD photo galleries featuring hundreds of rare and previously unseen images [] Exclusive book of programme notes authored by TV historian Andrew Pixley, which documents the complete production history for the 18 episodes in series four and five [] All episodes are presented in their original production order [] PDF material featuring scripts and memorabilia [] English HOH subtitles
I happened to catch part of one of the episodes this morning before leaving for work - the one where Bodie turns vigilante after his girlfriend is injured in a restaurant bombing and Doyle gets himself kidnapped by the Mafia who are trying to grab their accountant turned informer (which I suppose makes it a snitch snatch). The quality of the print was absolutely terrible - clearly not using the restored version.
They regularly show them on itv4 at 7am and i find them very much of their time. Im sorry to disagree with Mike but. When ive seen them ive found them dated and corny and cartoonish, almost for kids, and rather silly. In contrast The Sweeney still holds up well and has far more gravitas and substance. Thinking about it, Sweeney was always meant to be gritty and adult whereas Professionals was meant to be tongue in cheek and corny - it was after all, prime saturday night viewing for families and not to be taken too seriously. I always thought that the intro music was the best bit of it - bit like Black Beauty and the A-Team - the show rarely matched the excitement of the opening music!!
