"Spearhead" (1978) TV series 1978-1981

User Rating:

8.9/10   

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3

Release Date:

18 July 1978 (UK)

Genre:

Drama

Plot Keywords:

Army

Cast

Stafford Gordon	...	Company Sgt. Major Gilby (19 episodes, 1978-1981)
Roy Holder	...	Sergeant Bilinski (19 episodes, 1978-1981)
Gordon Case	...	Private Mayhoe (19 episodes, 1978-1981)
Peter Turner	...	Private Adams / ... (16 episodes, 1978-1981)
Robin Davies	...	Corporal Box (15 episodes, 1978-1981)
George Sweeney	...	Private Twiss / ... (13 episodes, 1978-1979)
Charles Cork	...	Private Gadd (13 episodes, 1978-1979)
Martyn Jacobs	...	Lieutenant Pickering (11 episodes, 1979-1981)
Pik Sen Lim	...	Tsai Adams (10 episodes, 1978-1981)

Also Known As:

Spearhead in Germany (UK) (second season title)
Spearhead in Hong Kong (UK) (third season title)
Spearhead in Ulster (UK) (first season title)

Runtime:

60 min (19 episodes)

Country:

UK

Company:

Southern Television

"You shouldn't have joined!"

This was first broadcast in the summer of 1978 and in all honesty I don't recall it lasting three seasons? Spearhead of course was years before the popular Soldier Soldier and did not glamorize the army. It's important to note that in the years soldier,soldier graced the UK screens there was never an easier time to be in the army than between 1992-1997. The fatality rate was low, most casualties were due to training accidents, suicides and killings due to bullying (alledgidly). The military as a whole was reduced to performing global social work, peace keeping (as long as there was peace to be kept) and meals on wheels operations than actually doing any fighting.

I'm not saying that all of the above was a bad thing but in 1978 the army had the unenviable and thankless task of trying to keep the peace in Northern Ireland (where there was no peace to be kept) and during the 70's and 80's a steady stream of soldiers were killed while on active duty in Ulster. Admittedly it was much worse in the early 1970's, but in 1979 the parachute regiment lost 27 soldiers at Warren point in an ambush.

In addition to dodging bullets and road side explosives (now neatly termed IED's, by the Americans) thanks to Britains poor industrial relations at the time some of the other tasks assigned to the army were fire fighting with 1950's equipment and standing in for striking dustmen , not exactly rewarding work! Also, in 1978 army pay was poor and one of the first things that the Thatcher government did in 1980 was to increase the pay of the military.

Spearhead in all honesty probably did not do any thing for army recruitment as, theft within the ranks, desertion (AWOL), marriage problems, riot control and ambushes in Northern Ireland as well as money problems were all highlighted in the first season. It's not surprising that spearhead was axed after 19 episodes nor that it is not remembered; army life was not as nearly easy back then.