The Locksmith

The Locksmith is a six-part British television drama series, created and written by Stephen Bill, that first broadcast on BBC1 on 25 September 1997. The series, which stars Warren Clarke and Chris Gascoyne, follows Roland Pierce (Clarke), a locksmith-turned-vigilante who tries to track down the man responsible for a brutal attack on his estranged wife, Carla (writer Stephen Bill's wife, Sheila Kelley), which leaves her with brain damage. The police suspect a local junkie, Paul (John Simm) is responsible, but Roland remains unconvinced and sets out on his own quest to discover the truth.[1]

The Locksmith
GenreCrime drama
Written byStephen Bill
Directed by
Starring
ComposerColin Towns
Country of originUnited Kingdom
No. of series1
No. of episodes6 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producerTony Virgo
ProducerIrving Teitelbaum
CinematographySteve Saunderson
Editors
  • Tim Ritson
  • John Stothart
Running time50 minutes
Production companyFair Game Films
DistributorBBC Worldwide
Release
Original networkBBC1
Picture format16:9
Audio formatStereo
Original release25 September (1997-09-25) –
30 October 1997 (1997-10-30)

The series was broadcast at 9:30 pm on Thursdays, and notably broadcast concurrently alongside another series featuring Simm, The Lakes.[2] The series was released on DVD via Simply Media on 19 October 2015.[3]

Reception

Mark Cunliffe for Letterboxd reviewed the series upon its release on DVD, writing; "The cast for The Locksmith is brilliant; Clarke, Kelley and Polly Hemingway perform the central triangle of husband, estranged wife and current, long suffering lover, whilst a younger generation of actors including Chris Gascoyne, Sarah-Jane Potts and John Simm are equally capable in the other roles."

He added; "Watching it back, I'm wondering if The Locksmith was actually intended to be a recurring series as opposed to a one-shot series or mini-series. There was certainly more mileage for a second run of six further episodes, but whether it was ever the intention to or not, it was just not to be."[4]

Cast

Episodes
No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal UK air date
1"Coming Together"Alan DossorStephen Bill25 September 1997 (1997-09-25)
Roland Pierce's life has been built on a belief in law and order. But when his estranged wife is attacked and the police show little interest, he vows to catch the attacker himself.[5]
2"Full Moon"Alan DossorStephen Bill2 October 1997 (1997-10-02)
Carla has survived a brutal attack, but has suffered brain damage and appears not to remember that they are separated. Meanwhile, Lesley urges Roland to marry her.[6]
3"Victims"Lawrence Gordon ClarkStephen Bill9 October 1997 (1997-10-09)
Frustrated by the police's inability to find Carla's attacker, Roland decides to use his locksmithing skills to set a trap. Meanwhile, Barry gets more than he bargained for when he tries to make some money on the side.[7]
4"Words and Deeds"Lawrence Gordon ClarkStephen Bill16 October 1997 (1997-10-16)
Now he has caught Paul, the young lad responsible for up to ten burglaries a night in the town, Roland questions him through the night as uncertainty starts to creep in. Slowly, Roland begins to feel further and further out of his depth.[8]
5"Fire"Chris BernardStephen Bill23 October 1997 (1997-10-23)
As Roland tries to come to terms with the previous night's dramatic events, Alice insists that life goes on. Following a serious lapse of professional judgement on his part, Roland finds himself faced with a family trapped in a blazing house.[9]
6"Ghosts"Chris BernardStephen Bill30 October 1997 (1997-10-30)
Roland is devastated when Carla thinks she recognises the lad who attacked her. Meanwhile, when a local councillor loses his car keys while out in the woods with a young lady, Barry thinks he has spotted an opportunity for profit. But has he taken on more than he bargained for?[10]

References
  1. "The Locksmith, 1997, starring Warren Clarke and John Simm: now on DVD". John Simm Society. 19 October 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  2. "BBC Continuity – September 21, 1997: Panorama, The Locksmith & The Lakes". 21 September 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2018 – via YouTube.
  3. "The Locksmith [DVD]". 19 October 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  4. "The Locksmith, 1997: Review". Letterboxd. 30 April 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  5. https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/80c8f3f69a21468482f047be96cbafbc
  6. https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/40a9cd05aa4f495a806ffc1c63b8c59f
  7. https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/7a83c12fe07544bf93c2f3d6f2dfa063
  8. https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/b97fa195f8aa40169d0342231f1ed4d0
  9. https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/15998543129e4f0c97ffe03cb9eaa739
  10. https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/626a7897171c44cf8df30dfa5a548a42
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