Like NIGHT STALKER and then X-FILES, the show set up a fantastic situation and the main characters had to sort it out. Unlike these, the hero(es) weren't left holding an empty bag at the end. They had usually tangible results. It was also made clear that the 'good guys' were in a dirty profession where they occasionally had to pull some nasty things. Imagination, wit, acting which didn't always take itself too seriously ... I miss it. One reason being, I'm hard pressed to think of too many shows - BANACEK aside - which did as good a job of taking the viewer and grabbing their attention right off the bat. The writers excelled at setting up hugely improbable, if not downright impossible situations which the characters then had to find an explanation to. explanations which often took 90 degree turns into the clearly unexpected yet, for all that, still made sense. Too, I agree with another reviewer that the Anabelle character was somewhat underused, but when she was on screen, it wasn't just for eye candy. She was quite competent in her own right and stood up to the two male leads when she felt the point she was making warranted it. A rarity in those days. Sullivan? If he wasn't in the Department, he'd be working for the KGB or CIA. He's that sort of coldly efficient, ruthless type. He knows how the world works and realizes what it can take to get the job done. King? It's clearly a game to him. One he excels at and which he parleys into ideas for the detective/spy novels he writes as his ostensible 'real' job. He's probably the most fun to watch of the three, although they all have their moments and often, too. I do agree that the eventual spin-off series featuring only his character lacked the interest of the original, however.
16 Reviews
Fancy!
Installation_At_Orsk16 July 2012
I had never seen Department S until fairly recently when Top Gear did its spoof Sixties show "The Interceptors", which used the Department S theme music. Because I have a liking for the spy-fi shows of that era, I tracked down the DVDs of the series out of curiosity.
And I'm glad I did, because while it's no classic and falls some way short of the likes of The Avengers and The Prisoner, it's still lively and entertaining thanks to the interplay of its three leads. Joel Fabiani's Stewart Sullivan is largely the straight man and muscle, but still maintains a deadpan humour - with a righteous anger whenever politics interferes with justice. Rosemary Nichols' Annabelle Hurst has a flirty relationship with Stewart, and while something of a computer nerd is still more than capable of taking care of herself in the field.
Then... there's Jason King. Jason is the character known even by people who've never seen the show, simply because he's so outrageous. A chain-smoking dandy and fop who drives a Bentley even when trying to be inconspicuous and more often has a glass in his hand than not (he starts drinking when most people would be having their morning coffee and must surely be pleasantly buzzed, if not outright drunk, for 90% of his screen time), he's also arrogant, egotistical, rude, self-centred, lazy, hedonistic, snobbish, bitchy (poor Annabelle takes most of his cutting put-downs), a smarmy lech and is constantly outclassed in fights to the point where Annabelle chastises him for getting "knocked out AGAIN!" in quite an early episode. Yet despite all that, he's still utterly charming and magnetic because of Peter Wyngarde's effortlessly suave and confident performance. Played by anyone else Jason would seem like a buffoon - he was, after all, one of the inspirations for Austin Powers - but Wyngarde gives him class even at his most ridiculously pompous.
The actual stories are mixed; some of the mysteries Department S are called upon to investigate are genuinely clever, while others (mostly those written by Philip Broadley) are bog-standard ITC crime plots involving bank robbers, smuggling rings or the Mafia with a 'bizarre' opening slapped on them to fit the format of "crimes too weird for the normal police to solve". Watching on DVD, ITC's penny-pinching also becomes evident - the same locations and sets appear again and again with only slight changes (watch for the corridor with a distinctive illuminated ceiling, which appears in almost every episode), and if you ever see anyone driving a white Jaguar, you know it's going to go over a cliff! ("Toonces, look ouuuuuut!") But overall it's a fun, lightly tongue-in-cheek adventure show that gets by on pure charisma.
And I'm glad I did, because while it's no classic and falls some way short of the likes of The Avengers and The Prisoner, it's still lively and entertaining thanks to the interplay of its three leads. Joel Fabiani's Stewart Sullivan is largely the straight man and muscle, but still maintains a deadpan humour - with a righteous anger whenever politics interferes with justice. Rosemary Nichols' Annabelle Hurst has a flirty relationship with Stewart, and while something of a computer nerd is still more than capable of taking care of herself in the field.
Then... there's Jason King. Jason is the character known even by people who've never seen the show, simply because he's so outrageous. A chain-smoking dandy and fop who drives a Bentley even when trying to be inconspicuous and more often has a glass in his hand than not (he starts drinking when most people would be having their morning coffee and must surely be pleasantly buzzed, if not outright drunk, for 90% of his screen time), he's also arrogant, egotistical, rude, self-centred, lazy, hedonistic, snobbish, bitchy (poor Annabelle takes most of his cutting put-downs), a smarmy lech and is constantly outclassed in fights to the point where Annabelle chastises him for getting "knocked out AGAIN!" in quite an early episode. Yet despite all that, he's still utterly charming and magnetic because of Peter Wyngarde's effortlessly suave and confident performance. Played by anyone else Jason would seem like a buffoon - he was, after all, one of the inspirations for Austin Powers - but Wyngarde gives him class even at his most ridiculously pompous.
The actual stories are mixed; some of the mysteries Department S are called upon to investigate are genuinely clever, while others (mostly those written by Philip Broadley) are bog-standard ITC crime plots involving bank robbers, smuggling rings or the Mafia with a 'bizarre' opening slapped on them to fit the format of "crimes too weird for the normal police to solve". Watching on DVD, ITC's penny-pinching also becomes evident - the same locations and sets appear again and again with only slight changes (watch for the corridor with a distinctive illuminated ceiling, which appears in almost every episode), and if you ever see anyone driving a white Jaguar, you know it's going to go over a cliff! ("Toonces, look ouuuuuut!") But overall it's a fun, lightly tongue-in-cheek adventure show that gets by on pure charisma.
Better than you think
jimpayne196730 July 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Department S has a rather poor reputation these days and probably has the worst reputation of the ITC action shows of the mid to late 60s and very early 70s. It has not to the best of my knowledge been shown on British television- terrestrial or digital channels- since the late 1990s whereas almost all of the others are shown regularly on ITV4 even now. There are reasons that have precious little to do with the quality of the actual show that see it being regarded almost as the runt of the litter it was part of and aside perhaps from The Persuaders the programme - or at least its most famous character- is the most parodied of the ITC action shows
It certainly isn't the best of those programmes - the Prisoner and probably Man in a Suitcase are better - but on a recent viewing of several episodes I would suggest that it is far from the worst. Unlike the roughly contemporaneous Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) and the Champions the show is not based on a ludicrous premise and although the stories are hardly gritty realism a la Line of Duty they do just about possess some credibility. Some episodes such as the opener Six Days, series 1's The Man in the Elegant Room and Series 2's The Shift That Never Was are pretty solid thrillers and whilst series 1's The Pied Piper of Hambledown feels like a Steed/Peel era episode of the Avengers it is still very good.
There are faults in the show obviously. The team's boss, Sir Curtis Seretse (played by Denis Alaba Peters) is a far more interesting leader than Anthony Nicholls' Tremayne in the Champions ever was but he is underused and the female member of the team Annabelle Hurst (Rosemary Nicols) often seems marginalised. She is not there as eye candy in the way that Alexandra Bastedo and Annette Andre often seemed to be in R & H (D) and the Champs respectively - but whilst it's a decent enough idea to have a hardworking, female computer expert as something like the brains of the operation her character is pretty under-developed.
Joel Fabiani as the straight man - but not quite- of the team, Stewart Sullivan is actually okay most of the time precisely because although Fabiani plays him straight there is obviously a humorous fellow in there. There are hints of some feelings between Annabelle and Stewart but mostly Sullivan is a professional and the show is the better for that.
The show is best remembered though because of the character Jason King played by Peter Wyngarde. When those smart-aleck comedians make allusions to the show what they refer to is King/Wyngarde. With his crushed velvet Zapata moustache the character is very much of his time visually but actually that was how men who though they had style looked those days- even big rough, tough footballers like Derek Dougan tried to look like our Jason (though not perhaps on the pitch).
A very unfortunate incident in Wyngarde's private life inevitably makes King's predilection for glamorous females seem a bit unlikely but trust me until the follow up series 'Jason King' ( which really was terrible) and the aforementioned incident women really did fancy Wyngarde and men thought he was way cooler than, say, staid old Roger Moore. And the thing is Wyngarde is mostly great as King. Few actors have ever been as convincing as Wyngarde at playing an almost permanently sozzled character and he delivers some sharp lines as though they were his own. He might now be seen as being a ludicrously camp figure but most of the time he plays it as straight as he can- a vain, flawed, erudite man living on his wits and who knows, not even very deep down, he is no super-hero.
Department S is not a great programme and having had the courage to give the team a black leader and a female lead who is not just there because she looks nice it didn't do enough with what were for the time bold ideas. Fabiani and especially Wyngarde get the best lines and the best scenarios and look to be having a whale of a time making it and they make it watchable. The best thing about the show should not be the most scorned thing about it- quite the reverse
It certainly isn't the best of those programmes - the Prisoner and probably Man in a Suitcase are better - but on a recent viewing of several episodes I would suggest that it is far from the worst. Unlike the roughly contemporaneous Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased) and the Champions the show is not based on a ludicrous premise and although the stories are hardly gritty realism a la Line of Duty they do just about possess some credibility. Some episodes such as the opener Six Days, series 1's The Man in the Elegant Room and Series 2's The Shift That Never Was are pretty solid thrillers and whilst series 1's The Pied Piper of Hambledown feels like a Steed/Peel era episode of the Avengers it is still very good.
There are faults in the show obviously. The team's boss, Sir Curtis Seretse (played by Denis Alaba Peters) is a far more interesting leader than Anthony Nicholls' Tremayne in the Champions ever was but he is underused and the female member of the team Annabelle Hurst (Rosemary Nicols) often seems marginalised. She is not there as eye candy in the way that Alexandra Bastedo and Annette Andre often seemed to be in R & H (D) and the Champs respectively - but whilst it's a decent enough idea to have a hardworking, female computer expert as something like the brains of the operation her character is pretty under-developed.
Joel Fabiani as the straight man - but not quite- of the team, Stewart Sullivan is actually okay most of the time precisely because although Fabiani plays him straight there is obviously a humorous fellow in there. There are hints of some feelings between Annabelle and Stewart but mostly Sullivan is a professional and the show is the better for that.
The show is best remembered though because of the character Jason King played by Peter Wyngarde. When those smart-aleck comedians make allusions to the show what they refer to is King/Wyngarde. With his crushed velvet Zapata moustache the character is very much of his time visually but actually that was how men who though they had style looked those days- even big rough, tough footballers like Derek Dougan tried to look like our Jason (though not perhaps on the pitch).
A very unfortunate incident in Wyngarde's private life inevitably makes King's predilection for glamorous females seem a bit unlikely but trust me until the follow up series 'Jason King' ( which really was terrible) and the aforementioned incident women really did fancy Wyngarde and men thought he was way cooler than, say, staid old Roger Moore. And the thing is Wyngarde is mostly great as King. Few actors have ever been as convincing as Wyngarde at playing an almost permanently sozzled character and he delivers some sharp lines as though they were his own. He might now be seen as being a ludicrously camp figure but most of the time he plays it as straight as he can- a vain, flawed, erudite man living on his wits and who knows, not even very deep down, he is no super-hero.
Department S is not a great programme and having had the courage to give the team a black leader and a female lead who is not just there because she looks nice it didn't do enough with what were for the time bold ideas. Fabiani and especially Wyngarde get the best lines and the best scenarios and look to be having a whale of a time making it and they make it watchable. The best thing about the show should not be the most scorned thing about it- quite the reverse
A 2006 re-run and re-appraisal
grunsel19 January 2006
The reason why there are so many men called 'Jason' and to a lesser extent 'Stewart' are about, of a certain age. This popular series was highly influential in its time. So how does it stand up in 2006? The good points are,the leads are just great! the outfits, style and look of the series are still superb and when Dennis Spooner and his writing team's wonderful imagination is allowed to strain at the leash of the budget , then we get some wacky villains and ahead of its time plots and gadgets. Here we come to the main problem of the series, the stingy, always looking for ways to cut corners budget. You can see that Spooner wanted to take the series towards fantasy, while the producer was happy with B picture style crime. The result is when the producer uses his own ensemble pals of directors. some of the dullest and tatty (plot wise) episodes are produced. While in the hands of brought in directors we see Dept S at its best.
Rosemary Nichols apparently got the humph making this series and its not hard to see why , as an intelligent actress she is terribly underused, however we get to see her legs quite a bit, which is perhaps a delightful compensation?.
Rosemary Nichols apparently got the humph making this series and its not hard to see why , as an intelligent actress she is terribly underused, however we get to see her legs quite a bit, which is perhaps a delightful compensation?.
It is the least interesting ITC series,yes worse than The Baron.
ib011f9545i25 November 2018
Warning: Spoilers
I was 8 in 1968 and so too young for most of the ITC series.
The Champions and Randall and Hopkirk were often repeated and I liked them and still do.
Man In A Suitcase and The Baron were repeated and I quite liked them but The Baron is a bit bland.
We know and love The Saint.
I had seen Department S but did not like it much. I recently watched the whole of Department S and I have to say that I don't like it much. The Jason King character just annoys me,I like the other 2 characters and the idea of the thing is good.
But the scripts are nearly all awful. There are 3 or 4 episodes with brainwashing and several episodes set in planes and 2 set in warehouses. Was there an ideas shortage in the late 1960s?
I recall working with someone in the early 1980s who used to say how much he loved this show,he liked all the pretty girls.
I had seen Department S but did not like it much. I recently watched the whole of Department S and I have to say that I don't like it much. The Jason King character just annoys me,I like the other 2 characters and the idea of the thing is good.
But the scripts are nearly all awful. There are 3 or 4 episodes with brainwashing and several episodes set in planes and 2 set in warehouses. Was there an ideas shortage in the late 1960s?
I recall working with someone in the early 1980s who used to say how much he loved this show,he liked all the pretty girls.
Department A
Lejink9 February 2013
Another of my most fondly remembered shows from my pre-teen years was this stablemate of other favourites like The Champions, Randall and Hopkirk Deceased and others.
With a premise, as the DVD box-set claims, not a million miles away from the much later "X-Files" or "Jonathan Creek", only without the creepiness, the intrepid trio of flamboyant ladies-man novelist Jason King (archly played by Peter Wyngarde), straight-arrow Stewart Sullivan (Joel Fabiani) and attractive computer geek Annabelle Hurst (Rosemary Nicols) get called in to solve the cases that MI5, the FBI or Surete reject.
Cue a series of well-crafted 50 minute adventures, often populated by the usual roster of ITC-series supporting actors, top and tailed with another superb theme-tune.
My brother has just bought me the DVD box-set of this show and unlike most DVD box-sets, this won't sit buried away in the cupboard but will certainly be watched, each and every one, critical judgement suspended as I transport myself back to my eight-year-old self lying in front of our family television, raptly gazing up at shows such as this.
With a premise, as the DVD box-set claims, not a million miles away from the much later "X-Files" or "Jonathan Creek", only without the creepiness, the intrepid trio of flamboyant ladies-man novelist Jason King (archly played by Peter Wyngarde), straight-arrow Stewart Sullivan (Joel Fabiani) and attractive computer geek Annabelle Hurst (Rosemary Nicols) get called in to solve the cases that MI5, the FBI or Surete reject.
Cue a series of well-crafted 50 minute adventures, often populated by the usual roster of ITC-series supporting actors, top and tailed with another superb theme-tune.
My brother has just bought me the DVD box-set of this show and unlike most DVD box-sets, this won't sit buried away in the cupboard but will certainly be watched, each and every one, critical judgement suspended as I transport myself back to my eight-year-old self lying in front of our family television, raptly gazing up at shows such as this.
Outrageous sexism in pilot episode
SteveGreen7 January 2007
Spawned by the same Monty Berman / Dennis Spooner partnership which produced The Champions and Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased) - the latter retitled My Partner the Ghost for the US market - Department S remains a classic example of the action-adventure series which the UK produced in bulk during the late 1960s. Like those two shows, its internal dynamic of two guys and a girl might seem to indicate a progressive attitude towards equality (Dept S also has a black superior), but it's mostly facade: the launch episode, "Six Days", is barely halfway through before Rosemary Nichols is called upon to parade around in bra, panties and one (yes, one) stocking in order to extricate herself from a dodgy situation. Still, it's an interesting time capsule, even if the appalling fashion sense of Peter Wyngarde's character (which, amazingly, degenerated even further in the spin-off series Jason King) should definitely have remained buried.
S For Suspense!
ShadeGrenade24 February 2007
Warning: Spoilers
Created by Dennis Spooner and produced by Monty Berman, 'Department S' was another international crime drama - basically 'The Champions' without the super-powers - concerning the exploits of an offshoot of Interpol, based in Geneva, whose brief was to solve baffling mysteries. If a plane landed at Heathrow with no-one aboard, if a man was found wandering around London in a space-suit, if the passenger of a Rolls Royce suddenly transmogrified into a skeleton, if a train pulling into a tube station turned out to contain dead commuters, 'Department S' was called in to sort things out.
Berman's previous shows 'The Baron' and 'The Champions' both featured American leads, but here Joel Fabiani's conservative 'Stewart Sullivan' took second place to Peter Wyngarde's 'Jason King', a flamboyantly dressed crime novelist ( author of the 'Mark Caine' books ) whose fertile imagination helped crack many of the bizarre cases. King caught the public's fancy, and later landed a spin-off show. He was ably assisted by the delectable computer genius 'Annabelle Hurst' ( Rosemary Nicols ). In a brave casting move, the department was headed by a black man - 'Curtis Seretse' ( the late Dennis Alaba Peters ). 'The Avengers' undoubtedly was a major influence, along with 'Mission: Impossible'. The colourful titles were by Chambers & Partners, and are worth tuning in for alone. This was the last I.T.C. series to boast music by the talented Edwin Astley. His powerful 'Department S' theme ranks among the best television signature tunes of all time.
As an economy-saving measure, the show was shot back-to-back with 'Randall & Hopkirk ( Deceased )'. Many guest stars had appeared in other I.T.C. shows. An exception was Sir Anthony Hopkins, who appeared in 'A Small War Of Nerves'!
There was very little merchandising for the show, not even a Pan Books paperback or World Distributors Annual. However, the 'T.V. Century 21' comic ran a black and white strip from March 1969 to September of that year, comprising a total of four stories. There was also a six page strip in the 'Thunderbirds' Annual 1971, entitled 'The Silent Ones', in which defecting Eastern bloc scientists are kidnapped from a safe house in Turkey and replaced by wax dummies.
If 'The Champions' was the precursor to 'The Six Million Dollar Man', then 'Department S' must be seen as the forerunner to the B.B.C.'s 'Jonathan Creek'.
Berman's previous shows 'The Baron' and 'The Champions' both featured American leads, but here Joel Fabiani's conservative 'Stewart Sullivan' took second place to Peter Wyngarde's 'Jason King', a flamboyantly dressed crime novelist ( author of the 'Mark Caine' books ) whose fertile imagination helped crack many of the bizarre cases. King caught the public's fancy, and later landed a spin-off show. He was ably assisted by the delectable computer genius 'Annabelle Hurst' ( Rosemary Nicols ). In a brave casting move, the department was headed by a black man - 'Curtis Seretse' ( the late Dennis Alaba Peters ). 'The Avengers' undoubtedly was a major influence, along with 'Mission: Impossible'. The colourful titles were by Chambers & Partners, and are worth tuning in for alone. This was the last I.T.C. series to boast music by the talented Edwin Astley. His powerful 'Department S' theme ranks among the best television signature tunes of all time.
As an economy-saving measure, the show was shot back-to-back with 'Randall & Hopkirk ( Deceased )'. Many guest stars had appeared in other I.T.C. shows. An exception was Sir Anthony Hopkins, who appeared in 'A Small War Of Nerves'!
There was very little merchandising for the show, not even a Pan Books paperback or World Distributors Annual. However, the 'T.V. Century 21' comic ran a black and white strip from March 1969 to September of that year, comprising a total of four stories. There was also a six page strip in the 'Thunderbirds' Annual 1971, entitled 'The Silent Ones', in which defecting Eastern bloc scientists are kidnapped from a safe house in Turkey and replaced by wax dummies.
If 'The Champions' was the precursor to 'The Six Million Dollar Man', then 'Department S' must be seen as the forerunner to the B.B.C.'s 'Jonathan Creek'.
Introducing the amazing Jason King
ubercommando26 January 2010
With all due respect to Joel Fabiani and Rosemary Nicolls and their characters, Department S will be forever associated with Peter Wyngarde's Jason King.
Most people remember him as this camp, flamboyant and debonair womaniser cum detective in the mould of Austin Powers but that will do a disservice to the character: He's far more nuanced than that.
Jason King is lazy (he often lets Stewart fight all the bad guys and only chips in at the end), he is egotistical (his appreciation of people is based on whether they've read his novels or not), a lot of his detective work is speculation without facts to back them up and he sulks whenever Annabelle is right...and she often is. He's clearly a man having a mid-life crisis and drink drives but.......Jason King is brilliant. If Wyngarde had played him purely as a dashing hero, it wouldn't have worked but he shows King often as a paper tiger, led by his libido, love of finery and prone to grandstanding (and it gets in the way of his detective work at times) but he has some of the best lines and put downs in TV history. And by not playing him as whiter-than-white, the chemistry and interactions between the three lead characters is all the better for it.
Watching it again on DVD recently, you get to see just how much depth Wyngarde put into Jason King.
Most people remember him as this camp, flamboyant and debonair womaniser cum detective in the mould of Austin Powers but that will do a disservice to the character: He's far more nuanced than that.
Jason King is lazy (he often lets Stewart fight all the bad guys and only chips in at the end), he is egotistical (his appreciation of people is based on whether they've read his novels or not), a lot of his detective work is speculation without facts to back them up and he sulks whenever Annabelle is right...and she often is. He's clearly a man having a mid-life crisis and drink drives but.......Jason King is brilliant. If Wyngarde had played him purely as a dashing hero, it wouldn't have worked but he shows King often as a paper tiger, led by his libido, love of finery and prone to grandstanding (and it gets in the way of his detective work at times) but he has some of the best lines and put downs in TV history. And by not playing him as whiter-than-white, the chemistry and interactions between the three lead characters is all the better for it.
Watching it again on DVD recently, you get to see just how much depth Wyngarde put into Jason King.
Late 1960s SpyFi at its Best
samsmith818 January 2015
One in a series of many ITC shows during the 1960s and 70s, "Department S" was one of the highlights. Entrusted with especially baffling cases that other agencies had failed to solve, this elite department of Interpol had to find solutions to the seemingly unsolvable.
Interestingly enough, and somewhat ahead of its time, the official head of he Department was black. Sir Curtis Seretse (Dennis Alaba Peters) was a high-ranking diplomat from some (never named) African country (to whom early script versions simply referred to as "the African diplomat"). A little like M in the Bond movies, he would brief Stewart Sullivan on the case at hand and then leave it to the Department to solve it. Occasionally, he would later reappear and sort of supervise.
The American Stewart Sullivan (Joel Fabiani) was the field team leader. A former FBI agent, practical, pragmatic and professional, with a no-nonsense attitude, who solved cases with a stubborn insistence that there MUST be a logical explanation. He was also ready to use his fists when he had to, and to put his life on the line when it was called for. He would give chase while dodging bullets and cars bearing down on him, knock out a couple of bad guys single-handedly, and then emerge calm and cool and looking neat as ever in his three-piece-suit. For 'inspirational' input he always turned to the writer King.
A bestselling novelist, Jason King (Peter Wyngarde) had a galloping imagination. He solved cases by trying to imagine what Mark Caine, the hero of his novels, would do. On the other hand, he also used the Department's cases as inspiration for his books (much to the dismay of his colleague Annabelle Hurst), so it worked both ways. Eccentric to the core, sometimes Jason's input proved very helpful, or, as Stewart remarked, "he has a nasty habit of scoring near misses". At other times, his 'theories' strayed far away from the bull's eye, or, in the words of Annabelle, "he has a nasty habit of making wild generalizations that cover just about anything!"
The computer expert Annabelle Hurst (Rosemary Nicols) was the exact opposite: analytical and only interested in data, data, data, which she would then feed into her computer, "Auntie". While at times she appeared interested in little else than her work, at other times it was clear that there was some kind of romantic relationship between her and Stewart. The fact that this was never directly shown or openly stated, yet often subtly hinted at, was one of the many strong points of the show.
The chemnistry between the principals was definitely there, and the teamwork was a major factor in the success of "Department S". The acting was excellent, as was most of the writing. The cases were intriguing, and the stories usually very interesting: an airliner that vanished in midair, a passenger plane that landed completely empty, a man in a spacesuit dropping dead in the midst of London, or an entire village seemingly abducted over night. Some episodes were better than others, but most of them were very good. All in all, a real highlight of an era of television that will never come back.
Although, like many of the ITC shows, the series only ran for a year, it was syndicated worldwide, ran very successfully internationally, and has long since achieved its well deserved cult status. It's available worldwide on DVD in various versions (US, UK, Australian...), including special editions. The 40th Anniversary Special Edition (UK) is great, with lots of vintage bonus material. You can take your pick. This show is definitely well worth (re)watching. 10 out of 10
Interestingly enough, and somewhat ahead of its time, the official head of he Department was black. Sir Curtis Seretse (Dennis Alaba Peters) was a high-ranking diplomat from some (never named) African country (to whom early script versions simply referred to as "the African diplomat"). A little like M in the Bond movies, he would brief Stewart Sullivan on the case at hand and then leave it to the Department to solve it. Occasionally, he would later reappear and sort of supervise.
The American Stewart Sullivan (Joel Fabiani) was the field team leader. A former FBI agent, practical, pragmatic and professional, with a no-nonsense attitude, who solved cases with a stubborn insistence that there MUST be a logical explanation. He was also ready to use his fists when he had to, and to put his life on the line when it was called for. He would give chase while dodging bullets and cars bearing down on him, knock out a couple of bad guys single-handedly, and then emerge calm and cool and looking neat as ever in his three-piece-suit. For 'inspirational' input he always turned to the writer King.
A bestselling novelist, Jason King (Peter Wyngarde) had a galloping imagination. He solved cases by trying to imagine what Mark Caine, the hero of his novels, would do. On the other hand, he also used the Department's cases as inspiration for his books (much to the dismay of his colleague Annabelle Hurst), so it worked both ways. Eccentric to the core, sometimes Jason's input proved very helpful, or, as Stewart remarked, "he has a nasty habit of scoring near misses". At other times, his 'theories' strayed far away from the bull's eye, or, in the words of Annabelle, "he has a nasty habit of making wild generalizations that cover just about anything!"
The computer expert Annabelle Hurst (Rosemary Nicols) was the exact opposite: analytical and only interested in data, data, data, which she would then feed into her computer, "Auntie". While at times she appeared interested in little else than her work, at other times it was clear that there was some kind of romantic relationship between her and Stewart. The fact that this was never directly shown or openly stated, yet often subtly hinted at, was one of the many strong points of the show.
The chemnistry between the principals was definitely there, and the teamwork was a major factor in the success of "Department S". The acting was excellent, as was most of the writing. The cases were intriguing, and the stories usually very interesting: an airliner that vanished in midair, a passenger plane that landed completely empty, a man in a spacesuit dropping dead in the midst of London, or an entire village seemingly abducted over night. Some episodes were better than others, but most of them were very good. All in all, a real highlight of an era of television that will never come back.
Although, like many of the ITC shows, the series only ran for a year, it was syndicated worldwide, ran very successfully internationally, and has long since achieved its well deserved cult status. It's available worldwide on DVD in various versions (US, UK, Australian...), including special editions. The 40th Anniversary Special Edition (UK) is great, with lots of vintage bonus material. You can take your pick. This show is definitely well worth (re)watching. 10 out of 10
I loved Department S as a kid and still do
gtbarker16 November 2005
Department S was one of the first TV programmes I can remember watching and loved it for it's strange plots and interesting characters. I waited for years to see it again and I am delighted to say it has just started a re-run on a UK satellite channel and it's just as good as I remember it. The character of Jason King is fantastic and the two straight-playing members of the trio are also very good. The whole thing looks fantastic, there are some wonderfully corny lines, excellent clothes, theme music that ranks among the very best and it all comes together to present us with something camper than a hut full of cub scouts (and if you ever wondered where many of the ideas for the X Files came from - look no further than Department S). Simply brilliant.
stylish and slickly produced (slightly james bond spoofy) show from the late 60's
vailsy6 September 2020
I first saw Department S perhaps twenty years ago while doing work experience at a studio in London dealing with dvd restorations.. instead of watching what the audio guy was doing I spent more time enjoying this great show
I liked it even more once i realized Peter Wyngarde (Klytus from Flash Gordon) was Jason King and so purchased a really great restoration of Department S by network just recently, and what a treat it is.. it has cleaned up really well and is just a perfect snapshot of the late 60's
I'm a big fan of shows like The Avengers too but I actually prefer the lesser known Department S a little more now since the storylines are a tad more serious and more James Bond / Ipcress File styled
The 3 main characters are all great, the head of Department S who appears sometimes is also excellent
The production values of the show are high class.. good sound and dialogue, lovely late 60's interior designs. Attention to detail was even paid to things like making the views outside moving cars look reasonable and consistent given what else was going on at the time
Department S also has good humour and is of course lusciously retro
I liked it even more once i realized Peter Wyngarde (Klytus from Flash Gordon) was Jason King and so purchased a really great restoration of Department S by network just recently, and what a treat it is.. it has cleaned up really well and is just a perfect snapshot of the late 60's
I'm a big fan of shows like The Avengers too but I actually prefer the lesser known Department S a little more now since the storylines are a tad more serious and more James Bond / Ipcress File styled
The 3 main characters are all great, the head of Department S who appears sometimes is also excellent
The production values of the show are high class.. good sound and dialogue, lovely late 60's interior designs. Attention to detail was even paid to things like making the views outside moving cars look reasonable and consistent given what else was going on at the time
Department S also has good humour and is of course lusciously retro
Unbelievably Good!
loza-126 October 2015
Warning: Spoilers
I missed this at the time it was made, and have just watched it for the very first time. It belongs to the ITC-type shows that the family would watch on a Sunday evening, although I don't think this one was given a prime TV slot in the UK. It is not so well known as The Saint, Danger Man, The Prisoner, Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased), The Baron. The difference with Department S is that - Randall and Hopkirk apart - the other shows tend to be about the adventures of loners. Department S and The Champions started to introduce teams.
And what a team. We have a man of action in Stuart. American, in order to sell it across the Pond. We have Annabelle, the good-looking female, with legs that go all the way up to her computer-operating brain. Then, the masterstroke. We have all kinds of mysteries to solve, so the team is complimented by someone who can produce ideas that are totally off the wall. Jason King. He is decadent, drives a Bentley with Swiss number plates, never misses the opportunity of picking up a pretty girl. Then there are the received pronunciation, the lived-in face, the expensive cigarettes, the flamboyant attire, the glass of spirits or champagne in his hand. In fights he is master of attack, delivering desperate hay makers; but he can't defend himself, and usually ends up senseless on the floor. He writes thrillers. Sometimes cases are solved because he can remember something that he wrote in one of his novels. Sometimes a solved case is published as his latest thriller. As an artist, he comes up with ideas that the other two would never even think of. The fourth member of the team - its head - is more mysterious. He is played by a Gambian actor. He has been knighted, so he is a diplomat from an African country that is a member of the British Commonwealth. He works for Interpol and the United Nations. It is clear that Department S is only a small part of his career, so his on screen time is very short. But he is important enough to enter the VIP lounges of the world's airports, and has enough status to pull strings to get things done, and to protect Department S if need be. Although he does little in the day-to-day running of Department S, he does have an understanding of Department S's purpose. For example, when everybody was saying that a prominent civil servant was blown up in a plane, he is the lone voice who says that the civil servant is still alive, using a gap on the wall where a picture had been as evidence. I found him the most interesting character of the four.
In an attempt to combat those viewers who can guess the denouement early on, the ITC scriptwriters came up with the most incredible mysteries, which had credible solutions. I have to admit that I didn't guess a single one, so all hail to the scriptwriters. They even foresaw the internet!
Although Department S is not so well known as many of the other ITC classics, it is well scripted, well acted, well directed, and can hold its own with the best ITC thrillers. It led to a spin-off featuring just Jason King. Although everybody loved Peter Wyngarde's portrayal, the Jason King series was not so successful, which underlines my observation that Department S is about a team and their casework, however flamboyant one of their members might be.
Watch it and enjoy it.
And what a team. We have a man of action in Stuart. American, in order to sell it across the Pond. We have Annabelle, the good-looking female, with legs that go all the way up to her computer-operating brain. Then, the masterstroke. We have all kinds of mysteries to solve, so the team is complimented by someone who can produce ideas that are totally off the wall. Jason King. He is decadent, drives a Bentley with Swiss number plates, never misses the opportunity of picking up a pretty girl. Then there are the received pronunciation, the lived-in face, the expensive cigarettes, the flamboyant attire, the glass of spirits or champagne in his hand. In fights he is master of attack, delivering desperate hay makers; but he can't defend himself, and usually ends up senseless on the floor. He writes thrillers. Sometimes cases are solved because he can remember something that he wrote in one of his novels. Sometimes a solved case is published as his latest thriller. As an artist, he comes up with ideas that the other two would never even think of. The fourth member of the team - its head - is more mysterious. He is played by a Gambian actor. He has been knighted, so he is a diplomat from an African country that is a member of the British Commonwealth. He works for Interpol and the United Nations. It is clear that Department S is only a small part of his career, so his on screen time is very short. But he is important enough to enter the VIP lounges of the world's airports, and has enough status to pull strings to get things done, and to protect Department S if need be. Although he does little in the day-to-day running of Department S, he does have an understanding of Department S's purpose. For example, when everybody was saying that a prominent civil servant was blown up in a plane, he is the lone voice who says that the civil servant is still alive, using a gap on the wall where a picture had been as evidence. I found him the most interesting character of the four.
In an attempt to combat those viewers who can guess the denouement early on, the ITC scriptwriters came up with the most incredible mysteries, which had credible solutions. I have to admit that I didn't guess a single one, so all hail to the scriptwriters. They even foresaw the internet!
Although Department S is not so well known as many of the other ITC classics, it is well scripted, well acted, well directed, and can hold its own with the best ITC thrillers. It led to a spin-off featuring just Jason King. Although everybody loved Peter Wyngarde's portrayal, the Jason King series was not so successful, which underlines my observation that Department S is about a team and their casework, however flamboyant one of their members might be.
Watch it and enjoy it.
Department S, ahead of it's time
raffimiami29 August 2016
I think that in all the imagination of the ITC writers, Department S was ahead of it's time. First of all, although it was set in the cold war world years,the series really thought of a global society,the crimes were no longer the responsibility of local police but of a higher authority that had to be involved ( thus the chief Sir Seretse, which shows his position seems to be a sort of a U.N appointment). Then the crimes were not only state secrets but industrial and financial. I can't think of too many shows that would involve themselves with the work of Interpol ever since. In addition the mysteries are so bizarre that all the computer and imaginative efforts have to be thrown into the case to solve it. The Lone Ranger theory would be no longer feasible, it would seem we live in a society that has to pull resources together in order to figure out what is going on.
UK airing at some point surely
craig-pierce13 April 2021
These are the type of shows that Gold TV channel in the UK should find room for in their schedule not constant endless repeats of Only Fools and Horses.
Along with other classics like The Champions and the spin-off from Department S Jason King. Even if they didn't air at prime time, try the early hours or anywhere but bring these classics back.
Along with other classics like The Champions and the spin-off from Department S Jason King. Even if they didn't air at prime time, try the early hours or anywhere but bring these classics back.
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