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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Carrie Fairchild" data-source="post: 259554" data-attributes="member: 673">Cop Shop - 1977 to 1984 <img src="https://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2004/11/26/copshop_narrowweb__200x281.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" />By 1977, police dramas were a staple of Australian TV and a core part of Crawford's output, with Homicide, Matlock Police and Division 4 being among their hits. Such a core part, that many Crawford staff had grown tired of making cop shows and breathed a sigh of relief when they were given the opportunity to do something different and started working on a pilot about a priest called The Mission. Their relief was short-lived however, when Hector Crawford decided that they would do another police show after all, albeit a blending of soap and crime. Originally titled Palace Guards and then Saints & Sinners, the show eventually became Cop Shop.Based around the police posted at Riverside Station, the show would maintain the crime of the week element of it's predecessors, while the cops' personal lives would provide the soapy drama. What set it apart from the cop shows that came before it was the focus on both the men and women in the police force, a departure from the male oriented police dramas of the time. Crawford veteran George Mallaby (Homicide, The Box) took a lead role as Detective Sergeant Glenn Taylor, Paula Duncan (younger sister of Carmen) was Detective Constable Danni Francis, while on the homefront, Rowena Wallace played Pamela, the boozy wife of Det. Taylor. Later additions to the cast included Lynda Stoner, who was fresh off The Young Doctors and in a Crawford crossover, Bill Stalker as Det Sgt Peter Fanelli, the same character he played in Crawford's airport soap Skyways.The blend of crime, love affairs and personal strife proved to be a hit for Seven, as Cop Shop pulled in both the viewers and the awards. Despite it being a hit show, in keeping with some of the other soaps of the time that we've looked at already, working conditions on set were not always great as actors worked long days and often had to get changed in the back of cars or in public toilets. The Cop Shop cast decided to take a stand and went to the union, their actions bringing major changes in how things were done across the TV industry. The only other minor bit of backstage drama was the sacking and reinstating of Rowena Wallace. Tired of Pamela's lack of storylines, Rowena complained in an interview that all she seemed to do "was pour cups of tea". Crawford's took it as a slight on the show and fired her, only to reinstate soon after, with Rowena quipping "The beauty of it was I started getting better scripts".By 1983, the show was nearing it's natural end. Having aired twice a week in a primetime 8.30pm slot for most of it's run, it was now airing in a weekly two hour block. After an impressive run of 582 hour long episodes, character turnover took it's toll and with ratings dipping and the impending departure of two of it's leads (Paula Duncan and Lynda Stoner were both leaving due to pregnancy), the show drew to a close in mid 1984 (although it finished up in a late night slot in early 1985 in Sydney). Given it's format, the show played host to a vast number of Australian actors and it's guest cast list really is a who's who of Australian soap. By mixing both crime and soap, it also set the template for many shows that have come since including The Bill and more recently Red Rock.[MEDIA=youtube]HMCC81wtNng[/MEDIA]</blockquote>

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