Watch Callan

1967
4 Seasons
8.3 (892)

Callan is a British television series that aired on ITV from 1967 to 1972. The show starred Edward Woodward as David Callan, a former soldier turned spy who works for a mysterious government agency known only as 'The Section'. Callan was a groundbreaking series for its time, as it introduced a much bleaker and more realistic portrayal of espionage than had been previously seen on television.

The show follows Callan as he carries out dangerous missions and deals with the moral and ethical dilemmas of being a spy. While he is a skilled and experienced operative, Callan is also plagued by personal demons and feelings of guilt over some of the things he has been asked to do in his line of work. He is constantly at odds with his superiors, particularly the ruthless and Machiavellian Hunter (Russell Hunter), who is always ready to sacrifice anyone in the pursuit of his goals.

Notable supporting characters in the series include Michael Goodliffe as Colonel Hunter's superior, Patrick Mower as Callan's fellow operative Cross, William Squire as Callan's boss 'The Section Chief', Anthony Valentine as a rogue spy named Lonely, Derek Bond as Callan's former commanding officer and mentor, and Ronald Radd as a Soviet spymaster named Meres.

One of the most distinctive aspects of Callan is its use of flashbacks to reveal backstory and add additional dimension to the characters. These flashbacks often show Callan as a soldier stationed in Germany before he became a spy, and explore his relationship with a woman named Liz (played by Veronica Lang), who is a constant presence in his thoughts.

The series also explores issues of class and social status, as Callan is a working-class Northerner who frequently clashes with the upper-class officers who run the agency he works for. This theme is particularly evident in the episode "The Little Bits and Pieces of Love", in which Callan infiltrates a wealthy socialite's circle in order to complete a mission.

Despite its bleak tone and sometimes grim subject matter, Callan was a ratings success for ITV and remains a cult favorite among spy and espionage fans. Edward Woodward's nuanced portrayal of Callan remains a highlight of the series, and his complex and conflicted character was miles away from the suave and sophisticated spies that had previously dominated popular culture.

The show also had a distinctive visual style, with its use of low key lighting and a gray, gritty aesthetic that echoed the grimy streets of London where much of the action took place. The theme song, composed by the legendary jazz musician Joe Henderson, was also a standout element of the series.

Overall, Callan remains an important and influential entry in the spy genre, paving the way for shows like Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and the Bourne franchise. Its portrayal of the moral and ethical complexities of espionage continues to resonate with audiences today.

Callan is a series that ran for 4 seasons (46 episodes) between February 4, 1967 and on ITV

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Seasons

4 3 2 1

13. The Richmond File: A Man Like Me

May 24, 1972

The KGB Agent Richmond is on the run. He manages to find a safe house with a sleeper, and stays there for some days. Callan and Meres track him down to this address, but find that he has already fled. Eventually Callan and Richmond have a confrontation in a warehouse, and Lonely gets involved.

12. The Richmond File: Do You Recognise the Woman?

May 17, 1972

Richmond is still on the loose. SIS have information that the KGB are interested in one of their agents, a woman called Flo who is presently serving 14 years in Wormwood Scrubs. Callan removes Flo to a safe house, but she escapes and finds Richmond. Callan and Toby Meres track her down, but when they arrive they find that events have taken a tragic turn.

11. The Richmond File: Call Me Enemy

May 10, 1972

Soviet Agent Richmond has defected to the United Kingdom, and a debriefing session is set up at a large house just outside London. The debriefing is conducted by Callan, and it is secretly filmed by Hunter and agent Jarrow. Richmond insists that he is not a traitor in the sense that he has not gone over to the British - he just wants to get out of the business and wants sanctuary. He offers the same sanctuary to Callan by suggesting that he should do the same by going to the Soviet Union. He says that in the spy business the people who kill you are always your friends. Richmond makes a bit of trouble by suggesting that Meres is a corrupt double agent, and in the end Meres turns up at the house.

10. The Contract

May 3, 1972

Callan, Meres and Lonely are using the taxi to observe the comings and goings of a man called Harcourt, a professional killer who has been hired to kill a Field Marshall. Meres follows Harcourt but gets caught. Callan rescues him just in time, and it is then decided that Callan will impersonate Harcourt and find out as much as possible about the plan to kill the Field Marshall. Callan sucessfully makes contact with the contractors, a girl called Kristina and a young hired assassin called Lafarge.

9. The Carrier

April 26, 1972

Professor Peter Rose is an idealist, dreaming of a world where all scientists share their secrets regardless of Government. He proposes to sell British secrets to Russia via a man whom he met in Amsterdam. Professor Rose thinks that he is a harmless book-seller, but in fact he is a cold-blooded KGB executioner called Colonel Tamarish. Callan and Lonely break into Professor Rose's cottage to photograph some of his documents, and everything goes well until Lonely pilfers a shiny silver ornament. Professor Rose notices it is missing and calls in the police. Embarrassingly for Callan, he and Lonely are arrested and Hunter must pull a few strings to have them released. Colonel Tamaresh arrives in the UK and very quickly realises that the Police are following him. He lures two inexperienced young Officers into Epping Forest and murders both of them, before joining Professor Rose at his cottage. Callan is sent to kill Tamaresh with as little fuss as possible. He carries out his job leaving a very shaken Professor Rose who will spend the rest of his life looking over his shoulder.

8. I Never Wanted the Job

April 19, 1972

One evening while Lonely is moonlighting with the Department's taxi he picks up a fare and is horrified when one of the passengers, a well known gangster, is gunned down after being dropped off at his destination. Lonely becomes a hunted man, wanted by both the police and the underworld as the only witness to the incident. In fear he turns to Callan who is furious that Lonely has used the taxi, or MCF (mobile communications facility), for commercial gain. However, it is Callan who must get Lonely off the hook and with the help of Meres the gangsters involved in the killing get a lot more than they had bargained for.

7. Charlie Says It's Goodbye

April 12, 1972

James Palliser is a very rich man who wants to go and join his homosexual lover in Poland. Hunter tells Callan that it is not on, and that he is to stop this happening at all costs. Komorowski commissions a young hitman by the name of Trent to look after Palliser. Secretly Komorowski wishes to defect, and this is why he has employed a relatively inexperienced youngster to look after such an important man and not a KGB officer. Callan meets and falls in love with Susan Morris whose husband had committed suicide after coming under investigation by one of the security services. When Trent follows Callan to Susan's shop one day, Callan is for once unarmed, but kills Trent with a harpoon gun, to Susan's utter horror.

6. None of Your Business

April 5, 1972

After the Cross affair, Callan finds himself persona non grata around the department, being rejected first by Meres, then by Lonely and Liz, and he is suspended from all duties and fired from the position of Hunter by Bishop. Deciding that he might as well take a holiday he asks for his passport but when this is denied him he gets in touch with Lonely, who has contacts who might be able to provide him with another. Callan finds himself involved in a forged passport affair in the course of which a young University student, Paul West, is murdered. British Intelligence is also involved in this matter. Ultimately, a new Hunter arrives on the scene and things return to normal, with Callan back in the field with Meres. (Pictured at right is Edward Woodward as Callan with Anthony Valentine as Meres and William Squire as Hunter).

5. If He Can, So Could I

March 29, 1972

SIS Agent Cross injures a fourteen year old Russian girl by accidentally hitting her on the head. She has sustained brain damage and lies paralysed in hospital. Dr. Snell is certain that Cross is cracking up, and feels that Cross shouldn't go on any more jobs for the present. Callan, who controls the section, disagrees and sends Cross on a mission to guard a Soviet poet while Meres is employed following the Russian KGB assassin Borov. During the mission Borov attempts to kill the poet, and Cross is shot and killed. When he hears that Cross has been killed, Callan breaks all the rules by going out on the job himself. He locates Borov and shoots him. Borov's last words are: 'He let me kill him'. Callan is suspended from the job of Hunter by Bishop, and Dr. Snell tells him that Cross was really seeking a way out, and had committed suicide. (Pictured at right is Edward Woodward as Callan with Russell Hunter as Lonely).

4. Rules of the Game

March 22, 1972

Bishop tells Callan that a British official working in Moscow has been expelled as a spy, despite the fact that he isn't one. In return, Bishop says that they must expell a Russian embassy employee and they must harass one of them until he wants to go back. The job of harassment is handed to Cross. The man is named Medov and he is the cultural attachee to Moscow with a wife and young daughter. In the end Medov cracks under the strain, and approaches Cross asking for asylum. He says that once you start being harassed you become suspect. While all this is happening, Medov's young daughter attacks Cross who accidentally strikes her over the head with his gun butt. The girl ends up in a critical condition in hospital with brain damage. (Pictured at right is Patrick Mower as Cross).

3. First Refusal

March 15, 1972

Callan, as the new Hunter, tells Bishop that he wants a Mobile Communications Facility, which is his way of describing Lonely behind the wheel of a taxi cab in communication with Headquarters. By this means Callan also manages to put Lonely onto the payroll of the Department. A man called Kitzlinger contacts Bishop and Callan and tells them that he wants one hundred thousand pounds in return for a list of all the SIS Agents working behind the iron curtain. Callan agrees, as one of the agents' names has been released already, and this man, Bristac, was shot and wounded as he left East Germany. Toby Meres is back from Washington. He poses as a KGB agent offering a similar amount to Kitzlinger on behalf of the Russians to establish whether Kitzlinger is genuine or not. In the end he and Callan discover that a woman named Myra Kessler is behind the whole scheme, but things are a bit more complicated than this. (Pictured at right are Edward Woodward as Callan and Anthony Valentine as Meres)

2. Call Me Sir!

March 8, 1972

Hunter No. Four is leaving the Department, and he and Bishop decide that Callan would be a good replacement. Very much against his will, Callan takes up his position as the new Hunter only to find that a red file exists with Lonely's name on it. There is also a hit out on Callan himself. Callan hasn't seen Lonely since his time as a prisoner of the KGB. He tracks Lonely down and tries to arrange for him to leave the country with false papers, but the plan goes wrong. Fairly soon it becomes apparent that whoever is trying to kill Callan is using Lonely as bait. (Pictured at right is Edward Woodward as David Callan).

1. That'll Be the Day

March 1, 1972

While on assignment in East Germany Callan is captured and sent to Russia by the KGB where he is ruthlessly interrogated. In the meantime, the Department have put it around that Callan has died and they stage a funeral and arrange a burial with a coffin and a real body in it. The only people who know that Callan is still alive are Bishop and Hunter. Lonely refuses to believe that Callan has died and starts making a nuisance of himself, but this is soon handled by the ruthless agent Cross. Cross and Stafford are told by Bishop to go and collect the KGB agent Richmond. It is Bishop who really values Callan and arranges for an exchange between Richmond and Callan. Hunter tells Callan that he did not want to lose Richmond, in effect telling Callan that he considers him expendible. (Pictured at right is Russell Hunter as Lonely).

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Where to Watch Callan

Callan is available for streaming on the ITV website, both individual episodes and full seasons. You can also watch Callan on demand at Amazon Prime.