Z Cars

Z-Cars ( 1,962 - 1,978 ) was a British police series and 667 episodes, the longest running television series on British television. The name Z-Cars hit the cars used by the police. In the leading role played Stratford Johns (1925-2002) as a police officer DCI Charlie Barlow.

Z-Cars (sometimes written as Z Cars) was a cop show about the work of the police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby on the outskirts of Liverpool , Merseyside in northwest England . Produced by theBBC and shown on BBC Television (renamed BBC1 in 1964), the series began in January 1962 .

The title of the series Z-cars is reportedly not named after the cars Ford Zephyr and Ford Zodiac, though the series does Lancashire police Ford Zephyr Mk II (in 1962) and the Ford PR Fleet Mk III Zephyr 6's (1963 -1965) and service vehicles were driven. Source:

The Zephyr was the standard patrol car (not the same as the auto crime) used in Lancashire and other police forces. The Zodiac is never used by the British police.

Charlie Barlow, John Watt and Blackitt sergeant came back again in a new series ''Softly, Softly. Z-Cars'' again came out in March 1967 with just James Ellis and Joseph Brady from the original series. ==Starring in the series [  edit ] ==
 * DCI Charlie Barlow - Stratford Johns (1962-1965)
 * DS John Watt - Frank Windsor (1962-1965, 1978)
 * PC 'Fancy' Smith - Brian Blessed (1962-1965)
 * PC Jock Weir - Joseph Brady (1962-1968)
 * PC / DC / Sgt. / INSP. Bert Lynch - James Ellis (1962-1978)
 * PC Bob Steele - Jeremy Kemp (1962-1963)
 * Sgt. Percy Twentyman - Leonard Williams (1962-1963)
 * PC Ian Sweet - Terence Edmond (1962-1964)
 * DCS / ACC / CC Robins - John Phillips (1962-1978)
 * DI Dunn - Dudley Foster (1962)
 * WPC Stacey - Lynne Furlong (1962-1965)
 * DC Hicks - Michael Forrest (1962-1964)
 * Sgt. Michaelson - James Cossins (1963)
 * DC Eliot - John Thaw (1963-1964)
 * PC David Graham - Colin Welland (1963-1965)
 * Sgt. Blackitt - Robert Keegan (1963-1965)
 * DI Bamber - Leonard Rossiter (1963)
 * PC Ken Baker - Geoffrey Whitehead (1964-1965)
 * PC Taylor - Marcus Hammond (1964-1965)
 * PC Ray Walker - Donald Gee (1965)
 * DI Hudson - John Barrie (1967)
 * DS Stone - John Slater (1967-1974)
 * PC Culshaw - David Daker (1967-1968)
 * PC Tate - Sebastian Breaks (1967)
 * PC may - Stephen Yardley (1967-1968)
 * WPC Parkin - Pauline Taylor (1967-1969)
 * PC Newcombe - Bernard Holley (1967-1971)
 * DC Kane - Christopher Coll (1967-1968)
 * BD Girl - Jennie Goossens (1967-1971)
 * DI Todd - Joss Ackland (1967-1968)
 * PC Jackson - John Wreford (1967-1968)
 * DI Witty - John Woodvine (1968-1969)
 * PC Roach - Ron Davies (1968-1969)
 * PC Bannerman - Paul Angelis (1968-1969)
 * PC / Sgt. Quilley - Douglas Fielding (1969-1978)
 * DI Neil Goss - Derek Waring (1969-1972)
 * PC / DC Skinner - Ian Cullen (1969-1975)
 * PC Horrocks - Barry Lowe (1970-1975)
 * PC / Sgt. Bowman - John Swindells (1970-1973)
 * DS Haggar - John Collin (1971-1976, 1978)
 * DC Scatliff - Geoffrey Hayes (1971-1974)
 * PC Covill - Jack Carr (1971-1972)
 * PC Render - Allan O'Keefe (1971-1978)
 * Sgt. Culshaw - John Challis (1971-1975)
 * DI Connor - Gary Watson (1972-1974)
 * PC Yates - Nicholas Smith (1972-1975)
 * DC Braithwaite - David Jackson (1972-1978)
 * Keith Wallace - Richard Mullarkey (1974 Episode One "Priority")
 * Angie Burford - Joanna Tope (1974)
 * DC Bowker - Brian Grellis (1974-1978)
 * Sgt. Chubb - Paul Stewart (1974-1978)
 * DI Moffat - Ray Lonnen (1975-1977)
 * Delivery Star - Geraldine Newman (1977)
 * DI Maddan - Tommy Boyle (1978)