Not sure about anywhere in Felling, but the old Elf garage in Birtley (by the leisure centre) was used.

I'm pretty sure that the deliberately grotty second-hand car garage used for DCI Frank Burnside's undercover operations was based on Sunderland Road. But that being said, it could have been any part of Gateshead as any second-hand garage in the borough looks dodgy.

I will have to go and watch the episode again at some point.

I'm pretty sure that the deliberately grotty second-hand car garage used for DCI Frank Burnside's undercover operations was based on Sunderland Road. But that being said, it could have been any part of Gateshead as any second-hand garage in the borough looks dodgy.

I will have to go and watch the episode again at some point.

When Burnside went bad? Definitely used the one in Birtley.
First Class Commercials had it for a while after it was converted from a filling station.
First Class Commercials are across the road now in the old English Mustard site - not sure if they still use the old site at all now.

The Bill may have used one along Sunderland Rd at some point though...

When Burnside went bad? Definitely used the one in Birtley.
First Class Commercials had it for a while after it was converted from a filling station.
First Class Commercials are across the road now in the old English Mustard site - not sure if they still use the old site at all now.

The Bill may have used one along Sunderland Rd at some point though...

The episode was called 'Thug on the Tyne' (how original) and I think Burnside had seconded Liz Rawlton to work with him on a case investigating gangsters on Tyneside.

Timeline-wise, I think it occurred after he'd been working deep-cover in Manchester trying to infiltrate a crime syndicate with links to Sun Hill. IIRC, Jim Carver and John Boulton nearly blew his cover.

Thug on the Tyne. Featuring the Get carter car park, metro land, and st Marys lighthouse

Thug on the Tyne. Featuring the Get carter car park, metro land, and st Marys lighthouse

I was working at Metroland at the time of filming.

The episode was called 'Thug on the Tyne' (how original) and I think Burnside had seconded Liz Rawlton to work with him on a case investigating gangsters on Tyneside.

Timeline-wise, I think it occurred after he'd been working deep-cover in Manchester trying to infiltrate a crime syndicate with links to Sun Hill. IIRC, Jim Carver and John Boulton nearly blew his cover.

Just been looking online to find videos/clips of the episode.
Struggling... Every other episode seems to be there, apart from the two that made up Thug on the Tyne.

I had moved away from Birtley by the time the episodes were made, but often used to see them filming when I was visiting family etc.
Ended up working with the wife of someone who worked at FCC.

They repeat episodes on Drama - haven't seen it for a few weeks, but Ted Roach came back and made a guest appearance.
If you can work out when that was, it may give a clue as to whether Thug on the Tyne is due to be shown sooner, rather than later.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EuZpjllJ-U0

This episode was on a month or two ago too

Just been looking online to find videos/clips of the episode.
Struggling... Every other episode seems to be there, apart from the two that made up Thug on the Tyne.

I had moved away from Birtley by the time the episodes were made, but often used to see them filming when I was visiting family etc.
Ended up working with the wife of someone who worked at FCC.

They repeat episodes on Drama - haven't seen it for a few weeks, but Ted Roach came back and made a guest appearance.
If you can work out when that was, it may give a clue as to whether Thug on the Tyne is due to be shown sooner, rather than later.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=EuZpjllJ-U0

This episode was on a month or two ago too

I'm sure the Ted Roach return episode happened sometime after Thug on the Tyne. If I recall, Roach tried to offer Jim Carver a drink while he was still in recovery for his alcoholism. When Carver and Boulton uncovered Burnside in Manchester, Carver was still a DC. In this episode, I think he's back in uniform.

Watched Thug on the Tyne just recently. It's been shown on drama already, may be upcoming on watch? If they are still showing epsiodes I record them everyday on drama (but I am about 30-40 epsiodes behind!)

New thread started for The Bill posts taken from the GCT thread.

I've noted on my Sky planner that I still have Thug on the Tyne part 1 and part 2 recorded. Can anyone recommend a way I can record them to a computer and I'll send them to anyone that is interested?

As this forum contains a rather surprising amount of fans of 'The Bill', I was wondering how everyone came to appreciate the series.

I have to admit that I had no time for The Bill in my adolescent years. My parents used to watch it but I thought it was rather boring. It was not until my early-20s when I started to the show on a regular basis. And the main reason for that was because it always seemed to be on UK Gold no matter what hour of the day I happened to switch on my television. After a while I started to enjoy it before actively seeking past episodes on the net.

As this forum contains a rather surprising amount of fans of 'The Bill', I was wondering how everyone came to appreciate the series.

I have to admit that I had no time for The Bill in my adolescent years. My parents used to watch it but I thought it was rather boring. It was not until my early-20s when I started to the show on a regular basis. And the main reason for that was because it always seemed to be on UK Gold no matter what hour of the day I happened to switch on my television. After a while I started to enjoy it before actively seeking past episodes on the net.

I have always liked it, even when I was younger.
No particular reason why, there was just something about it.

Would never rush home or make the effort to record it, but if I was at home and I had no plans, The Bill was often a port of call.

Finally found Thug on the Tyne online!

Here's Part 1:

Finally found Thug on the Tyne online!

Here's Part 1:

"So you thought you'd setup shop in my town eh?!"

"So you thought you'd setup shop in my town eh?!"

"Oh no, not the overdue library books again? I'll take them back tomorra I swear" - This is my favourite quote. It's when Rawton and Gosforth are pressing Rob for information about his role in Bonnett and Walker's set up.

Saul Anderson has to be one of the more ineffective criminal masterminds featured on The Bill. Perhaps his stupidity is meant to be a subtle reflection of how Londoners view the North East in general.

Here's Part Two:

Following on from the revelation that Eddie Santini from The Bill raped Kat Slater and his subsequent disappearance from our screens, it got me thinking about all of the other actors who appeared in The Bill and haven't been seen since.

Any examples of those who have made it on another show?

#missingBillactors
#hashtagsonNEB

Following on from the revelation that Eddie Santini from The Bill raped Kat Slater and his subsequent disappearance from our screens, it got me thinking about all of the other actors who appeared in The Bill and haven't been seen since.

Any examples of those who have made it on another show?

#missingBillactors
#hashtagsonNEB

I forget what his name was, but there was one of them on Casualty two weeks ago (?)
Would have been one of the more recent cast members on The Bill.
Only played a minor role - fell off some sort of building work within the first ten minutes of the ep.

I forget what his name was, but there was one of them on Casualty two weeks ago (?)
Would have been one of the more recent cast members on The Bill.
Only played a minor role - fell off some sort of building work within the first ten minutes of the ep.

Was it Smithy, as he was on Waterloo Road before Casualty.

Was it Smithy, as he was on Waterloo Road before Casualty.

Smithy was a regular for two years on Casualty before moving to Holby City earlier this year.

'Twas Andrew Lancel!

Andrew Lance - he had a massive role!
Was in CID.

Had a big role in Corrie too - before the 'allegations'

The Bill -> Corrie -> allegations/court case -> bit parts on Casualty...

Andrew Lance - he had a massive role in The Bill.
Was in CID.

Had a big role in Corrie too - before the 'allegations'

The Bill -> Corrie -> allegations/court case -> bit parts on Casualty...

Simon Rouse was DCI Jack Meadows since 92 until the end. He had a brief stint in Corrie, but hasn't been seen since.

Iain Fletcher played Rod Skase until 99, and I hadn't seen him again, until he turned up on one of these insurance adverts.

Chris Ellison played Frank Burnside for years. It would appear he's not tied down anything regular since, apart from a brief stint in Eastenders.

Todd Carty swapped fruit and veg for the Met, committed suicide, and was last seen making a pratt of himself on dancing on ice.

The fantastic Billy Murray of course played DS Don Beech. Probably one of the show's most famous characters. After leaving The Bill, and being on the two spin offs, he had a stint in Eastenders (was a massive mistake he was killed off imo). After that, he played a major part in Rise Of The Footsoldier, but not a lot since. Shame.

What about...

Ali Bastian? - Before playing Sally Armstrong in The Bill she appeared in Hollyoaks as the character Becca Dean (portraying every schoolboy's fantasy - a stunning teacher who's attracted to teenage boys). Has she done anything since?

Ditto Beth Cordingly (Kerry Young) and Melanie Gutteridge (Emma Keane) who have also seemingly disappeared into the ether.

Also, Louisa Lytton. Similar situation to Ali Bastian. Appeared in Eastenders as the daughter of Jonny Allen (Billy Murray) before joining the cast of The Bill then disappearing from our screens.

For those who have done since appearing in The Bill.

Well, you have Tom Chandler (Stephen Hartley) who is the voice of Talksport and a plethora of shows recounting police accidents.

Jim Carver (Mark Wingett) has appeared in EastEnders as the father of Mickey and Dawn Miller.

June Ackland (Trudie Goodwin) gets regular work in Emmerdale.

Was flicking around the channels earlier on and an episode of Bread was on one of the channels.
It was never a favourite, but gave it a few mins and one of the first people to appear, was the fella who played Jack Meadows.

He was playing a scouse gangster and was dressed like a pimp in his fur coat.

An ep which has just sprung to mind... Does anyone remember the ep when one of the coppers was in a garden, disarming a bomb? Sure he couldn't move or he'd be blown up - or something like that - so he had to disarm the bomb himself.

Was flicking around the channels earlier on and an episode of Bread was on one of the channels.
It was never a favourite, but gave it a few mins and one of the first people to appear, was the fella who played Jack Meadows.

He was playing a scouse gangster and was dressed like a pimp in his fur coat.

I remember watching that episode some time ago.

He definitely makes a better copper than some two-bit scouse gangster.

An ep which has just sprung to mind... Does anyone remember the ep when one of the coppers was in a garden, disarming a bomb? Sure he couldn't move or he'd be blown up - or something like that - so he had to disarm the bomb himself.

I don't remember that episode at all. 

It sounds like one of the bombs Jeff Bridges had to diffuse in the 1994 film Blown Away.

I don't remember that episode at all. 

It sounds like one of the bombs Jeff Bridges had to diffuse in the 1994 film Blown Away.

Wish I could remember more of it to describe the episode in more detail... It must have been a more recent one, providing I haven't mistaken it for something else...

I don't remember that episode at all. 

It sounds like one of the bombs Jeff Bridges had to diffuse in the 1994 film Blown Away.

Was thinking of The Hurt Locker

Wish I could remember more of it to describe the episode in more detail... It must have been a more recent one, providing I haven't mistaken it for something else...

Could it be this episode?

Manson reluctantly agrees to Sam's requests to hire a profiler to help catch Sun Hill's serial rapist. Sam and profiler Dr Hugh Wallis review the cases and the locations, and conclude that the perpetrator knows the area very well. Gabriel's vigilante actions on the Cole Lane Estate spiral out of control when he arranges for a skinhead gang to attack two black youths as revenge for mugging an elderly Asian lady. With his former allies on the estate turning against him, he must act quickly to ensure his involvement is not discovered. Sheelagh is in court on the case of a drink-driving Rastafarian she arrested for refusing a blood test, and is humiliated when the case is thrown out of court, and she is accused of racism and insensitivity to the man's religious beliefs. Advocate Jerome Taylor alerts the Borough Commander to the case, and Okaro is forced to offer Sheelagh a choice between transfer or demotion. Honey and Cameron attend to a man dressed as a bear protesting for fathers' rights. Cameron realises the man has booby-trapped his ex-wife's house, and Sheelagh risks her life to defuse the bombs he has hidden. With the situation literally defused, Cameron and Honey continue their patrol, but are horrified when a car containing two small children rolls into the Thames in front of them.

Was thinking of The Hurt Locker

Never seen it.