Michael Pate
Matlock Police (1971)
Season 1
Matlock Police is an Australian television police drama series made by Crawford Productions for the 0-10 Network between 1970 and 1975. The series was the 0-10 Network's attempt to come up with a police show to rival Homicide and Division 4. Matlock Police was different from its Melbourne-based predecessors by being set in a small country town, the fictional Matlock, Victoria. Series writers had a reference manual giving full details of the town’s geography, amenities, social structure, etc., as well as that of the surrounding area - neighbouring towns included Wilga, Chinaman's Creek, Possum's Creek and Burrabri, and there was an offshoot of the Great Dividing Range called the Candowies. The town's colourful history included the local Aboriginal tribe, the town founder, a gold rush, a bushranger and a town patriarchy. About the only landmark the Matlock district lacked for dramatic purposes was a beach.
Released Feb. 24, 1971
Episode 60 min
None+
S1E1 - Twenty Six Hours
Matlock's town matriarch, Grace Falconer, is brutally attacked and robbed. Suspects include a group of hippies who become involved in town affairs when a local girl's horse is shot, two yobbos on a hunting trip who are found trespassing, and a handyman recently sacked by Mrs. Falconer - who refuses to account for his movements on the night in question.
Feb. 25, 1971, midnight
S1E2 - The Big Gun
Local tough guy Brownie Merkle becomes the prime suspect in the murder of a man and the disappearance of another when he suddenly begins paying his debts, and Det. Sgt. Maddern finds his attention diverted from his marital problems.
March 4, 1971, midnight
S1E3 - Goodbye Tuesday
The search for a trio of prison escapees, Carol Price, Judy Bennett and Bob Pollard, endangers many lives when searchers and escapees alike are caught in a bushfire.
March 11, 1971, midnight
S1E4 - End Of The Season
March 18, 1971, midnight
S1E5 - Something After Death
March 25, 1971, midnight
S1E6 - One Good Turn
April 1, 1971, midnight
S1E7 - A Bit Of Freedom
April 8, 1971, midnight
S1E8 - Cast A Black Shadow
April 15, 1971, midnight
S1E9 - Cradle Song
April 22, 1971, midnight
S1E10 - Rhythm And Blues
April 29, 1971, midnight
S1E11 - Pressure Point
May 6, 1971, midnight
S1E12 - The Outsiders
May 13, 1971, midnight
S1E13 - The Word Is Progress
May 20, 1971, midnight
S1E14 - The Crunch
May 25, 1971, midnight
S1E15 - Tightrope
June 3, 1971, midnight
S1E16 - Heroes Day
June 10, 1971, midnight
S1E17 - The Hunting Ground
June 17, 1971, midnight
S1E18 - A Second Opinion
June 24, 1971, midnight
S1E19 - Hideaway
July 1, 1971, midnight
S1E20 - The Price of Anger
July 8, 1971, midnight
S1E21 - The Gypsies
July 15, 1971, midnight
S1E22 - Cross Purposes
July 22, 1971, midnight
S1E23 - Early One Morning
July 29, 1971, midnight
S1E24 - Olsen's Ghost
Aug. 5, 1971, midnight
S1E25 - Escape To Nowhere
Aug. 12, 1971, midnight
S1E26 - A Case of Neglect
Aug. 19, 1971, midnight
S1E27 - Millbank Nugget
Aug. 26, 1971, midnight
S1E28 - The Loner
A mysterious hermit, has lived in a shack outside Matlock for seven months. Suddenly, his past and present catch up with him, when he is terrorised by three local youths. When one is accidentally blinded, Chip Richardson burns down Herman's shack and later blames him for the accident. Herman takes off in panic and the police mount an intensive search for him.
Sept. 2, 1971, midnight
S1E29 - The Milk And Honey Man
Sept. 2, 1971, midnight
S1E30 - No Way Out
A motel robbery and the death of a young police constable in a car accident lead to the revelation of several Matlock townspeople's personal conflicts.
Sept. 16, 1971, midnight
S1E31 - Still Life
Matlock police investigate a complaint of carnal knowledge involving an itinerant artist and a young girl, but the accused has his own way of extricating himself from the situation.
Sept. 23, 1971, midnight
S1E32 - Smoke Screen
The Matlock saw-millers are a tough breed, but the builders of a new dam claim to be even tougher, A series of ugly incidents lead the two groups towards a violent showdown.
Sept. 30, 1971, midnight
S1E33 - The Champ
A broken down ex-heavyweight boxer, Dan Regan, is in Matlock on a sinister assignment. Unforseen events cause Regan's past, present and future to meet head-on in the biggest battle of his career.
Oct. 7, 1971, midnight
S1E34 - Jimmy Woodser
An important businessman, Eric Schneider, wants to set up a deal with a Matlock company. However, when he is arrested for assaulting a young girl, public feelings rise up against Det. Curtis who may have made a serious mistake. Schneider, with his lawyer Harrison, puts his money and his pressure in the right places to beat the charge.
Oct. 14, 1971, midnight
S1E35 - Compassionate Leave
When Johnny Marcelli returns from the Vietnam war on compassionate leave, he is told that his father has committed suicide. He refuses to believe it and sets out to solve the mystery.
Oct. 21, 1971, midnight
S1E36 - The End of the Road
The investigation of a series of wool thefts in the Matlock District uncover the problems of one of the suspects, and provide some surprises for the police - especially Cont. Hogan.
Oct. 28, 1971, midnight
S1E37 - A Piece of Cake
Ron Grey, an ex-Spitfire pilot embarks on a dubious mission as a courier to gain some quick money, because he only has a few years of active life lift - he is a chronic diabetic who keeps coma and semi-blindness at bay with insulin shots. While flying a light aircraft with his girlfriend Betty Holmes, the plane strikes trouble and they have to crash land in the Candowie Rangers. When the plane is found by a police search party, they discover that Gray and Holmes both fled into the bush.
Nov. 4, 1971, midnight
S1E38 - The Foreigners
A feud among some Albanian immigrants in Matlock starts to get out of hand, and police are soon investigating an attempted murder.
Nov. 11, 1971, midnight
S1E39 - Give A Man A Gun
Nov. 11, 1971, midnight
S1E40 - Any More at Home Like You
When salesman Frank Ross finds himself in serious financial difficulties, he takes an illegal way out and starts an unexpected chain of events that bring surprise to the Matlock police.
Nov. 25, 1971, midnight
S1E41 - The Break
Dec. 2, 1971, midnight
Network: 10
Episode Runtime: 60 min.
Season Runtime: 60 min.
Released: Feb. 24, 1971
Last Air Date: April 15, 1976, midnight
Status: Ended
Certification: NR
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