Call Me Mister

The BBC in the 1980s were always on the lookout for another Shoestring or Bergerac. A quirky private eye series that manages to hook the viewers.

Call Me Mister starred Australian Steve Bisley as Jack Bartholomew, the elder son of a titled family who left England as a young man to become a cop in Australia. When his father dies he inherits the title, but has no interest in using it or being part of the family business. Instead he becomes a private detective getting involved in a different case each week while his estranged family try to get back control from him.

Critics were against this series from the start, one of the reasons being no matter how long you have been away from the UK, an aristocrat would never lose his English accent never mind adopt an Aussie one.

The family rivalry plot was dull and rather aped Dallas/Dynasty which were popular dramas of the period. The plots were interesting and quirky enough, there was some nice sparring between Bisley and Dermot Crowley who played a police detective. Most fans would now remember the show for an early appearance by Marina Sirtis clad in lingerie but it is a shame there was no second series.