Hadleigh (TV series)


Hadleigh is a British television series that was produced by Yorkshire Television and originally ran from 1969 to 1976. Developed by Robert Barr, it was a sequel to the writer's earlier Gazette for the same company. The theme music was composed by Alan Moorhouse and, from series 3, Tony Hatch.
James Hadleigh, played by Gerald Harper, was "the perfect squire, paternalistically careful of his tenantry's welfare, beloved in the village, respected in the council." A "knight in a shining white Aston Martin V8, he sets about correcting local injustices". His wife, from a suburban middle-class background, was played by Hilary Dwyer. The series attracted around 17 million viewers at its peak.

Cast

Episodes

Gerald Harper appears as James Hadleigh in all 52 episodes.

Series 2: 1971

Note: Episodes 1, 2, 8, 9 and 13 of series two were shown in monochrome owing to the ITV Colour Strike.

Reception

The series was successful, managing to attract a massive audience, sometimes reaching as high as 17 million, during its run.

Critical response

Laurence Marcus of Television Heaven largely praised the series for Gerald Harper's performance as James Hadleigh, describing it as "uper smoothy".

Home media

Network DVD released all four series on Region 2 DVD in the United Kingdom.
DVDRelease date
The Complete Series 17 April 2008
The Complete Series 27 April 2008
The Complete Series 319 January 2009
The Complete Series 46 April 2009
The Complete Series 1 to 42 November 2009