Talk:The Bill/Archive 1

Archive - up to December 26 2006

Character list

The list of character as some are blank and others have full biographies. Something needs to be done about them.

There doesn't appear to be much order to the character lists - some are alphabetical but others aren't. Would it be worthwhile also listing uniformed officers' (i.e. sergeants and PCs) callsigns? I wouldn't list the others as inspectors, CIs, Superintendents, and CID tended to have "generic" callsigns. - Bricks J. Winzer 05:07, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

CID callsigns are simply their rank and name (e.g. "Sierra Oscar from DS Nixon"). Senior uniformed officers, on the other hand, do have callsigns - the duty inspector is "Sierra Oscar 1" and the Superintendent "Sierra Oscar 54".--Marks87 01:35, 15 May 2006 (UTC)

Not in the old days. In early seasons of The Bill (i.e. 1984-86), DI Roy Galloway was SO 33 and SO 30 - both confirmed by speech. With the latter, Galloway is talking to CS Brownlow over the radio and he clearly says "Sierra Oscar 48 from 30". DS Roach was SO 39 and DC Mike Dashwood was SO 22... but those may have corresponded more to the CID pool cars. However, they used those call signs if on foot. - Bricks J. Winzer 11:26, 18 May 2006 (UTC)

I have added the word "Constables" to the end of the subtitles "Uniform" and "CID" to indicate that the characters listed below are just the uniform constables and the CID constables and not the whole of CID or Uniform - this is because CID and Uniform both include the Sergeants (listed above those sections) and some of the "Senior Officers".

Number of Episodes

How many episodes of the bill have there been? MT

I don't know, but the new ones are bloody awful. Its like some cheesy American daytime soap now instead of the exciting and interesting crime drama that it was. British TV is dead.

: I can't find any exact number, but there were more than 1750 episodes prior to the Paul Marquess era. Marquess began numbering episodes (from February 2002) and the show to be broadcast this Thursday, 11 May 2006, will be number 413. So there have been between 2150 and 2200 episodes. - Bricks J. Winzer 05:07, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Inaccuracies

Can people please stop making inaccuracies when editing this section! Someone appears to have labelled Tom Chandler as "Chief Superintendent," which is clearly false.

Furthermore, there seems to be a constant change in the cast list. One moment we have officers are lablled "Const." and the next they're "DC" or "PC". Can someone please voice their opinions as to what that should be. I prefer the latter as it makes the list look cleaner.

I concur with this - if I could suggest the following are used: PC, DC, Sgt, DS, Insp, DI, Ch Insp, DCI, Supt, Det Supt, Ch Supt, DCS to cover the main ranks. Others: DAC, Cmdr, SRO, PCSO, SC... basically this is how they were noted in the credits of the show itself. I use Det Supt rather than DS because DS usually means Det Sgt. - Bricks J. Winzer 05:07, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

If "Detective Superintendant" is "Det Supt", and "Chief Superintendant" is "Ch Supt", both of which I agree with, would it not make more sense for "Detective Chief Superintendant" to be "Det Ch Supt" and not "DCS"? I think this is more logical, and if one saw "DCS", one wouldn't necessarily know what it is to start with. "Det Ch Supt" would be clearer.

Polish punk rock band

I have added info about Polish punk rock band named The Bill (which is pronounced similar to Polish 'debil', which refers to some dumb person, idiot or sth like that). That band really exists (or have once existed, I'm not sure if they still play together), see www.thebill.muzyka.pl (that site is in Polish). --83.17.26.246 17:38, 24 September 2005 (UTC)

I don't think an entirely unnotable band without an article can justify cluttering up the opening of this article. We quite simply don't need to tell our readers about this band. Your link is to a Polish forum which for those of us who don't read the language (and one wouldn't expect those who are interested in this article to be able to speak Polish) is of no use at all, SqueakBox 18:19, 24 September 2005 (UTC)

OK, sorry, I didn't want to make anything bad. However, I've created an article The Bill (band) - do with it whatever you want to. --83.17.26.246 20:15, 25 September 2005 (UTC)

I put an unobtrusive link at the bottom, SqueakBox 20:28, 25 September 2005 (UTC)

Delisted GA

There are no references. slambo 10:44, 24 October 2005 (UTC)

Reg Hollis

"Reg Hollis is one of the longest-serving characters and a living legend." This is true, but it is also POV so it has been deleted. Gary Kirk 13:29, 29 November 2005 (UTC)

Only the second bit of that statement is POV, and it is the bit that is also wide open to debate (a classic feature of POV), SqueakBox 22:23, 4 January 2006 (UTC)

Surely it could have modified to read: "Reg Hollis is one of the longest-serving characters. He enjoys legendary status amongst the show's fans".

Explanation Of Show's Title

• May I enquire, why my explanation of the show's title was Rv? After all, this is an encyclopedia and anyone hitting this article from outside of the UK, perhaps even outside ( or even in) London, would tend to think, that "The Bill", is what one is presented with, after having had dinner in The Ivy Lion King DMus 13:56, 20 December 2005 (UTC)

Vegan vandal

A known vandal, dubbed the vegan vandal, has today added information to a lot of actors stating that they were in The Bill. This user is not completely a vandal — he does sometimes add helpful categories — so I haven't reverted them on sight. But someone who knows about The Bill might like to look at these edits and assess their veracity.

Stephen Turner (Talk) 11:05, 4 January 2006 (UTC)

That's actually something that I think might be worth mentioning in the main article -- as The Bill has been running for so long and requires a few guest actors for each episode, any UK actor chosen at random has probably been in it at some point. It wasn't uncommon a few years ago to look at a theatre programme and discover that 90% of the major cast have played minor parts in The Bill. Azz 22:45, 27 February 2006 (UTC)

Bill scripts written in collaboration with the Met. Police

One of the few things I know (or purport to know) about "The Bill" is that the scripts are "written in collaboration" with the Metropolitan Police. Some would say "vetted".

Would this not be something interesting/relevant to add to this article?

I know that when casting for The Bill the make sure there's no characters who share a name with serving Metropolitan Police officers. Perhaps a short section on relations with the Metropolitan Police would be in order? --Marks87 01:39, 15 May 2006 (UTC)

The character names are vetted, but that is all I am aware of. This information is available in "The Bill - The Inside Story" by Rachel Silver. Added it to the page. JoshHolloway 00:06, 17 December 2006 (UTC)

Mickey Webb

"transferred to M.I.T., and then National Crime Squad as DS. Returned in Episode 302 to see if DI Neil Manson was a murderer][now returned to Sun Hill CID]" I have transferred this information onto a seperate article about Mickey.

Civilian Staff

Is there any point listing these characters? (StudentSteve 05:32, 26 April 2006 (UTC))

Most certainly. Robby Cryer, for example, was a major character. Computerjoe's talk 21:22, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

I wasn't referring to "Robby Cryer"(sic.) I was referring to the list featuring cleaners etc.

Well one cleaner was notable, forgot her name, but I can't see this in the article :D Computerjoe's talk 15:55, 3 May 2006 (UTC)

Maggie Barnes (or Barns - not sure on spelling) was the cleaner who was stalking Ramani Da Costa. Civilian staff, yes list them if they were recurring. - Bricks J. Winzer 05:07, 9 May 2006 (UTC)

Bob Cryer

"Cryer was seen as institution by fans and was the 'father figure' sergeant to his relief. He was shot by 'friendly fire' from the then PC (now Sgt.) Dale Smith during a hostage situation. He survived the shot, but was unfit to return to the job. He has returned for guest spots three times since his departure - once for the memorial service of Inspector Monroe, once to help his niece Roberta, then the station's front desk officer, solve a case, and again alongside Sgt. Peters for DS Roach's funeral." I have transferred this excellent biography onto Cryer's own page.

Cool! Computerjoe's talk 21:21, 28 April 2006 (UTC)

Don Beech

"Wanted for corruption, he fled abroad to Australia to escape imprisonment. He returned to organise a robbery, but was captured and imprisoned. He escaped again and is currently on the run (exact location or circumstances unknown). Reports have come in of him being sighted in the East end of London. (A reference to the fact that Billy Murray is now playing gangster Johnny Allen in EastEnders)." I've moved this onto his own page.

Needing update

What needs updating? Computerjoe's talk 18:24, 13 May 2006 (UTC)

Images?

Could someone with a PC TV tuner take some screen captures to add some flesh here? Computerjoe's talk 21:25, 13 May 2006 (UTC)

I would happilly contribute such images, but does copyright come into the equation at all? --Marks87 01:43, 15 May 2006 (UTC) (It's OK, just ignore me - I'm fairly new to Wiki!! So long as it's made clear that the images are copyrighted, we're fine.) --Marks87 01:43, 15 May 2006 (UTC)

Yes. If they are captures from TV, they are fair use under US law. Same goes for promo shots. Computerjoe's talk 09:05, 15 May 2006 (UTC)

I've added a couple of images, as well as an updated logo (captured from the final frame of the opening credits). Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot of scope for "general" screenshots in tonight's episode, but there's always next week! Marks87 22:15, 25 May 2006 (UTC)

First Sun Hill officer killed

I don't think Viv Martella was the first officer to be killed on the Bill. I'm pretty sure another officer was killed by a car bomb some years earlier. I don't want to change this though in case I'm wrong. Can anyone who knows the Bill better verify this? Richard75 16:52, 21 May 2006 (UTC)

She was the first popular, long-serving character to be killed off. Steve 03:11, 23 May 2006 (UTC)

Ken Melvin (played by Mark Powley) was the first character to be killed. He was moving a car which was blocking the car park at Sun Hill, but it had a bomb attached and went off, killing him. Taffy Edwards and Yorkie Smith returned for the funeral. Also note that more characters were killed in the last 5-6 years than in the first 15. - Bricks J. Winzer 10:32, 25 May 2006 (UTC)

Article size

Is this article getting too long?

Yeah. Why don't we put the character lists into another article/s?-- Sierra 1 00:56, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

I transferred the former characters part to a seperate article. Thetoaster3 19:11, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

The article could be shortened without the inordinate detail about the title sequence(s) Murtoa 02:58, 10 November 2006 (UTC)

Character profiles

Some more character profiles of coppers past woundn't go amiss please? --SGCommand (talk • contribs) 20:47, 7 July 2006 (UTC)

Spin-offs

I think we need to list all the spin offs. All I can remember is Burnnside, a short 6? episodes based on DI? Burnside. Apart from MIT and burnside, I thought there was atleast one more spin-off mini-series.

The Beech spinoff --SGCommand (talk • contribs) 19:33, 8 July 2006 (UTC)

"Beech Is Back". A poor name IMHO, but "Beech On The Run" was already taken, by the episode of The Bill set in Australia. And the Burnside series featured Frank as a DCI (his rank since he returned in 1998). - Bricks J. Winzer 13:54, 9 July 2006 (UTC)

Spoilers

Why do people keep deleting the spoiler warning? The spoiler warning is in case people don't know that people are leaving and don't want to know. Not everyone reads about future storylines!

Agreed. TV Genius 14:42, 19 July 2006 (UTC) Agreed. Plus, there's info which viewers might not have seen yet. 10:17, 20 July 2006 (UTC)

use of "" around live for second live episode

To the best of my knowledge theres been nothing to suggest the second live episode wasn't actually live. I've not watched The Bill other than said episode much recently (too like a soap opera, but thats a different matter...), but it seemed live enough, as well as nothing being said to suggest it wasn't. Unless someone can show that it wasn't live, the "" should be removed. --Kiand 21:15, 23 July 2006 (UTC)

The Bill Bios

Can people please stop deleting articles that I have spent time and effort writing about characters and then replacing them with articles which have been blantantly copied word for word from http://www.thebillbios.co.uk.

This is known as PLAGARISM! PLEASE STOP DOING IT! {Steve 00:59, 22 September 2006 (UTC)}

The Sniper

I'm attempting to write an article about the sniper but am happened by lack of available source. Has anyone got any information please? Steve 16:50, 9 October 2006 (UTC)

Adam

I've deleted Okaro's name from the list of current characters.

Current Characters

Hi. I have just been looking at this page, and the related List of The Bill characters and found that the current cast contains a duplicate list. Somebody has created very poor stubs and unchatagorised articles for some of the newer cast, although they are only linked from The Bill. (see PC Lewis Hardy for example). I would suggest the current cast list is removed from 'List of The Bill characters', but just put a link saying For Current cast list, see The Bill.

I suggest somebody keeps an eye on those new stubs too.

Best,

Mdcollins1984 11:56, 18 October 2006 (UTC)

Unsoucred upcoming characters

Someone has been continuously been adding unsourced characters to the Upcoming Characters, and I've searched thoroughly but have found no evidence to suggest any of them aren't made up. I've been deleting them everytime they pop up on the main page, however whoevers been adding them continues to check back and continuously do so.

Also, I've been banned over at Wiki Commons for uploading images of characters. I'm still fairly new to Wikipedia and wasn't too clear on how to prove the images I was uploading weren't copyrighted, so many of my pics have been deleted and I won't be able to add any anymore.

The Twisted Times of PC Kent

Is that really relevant enough to the show to go on the main page?

I don't think so. Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information. I've moved the full text to Talk:PC Gabriel Kent. Some of it may be useful for that particular article but it needs a lot of work before it reads like an encyclopedia entry. Any takers? --Kurt Shaped Box 03:28, 3 November 2006 (UTC)

History of The Bill

Although the history of The Bill is interesting, I think that it is not all needed on the main The Bill page. Perhaps if a new article was created, to enclose the sections "The originals", "Changing to half-hour format", "The 1998 revamp" and possibly "Serial Format (2002)" this would free up the main page a bit, without losing this valuable information. It's just that the article is meant to be generally about The Bill, and not a description of all the storylines etc that have happened down the line. What do people think?

No reply - I'll go ahead seeing as it's a standard wikipedia thing to do. Any talk about this: put it here.
--Just The Q 17:46, 18 November 2006 (UTC)

I think it's a good idea - go ahead. JoshHolloway 20:13, 23 December 2006 (UTC)