The Sandbaggers (1978)

Name: The Sandbaggers
Rating: 8.2

Rating: 8.2

Synopsis

The Sandbaggers is a British television drama series about men and women on the front lines of the Cold War. Set contemporaneously with its original broadcast on ITV in 1978 and 1980, The Sandbaggers examines the effect of the espionage game on the personal and professional lives of British and American intelligence specialists.

First Air Date: 1978-09-18

Last Air Date: 1980-07-28

Number of Seasons: 3

Number of Episodes: 20

Created By: Ian Mackintosh

Networks: ITV1

View Technical Specifications on IMDb

Top Cast

Roy Marsden as Neil Burnside
Ray Lonnen as Willie Caine
Jerome Willis as Matthew Peele
Bob Sherman as Jeff Ross
Alan MacNaughtan as Sir Geoffrey Wellingham
Michael Cashman as Mike Wallace
Richard Vernon as C
Elizabeth Bennett as Diane Lawler
Terry Pearson as APSO (uncredited)
Sue Holderness as Marianne Straker

Seasons

Series 1 (1978)

Series 2 (1980)

Series 3 (1980)

Series 1 (1978)

No overview available for this season.

Episodes:

Ep. 1: First Principles (1978-09-18)

In Westminster there stands a drab building, peopled by ambitious men wielding great power in total secrecy, Among its staff are Neil Burnside and Willis Caine, for whom the Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) is not just a way of life, but life itself. Neil Burnside, the Director of Operations SIS, objects to sending his best agents, the Sandbaggers, on a mission into Russia for Norway's Secret Service.
Ep. 2: A Proper Function of Government (1978-09-25)

When Sir Donald Hopkins, a top government advisor, is unexpectedly seen in Vienna, it is suspected that he intends to defect. The Sandbaggers are sent to Vienna to keep tabs on him. Meanwhile, an East African dictator has been executing British citizens, and SIS has put together a proposal for his assassination.
Ep. 3: Is Your Journey Really Necessary? (1978-10-02)

Alan Denson threatens to quit the Sandbaggers after a rough, unauthorized assassination mission near the Soviet border, so Burnside applies pressure to Denson's fiancee.
Ep. 4: The Most Suitable Person (1978-10-09)

There has never been a woman in SIS's Special Operations Section, but with only one Sandbagger left to him, Burnside faces a crisis. The Training School can offer no one... except the enigmatic Laura Dickens. Sandbagger One Willie Caine goes to Gibraltar to investigate the murder of an SIS agent, and the new potential Sandbagger Laura Dickens goes to Morocco to get more clues in the case.
Ep. 5: Always Glad to Help (1978-10-16)

Laura Dickens is assigned to find out where an Arab sheik's sympathies lie, while Burnside clashes with Deputy Chief Matthew Peele and the Ministry of Defence over a covert scuba-diving operation.
Ep. 6: A Feasible Solution (1978-10-23)

Caine and an agent fresh out of field school, go to Cyprus on the trail of some missing rocket scientists, while Neil lets his romantic guard down at home.
Ep. 7: Special Relationship (1978-10-30)

Laura Dickens is the most qualified agent for a risky mission in East Berlin and Burnside has to double-deal to make sure her presence there won't pose other security risks as well.